My First ARRC, A Love Story
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From: Plotting My Revenge
My First ARRC, A Love Story
I've been to many, but this was my first as a driver. I will now be doing this every year if I can help it. It was just incredible.
There were lots of great races, but I'm just focusing on my little ITC bubble for now.
Qualifying was two 20 minute sessions on Friday, best time sets you on the grid. I went out in the morning session and did my usual, drove around quickly, but not nearly aggressively enough. I had no rabbit to chase and ended up in the high 1:53s. Respectable for ITC, but about 1.5 seconds off what it takes to run up front at the ARRC.
At this point I sat down with myself and made the conscious decision to crank it up a notch. This was the infamous "I'm willing to take it home in several Uhaul boxes if necessary" internal discussion we amatuer racers sometimes have. I decided that I was going to run up front dammit, if I needed some boxes after the race, so be it.
I went to grid for 2nd qualifying near Vesa Silegren and Will Perry (both are 2 time winners of this race). I let Vesa around me on lap 1 and went into chase and draft mode. I chased him from turn 1 to 7, making me faster, and pushed him down the back straight, making us both faster. Perry hooked up with an ITB car for a few laps and ran away from us.
The end result was a good one. Perry had the pole by nearly a second (but we were confident much of that was fortunate drafting), Vesa was in P2, Gareth Rebstock sat 3rd, and yours truly sat on the outside of row 2. I was glad to be there, but I have to admit that it was kind of intimidating. The first 2 rows contained 6 ARRC championships, including the zero I was contributing. Add to this that Chuck Reynolds and Jinx Jordan sat on the row behind me, and you understand why I slept maybe 10 minutes on Friday night.
Race day dawned with absolutely perfect weather. The high was about 70 with a totally cloudless sky. I hadn't slept at all but was so hopped up on adrenalin that it wasn't bothering me at all.
The race itself would be a split start, with ITB taking the green about 30 seconds ahead of us. This was a GREAT way to start a race, with nothing around you but cars in your own class.
With Chuck behind me in the bitchin' Scirocco, I knew I had to get a great start because he could outpower us all. Well, I did, but I had nowhere to go with it, so I just pushed Vesa into the lead from the outside and fell into 3rd behind Perry in turn 1.
The rest of the race shook out like this...
Chuck came on through as expected, using the Scirocco's horsepower to muscle by at the end of the straights. He got by me late in turn 1, and I tried a crossover move in vain as the VW just murdered me up the hill. He got to the front at the end of the back straight.
Silegren hung in the front pack of 5 for several laps before falling off the pace. He had less motor than the rest of us and a slight aero disadvantage, so without a drafting partner he got hung out to dry and fell back to the 2nd pack of three cars.
And then there were four.
Things were incredibly intense for the entire 20 laps. There was never a time to relax or take a break. Of the 4 cars in the front, the Scirocco had superior HP but was terrible under braking and wasn't handling all that well. The two CRXs of Perry and Rebstock handled very well, especially in the slower corners. I had great handling, great brakes, and great top end speed, but gave up significant ground in the slower turns 7 and 10 due to my terrible gearing. What this all added up to was constant position changing everywhere on the track. I was constantly either under attack or attacking or both simultaneously. My position often ranged anywhere from 1st to 4th all in one lap... lap after lap after lap.
Amazingly, through all of this the only contact (other than bump drafting) took place between Rebstock and I in turn 7 and was just a minor donut on my door that will likely buff out. Proving once again that good, hard racing can be done cleanly (sorry for the brief step up on the soapbox).
