95jersey

I know the main course has been repaved and I will be going there in April. I know this was breifly discussed before, but I would love to hear any comments about the new asphalt from anyone that has been there since the repaving.

Are there still concrete patches in the carousel? I never felt comfortable on the second turn after the main strait (heading down the chute). It was narrow and the pavement was off camber and uneven. Has this been improved? what are the major differences?

Thanks!

Mikelly

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zVluVwKRPeY

I think it's a lot more dangerous now because the speeds are higher... I was seeing about 160MPH on the front straight and I've never seen those speeds before. The asphault is baby smooth and all the concrete patches are gone. However, the new pavement needs to have more dirt around the edges to make it smooth if you do run off... They claimed that the dirt was being trucked in and tamped/smoothed over the winter... There are a few dips in the pavement in a few spots, namely entry for T9 and a little bit of a groove in T10 if you enter early.

It's a great track and it just got greater... I'm less than 2 hours from there, so I plan to spend atleast 10 days there this year!!
Mike

95jersey

Thanks for the post. So, I guess since the track was built up, it's now a few inches higher than the dirt/grass surrounding it? I guess if you put off a wheel that could make it more hairy.

Mikelly

Who are you running with there in April???

MIke

sothpaw2

I bet it's the NJ BMW club, they have a 3 day event but only 1 is at the Main the other 2 are on the Schenandoh.

I don't have much to add to Mike's post--it's a very smooth surface now with no curbing. There is pea gravel now
at the exit of T3--a VW went off there and sprayed me with it.

JaxVette

The new pavement is awesome. It's very smooth and very fast. I've been running this track since 1976. It's the best I've ever seen it. If you're worried about the drop off between the asphalt and the dirt, don't put two/four wheels off the track. I've been told it's not any faster out there anyway!!!!!!!!!!

Go ahead and run it, you'll like it. It's a fun place to run.

sidewys

I second this, I have run my 07 Z on both the old and new surfaces and there is no contest; the smooth pavement allows you to concentrate more on your lines, brake later, and use the throttle more to steer.

Both you and your car will love it!

Randy

95jersey

Yep, BMW CCA. I have been doing the one day Summit Course with them for about 6 years now. They put on a great event and they even have a BBQ party at the track the night before.

Akcelr8 N VA

One thing I noticed was that the gators have been paved over in a few places. A couple of places to watch out for: Going into turn one at full track left ... the track width decreases on the left side by about 2' so you need to be off the left edge by about 2' BEFORE you enter the brake zone. Also on pit in after turn 9... the right side decreases in width by about 2' just before the bridge. I was pitting in with mechanical issues late in the day, full track right coming out of 9 with the sun blinding me going up bridge straight. Next thing I know, I'm two wheels off on the right side... no big deal but it is something to look out for.

Hope this helps.

JaxVette

You have to understand that Ralph enjoys checking out how his car handles on dirt at the racetracks. At any racetrack. But, if you keep your focus and just stay ON track, you'll really enjoy the new pavement at Summit Point.

I swear Ralph needs to put a mower deck underneath that C4!!! Probably get himself a discount from the track owners for helping out with the landscaping chores!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Akcelr8 N VA

Are you listening BSR??? VIR??? etc?????

spazegun2213

or at least a seeder and sprinkler system! SP main was the dust bowl last summer. Although i have little room to talk about off track excursions...

95jersey

A seeder and sprinkler system at Summit?!?! We are lucky they even have a bathroom with running water. This place is probably the most bare bones facility I have ever seen...but I like it!

Mikelly

Yup, Compared to other places I run, it's truly the ghetto.

Mike

sidewys

With a few exceptions, the whole track is wider; it is flatter, and MUCH smoother, including the chute. Turn 5, at the bottom of the chute is a sharp slow left hander that used to be very hard on your front suspension because the concrete patch edge there was hit while under hard braking, full compression. After paving, it was so different I found myself carrying more speed down the chute through 4 because I could come into 5 hotter.

The paving raised the track surface a little. If for no other reason than not wanting to hook a tire on an edge of the pavement, I found myself giving my car an extra foot of room at the track edge. If nothing has been done to restore the curbing yet, I would say to use the curbs less than before the paving, they are lower now.

Finally, obviously, most of the pavement reference points you used for braking, turn in etc. are now gone! If you look very closely at the new track, there are little "E"s on the pavement at turn entry points (they were there before, just faded).

If the weather holds, you will have a blast.

Randy