WGI Fun One....who's in?
- Thread starter StephF
- Start date
gran racing
Super Moderator
I'm out - no money. 
lateapex911
Super Moderator
I'm out: No car. parts just arrived from japan though there is light att the end of the tunnel
...could be a train.
RedMisted
New member
As of this writing, there are something like 70 cars in Group 7 (IT R/S/A, STU, IT7), and not nearly as many cars in the other IT groups. Say, how about if the stewards move things around so that we don't put each other in all those walls, esp. on Sunday when we run the short course and when it is expected to rain?
Now, I'll bang doors with the most psycho of drivers out there. But it would be nice to see the organizers show a little sense by reducing the congestion of a group featuring the very fastest IT cars, and making the risk more equitable for all.
Now, I'll bang doors with the most psycho of drivers out there. But it would be nice to see the organizers show a little sense by reducing the congestion of a group featuring the very fastest IT cars, and making the risk more equitable for all.
dj10
New member
Chris, they may do a split start, besides that there's nothing much they can do besides changing or moving around different run groups. I think that would be alot of work.
Several years ago, I got to run the short course race in a group of about 80 cars. It was completely ridiculous.
The main problem was that the group sort of overwhelmed the corner workers and there were many passes under yellow not disciplined.
There was a big mix in speeds.
The fascinating thing was notwithstanding all the lapping going on, the clusters with whom you were racing stayed in tact after the passing.
The main problem was that the group sort of overwhelmed the corner workers and there were many passes under yellow not disciplined.
There was a big mix in speeds.
The fascinating thing was notwithstanding all the lapping going on, the clusters with whom you were racing stayed in tact after the passing.
RacerBill
New member
Jake: We've got an 8hr enduro at MO on Oct 16! Just the event to break in those new parts!!!!!!!
gran racing
Super Moderator
Did I hear correctly that at least two ITB volvos rolled this weekend?
Any other updates? I heard Marty won the first race - congrats!
Any other updates? I heard Marty won the first race - congrats!
StephF
New member
Nat Wentworth rolled it right in front of me. T1, running the long course, a gaggle of IT and showstock cars, we had a split start with Miatas coming behind us. We had 48 registered, 41 who went out and got times.
Nat went really wide into T1, apparently keept his foot in it, crossed the track in front of me, got sideways in the dirt, tagged the tire wall with the rear end and instantly bounced up off the ground.
I knew when I saw the silver belly pan that it wasn't going to be good.
The group in front of me scattered, I dove out to the curb and got by, I was close enough when it began that I last saw him hanging upside down in the air. Other folks told me he landed on his wheels again.
We continued up the esses at speed. I kept thinking there would be a full course yellow, but there were no flags.
Then I remembered the split start, so I figured they were busy stopping them. As we reached the bus stop, they finally threw a red flag.
The group I was in did a good job stopping. Drivers were using the NASCAR waving in the windows thing to warn drivers behind us, and we pulled off to the sides and stopped. The group in front of us didn't stop until the boot, then from reports I heard, one Volvo just stopped dead in the middle of the track, just locked his brakes on, and got rear ended bad by another car that never saw the red flag and didn't try to brake until he was 10' away.
That put his car out and mangled the rear end of the Volvo. He tried to race Sunday, but was apparently puking fuel bad enough that he came in after 3 laps. I saw him on the pace laps, just billowing white smoke behind him, real bad.
I also heard a rumor that another car burst into flames during the red too, but I never verified that.
Now the theme of the weekend was the Gulf of Mexico...as in we had more oil on the track than BP left in the Gulf. Qualifying for Sat. was a joke. Oil everywhere, and I saw at least 2 cars puking in my group. We went out after Historics, so they did their own rendition of the Exxon Valdez. Kitty litter everywhere, it was a freaking house cat's paradise out there. We got two laps, then a black flag, sat in the pits and went out for another two laps. Never got a clean lap anyplace due to cars stacked up and debris.
That was somewhat cleaner for the Sat. race, Nat notwithstanding. Once we restarted, that race went relatively cleanly. At least there wasn't any oil on track.
Then came Sunday, foggy foggy Sunday. Good old upstate NY, we were in the clouds in the morning. Group 1 got out to qualify, then it socked in again. They held a meeting and decided to run one group each with two pace laps, and gridded by finishing position. I had won on Sat., so that put me on the pole. We did a split start with Miatas again (Thank God!). The track was clean, we went out and the race started cleanly enough. I saw the Volvo puking early on, then late in the race Mike Goldkuhl in the ITC Fiesta puked all his oil out the breather. I saw him in my mirrors disappearing in a cloud of white smoke as I headed down the main straight.
Well, unbeknownst to me and another Volvo, Goldkuhl had puked on the line through 11 and 12 (high speed left hander off the NASCAR straight and the last turn onto pit straight)
Next lap through, with no flag visible, I came through 11 like I had been and the car snapped around instantly. I could see the blue armco coming at me from my right, and an ITB car and an SM car coming through T11 behind me. For the first time, I made the decision to unlock the car (I had both feet in) and pulled both feet back out. It worked.
The car shot back across the track, away from the 9-mile tall blue armco and into the paved runoff area. I was able to slap it down a couple gears, and mat the throttle again, with no real loss of position other than that ITB and SM car going by. The Volvo that came through a moment or so later wasn't as lucky. Apparently he spun out of 12, did a tank slapper, and started spinning and tagging the wall down the pit straight, finally coming to rest just before the start finish stand. They checkered it a bit early.
All in all it was a wild and wooly weekend. It was a fun one for us, but not so much for some other folks. I do love the Glen, but it can be a car eater.