Summit race results

#1

As the lone NASA SE racer was at the NASA event at Roebling Road, you’se guys were in West Virginia at the Summit Point event. At quaifing I would place mid-pack of the 944 cup racers, so I stayed out of their way and started the races from the back of the pack. Carter and the Smith’s have been to Roebling recently, so I can share my " fast" lap times of 127.011, 127.084, 127.026 and 128.032 for some context as to how the car was running. Yes, it was still hot in Savannah with the temps in the 90 degree range. NASA SE area folks, come on out and join us! Meanwhile, the Summit race report? Thanks in advance, Robert Patton

#2

I read on another thread about barrel rolls and major crunches…and that those involved are okay. I’m guessing that there may have been a red flag on one , if not both, of the races? The rest of the story? Thanks guys, Robert Patton

#3

Patton wrote:

The short of it: [ul][li]A soon-to-be SpecE30 car went off at Turn 5 during a Friday at the track (FATT) session; the front end is toast, and likely so is the car. The driver (I think his name was David) was fine and borrowed an E30 for HPDE-2.[/li][li]Steve Brendle’s coupe rolled 4 complete times coming out of Turn 10 in qualifying. Steve is fine, but the car is a total loss. Unsure of the cause – trackside spectators (incl. Steve Kapuchansky’s fiancée, Pilar), reported that the right rear was lifting at the apex on the 3-4 previous laps.[/li][li]Chris Cobetto won the race on Saturday.[/li][li]Carter Hunt won Sunday’s race.[/li][/ul]

#4

Dan, to hear that Chris and Carter were the race winners is predictable. Good cars and excellent drivers. How were the races for positions 2,3,4,5? Close racing throughout the pack? Vic? Alex? Brain? Carlton? Dave? Brandon? Kieth? Forrest? Ric? Steve ? Others? Thanks, Robert Patton

#5

Patton wrote:

IIRC, Robert, the Sunday results were:[ol][li]Carter[/li][li]Chris[/li][li]Vic[/li][li]Carlton[/li][li]Brain[/li][li]Pallister[/li][li]Steve Kapuchansky[/li][/ol]

DNF’s: [ul][li]Alex (alternator belt)[/li][li]Han (unsure of reason)[/li][li]MacAvoy (Run off track at T3 by a 944)[/li][li]Steve Brendle (DNQ)[/li][/ul]

I can’t remember the results for Saturday, and Sunday’s #4 & 5 may be reversed.

Post edited by: sharkd, at: 2005/09/28 13:12

#6

Dan, 1 correction: On Sunday, I finished 3rd.

Both days provided tons of fun. Here’s what it looked like from my seat:

Saturday, I got an awful start, and watched the field walk away. Alex and I hooked up down the front straight and did some solid drafting to try to catch Brain, and the front-runners, but we just couldn’t close the gap. Alex started losing brakes, and gave me a little "rub" in turn 1 that got me sideways - I wish I had it on tape…he spun in 1 on the very next lap, as his brakes got worse. I finished in 5th, behind Brain, just barely in sight of Carlton, who ran some seriously fast lap times. Carter and Chris had a good battle, with Chis setting the Spec E30 lap record (I think) with a 1:29.1. My teammate Han had a tough first race, as his motor mounts broke during the warmup and he couldn’t keep the car in gear. He finished the race though.

Sunday, I qualified 3rd, and stayed in that position until the end. The start was nuts, as I again got "rubs" from Alex, and a VW coming into Turn 1 to help me along. I got close to Chris and Carter up front, and got a great view of their race, but couldn’t get close enough to make a move. Alex and Han, both were DNF’s. Poor Han - his second race, and the car died after he ran onto the gators in turn 1. Alex had an alternator/water pump belt issue, and had to come in early to avoid over-heating.

I got some great video that I’ll try to upload and post.

It was awesome to have such a good SE30 contingent, including the future drivers: Erle, Dave, Stephen, Dan, and Jim.

Great weekend! I’m looking forward to October. Robert, Forest, and the others, I hope you can make it up!!!

#7

Vic,

nice race summary…you did forget to mention that I was closing the gap on you in Sunday’s race, until I got black flagged for forgetting my window net.

I was kicking myself all the way home from Summit. Dave P. has already made me a "pre race checklist" to mount on my dashboard since I have a habbit of forgetting things. :S

On an unrelated note, the damage casued to my car during Saturday’s quailifying has been totaled. Cost to get the car fixed and painted is going to be in the nieghborhood of $1000.00. I suppose I was lucky, it is no where near as bad as Steve Brendle’s car. None the less fixing dents is no fun.

I have the VW and you touching on video. Looked like his fault. I can show it to you next time we’re at the track.

later
brain

#8

HAHAHA - I don’t doubt that you were catching up - you were fast all weekend. I noticed Carlton’s green car getting bigger and bigger in my mirror as the race wore on. We need to find a way to catch up to the big "C’s"!!

I didn’t know that you forgot your window net though! Damnit Brain - keep it up, and we may have to find you a new callsign :wink:

Contact with the VW was less than minimal - I’d love to see the tape though - please bring it next time!

Man, $1000 sounds steep. I think Carter got his entire car painted for $300.

#9

victorhall wrote:

[quote]I think Carter got his entire car painted for $300.[/quote] Yeah, Peach Auto Painting in Raleigh is quoting me somewhere in the neighborhood of $275-$300 for paint.

#10

Thanks, Vic and Brain. Every racer has a story and it is always interesting to read about the race from each racer’s perspective. The race report from others? Thanks in advance, Robert Patton PS, what can be done to keep up with the Double "C"s ? How about some rewards weight that we attach to their rear bumpers?