On lap seventeen of twenty the 4 of us were still in a tight pack, and started down the esses into turn 5 with Reynolds leading followed by Rebstock, Perry and I. Then, Bang, the Scirocco broke a halfshaft entering 5. Being in 4th worked to my advantage as both Perry and Rebstock had to check up to keep from collecting the VW. All of us fanned out and came over the hill 4 wide (with the crippled VW on the inside and me on the outside) for the drag race down to turn 6. I won it, and hit the back straight in 1st place with a little over 2 to go. It wouldn't last long though, as all of my very smart and experienced competitors had learned that they could easily pass me exiting turn 10b up the hill to the bridge due to my craptastic gearbox. Rebstock tucked into my draft down the back straight and, as expected, owned me coming under the bridge. I tucked up on his bumper through 12 and layed my bumper on his all the way down the front straight. Thats when we both made our only mistakes of the race, entering turn 1 too hot, he trying to guard the inside and me trying to get a great run up the hill to pass him in turn 3. He got completely sideways just past the apex, but incredibly enough caught it. I just plain overcooked the turn and ran out of track at the exit, going four off and driving up the hill in the dirt. Perry, naturally, took advantage of this to grab 2nd place.
Thats how things stayed for the last lap, With Rebstock taking the hard fought win, Perry 2nd. Me 3rd.
Jinx Jordan was 4th. Followed by Silegren in 5th.
I got my Hoosier hat and neckband (runoffs style). An awesome trophy. And a champagne bath. I also bagged several hundred dollars worth of contingency prizes. Excellent stuff. I had an absolute ball, and was still adrenalin pumped well into the evening.
Now for the Enduro (AKA: "Torque Stick BAD")
Renee and I split the 45 minute qualifying Sunday morning with the plan of me putting down a good time first to put the car solidly in the field and Renee, having never raced at RA before (and only having ever done one DE there), using the rest of the session as practice. The field was large, with 66 cars taking the green in qualifying, so space was at a premium. Amazingly enough, I found myself in a gap on the track on my first hot lap, I went for it, and brought the car in once Karl showed me the "1:52.5" on the pit board. A time that was good enough for the class pole on such a crowded track. Chuck had no such luck in the (now repaired) Scirocco, and never got a clean one.
Renee then proceeded to go out and in typical Renee fashion just plain burn it down. Having never driven this car on that track, she started out running lap times over the 2 minute mark. Then 58s. Then 56s, then, WOW... 54.1. That would have been good enough for mid pack in the sprint race and would have qualified us 2nd for the enduro without me ever getting in the car. It was a big fat punking for me as well, given that the first time I ever drove the car at Road Atlanta the best I could do was 57s. No, she doesn't much suck at this stuff.
It was a 3 hour, 2 minimum stop race. We were concerned with this as my car fuel starves at 1/2 tank of gas, and we'd never run it an hour before. We thought it'd make it though (and it would've). The plan, as is so often the case, was tossed in the first 30 minutes. First, only a few laps into the race a Spec Miata spun in front of me in turn 5. I checked up, the guy behind me didn't, and I got punted off into the gravel trap. By the time I got unstuck and rolling again I was at the back of the pack. I made up a few spots, working my way back up to 2nd in class, when an ITB car went off track left in front of me, came back on as I passed, and tagged me in the left rear. It wasn't hard, but it was enough of a hit to cause a moment of distress. Later in the same lap as I made the hard right hander into turn 7 the rear of the car completely came out from under me and I had to dig deep into the talent vault to save it. Now I'm worried that the B car hit my left rear and toed it out, or my earlier off into the gravel has broken something that just reared its head. I kept it out for one more lap, but the handling was going away fast along with a growing vibration. Turn 7 again, much less aggressive, and the car snap spins. I bring it in.
Radios would have been great here, as I'm coming in 30 minutes early and the crew isn't ready. They didn't even see me coming until I was pretty much in the pit box. This made for a disaster of a stop.
Renee and I gassed the car while Chris and Perry Degionne visually inspected the underside (can't work on it while fueling, but you can look at it). While I buckled Renee in, the crew crawled all over the car looking for the problem. The B car had missed the tire, air pressures were good, nothing appeared to be broke. Perry decided to check the lug nuts... BINGO.
