Wicked Weasel

Here are 2 mistakes entering the Chicane at WGI this year.

First is my car which I was fighting a vibration and was running one last lap (always happens that way). Nothing happen to my car. Cleaned it out and went back out later.




Second is a customer of ECS (GeorgeZNJ) that has gone with us to almost every event this year. He was trying to catch another vette in front of him and overstep his boundaries. George suffered a tire that broke the bead, but outside of that it just needed a good washing.

Watching George's video to the end is worth it - like he thinks he is going somewhere

TRACKMAN2

if you look closely you might be able to see tracks in the grass in the chicane in my vid .. those are mine.... i thought i'd do a little grass mowen when my brakes locked up..

AU N EGL

Two words . .



TOOOOOWWWWW HOOOOOKSSSS



Other then that, great driving

John Shiels

Looks like good hit on curb upset the car. If George popped the tire was the pressure to low? I think you guys were running Hoosier fairly low. To much speed going in to the chicane. Well no major damage.

I tape my runs so when the big day comes and I wreck the car I may be able to watch it if I am not wrecked also.

sothpaw2

Yeah, I didn't see George's yet but it's very clear that the curb through you into oversteer. This'll be a good reminder for me never, ever to hit another curb. Sometimes I get too generous with the track--"use all the track" is just built in to me. I remember at VIR that is not a good idea either with the esses.

undertaker

george had michelin pilot sportcups on the car on ccw's. What wound up happening is he hit the pea gravel pretty much sideways (passenger side first) the track tow truck yanked him to just outside the wall and a few of us took a ride out there with the pickup jack and his street tires and threw those onto it. The rear blew the bead, the front didn't but picked up gravel around the rim at the bead and some went into the area inside the tire. Nothing teh local walmart couldn't fix that night so he could get back out for the next day on real tires, its quite a readjustment to go back to stock rubber after running sticky tires for a while

as for the curbing.....we almost always hit the curbing running the cars around the track, I think his take on it was he went in too hot (the other vette he was chasing went into the chicane too hot and went straight thru the cones vs. taking the chicane, george had a bigger set and went for the chicane.

My TT car was on cooldown laps by this point so I got out of the excitement with the NA guys later on into the session.

GeorgeZNJ

UT summed it up pretty well. I lost Barry in traffic and was trying to catch him, he realized we were going in too hot, and he took it into the run-off area. I went in at 122, where I usually run at 85-90. Didn't brake enough in my normal zone(200mark) and figured I could ride it out. Checked pressure on the other tires and found them to be about 12lbs light The car shut off cause of high tamps and I just kept trying to start it and get back in there. After U.T./Barry/ and Rouge Wave helped me get the street tires back on, I went back out, albeit a little slower in there. Walmart was fun, I got there 2 minutes to closing and paid the kids extra to stay late and get the tires mounted. Somehow the 315/30/18's fit on their machine. Then it was off to the car wash and 2-1/2 hrs of wiping the interior down.

John Shiels

I hit the curbing also but there is a limit and that seems to be a big hit. It is easy to be baited as someone passes you to try and keep with them. This is where good judgement comes in and you let them go. I have seen more than a few cars try to follow me in a tight corner and then look in the in the mirror and you see them going off.

The first time I was at VIR a gutted Mustang which I guess ran NASA with a full cage was running me down and I pointed him past. I felt bad but I knew I was not familar with the Esses being the first time their to go any faster. Next lap he put more distance on me and then when I came to the Esses I thought he was coming back on the track as he was crossing the grass.

I see the car in the pits and it is destroyed with major damage every where. Seems the car went up off the curbing and the ground drops away after the curbing. I guess he went airborne and pancacked the car. Broke all the rims, ripped most of the A-arms from the chassis, broke the calipers and did bunch of bady damage. I said thank goodness I used my head and said bye-bye and didn't try to keep up.

John Shiels

90 mph vs. 122 for entry speed is a huge difference. Plus 32 MPH would require a gang on Angels on your shoulders to get through.

GeorgeZNJ

I was concentrating so much (tunnel vision)on getting back up to Barry, that I just went too far. I normally hit the 300mark into the mid 140's and brake enough by 200-100 that I'm at 85-90, I just didn't brake enough, and the low tire pressure didn't help. There were a gang of Angels with me, and they stopped me from flipping as I went in sideways.

FasterIsBetter

I watched it a couple of times, and you definitely go in too hot. But I think what did you in was turning in too sharply. I've found at that spot that if you are too hot, either turn in a little early to straighten out the turn, or bail and go straight. Turn in too sharp, and you go for a little ride into the gravel trap.

Loved watching the video. Brought back lots of good memories, while sitting here and looking at the snow in the yard.

GeorgeZNJ

Can't wait till spring

undertaker

think we can run our tow rigs up there in the off season?

John Shiels

GeorgeZNJ

We need to find a place that we can. there's a dirt motorsports park down here, might be fun to try it in 4 wheels and snow.

Wicked Weasel

I took too much of the rumble strips and with coilovers it shot the backend up. I was going slower than normal because I had a passenger. For me it was the shadows that played a trick. I always wear my glasses which lighten up automatically. This time I was wearing contacts and sunglasses. The sunglasses just darken everything up and I made a misjudgement.

Back to glasses for me.

Bill Dearborn

I advise my students to stay off the curbs. From what I understand the little rumble strips on the curbs do a number on your drive train as the tires shudder across them. Given the number of hours you drive the track in an HPDE it just seems wise to stay off them and avoid a potential breakage issue. As for going in to the bus stop too hot that is how you can make use of the short straight between the right and the left. There is enough room in that straight to scrub a lot of speed and to get the car back under control.

Bill

Wicked Weasel

There are different schools of thought about the rumble strips at WGI. I liked them more with regular suspension and less with coilovers. I think this year I am going to practice just hitting the edge. I did that at the last advance day at WGI and the car ran great (there is a great picture of my car entering the chicane).

John Shiels

Why would the coil-overs be worse? Thought they were more independent?

GeorgeZNJ

Since we got most of the heavy hitters in this thread, off topic question.....I went to Spring Mountain a couple of years back, first time running a car on a road course and my best lap time was 2:02.037. I know all of the expericenced guys hit sub 2.0's, but I want to get opinions of where a first timer, no road track runs times would compare to mine?