varkwso

At the first SeatTime event of 2007 several people presented their new rides for a really full day of track time at Roebling (over 2 hours if you could handle it). The belle of the ball was definitely Larry's Ford GT - white with blue stripes naturally. But the procharged C6 convertible was no slouch either. There were lots of first timers there plus a big contingent of track regulars. The C5 ZO6 was probably the largest car segment but the 911 crowd was running second (something I guess they should get used to). I have noticed a large transformation in the cars at track events in the last 5 years or so. As C5s have become affordable used cars they are showing up more and more on the track. One day there will be a SpecC5 class to run alongside the remaining Spec944s. The "911" will probably still be in production.

The weather could not have been better. Blue skies, mild temps, washed track surface from rains on Wednesday, and light breeze resulted in great engine performance and decent stick. The new track surface really makes it easier on tires.

Khoi was there showing off his CCWs and other new additions to his ZO6 along with his really nice father-in-law. Unfortunately, they did not prevent him from getting the "blue flag" (the one that means there is a fast car you are blocking - or there is a race and you are not in it) whenever a blue ZO6 was anywhere near him. My favorite one was the blue flag on the checked flag cooldown lap at T7. I almost ran off the road I was laughing so hard. Mark in his 03 ZO6 was running consistent 1:19s and is really interested in the NASA TT option. He was a little bummed out when I told him his car was in TTS (headers, 315s, et. al.) and found out the lap times for the class. But to be honest he would do much better with "competition" and someone to run with. The track density was incredibly low (~25 cars in 3 groups). I think I convinced him to enter the NASA TT in May at Roebling.

Larry had a little less than 4000 miles on his Ford GT and he was there to see if he could "learn something". I am pretty sure he did. In his first session he was pretty easy on the car and mastered the art of the point by. I took him out in my ZO6 to show him the line, basic braking techniques and how to carry some speed in the corners - it was a gentle mid 1:20 demo to get him up to speed. A demo ride for him was eye opening. In his next session he was keeping up with crowd and getting a feel for the track. Jon took the GT out with him just before lunch to help him with the line some more and to take Larry's Mom and wife on some track laps. I think Jon, and all of Larry's family, was impressed after the experience. Naturally when Larry asked me if I could show him threshold braking in his GT I graciously accepted the offer to drive his car. It really did help his braking and smoothness when I showed how smooth inputs and assertive braking could trim seconds much better than massive applications of throttle. He was asking about the next competition school and the DE he could attend. I have him signing up with T1 on 2 Mar - he is definitely hooked. I do not know what class the GT is in NASA TT - but when some rich guy (that can drive) decides to do it - get ready for some Ford smackdown.

Tom and his mechanic were there in his Ford Mustang. I rode with Tom once to tune him up on the line at Roebling and Jake instructed his mechanic. They all seemed to have a great time and the car made it all the way to 3:00 PM before it jumped time (we think). Tom has the best attitude and the worst luck of any track guy I have ever met.

I have an 73 Vette big block engine swap, new calipers on Jakes car, the Forza Showdown to watch and a few other minor items to complete today.....

SouthernSon

[QUOTE=varkwso;1559102623].....getting the "blue flag" (the one that means there is a fast car you are blocking - or there is a race and you are not in it) ....

Now that's funny stuff!!

(Oh No!, I think I just jinxed myself for the next HPDE)

Keep the updates coming, Jeff. I would like to read a compilation of your ruminations sometime.

Cbntmn

Jeff.

Are you sure about the 1.16?????

LOL

Did get in the low 119s though. Squishy brakes and all.

Looking forward to that NASA gig. You going to the Roebling in April? I think ill use that as a shakedown to try and get these brakes fixed and if your there may see if i can get some seat time with you to get that time down.

Thanks for your help.

TransAmGT

Hey guys, this is Kevin.

I was there in the Red stock '03 Z06 yesterday.

I had a blast but my first session wasn't so great since I didn't know the line. But thanks to Mark and a ride in his awesome Z06, I learned the lines, braking/turn in points and it made a HUGE difference.

It was my first time out there and I mustered out several 1:24's and most laps were 1:25-1:27's

Can't wait to see what she will do once I get some more experience behind the wheel!

I have some tires in the mail and plan on getting back down there ASAP! I will probably be back in April for the next event!

P.S. Don't forget to send me those pics Mark!!

varkwso

I will be there both days in Apr with Josh (his first track event).

Mark - be glad to tune up your line. If you are apexing T8 at ~100 and exiting ~115 it is the biggest indicator of your speed. When I do not lift from the apex of T7 to the brake zone at T1 I seem to get my best times - but it is a bit discomforting and the risk is high....

TransamGT - I saw you on the track but did not seem to meet you in all the excitement on Friday....

And soon as the gas dries under the car and I can sawzall some exhaust pipe the old 454 will be out of the 73....

Cbntmn

Jeff,

I looked on the NASA results page and it seems that the very fastest vette was a 116 but it wasnt in TTA.