We had used a Snap On impact with a torque stick to install the wheels, and the left rear had come loose (never again... nope... thats my last use of a torque stick EVER). All of the wheels were kind of loose, but the LR was finger tight at best.
We got the stop done under the 5 minute minimum, and Renee went out and had no handling issues, so were still OK, except that we are now WAY off our fuel strategy and in last place with a little over 2.25 hours to go.
Renee ran a great stint, staying out of trouble, taking care of the car, and running times that were as fast as any C car on the track. After everyone cycled through their first stops we were back up to 3rd place in class, and she passed the lead VW of Reynolds/Puckett to put us on the lead lap. The plan was to stretch her until she started fuel starving, but bad luck bit us in the *** again. The brake light came on and it spooked her. The car still seemed fine, but we'd never discussed this before and she didn't know how to handle it (again, radios would have saved the day). She played it safe and brought the car in. Again, it was an unplanned stop and we weren't ready (was actually just walking back from the port-a-potty). By the time we sorted the fiasco out, refueled and verified that the brake system was fine, we only had time to change the two right side tires. I left the pits with a stuffed tank of gas, the same LF tire that started the race, and almost a full 1.5 hours remaining. We were also in last place again. Things didn't look good.
I went into the full fuel conservation mode. short shifting the car whenever possible while trying to make up as much ground on track as I could.
At the 2 hour mark the leading Scirocco broke again and parked in turn 5. I passed some cars, just doing whatever I could, and the other cars all made their 2nd pit stops. Suddenly Karl is showing me a pit board that says "P1."
So... I've got about 30 minutes to go. My LF tire is melting. I'm in first place. And I'm running out of gas. Very dramatic to say the least.
We get a full course yellow for a wrecked VW in the esses. Do I come in for fuel (and you can't do a "splash and go" as the driver has to be out of the car to refuel. So even under yellow we'd likely lose a lap) or do I stay out driving around in 4th gear to save fuel and hold first place??? I decide to stay out.
In the end it didn't matter, as the eventual winner was lucky enough to have been doing his 2nd stop when the double yellow flew and didn't lose the extra lap everyone else lost on their stops. With about 5 minutes to go, and my car starving so bad it was just about stopping in turns 7 and 10, he passed me for the lead.
I was pretty frustrated and disappointed after the race, but in retrospect to still finish in 2nd place after being punted, spinning, almost losing a wheel, and running out of gas is something to be pretty proud of. Those 4 free Hoosiers would've been nice, but we'll try for those again next year.
Thanks to Karl, Ryan and Zsolt for the crew help. The "Cajun Crew" for some just plain stupid good food for 3 straight days, Gregg Baker from Isaac, the OPM crew as usual... Everybody. It was awesome.
Scott, already looking forward to ARRC 2005.
There were lots of great races, but I'm just focusing on my little ITC bubble for now.
Qualifying was two 20 minute sessions on Friday, best time sets you on the grid. I went out in the morning session and did my usual, drove around quickly, but not nearly aggressively enough. I had no rabbit to chase and ended up in the high 1:53s. Respectable for ITC, but about 1.5 seconds off what it takes to run up front at the ARRC.
At this point I sat down with myself and made the conscious decision to crank it up a notch. This was the infamous "I'm willing to take it home in several Uhaul boxes if necessary" internal discussion we amatuer racers sometimes have. I decided that I was going to run up front dammit, if I needed some boxes after the race, so be it.
I went to grid for 2nd qualifying near Vesa Silegren and Will Perry (both are 2 time winners of this race). I let Vesa around me on lap 1 and went into chase and draft mode. I chased him from turn 1 to 7, making me faster, and pushed him down the back straight, making us both faster. Perry hooked up with an ITB car for a few laps and ran away from us.
