Poor-sha

At this point it's no secret that I crashed my ZR1 back in November. I finally got around to doing another data breakdown in the "Why Did I Crash?" series and this time I am the subject. My big takeaways are that I should have lifted sooner cresting the hill and spent more time warming up the tires.

As always, I greatly appreciate everyone that has subscribed to the channel as I try to provide useful information without a bunch of click-bait hype.

rob62

That moment when the tire noise stops after cresting the hill is all I needed.

WilliamCall

Sean,
Thanks for sharing.

Bill

Mikec7z

that's a very bad situation and very tough to save... and when i say "save" i mean not hit a wall... but i think everyone would have ended up spinning the car in that situation.

Hindsight 2020, the only way to not have that happen is to lighten up on the throttle as you crest that hill.

Do you think that due to the cold weather, you had better horse power and acceleration than normal and actually got airborne in a spot where you normally don't?

range96

Thank you for sharing, I'm sure it wasn't easy...
I just can't imagine that anything could have saved it, when the car is 'in the air' it won't respond to any driver input. It looked like driving on ice...
Shenandoah is scary as hell even without snow on the ground. I know several people who refuse to use it (including me) due to its evil layout. I never ran on it after I walked the whole course (shortly after it was built). Those concrete barriers did it for me. Hitting a groundhog and dodging a heard of deers didn't scare me on Summit Main as much as Shenandoah after walking it.

Repo Pilot

The "perfect storm" maybe. A contributing factor may have been the angle of the lift point across the track as the tires didn't unload (left to right+front to back) or reload together. That little bit of initial yaw turned into a very big deal once the car started loading up the suspension again. Who knows what the computers were doing/thinking. Thanks for sharing Sean.

Kev

94Lt1Vette

Sorry to hear about your mishap. I may have missed it in the video - what's the status of your car now?

Thomasmoto

OP I was also unaware that you had an incident. Sorry to hear that. How's your car now?

Jack-TX

Whats that white stuff all over the sides of the track? I have not seen that down here in south Texas... Thank you for posting, that had to have been difficult to re-watch again and again and put together the analysis, but I was very engaged with the video.

All the more reason to move further south down here where we just have to worry about a different phase of that white stuff.

Mikec7z

it was a total loss and he has a new track build going on with a new grand sport

mfain

I had a couple of the same thoughts. The 2014 Z/28 had a "fly car" mode that adjusted traction control when sensors detected an "unload" (https://www.autoblog.com/2014/02/25/...ar-mode-video/). I don't know if the Corvette has the same mode??? As you point out, the rear tires may or may not have unloaded at the same time/rate. That makes we wonder what the ediff computer was "thinking" and what inputs did it make to the rear end? An abrupt switch from locked to unlocked (or visa versa) could have consequences, I suppose.

Pappy

serpent

Poor-sha, did you consider an ACR for a track car? Only thing the car needs for a hardcore track rat is swapping to iron rotors, lighter wheels and slicks.

JMB

So sorry for your loss, it's painful to just watch the video replay.....was it my imagination or was the track also damp looking on the backside of the "jump"? You are certainly a VERY accomplished driver and a weenie like me avoids any track with any moisture on the surface for this very reason, I'm just afraid of the risk when driving a ultra powerful car regardless of tires.

Your detailed autopsy using facts and data is VERY impressive, good luck on your next car because I know it will be another great one!

fatsport

Truly admire you for posting this. Thank you

Poor-sha

Honestly it is a very fun and challenging course but as you noted there are several places where there isn't a lot of room to get it wrong.

It was totaled and the insuranc company took it.

Honestly I just really like the C7. I had good luck with the C7 Z06s with relatively few mods but wanted to go for lighter and no compromise with the new build. I know Luke McGrew is very fast in his ACR.

No the track was dry but it was cold and as you saw there was snow off the track surface.

Rinaldo Catria

This reminds me of something that stuck with me former Indy car driver Richie Hearn(current instructor at Spring Mountain) said on the subject of learning how to “track a car ”.....(my memory of his words). “ I started out racing go carts as a kid... came up through the ranks all the way to INDY cars.... do you know how many cars I wrecked getting there? Too many to count”.. but I’m sure he learned from every one. there’s not a great driver in the history auto sports who hasn’t had multiple “incidents”.. it comes with the territory. Sean, like others here, I feel really sorry about the situation with your ZR1. Thanks for helping us all learn something from it.

jvp

I'll agree it's "challenging". "Fun" isn't a word I'd use, though, IMHO. It's the only place I've ever gotten sick as a driver. That track is pure poop. Nooooo thank you!

Bigeasyvette

Your standard insurance carrier took it or a track insurance company ?

Mikec7z

i think its a bit awkward, borderline rude, to ask people insurance payout/claim questions on an open forum. Things can get twisted around in a hurry, and the consequences can be extremely severe for a person in his shoes IF things do get twisted wrong. not saying they will, but they COULD. I'd imagine part of the reason it took so long for him to post the video may have been due to insurance worries.

PM him that kind of stuff, and if he wants to answer, he will. No need to put him on the spot out here.

Hib Halverson

This is the first time I've read this thread. Sorry to hear you got into the fence.In cold weather, my experience is that the Pilot Super Sport is only an "incrementally" better tire than the PS Cup 2...which is freakin' treacherous in the cold. It's too bad you couldn't see tire temp in real time. I bet with the speed you built on that section coming up to the bridge actually "cooled" the tires which were already not as warm as they needed to be. That, coupled with a cold track surface and much less weight, instantly exceeded the tire's grip. Good thing you were in PTM2 rather than 3 or 4.

I think many of us underestimate the importance of getting heat in the tires before you start doing flyers. I've communicated a lot with Jim Mero about GM's failed attempt to go under 7-min at the 'Ring last year...and Jim has subsequently posted about that in a thread elsewhere. One of the reasons he couldn't quite do it was inadequate time to warm the tires. When you look at the PDR footage of his lap there, a couple places he almost lost it. That footage–both his and yours–was frightening to look at.

That was a hard hit, too. Coincidentally, I've been reading Jr's book which talks a lot about his wrecks during the '12 Cup season and his treatment for and recovery from multiple concussions. I hope you didn't have any lasting effects from that crash.

Indeed GM builds a safe car.

Other than a lot more power, what possible advantage would a Viper ACR be over a C7 GS w Z07?

Rinaldo–along with Richie Hearn–gets the Friday morning "Beacon of Reality Award" and...I agree. Thanks to "Por-sha" for posting such a interesting and brutally honest thread.