It looked to me that the fastest TTA car was 119/120 ish. I think i have the class right as I added up my points and I have 27 counting 10 for the tires (got the rulebook) That puts me in the TTA class which is 19-37 points (cool, i can afford more mods lol)


Yes i am lifting a little on that little bend before 8. Im apexing 8 at about 95 and leaving 8 and about 105 with 107 being the fastest that i have.

My best times where with a downshift into 3rd on the entrance to 7 which seems to give me more corner speed and better pull up the hill. Top of the hill is just over 100.

Gotta love the heads up display for exit speeds!

I sent an e mail to NASA to get joined up.

Look forward to Roebling in April and your help. If i can get into the 118s it would be great. Ill have new rubber and make sure they fit in the NASA specs and hopfully have the brakes worked out.

Thanks Jeff

Kevin, ill get them to you. Send me a private message with your address. The pics are 10 megapixels and a pain to try and e mail so many of them. Ill download em to a disk and mail them out to ya and you can choose the best one.

Later

AtomicZ06

Ahh man! It sounds like the days events held much fun and excitement! I am sorry that I had to return to work a few days too early. It would have been fun to play with a ford GT. I'm still riding high after driving the Z at CMP! Thanks a lot Mr. England and Jake! You guys were great! I will look for ya'll in the future when I can attend. Did a SCCA autoX on hutchison Is last weekend and came in second out of 6 in Super Stock and 8th of 59 total with adjusted times. Lost out to an 04 Z with DOT slicks, but beat the Porches. This guy was sick! Running 5+ seconds faster than everybody! It was a fun thing, but at 52 sec a pop left me wanting more like 20 min at CMP.

varkwso

Glad you made an event - even if it was not a full on track day - you can learn a lot at autocross! We missed you at Roebling - Jake and I talked about how well you drove at CMP. Look forward to running with you again when you get local!

I would like to see a Ford GT and C6 ZO6 duke it out....

Mark - NASA TTA puts C5 ZO6 with 7 points as the base car- tires are 10 that leaves you 2 points before you go to TTS. Every 19 points - total - puts you up one class. Your car is TTS.

The times for the last season of NASA TT really do not count - unfortunately - since they changed the classes so much. TTA will be 1:18 or so this year at Roebling - but it will have different cars doing it. My last year TTB FRC is now a TTA FRC and I had to remove mods to get there.

Cbntmn

Just when I thought i had it figured out....lol

Either way im looking forward to it. Get these brakes back together and new tires and we will give em a run. Dont really need to be competative just need the experience right now anyway.

Z06cool

That's really cold... Hmmm, let's investigate this a little further. I'm not normally a conspiracist but something definitely didn't smell right with the 2 blue flags I got. After you were "tinkering" with the DIC on my Z to pull up the codes, my first lap out was a bit distracting. My oil temps were way too low, my speed was incredibly fast -- according to my gauges and my HUD didn't look right either. I thought my computer was frieking out. I guess you had "mistakenly" hit the E/M button and switched me over to European readings. So, took me a warm up lap to figure that out.

Not sure though how if I'm at the Start/Finish line and the EB Z06 hadn't even rounded T7 yet how I could get a blue flag??? What proved it for me that this was a conspiracy was like you said when I got a blue flag on the checkered cool down.....nice. I still gave you a point-by though or some kind of "pointing" since you were hot on my tail - but you didn't take it Maybe it won't take you till the cool down lap next time to catch me

And to think I was going to be nice and give you a good deal on some used Kumhos.

See you at Road ATL Jeff...

thehammer69

I wish I was there...wait a second, i was! Anyway, this is Don...the owner of the Silver Z06 parked by you. Just checking in to say hey and it was a blast once I found my rhythm.

Sure am worn out from this past 8 days. Did a Hutchison Island Auto-X Test and tune last Saturday, ran Seat Time yesterday with y'all yesterday, and ran Auto-X today in Orangeburg.

And speaking of todays Auto-X, I snagged 1st place in SS and maybe would have got 2nd in ASP if I had ran in thay class (I have to check times to verify). I had that Z06 rolling on stock supercars compared to most of them with their Auto-X tires too. I'd like to think that lesson in smoothness yesterday at Roebling paid off in my Auto-x results today.

Anyway, maybe I will try to attend Easter weekend. Reaqlly want some better tires before I do though.

Hammer

varkwso

The corner workers at Roebling know that unless you are well past the start/finish line Robroot or I can easily pass you by the braking zone on T1 if we anywhere near T7 . I thought we had lapped you by then - oh well - did you not see us wave off the pointby you gave? Must have been the glare of the windshield or something like that

Most people, at least most car smart people, would know that a ZO6 doing 230 on the front straight woul not pass the Ho, Ho test. Let me clarify, these Ho, Ho's do not live in a house....I almost feel bad about hitting the wrong buttons trying to step thru the hundreds of codes on your DIC to get to the AH/TCS/ABS codes giving you the problems...almost..

I am looking forward to taking those wore out, old and hard Kumhos off your hands and saving you a GA dump fee on them - also we are looking forward to seeing you and Walter at Rd Atl in March...



It was great meeting you and talking to you about cars! The fact Lynn cleared you solo so fast means you can drive the car pretty well. Hope you did not scare him - his fastest track car has been a TR8 convertible prepped to some SCCA standard - while it is fast - it is not ZO6 fast.