The end result was a good one. Perry had the pole by nearly a second (but we were confident much of that was fortunate drafting), Vesa was in P2, Gareth Rebstock sat 3rd, and yours truly sat on the outside of row 2. I was glad to be there, but I have to admit that it was kind of intimidating. The first 2 rows contained 6 ARRC championships, including the zero I was contributing. Add to this that Chuck Reynolds and Jinx Jordan sat on the row behind me, and you understand why I slept maybe 10 minutes on Friday night.
Race day dawned with absolutely perfect weather. The high was about 70 with a totally cloudless sky. I hadn't slept at all but was so hopped up on adrenalin that it wasn't bothering me at all.
The race itself would be a split start, with ITB taking the green about 30 seconds ahead of us. This was a GREAT way to start a race, with nothing around you but cars in your own class.
With Chuck behind me in the bitchin' Scirocco, I knew I had to get a great start because he could outpower us all. Well, I did, but I had nowhere to go with it, so I just pushed Vesa into the lead from the outside and fell into 3rd behind Perry in turn 1.
The rest of the race shook out like this...
Chuck came on through as expected, using the Scirocco's horsepower to muscle by at the end of the straights. He got by me late in turn 1, and I tried a crossover move in vain as the VW just murdered me up the hill. He got to the front at the end of the back straight.
Silegren hung in the front pack of 5 for several laps before falling off the pace. He had less motor than the rest of us and a slight aero disadvantage, so without a drafting partner he got hung out to dry and fell back to the 2nd pack of three cars.
And then there were four.
Things were incredibly intense for the entire 20 laps. There was never a time to relax or take a break. Of the 4 cars in the front, the Scirocco had superior HP but was terrible under braking and wasn't handling all that well. The two CRXs of Perry and Rebstock handled very well, especially in the slower corners. I had great handling, great brakes, and great top end speed, but gave up significant ground in the slower turns 7 and 10 due to my terrible gearing. What this all added up to was constant position changing everywhere on the track. I was constantly either under attack or attacking or both simultaneously. My position often ranged anywhere from 1st to 4th all in one lap... lap after lap after lap.
Amazingly, through all of this the only contact (other than bump drafting) took place between Rebstock and I in turn 7 and was just a minor donut on my door that will likely buff out. Proving once again that good, hard racing can be done cleanly (sorry for the brief step up on the soapbox).
On lap seventeen of twenty the 4 of us were still in a tight pack, and started down the esses into turn 5 with Reynolds leading followed by Rebstock, Perry and I. Then, Bang, the Scirocco broke a halfshaft entering 5. Being in 4th worked to my advantage as both Perry and Rebstock had to check up to keep from collecting the VW. All of us fanned out and came over the hill 4 wide (with the crippled VW on the inside and me on the outside) for the drag race down to turn 6. I won it, and hit the back straight in 1st place with a little over 2 to go. It wouldn't last long though, as all of my very smart and experienced competitors had learned that they could easily pass me exiting turn 10b up the hill to the bridge due to my craptastic gearbox. Rebstock tucked into my draft down the back straight and, as expected, owned me coming under the bridge. I tucked up on his bumper through 12 and layed my bumper on his all the way down the front straight. Thats when we both made our only mistakes of the race, entering turn 1 too hot, he trying to guard the inside and me trying to get a great run up the hill to pass him in turn 3. He got completely sideways just past the apex, but incredibly enough caught it. I just plain overcooked the turn and ran out of track at the exit, going four off and driving up the hill in the dirt. Perry, naturally, took advantage of this to grab 2nd place.
Thats how things stayed for the last lap, With Rebstock taking the hard fought win, Perry 2nd. Me 3rd.
Jinx Jordan was 4th. Followed by Silegren in 5th.
I got my Hoosier hat and neckband (runoffs style). An awesome trophy. And a champagne bath. I also bagged several hundred dollars worth of contingency prizes. Excellent stuff. I had an absolute ball, and was still adrenalin pumped well into the evening.