#11

I’ll be very intersted to see lap times. Keeping up with the C’s means staying Consistent. Every time I slid a little too much, or came out of a turn a little flat, they were gone. They drove with very few mistakes.

#12

Make sure to add gloves to that list… :wink:

#13

nasaregistrar wrote:

[quote]Make sure to add gloves to that list… ;)[/quote] Sean, Gloves to the list? What’s that mean? Regards, Robert

#14

Yea… Vic,

I could probably get it done cheaper, but the body work alone is going to be 7-10 hours of labor and the guy who’s doing it for me (Phil @ Eurofinish) is arguably the best body man on the east coast. His normal fortee are high end muscle cars and Ferrari’s.

He refused to do a cheap single stage paint job and said that he’d only do it with a primer, base and clear. So I don’t mind spending a few hundred bucks more than at some low rent body shop. When its finished it should be awesome.

As silly as it seems I want my race car to look as good as it drives.

brain

#15

Should have probably put this here, sorry…

Hello All,
Well I joined the "off road" club this past weekend with a light but undeniable trip to the inside tire wall at turn 5. We were able to knock the fender away from the tire, re-glue the splitter and get back out for the next (and all remaining) sessions. It was an interesting debut into the HPDE3 level. All that said, I had a blast and feel like I’m progresing toward my goal of joining you all out there. Just have to build smoothness and speed now.

I’d like to thank Wes Williams who did a great job in the pits. He helped several drivers out and doubled as SpecE30 photographer. I saw quite a few very impressive pics on our 5 hour trip home. I’d also like to say thank you to Carter, Carlton, Dan, Alex, Steve K, Steve B (sorry man! I watched it from the false grid - WOW!), Vic, Jon and the rest of the crew. You guys are great to hang with! Carter - you have created something very very special, thank you.

I’m in China now, longing to get started with the bodywork lessons that are now ahead of me. See you all as soon as possible!

Erle

#16

Gotcha Brain! Now I feel really bad about putting a scuff mark on your bumper at Shenandoah. I obviously don’t keep my racecar concours prepped - although it will hopefully get the salazar paint-job before Summit.

Hey, at least my car looks better than Han’s car used to:

#17

Yo Vic, so what is it going to take to keep up with the Cs ? Give me a call some time 800-755-1715… Regards, Robert

#18

Patton wrote:

[quote]nasaregistrar wrote:

Sorry, Forgot to quote but it is for Brain’s pre-race checklist…

#19

Robert and others:

My Summit Point weekend actually started on Thursday afternoon. Carlton and I decided to dyno our cars just prior to leaving for Summit so we made the arrangements with a local Dynojet facility.

We arrived at their place and saw several modded Mustangs on the premises. We figured they would scoff at our "little ferrin’ cars. However, they were very interested in our cars and Spec E30, and were very friendly and helpful.

Carlton went first and I could see his uneasiness when he "drove" the car up to speed on the rollers. Feeling the car move around a little, he naturally held the steering wheel.

Knowing that the Dynojet gives higher numbers, I figured we’d see something higher than the 135 hp my car pulled on the Dynopack at Summit last year. When the technician read the peak hp number of 151, Carlton was shocked. And I was a little surprised too, although I was holding my judgment until after my pull. With an new timing belt and oil change since the Dynopack run, my car pulled an indicated 148 hp, and I could see the relief on Carlton’s face.

After arriving at the track Friday night, we were plesantly surprised to see that the early guys had taped-off a big area for the Spec E30 racers. Thanks!

Saturday morning was standard issue warmup. Qualifying went well for me and I was happy to see that I had grabbed the pole in Spec E30.

Lining up for the standing start, I left a fair amount of room between our Spec E30 group and the GTS Challenge guys in front. The 944 Cup guys were behind and would follow with their own rolling start.

As the green flag fell, Chris Cobetto (second on the grid) got a great start and pulled ahead slightly. I got balked a little by a GTS Jetta but was able to squeeze between him and Chris.

After several laps of nose-to-tail racing with Chris, along with a few lead swaps, I overcooked turn six, a tight left hander just after the fastest turn on the track, a right hand sweeper. At 6, I braked too late and drove it straight off. Chris got a good lead and I wasn’t able to catch him before the checker.

On Sunday, I got a nice tow from an E36 GTS car in Qualifying and felt confidant that I had the pole again. And I did…but by only 2-tenths.

The race was a virtual copy of Saturday’s race. Chris got a good start (although he did not jump the start) and pulled ahead of me. Honestly, I must thank Jon McAvoy for his tip. I was having trouble finding second gear during standing starts and Jon mentioned that E36 M3 shifters make good short-shifters (which I have) in our cars but that second gear is slightly right, compared to a stock E30 shifter. I found second gear both days.

During the race, Chris and I had another great battle (people I do not know stopped me in the Texas Steakhouse Saturday night to tell me how exciting our Saturday race had been for the spectators) and we both kept it close and clean.

Interestingly, after several laps, Chris went off at turn 6 and wasn’t able to catch me before taking the checker.

I want to thank all the drivers who came to Summit, both to race and to test their soon-to-be Spec E30 cars. If everyone shows-up next year, we might have as many as 18 Spec E30 cars at our races. This is exactly the kind of steady and controlled growth that has made Spec E30 successful and manageable.

Carter

#20

Carter, thanks for the report. Now that time has lapsed, I’ll go NASA MA and pick up the actual race results. It seems that the moral of the story is: don’t go off track in turn 6. See you at Roebling for the December CCA race? Regards, Robert