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Q&A With Bobby Phillips, The Founder Of Rcsignup.

Q&A With Bobby Phillips, The Founder Of Rcsignup.

If you have ever signed up for an RC race online, there’s a good chance you did it through the service, Rcsignup.com. This online organizational godsend has helped many tracks and shops streamline their RC race registrations so that we can all spend more time on racing than dealing with the headache of registering. Thank them for saving you hours in standing in line to register for an event. We recently had the opportunity to catch up with Rcsignup.com’s founder, Bobby Phillips, to see how he came to create the registration service, learn a little more about his past, present and also take a peek into his future.

RCCA: How and when did you come to start Rcsignup?

BP: I started Rcsignup more than a decade ago as a way for locals to spend less time standing in line registering for races. At the time, we had a single-day, nitro series in Florida that regularly pulled in 200-plus entries and it took hours to register. Having spent a large majority of my adult life building web applications, creating an online race registration site seemed logical. The first versions of the site were only meant to be used for a few local races, but my wife recommended expanding the site so everyone could use it. I complied.

RCCA: What does Rcsignup specialize in?

BP: Rcsignup specializes in convenience. From the very beginning, the concept of the site was to provide a simple way for racers to register for events online prior to getting to the track. Additionally, collecting the race entries before the event was tremendously helpful to the Event Coordinators as well because that gave the time beforehand to enter the racers.

This was at the beginning of the new generation of lap counting software and most tracks still needed to manually insert their entries into their respective systems. Most tracks back then didn’t even have Wifi at the tracks. So having entries available a week or two before the event saved a ton of time at the event. As the lap clouting software evolved, so did Rcsignup, and the site now helps tracks import entries directly in to their lap counting software in order to provide further convenience.

RCCA: What types of RC do you enjoy the most?

BP: I’m a very competitive person and I enjoyed all forms of RC car racing but 10th-scale electric off-road was my favorite. It’s been a number of years since I raced competitively, but I still play around with a couple of minis and a crawler when I am not upgrading Rcsignup.

Which is your favorite RC vehicle and why?

RCCA:

BP: My favorite RC vehicle ever was the Jconcepts J82. It was a kit that converted an Associated RC10T4 to a buggy and it was amazing. I was never that good racing electric 2WD buggy, but 10th scale trucks were easier to drive and the J82 took that a step further. It gave you the look of a buggy with the drivability of a truck. Sold! RCCA: WHAT WE LOVE YOUR FIRST RC VEHICLE

BP: My very first R/C vehicle was an Associated 12L. I was fortunate enough to have a banked, concrete oval a few minutes from my house and that was how I became addicted to RC racing.

What are two must have upgrades you would

RCCA: recommend for any RC?

BP: From an RC racing prospective, I think it really depends on what classes you are racing. If you are racing stock classes, you may want to upgrade your cars or trucks with lighter components in order to save weight. If you are racing mod classes, perhaps upgrade your electrical components in order to support the high power motors. But, the best upgrade you can make is PRACTICE. Use Rcsignup to find races in your area and go to as many as you can.

What future projects for Rcsignup can you tell

RCCA: us about?

BP: The future for Rcsignup is very exciting. There are numerous modifications and enhancements that are planned for the coming months that will make Rcsignup more useful and valuable to both racers and tracks. Rcsignup is the largest race registration site on the internet and we plan on leveraging that in order to provide the users with a better utility.

Is there anything else you want to let our

RCCA: readers know?

BP: I just want to let every one of the tens of thousands of racers and tracks that use Rcsignup on a daily basis that I am sincerely grateful. Since the beginning, Rcsignup has facilitated more than 275,000 race registrations for tracks around the world and that wouldn’t be possible without the loyal support of the users. Thank you! Learn more about Rcsignup by visiting their website at rcsignup.com