Now for the Enduro (AKA: "Torque Stick BAD")
Renee and I split the 45 minute qualifying Sunday morning with the plan of me putting down a good time first to put the car solidly in the field and Renee, having never raced at RA before (and only having ever done one DE there), using the rest of the session as practice. The field was large, with 66 cars taking the green in qualifying, so space was at a premium. Amazingly enough, I found myself in a gap on the track on my first hot lap, I went for it, and brought the car in once Karl showed me the "1:52.5" on the pit board. A time that was good enough for the class pole on such a crowded track. Chuck had no such luck in the (now repaired) Scirocco, and never got a clean one.
Renee then proceeded to go out and in typical Renee fashion just plain burn it down. Having never driven this car on that track, she started out running lap times over the 2 minute mark. Then 58s. Then 56s, then, WOW... 54.1. That would have been good enough for mid pack in the sprint race and would have qualified us 2nd for the enduro without me ever getting in the car. It was a big fat punking for me as well, given that the first time I ever drove the car at Road Atlanta the best I could do was 57s. No, she doesn't much suck at this stuff.
It was a 3 hour, 2 minimum stop race. We were concerned with this as my car fuel starves at 1/2 tank of gas, and we'd never run it an hour before. We thought it'd make it though (and it would've). The plan, as is so often the case, was tossed in the first 30 minutes. First, only a few laps into the race a Spec Miata spun in front of me in turn 5. I checked up, the guy behind me didn't, and I got punted off into the gravel trap. By the time I got unstuck and rolling again I was at the back of the pack. I made up a few spots, working my way back up to 2nd in class, when an ITB car went off track left in front of me, came back on as I passed, and tagged me in the left rear. It wasn't hard, but it was enough of a hit to cause a moment of distress. Later in the same lap as I made the hard right hander into turn 7 the rear of the car completely came out from under me and I had to dig deep into the talent vault to save it. Now I'm worried that the B car hit my left rear and toed it out, or my earlier off into the gravel has broken something that just reared its head. I kept it out for one more lap, but the handling was going away fast along with a growing vibration. Turn 7 again, much less aggressive, and the car snap spins. I bring it in.
Radios would have been great here, as I'm coming in 30 minutes early and the crew isn't ready. They didn't even see me coming until I was pretty much in the pit box. This made for a disaster of a stop.
Renee and I gassed the car while Chris and Perry Degionne visually inspected the underside (can't work on it while fueling, but you can look at it). While I buckled Renee in, the crew crawled all over the car looking for the problem. The B car had missed the tire, air pressures were good, nothing appeared to be broke. Perry decided to check the lug nuts... BINGO.
We had used a Snap On impact with a torque stick to install the wheels, and the left rear had come loose (never again... nope... thats my last use of a torque stick EVER). All of the wheels were kind of loose, but the LR was finger tight at best.
We got the stop done under the 5 minute minimum, and Renee went out and had no handling issues, so were still OK, except that we are now WAY off our fuel strategy and in last place with a little over 2.25 hours to go.
Renee ran a great stint, staying out of trouble, taking care of the car, and running times that were as fast as any C car on the track. After everyone cycled through their first stops we were back up to 3rd place in class, and she passed the lead VW of Reynolds/Puckett to put us on the lead lap. The plan was to stretch her until she started fuel starving, but bad luck bit us in the *** again. The brake light came on and it spooked her. The car still seemed fine, but we'd never discussed this before and she didn't know how to handle it (again, radios would have saved the day). She played it safe and brought the car in. Again, it was an unplanned stop and we weren't ready (was actually just walking back from the port-a-potty). By the time we sorted the fiasco out, refueled and verified that the brake system was fine, we only had time to change the two right side tires. I left the pits with a stuffed tank of gas, the same LF tire that started the race, and almost a full 1.5 hours remaining. We were also in last place again. Things didn't look good.
I went into the full fuel conservation mode. short shifting the car whenever possible while trying to make up as much ground on track as I could.
