EVOlutionary @ NASA Nationals
Sep 8, 2011, 08:12 PM
#1
EVOlutionary @ NASA Nationals
After a long week of getting the car prepped for Nationals I have finally turned some laps here at the 2011 NASA Nationals at Mid Ohio Sports Car Course. With off and on rain forcast the entire week I knew that maximizing the dry sessions (if any) was going to be the goal. I skipped the 1st session this morning because it was nasty wet and I had faith that we would get some dry runs at some point this week. Just not going to risk the car this early on in the week.
The weather slowly cleared up and early this afternoon the sun peaked out from the clouds for the first time. I set about prepping the car for the last session today. I am running a completely different suspenstion setup (thanks to Andy and John for dialing it in at Solo2 Nationals last week!), turned up the boost so I have more power, and have taken quite a bit of weight out of the car since I last ran her, so I really didn't know what to expect. On the warm up laps the rear end was REALLY loose. I did my best to get some heat in the rear tires, but it took until about the 2nd lap until it started to really hook well and I got my confidence built up.
The problem is, since I didn't run the first session today and therefore did not get a time, I had to start near the back of the pack. I spent 5 laps working my way through traffic, and finally on my 6th lap (when my Hoosier A6's are usually starting to overheat) I got a mostly clean lap. I still got stuck behind a Corvette for couple corners that hurt my time by about 1 second, but I was still able to set a new Personal Best of 1:30.8, moving into 1st in TTU and 2nd overall in all the TT classes! The first place Lister is also running a DHP rear wing, so as of right now it's 1st and 2nd for DHP
With 3 more days of racing I know that I have a lot of work to do to hold onto 1st place. There are several Vettes here that are capable of 1:28's. Right now, though, I am SO excited. This is honestly more that I had hoped for. The car is performing WAY better than it ever has, and for that I need to thank:
Pure Tuning - for taking the time this week to crank up the power and get the car running to it's peak potential
CBRD - it is the BBK Full turbo that gives this car it's potential in the first place. Absolutely amazing power delivery and area under the curve
Andy and John - for tweaking the suspension setup and diagnosing some problems. Car is the best it has ever been through the corners
DHP Composites - for providing the aerodynamic superiority that allows the car to corner as fast as World Challenge corvettes and ALMS C6R's
. . . and of course none of that would be possible if the tires, the only thing that sticks the car to the ground, were not up to the task. So an huge THANK YOU to HOOSIER TIRE for keeping the car glued to the ground!!
Stay tuned for more to come over the next 3 days, and if any of you are in the central Ohio area feel free to stop out and check out all the awesome cars!!
EVOlutionary
The weather slowly cleared up and early this afternoon the sun peaked out from the clouds for the first time. I set about prepping the car for the last session today. I am running a completely different suspenstion setup (thanks to Andy and John for dialing it in at Solo2 Nationals last week!), turned up the boost so I have more power, and have taken quite a bit of weight out of the car since I last ran her, so I really didn't know what to expect. On the warm up laps the rear end was REALLY loose. I did my best to get some heat in the rear tires, but it took until about the 2nd lap until it started to really hook well and I got my confidence built up.
The problem is, since I didn't run the first session today and therefore did not get a time, I had to start near the back of the pack. I spent 5 laps working my way through traffic, and finally on my 6th lap (when my Hoosier A6's are usually starting to overheat) I got a mostly clean lap. I still got stuck behind a Corvette for couple corners that hurt my time by about 1 second, but I was still able to set a new Personal Best of 1:30.8, moving into 1st in TTU and 2nd overall in all the TT classes! The first place Lister is also running a DHP rear wing, so as of right now it's 1st and 2nd for DHP
With 3 more days of racing I know that I have a lot of work to do to hold onto 1st place. There are several Vettes here that are capable of 1:28's. Right now, though, I am SO excited. This is honestly more that I had hoped for. The car is performing WAY better than it ever has, and for that I need to thank:
Pure Tuning - for taking the time this week to crank up the power and get the car running to it's peak potential
CBRD - it is the BBK Full turbo that gives this car it's potential in the first place. Absolutely amazing power delivery and area under the curve
Andy and John - for tweaking the suspension setup and diagnosing some problems. Car is the best it has ever been through the corners
DHP Composites - for providing the aerodynamic superiority that allows the car to corner as fast as World Challenge corvettes and ALMS C6R's
. . . and of course none of that would be possible if the tires, the only thing that sticks the car to the ground, were not up to the task. So an huge THANK YOU to HOOSIER TIRE for keeping the car glued to the ground!!
Stay tuned for more to come over the next 3 days, and if any of you are in the central Ohio area feel free to stop out and check out all the awesome cars!!
EVOlutionary
Sep 9, 2011, 08:17 PM
#3
I went out today in the first of two sessions and had some issues. The rules were spelled out very clearly in the beginning - no passing on the warm up lap and no passing on the 1st hot lap unless waved by. I was 2nd in line behind the insanely fast Lister (something like 170-180 on the back straight) and was followed by a GTR. The GTR passed me almost immediately on the first hot lap, then held me up for the next three laps. I was WAY faster under braking and in the corners than him. I passed him in the back section each lap, then he passed me on the back straight each time. I was so focussed on trying to get around him that I was not paying attention when some yellow flags came out. Not seeing the yellow, I passed several cars before I realized it was yellow in the whole "Madness" section after the back straight. When I finally saw the yellow flags I of course did not pass.
