I need to start with a full disclosure. A few months ago Carrera reached out to me. The slot car company got a hold of me through a common acquaintance, and wanted to introduce me to their product. We had a conference call, and I was a little embarrassed that I couldn’t relay any past experience with slot cars, going all the way back to my childhood.
They told me they liked my blog, and thought I might be interested in their 1/32 slot cars. I told them I didn’t do much in larger scales, but they said they would like me check them out anyway. A few days later two cars showed up:
I was blown away. I have a couple of 1/18 scale AutoArt cars, as well as a few 1/43 Ignition Model Skylines. These two cars – a classic Mustang and Le Mans-winning Ford GT – look just as good. Except they do a whole lot more than sit on a desk looking pretty. They race.
A few days later a very large track arrived. It has sat in its box since then, as I have tried to figure out how to set it up in my little space. Then one day, a good friend of mine, Chad Carnesecca, saw the track and asked about it. We came up with a great solution. Let’s take it to his house.
You may remember Chad’s son, Ethan. A few years ago I wrote about Ethan’s love for Hot Wheels cars. He was 2 going on 3 then, and was dealing with a serious medical issue in the hospital. After I wrote about the impact the little cars had on Ethan’s recovery, the craziest of things happened. Many of you started sending cars to Ethan, encouraging him to keep on recovering. The press got word of the story, and soon news channels, magazines, and newspapers were reporting on the story. Richard Petty sent a gift, Mattel made Ethan a car which was hand delivered to Utah by Hot Wheels Designer Phil Riehlman. It remains to this day one of the coolest developments I have ever seen as a collector, and speaks to how cool collectors can be.
Many of those cars have since been donated to others in need, but Ethan is a car person for life. He has four Carney wall displays in his room, full of all kinds of cool stuff, from Matchbox National Parks models to Hot Wheels Porsches and BMWs, tho of his favorites. And yes, he is in first grade now and in great health.
So when Chad said we should set up the track at his house and film some footage, I was all in. Chad took the track home, and we worked on finding a time for me to come over. It had to be soon, because little Ethan turned on the charm, and insisted on getting me there so we could break out the track.
It finally happened last week. Ms. Lamley and my 12-year-old went over to the Carneseccas and we build the track and had a blast. Carrera’s 132 Digital track is so cool. The headlights on the cars light up, and it was a blast to race them.
It is still hard to think about where Carrera will fit with Lamley, as 1/64 is what I do, but man was this fun.
I want to hear from you. Are you into slot cars? What do you think of these? And do you want to see more on Lamley? Carrera thinks many of you would have a blast with their product, and I see why. What do you think?
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