At the 2 hour mark the leading Scirocco broke again and parked in turn 5. I passed some cars, just doing whatever I could, and the other cars all made their 2nd pit stops. Suddenly Karl is showing me a pit board that says "P1."
So... I've got about 30 minutes to go. My LF tire is melting. I'm in first place. And I'm running out of gas. Very dramatic to say the least.
We get a full course yellow for a wrecked VW in the esses. Do I come in for fuel (and you can't do a "splash and go" as the driver has to be out of the car to refuel. So even under yellow we'd likely lose a lap) or do I stay out driving around in 4th gear to save fuel and hold first place??? I decide to stay out.
In the end it didn't matter, as the eventual winner was lucky enough to have been doing his 2nd stop when the double yellow flew and didn't lose the extra lap everyone else lost on their stops. With about 5 minutes to go, and my car starving so bad it was just about stopping in turns 7 and 10, he passed me for the lead.
I was pretty frustrated and disappointed after the race, but in retrospect to still finish in 2nd place after being punted, spinning, almost losing a wheel, and running out of gas is something to be pretty proud of. Those 4 free Hoosiers would've been nice, but we'll try for those again next year.
Thanks to Karl, Ryan and Zsolt for the crew help. The "Cajun Crew" for some just plain stupid good food for 3 straight days, Gregg Baker from Isaac, the OPM crew as usual... Everybody. It was awesome.
Scott, already looking forward to ARRC 2005.
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From: I started it
Re: My First ARRC, A Love Story (Catch 22)
Dude. Next time you have an off weekend, think about this. I often hear people in IT circles describe a shoe as "that guy's been on the podium at the ARRC." Both you and Renee are part of that select group now. Don't forget that.
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Catch 22 »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Now for the Enduro (AKA: "Torque Stick BAD")</TD></TR></TABLE>
Unplanned pit stops, also bad. As was observed yesterday..."that's why they call it endurance racing." Still though, to salvage a 2nd place under those circumstances, was an achievement.
Next year I'll be back, only this time I'll actually drive something.
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Catch 22 »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Now for the Enduro (AKA: "Torque Stick BAD")</TD></TR></TABLE>
Unplanned pit stops, also bad. As was observed yesterday..."that's why they call it endurance racing." Still though, to salvage a 2nd place under those circumstances, was an achievement.
Next year I'll be back, only this time I'll actually drive something.
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From: Bay Area, CA, USA
Re: My First ARRC, A Love Story (Catch 22)
Excellent race report.
The team I crew for almost didn't make it to the last enduro race because the lugs had been tightened with a torque stick resulting in two hand loose lugs and a sheared stud during practice. Needless to say torque sticks are no loner part of the tool inventory.
The team I crew for almost didn't make it to the last enduro race because the lugs had been tightened with a torque stick resulting in two hand loose lugs and a sheared stud during practice. Needless to say torque sticks are no loner part of the tool inventory.
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From: Mainland, USA
Re: My First ARRC, A Love Story (Civic44)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Civic44 »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Excellent results, excellent stories.</TD></TR></TABLE>
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From: Plotting My Revenge
Re: (ITACRX)
WE WON WE WON WE WON!!!!
Official Enduro results are up at mylaps.com and the winning ITC car has been penalized 2 laps, taking it to 3rd place. Looks like he took his 2nd mandatory stop under the double yellow, which is listed as a no-no in the enduro rules. The rules state that you can stop on a full-course, but it doesn't count as one of your mandatory stops.
So apparently, even though the race was pretty much a complete fiasco for us, we managed to win it anyway. Thats pretty damned exciting.
Those 4 free Hoosiers to kick off 2005 are pretty damned exciting as well!
Scott, who officially had a great weekend!
Official Enduro results are up at mylaps.com and the winning ITC car has been penalized 2 laps, taking it to 3rd place. Looks like he took his 2nd mandatory stop under the double yellow, which is listed as a no-no in the enduro rules. The rules state that you can stop on a full-course, but it doesn't count as one of your mandatory stops.
