Poor-sha

When did they put down all that sealer? I'm wondering if I'd just never noticed because I hadn't run there in the rain for a while but it was definitely slippery when wet and seemed to have less grip in the dry in places.

It's in most every corner to some extent and pretty much all the way around oak tree. Plus there's the concrete patch just off the apex of 14.

I'm wondering if the Tudor guys just tore the track up and they had to patch things up.

brkntrxn

The hole at the Apex of T14 showed up on the lapping day prior to the NASA East Coast Nationals. I saw it open up when a Mustang in front of me went over it. Dust and crap flew everywhere and I avoided it just in time.

I cannot believe how quickly the new pavement is going to crap. It must be a result of the Tudor and other "big" races occurring at the track nowadays.

Bad_AX

I ran at VIR back in October with heavy rain most of the weekend. Those patched areas definitely have a different feel and are very slippery in the wet.

ErnieN85

hard to believe it happened so fast

ooldguy93

Many tracks are doing this.

From what I've heard it, by design, lowers grip so the track surface doesn't get torn up as fast by down force, wide tires and HP

kenw

I was there this past Monday (Oct. 9) with Trackdaze. Rained pretty much all day and my first time on wet track, definitely uncomfortable.

Most laps on turn in at hogpen slid halfway down to bottom where it bottoms out, then grip. Slick in many places, standing water too.

ponycar

Sean, if you weren't going so damn fast, and would drive at a pace like we mere mortals, you wouldn't have these issues. After the repave I was talking to someone, perhaps Chuck Hawk. He said that running the Tudor cars and other high HP high down force cars on hot days, was incredibly hard on the surface of the track. The pros are hyper aware of the difference in traction as the surface changes due to the accentuated effect that they experience at the crazy speeds that they carry.

When I saw your posted time on Grand I was incredulous that the Lightning Lap times are so much quicker. Notice how the authors never state who is putting down these laps. If you watch the lightning lap videos the drivers are hammering the cars with abandon. In watching your fast lap I see the driving traits that you are known for. Margin of error for safety. You are very fast but stay on the track coming out of 3 and Oak Tree, for example. The pros use all of the green runoff and do not have the same regard for the machinery.
Ken I'm sorry Smail and I missed you. David

Painrace

There are many qualities of asphalt. The better the quality the higher the price. I wonder what quality VIR used?

Jim

naschmitz

I talked to Bill Foster about the sealer and patches at my last event in November.

He said the sealer is different than the sealer they used on the old surface. The sealer used on the old surface was almost a truck bedliner product with lots of surface roughness. The sealer used on the new track does not have this quality and is definitely slipperier.

The "concrete" patch in T14 is an epoxy patch. It has a very short working time so it cures very fast for emergency repairs.

He also said that asphalt takes years to fully cure, so running pro races on any surface that is less than two years old will tear it up.

So why did they hold a semi-truck tractor race on one year old asphalt then?

ErnieN85

OMG no wonder it went to Hell so quick

naschmitz