I really need to try to make some of these local Auto-Xs with my youngest son Josh. He would benefit from them greatly. Did you see AtomicZO6 at Hutcheson?

F1's are a pretty good track tire - but pricey. I really like Kumho MXs and Nittos for dual use tires since they are a little cheaper...

Don't worry when we dial in some killer combos in C5s in the TT classes, again, Greg will shake it up to keep us under our cars instead of in them...

TT experience is pretty important, I think, if you want to move to W2W and are not ready to cage your car....and it is pretty competitive in its own right.

thehammer69

I don't think I scared him. The Z06 pretty much performed superbly and stayed glued to the track so there were no real butt puckering moments. I'll give him credit for his instuctoring. He was never a dick and he talked me through the whole course and was great with the positive affirmation when doing things right. My only real issue at the track was getting over the sensory overload of feeling like I was carrying too much speed into turn one. But for some reason, after lunch, it all fell into place and the issue was over.

Yes, I saw Atomic's car at the Saturday test and tune at Hutch. He was kicking my butt in the first half of the day when I was learning how to redrive Auto-X. It was the first time in the Z06 on a Auto-X course and I was used to the wallowing handling qualities, of my 94 Z28 while Auto-Xing. Once i learned how different the car was and adapted to it...My best time of the day did manage to just beat his best time of the day. At the end I think I was 16 and he was 17 out of all cars based on PAX time. We were both higher based on raw times.

I made a discovery yesterday too. I did all my runs in Auto-x in the competitive driving mode. At the end of the day, we got to do the fun runs and I did a couple runs in Comp mode and was consitant. I then decided to try it with Comp mode off. i shaved another half second with comp mode off. BUT, i also learned I have to be more careful...that half second came with the price that i felt on the verge of loosing it at a couple spots. It was a lot harder to recover when the carf became unsettled.

As far as tires...I want to get me a set of dedicated track tires. I have 4 OEM 18 x 10.5 ZO6 rear wheels I can mount them too. Do you have anything you recommend that can be used dual purpose Roebling and Auto-X?

Hammer

varkwso

Nitto NT-01s or Hoosier A6s should be pretty good for dual roles

AtomicZ06

I was trying to rake my brain for a long time cause I was like who is this guy? The results dont show any QS Z? Then I remembered he was only there on Sat for the TnT. How come you did not come run on Sat? The course was much longer and better lay out!!! Had one subru go crunch into the wall at the end(brake failure?) where the skid pad was sat. They moved the finish back to fast shrubs and trees instead and us in SS running first got to do our runs over again. Melanie was driving my Z06 too so double driver cars I had already completed 3 runs while others had done one so I got 7 laps instead of 4. More fun! Melanie did great and I am very proud of her. She only killed one cone Sun. Might actually let her run and HPDE sometime.
In the end I was 2nd with a 52.2 in SS 4 sec behind an 04 Z from Atl with DOT slicks. 8th in raw times and 11th with PAX. I'm surprized at how much pax changed things. All that remains important tho is I beat out an 07 997 and 06 Caymen S by good margins.
I also did runs with Comp mode v off and my results were similar to yours. With it off I shaved over a 1 sec off my times. There were a few places in the Sun course were i used the oversteer and some 4 wheel drift to benefit my times. When I tried that with the gas and comp mode the car bogged me down so much and this was lining up for the slolom that my times suffered huge! Over the course of Sunday I improved my times by 3.2 seconds all with Trac Cont OFF.
To the Englands.... I will see you on the track later this year for sure. I'll def check in if I am not sure where the good events will be. I am currently about 30 miles off NC coast rounding Cape Hatteras headed for Norfolk. Oh the wonders of modern tech... lol The moon is bright tonight!!!

thehammer69

I wanted to stay for Sunday, but the woman needed to be back in Charleston, and I just couldn't see myself doing back to back trips to Hutch. Plus I run in the SCR region so running in a Buccaneer region points event doesn't really do anything for me. Mostly the test and tune was just for me to learn the car as I have Auto-X'd a 94 Z28 the past three years and needed to feel out the differences when on the course. The one Saturday is all I needed to feel the adjustment.

Hopefully I will have a set of Hoosier A6's for the next event on March 17 here in Charleston. I hope to run up near the top of the list with them.

Hammer

varkwso

Isn't technology a wonderful thing? When I deployed to Bosnia, Southwest Asia, and Africa - in the later years - I had internet and sat phones to keep in touch with the family. Much better than the early deployments with iffy mail service and , if you were really lucky, a scratchy phone call every 60 days or so.

Where can you find Buccaneer region auto-X info?

thehammer69

http://buccaneerregion.org/

Hammer

StArrow68

Thanks for the entertaining reads, Jeff. Saw a recorded show from Speed Ch. this AM and they had the C6 Z, SRT Viper and GT500 at Roebling. They noted it was a cold morning and they had the Vette at 1.19's the Viper at 1.22's and the GT at 1.24's with I presume stock tires. On one corner it looked like the Vette tire was crushed or rolled to where the rim must have been within 1/2 in of the road. Maybe it was just the angle. Thanks again.
Randy