So apparently, even though the race was pretty much a complete fiasco for us, we managed to win it anyway. Thats pretty damned exciting.
Those 4 free Hoosiers to kick off 2005 are pretty damned exciting as well!
Scott, who officially had a great weekend!
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Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 4,049
Likes: 2
From: Snowwhitepillowformybigfathead
Re: (Catch 22)
<Frude Dude voice on> "Tell me Scott, does it really feel like Victory?" <off>
Scott, who knows the answer is yes...on account of the Hoosiers.
Scott, who knows the answer is yes...on account of the Hoosiers.
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Re: (Catch 22)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Catch 22 »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">WE WON WE WON WE WON!!!!
Official Enduro results are up at mylaps.com and the winning ITC car has been penalized 2 laps, taking it to 3rd place. Looks like he took his 2nd mandatory stop under the double yellow, which is listed as a no-no in the enduro rules. The rules state that you can stop on a full-course, but it doesn't count as one of your mandatory stops.
So apparently, even though the race was pretty much a complete fiasco for us, we managed to win it anyway. Thats pretty damned exciting.
Those 4 free Hoosiers to kick off 2005 are pretty damned exciting as well!
Scott, who officially had a great weekend!</TD></TR></TABLE>
Thats awesome news.
I don't know how much longer I can take this crew stuff though. Just watching those races and not being able to drive is killing me.
Official Enduro results are up at mylaps.com and the winning ITC car has been penalized 2 laps, taking it to 3rd place. Looks like he took his 2nd mandatory stop under the double yellow, which is listed as a no-no in the enduro rules. The rules state that you can stop on a full-course, but it doesn't count as one of your mandatory stops.
So apparently, even though the race was pretty much a complete fiasco for us, we managed to win it anyway. Thats pretty damned exciting.
Those 4 free Hoosiers to kick off 2005 are pretty damned exciting as well!
Scott, who officially had a great weekend!</TD></TR></TABLE>
Thats awesome news.
I don't know how much longer I can take this crew stuff though. Just watching those races and not being able to drive is killing me.
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From: Plotting My Revenge
Re: (RR98ITR)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by RR98ITR »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote"><Frude Dude voice on> "Tell me Scott, does it really feel like Victory?" <off>
</TD></TR></TABLE>
Normally it might not, but in this case it actually does. We finished less than 1/2 lap behind him and its very likely that if he didn't take that stop under the full course yellow we would have beaten him on track.
Of course, I'm just assuming that this is the infraction (thats what it looks like at mylaps.com). It might be something else.
But when its all said and done a win is a win. Hell, it looks like less than 1/2 of the ITB cars that started the race actually finished it. As I've learned over the past couple of months, endurance racing is a different animal. Reliability, pit stops, fuel mileage, equipment management, special rules... Enduros are quite different than Sprints.
</TD></TR></TABLE>
Normally it might not, but in this case it actually does. We finished less than 1/2 lap behind him and its very likely that if he didn't take that stop under the full course yellow we would have beaten him on track.
Of course, I'm just assuming that this is the infraction (thats what it looks like at mylaps.com). It might be something else.
But when its all said and done a win is a win. Hell, it looks like less than 1/2 of the ITB cars that started the race actually finished it. As I've learned over the past couple of months, endurance racing is a different animal. Reliability, pit stops, fuel mileage, equipment management, special rules... Enduros are quite different than Sprints.
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From: Plotting My Revenge
Re: (ryan12321)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ryan12321 »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Also another thing to add. If those laps times are right I see a 1:42.7 for alex in ITA. Thats during the race. </TD></TR></TABLE>
Yeah. Thats just crazy stuff.
Also check out the ITC fast laps. Keep in mind that the old record was a 1:51.3.
Yeah. Thats just crazy stuff.
Also check out the ITC fast laps. Keep in mind that the old record was a 1:51.3.