I was completely at fault for not paying attention - and they told me the penalty was going to be harsh. I totally understood and was pissed at myself for being so careless. I was ready to pack it up for the week because I thought I was going to be booted, and I was OK with that. My fault, I would accept whatever penalty I deserved. The officials decided to let me continue to race on Saturday and Sunday, but my time from this morning was disqualified, as was my fastest, class leading time from yesterday. I also had to sit out this afternoon session and brush up on the CCR's.
So, basically I am starting from scratch tomorrow morning. I am confident that if I get one more dry session I can set another fast lap to move back in to the lead in TTU. I just have to be extremely aware of all the flagging stations because if I get one more infraction I'm toast. I honestly did not think that I would have a shot at a win in TTU, but it looks like if I run a good clean lap at my and my car's potential I may have a pretty good shot.
I was completely at fault for not paying attention - and they told me the penalty was going to be harsh. I totally understood and was pissed at myself for being so careless. I was ready to pack it up for the week because I thought I was going to be booted, and I was OK with that. My fault, I would accept whatever penalty I deserved. The officials decided to let me continue to race on Saturday and Sunday, but my time from this morning was disqualified, as was my fastest, class leading time from yesterday. I also had to sit out this afternoon session and brush up on the CCR's.
So, basically I am starting from scratch tomorrow morning. I am confident that if I get one more dry session I can set another fast lap to move back in to the lead in TTU. I just have to be extremely aware of all the flagging stations because if I get one more infraction I'm toast. I honestly did not think that I would have a shot at a win in TTU, but it looks like if I run a good clean lap at my and my car's potential I may have a pretty good shot.
Sep 10, 2011, 06:35 AM
#5
Sounds like a roller coast ride, and Mid Ohio is one a roller coaster ride with all those blind corners already!
Stinks about you not catching the yellow and getting distracted by dualing the GTR passing you on the straights. How far back was the next slowest car? Maybe sandbagging to get 5 seconds cleared ahead of you but not hold up the next guy back would have given you a nice hot lap in there without the back and forth.
Good luck on the clean lap!
Stinks about you not catching the yellow and getting distracted by dualing the GTR passing you on the straights. How far back was the next slowest car? Maybe sandbagging to get 5 seconds cleared ahead of you but not hold up the next guy back would have given you a nice hot lap in there without the back and forth.
Good luck on the clean lap!
Sep 10, 2011, 08:10 AM
#6
I went out today in the first of two sessions and had some issues. The rules were spelled out very clearly in the beginning - no passing on the warm up lap and no passing on the 1st hot lap unless waved by. I was 2nd in line behind the insanely fast Lister (something like 170-180 on the back straight) and was followed by a GTR. The GTR passed me almost immediately on the first hot lap, then held me up for the next three laps. I was WAY faster under braking and in the corners than him. I passed him in the back section each lap, then he passed me on the back straight each time. I was so focussed on trying to get around him that I was not paying attention when some yellow flags came out. Not seeing the yellow, I passed several cars before I realized it was yellow in the whole "Madness" section after the back straight. When I finally saw the yellow flags I of course did not pass.
I was completely at fault for not paying attention - and they told me the penalty was going to be harsh. I totally understood and was pissed at myself for being so careless. I was ready to pack it up for the week because I thought I was going to be booted, and I was OK with that. My fault, I would accept whatever penalty I deserved. The officials decided to let me continue to race on Saturday and Sunday, but my time from this morning was disqualified, as was my fastest, class leading time from yesterday. I also had to sit out this afternoon session and brush up on the CCR's.
So, basically I am starting from scratch tomorrow morning. I am confident that if I get one more dry session I can set another fast lap to move back in to the lead in TTU. I just have to be extremely aware of all the flagging stations because if I get one more infraction I'm toast. I honestly did not think that I would have a shot at a win in TTU, but it looks like if I run a good clean lap at my and my car's potential I may have a pretty good shot.
I was completely at fault for not paying attention - and they told me the penalty was going to be harsh. I totally understood and was pissed at myself for being so careless. I was ready to pack it up for the week because I thought I was going to be booted, and I was OK with that. My fault, I would accept whatever penalty I deserved. The officials decided to let me continue to race on Saturday and Sunday, but my time from this morning was disqualified, as was my fastest, class leading time from yesterday. I also had to sit out this afternoon session and brush up on the CCR's.
So, basically I am starting from scratch tomorrow morning. I am confident that if I get one more dry session I can set another fast lap to move back in to the lead in TTU. I just have to be extremely aware of all the flagging stations because if I get one more infraction I'm toast. I honestly did not think that I would have a shot at a win in TTU, but it looks like if I run a good clean lap at my and my car's potential I may have a pretty good shot.
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Sep 10, 2011, 08:24 AM
#9
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Frustrating to say the least....
I keep a sticky note on my steering wheel for every race that says "WATCH FOR FLAGS!!!" It's part of my pre-race checklist and it's the last thing I see before I grid....
I keep a sticky note on my steering wheel for every race that says "WATCH FOR FLAGS!!!" It's part of my pre-race checklist and it's the last thing I see before I grid....
