Riverside Raceway storys
- Thread starter lobster
- Start date
The second IMSA Renault Cup race that we did was at Riverside and there certainly were stories involved - although most of them weren't really about the track.
** We drove the race car to SoCal from Seattle, with two people, race tires, gear, and a tent and toolbox in the backseat and trunk. We had to raise the rear torsion bars waaaay up to keep it from hitting the bumpstops on the trip, then reset the ride height when we got there.
** We discovered that RR didn't allow overnight camping - what the..? - so had to hide in the dark in the tent the first night so security wouldn't throw us out. We stayed in a really fearsome $29 motel near the track the next night and had to hide in the dark so other dangers wouldn't get us.
** We drove because we couldn't afford a truck and trailer and the trip has to be a record for cheap racing travel. We caught a huge tailwind going south on the Grapevine and averaged more than 60mpg on a partial tank of gas. Even short-filling, that was a long stint without a pee stop.
** In tech, one of the "spec" Alliances was found to be 35# underweight. The offender was taken to the Renault-Jeep Sport trailer and politely asked to make it gain weight over the winter. We learned something.
** Matt Adams (son of Pontiac guru Herb) demonstrated that he could qualify up front, spin, work his way back up front, spin again, and STILL motor past bump-drafting pairs and strings of cars on RR's long back straight. Nobody did anything and we learned something else.[1]
** We had a big scare when our ride home got moved offline and went leaping through the air in the esses. Only the airdam suffered. This will not, however, keep me from driving a race car to a regional this weekend, accepting that it's 45 minutes away rather than 18 hours...
K
[1] The footnote is that at the first race of the next season, the frontrunning cars were all about 3 seconds faster than they had been at the end of the previous year, with tires that were generally considered to be problematic. We qualified a couple tenths faster - evidence that we really hadn't learned much after all.
** We drove the race car to SoCal from Seattle, with two people, race tires, gear, and a tent and toolbox in the backseat and trunk. We had to raise the rear torsion bars waaaay up to keep it from hitting the bumpstops on the trip, then reset the ride height when we got there.
** We discovered that RR didn't allow overnight camping - what the..? - so had to hide in the dark in the tent the first night so security wouldn't throw us out. We stayed in a really fearsome $29 motel near the track the next night and had to hide in the dark so other dangers wouldn't get us.
** We drove because we couldn't afford a truck and trailer and the trip has to be a record for cheap racing travel. We caught a huge tailwind going south on the Grapevine and averaged more than 60mpg on a partial tank of gas. Even short-filling, that was a long stint without a pee stop.
** In tech, one of the "spec" Alliances was found to be 35# underweight. The offender was taken to the Renault-Jeep Sport trailer and politely asked to make it gain weight over the winter. We learned something.
** Matt Adams (son of Pontiac guru Herb) demonstrated that he could qualify up front, spin, work his way back up front, spin again, and STILL motor past bump-drafting pairs and strings of cars on RR's long back straight. Nobody did anything and we learned something else.[1]
** We had a big scare when our ride home got moved offline and went leaping through the air in the esses. Only the airdam suffered. This will not, however, keep me from driving a race car to a regional this weekend, accepting that it's 45 minutes away rather than 18 hours...
K
[1] The footnote is that at the first race of the next season, the frontrunning cars were all about 3 seconds faster than they had been at the end of the previous year, with tires that were generally considered to be problematic. We qualified a couple tenths faster - evidence that we really hadn't learned much after all.
Hmmmm...Realizing I'm hijacking a topic (maybe we need to start a new one?), I drove my SSA Shelby CSX from Wichita Falls, TX to Road Atlanta, GA for the SCCA Runoffs with wheels and tools stuffed in the back.
Three times.
'Course, I wasn't taking a chance against the Archers and/or Hackers, but there were some pretty "elbowy" folks driving SSA 1989-1991...