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From: formerly elgorey, VIRginia
Re: (Catch 22)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Catch 22 »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">But when its all said and done a win is a win. </TD></TR></TABLE>
ask any racer....
ask any racer....
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Joined: Mar 2001
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From: everywhere
Re: (ryan12321)
Hey Scott, congrats on your weekend. Don't let it get to you head now! Don't stop getting faster as you have been doing just because you got a podium in the sprint and a win in the enduro.
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ryan12321 »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If those laps times are right I see a 1:42.7 for alex in ITA. Thats during the race. </TD></TR></TABLE>
Mylaps.com shows a 1:46.007 for us on lap 5, a 42.754 on lap 6 and a 47.873 on lap 7. Timing the 5th lap on the tape with the camera's timer that rounds things to the nearest second gets a 1:46 (jumped out of 4th in T1 and caught traffic in the esses), the 6th lap on the video comes out to about a 43 (our only lap that is both clean and trouble free) and the 7th lap is also about a 47 due to contact with traffic in T10. It seems to match with the tape. However they must had some kind of timer problems because they only show 16 laps for everyone (and 12 laps for me after coming in 4 laps early), so the first 4 laps are missing for everybody. I talked to Serra after the race and he said that he recorded a 1:42.8 on his hot lap timer. I am betting that it was set in those first 4 laps and that's why it is not showing. Either way, we are going to make sure that we will be able to come back next year and not only run a quick lap here and there, but run a quick race this time!
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ryan12321 »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If those laps times are right I see a 1:42.7 for alex in ITA. Thats during the race. </TD></TR></TABLE>
Mylaps.com shows a 1:46.007 for us on lap 5, a 42.754 on lap 6 and a 47.873 on lap 7. Timing the 5th lap on the tape with the camera's timer that rounds things to the nearest second gets a 1:46 (jumped out of 4th in T1 and caught traffic in the esses), the 6th lap on the video comes out to about a 43 (our only lap that is both clean and trouble free) and the 7th lap is also about a 47 due to contact with traffic in T10. It seems to match with the tape. However they must had some kind of timer problems because they only show 16 laps for everyone (and 12 laps for me after coming in 4 laps early), so the first 4 laps are missing for everybody. I talked to Serra after the race and he said that he recorded a 1:42.8 on his hot lap timer. I am betting that it was set in those first 4 laps and that's why it is not showing. Either way, we are going to make sure that we will be able to come back next year and not only run a quick lap here and there, but run a quick race this time!
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From: Plotting My Revenge
Re: (Hracer)
<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Hracer »</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">Hey Scott, congrats on your weekend. Don't let it get to you head now! Don't stop getting faster as you have been doing just because you got a podium in the sprint and a win in the enduro. </TD></TR></TABLE>
Don't worry about that. I realize that those guys are still a good bit better than me and I still have alot of work to do. If I hadn't made the mistake in turn 1... Who knows. Those other guys don't seem to EVER make mistakes. I still have a long way to go to get to that point.
In the end, I kind of drove over my head in the sprint race. Somehow I made it work. Hopefully I'll reach a point where I can run in that same pack more comfortably and mistake free (hopefully).
The Enduro... Just plain old luck. Every car in the class had some sort of problem. Otherwise we likely wouldn't have even been on the podium, much less end up with the win. But then again... Thats all part of endurance racing.
</TD></TR></TABLE>Don't worry about that. I realize that those guys are still a good bit better than me and I still have alot of work to do. If I hadn't made the mistake in turn 1... Who knows. Those other guys don't seem to EVER make mistakes. I still have a long way to go to get to that point.
In the end, I kind of drove over my head in the sprint race. Somehow I made it work. Hopefully I'll reach a point where I can run in that same pack more comfortably and mistake free (hopefully).
The Enduro... Just plain old luck. Every car in the class had some sort of problem. Otherwise we likely wouldn't have even been on the podium, much less end up with the win. But then again... Thats all part of endurance racing.
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