You'd be surprised how far one can travel across the southern US armed with nothing but a Citgo gas credit card (noting that 7-11 was a Citgo outlet at the time...I still have a revulsion for hot dogs to this day...)
[This message has been edited by grega (edited March 16, 2004).]
Tom Donnelly
New member
I got my first racing license at Riverside from the Bondurant school back in 1985.
And had my first ride in a formula mazda there.
Riverside was great in a formula ford. I don't remember the whole configuration but I do remember that when you exit turn 9, you point to the second stripe on the wall and keep your foot to the floor until the end of the straight.
On a test day there, Nissan was also testing its gtp car. A formula ford looked like a toy next to that monster. It was hitting 215+ down the same straight. (Not while I was on the track.)
It was amazing to see what a factory team had at that time. I hadn't heard of in-car computers or telemetrics or even hoped to have a radio system.
And had my first ride in a formula mazda there.
Riverside was great in a formula ford. I don't remember the whole configuration but I do remember that when you exit turn 9, you point to the second stripe on the wall and keep your foot to the floor until the end of the straight.
On a test day there, Nissan was also testing its gtp car. A formula ford looked like a toy next to that monster. It was hitting 215+ down the same straight. (Not while I was on the track.)
It was amazing to see what a factory team had at that time. I hadn't heard of in-car computers or telemetrics or even hoped to have a radio system.
RacerBill
New member
OK, this will probably date me, but what the heck. This happened somewhere back in the 60's when NASCAR ran at Riverside. A full course yellow was called for some incident, and as the pack was slowly revolving around the track, a call came in from one of the corner stations, asking if it was ok for a driver to have a cigar in his mouth. Response from NASCAR - only if it was not lit!!!!!! This is probably not too far from the truth as I have pictures of the Holly Farms Special at Bridgehampton with chewing gum taped to the Petty bar, for the driver's mid race pleasure!
G
Guest
Guest
OK, heres the best day and the worst day.
Best was 75 at the nascar race, at the end of the weekend my brother bought Bobbi Alisons backup motor for $3500, we won 45 races with that motor. Worst was 80 when a good friend was killed after the esses in the sportsman 200 race.
Best was 75 at the nascar race, at the end of the weekend my brother bought Bobbi Alisons backup motor for $3500, we won 45 races with that motor. Worst was 80 when a good friend was killed after the esses in the sportsman 200 race.
Ah, Riverside. I spent a week there one day.
Actually, Riverside was the "last straw" that moved me into Improved Touring from D Sports Racing. After a 40 hr. tow to LA from Atlanta with the driver's fiancee (hell no I'm not stopping for a potty break- I still got 40 gallons of gas left. Here's a cup.) only to find him in jail for DUI (he moved out there the month before and left me the rig). Then spent a typical DSR weekend at the track- missing all the beer parties because I was either replacing halfshaft donuts, fighting cam timing, fixing tach cables that couldn't stand 12,500 rpm, replacing broke crank's, rejetting carbs, retorquing every single fastener on the car, or...well you get the picture. Weather was beautiful though, and it was a really cool track. Dropped out of the race with a fatigue crack in the chassis. Typical. Flew home glad to be out.
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katman
Actually, Riverside was the "last straw" that moved me into Improved Touring from D Sports Racing. After a 40 hr. tow to LA from Atlanta with the driver's fiancee (hell no I'm not stopping for a potty break- I still got 40 gallons of gas left. Here's a cup.) only to find him in jail for DUI (he moved out there the month before and left me the rig). Then spent a typical DSR weekend at the track- missing all the beer parties because I was either replacing halfshaft donuts, fighting cam timing, fixing tach cables that couldn't stand 12,500 rpm, replacing broke crank's, rejetting carbs, retorquing every single fastener on the car, or...well you get the picture. Weather was beautiful though, and it was a really cool track. Dropped out of the race with a fatigue crack in the chassis. Typical. Flew home glad to be out.
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katman