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Eddie, you will def be there before me. My first session isn't until 10:40, and my tech is good for the season. I'll be rolling in fashionably late, so please do your best to save a spot for me. Also, if you happen to have a scan gauge, would you mind bringing it along? THX!
Heads up for ya' if you're taking Route 22. There was a well hidden trooper near the panther shooting folks heading down the long hill. My detector went off with enough warning to get me from 77 to 59 before he/she got a good shot at me. Thanks again, Valentine 1 😁
Yesterday was a really good day at LRP. Great weather, blue skies with just a touch of clouds. Sun shade and sun screen were a must. There was quite a crowd in the paddock because of a race being run today... a lot of spec Miatas...
It was nice to meet up with VV and talk about this, that and whatever. The advanced run group that I was in had some blisteringly fast cars in in it, including a GT3 CUP car (that was wicked fast), new Corvette, and a Viper. Smokey (my gray R56S) held his own, with a couple of other cars in his league. It sounded like VV had an equally good time.
The ride there was interesting, with and 18 wheeler that I caught up to on the state road, just after I got off the highway. Even more fun was the 10 or 12 foot wide load that it had on it. Good thing I am in a MINI and had no problems driving around it, as it wasn’t going to get far off the road to let something bigger than me get by it. Thanks Gbuff for bring that up...
Perfect conditions, perfect company and perfect strawberries. Plus, I actually got a point by from a Vette on the front straight right away...and he LIFTED! One for the record books, for sure. The Porsche cup car was consistently well under a minute, in the 55-57 zone even with traffic. Amazing!
(And of course you were correct on the Porsche center lock hub...they are aluminum. )
Last edited by veggivet; Jun 11, 2021 at 05:48 AM.
While there are away some awesome cars at track events, yesterday was setup day for a SCCA race today. Elivan (owner of SCDA) will be racing in #70. These things will turn a 1:01 lap time at LRP, which is really fast. And if you think you need to do a lot to a car to make it fast, these will prove you wrong, right down to the single piston, cast calipers. Ok, these do have sticky tires, and suspension setup, but not much else. It is all about skill and how good the loose nut behind the wheel is... In the right hands, a Z06 Corvette driver may need to watch his/her mirrors for the green spec hounding it.
A gaggle of Miatas...
Lotus is another car that needs nothing except a skilled driver to make it fast. But, in the right hands, these will surely be faster...
Lotus race cars... They are smaller than they look
Not sure how many times in a session this beast passed me... Nothing says fast like “Viper”
A “Yellow Jacket”. Ok, maybe not the best track car, given its weight. But why not take it to the track. Old school, not my choice for the track
Great pics, Eddie! One of those Lotuses was out in my last session and he just blew by my me on no name after I pointed him by. He appeared in my mirrors literally out of nowhere! Elivan was flying out there as well. He told me he had to back off a couple of the GT3s in the corners. No backing off today, though! I hope he wins...
Had such a good time at Lime Rock yesterday, I just registered for the July 7th date, which is afternoon only and unmuffled. This makes for much more efficient use of time, with much less waiting between runs. Note to self: Don't forget the earplugs!!
I actually got a point by from a Vette on the front straight right away...and he LIFTED! One for the record books, for sure.
Was it this C8? He was there a few weeks ago, too. I think he was very nervous about wrecking. Either that or a novice who lied his way into I2. You guys had a perfect day. I hope I get half that next week at Palmer.
What made this even more unusual is that I only came up on him at the crest of the uphill. Typically, the vet drivers would tolerate me behind them thru West Bend and then into the downhill, (where they brake and I don't), only to floor it down the front straight, leaving me in their wake. Elivan wasn't kidding when he did tell me a couple of GT3s were slowing him down when he was out practicing in his Miata. I wonder how he did in the race yesterday.
And I had a Callaway Vette that I passed coming out of T2 last year (maybe)... He had trouble keeping it going straight. Those cars can be scary. Too much car and not enough driver...
Last edited by Eddie07S; Jun 12, 2021 at 08:36 AM.
Reason: Clarification
They don’t use brakes, they just slow you down... They are also running a better suspension, and Hoosiers, but only 205/50x15s. So, not that much rubber. They are fantastic drivers, the Miata is a fantastic car and they are both running at 100% for 100% of the time they are on the track... I’m getting worn out just thinking about it...
Granted the Hoosiers are stickier than my Nittos, but the horsepower difference is substantial. I thought I was driving my car at 7/10 once I warmed up, but I think I'll have to dial that down to a 4/10 now. Very depressing...
So how can I be so slow with almost twice the horsepower and upgraded brakes???
As gbuff might say, "He's a pro, you're a schmo!" Shortly before Ian Prout passed away, he had a justa Mini. We were on track together and he blew by me like I was standing still.
Granted the Hoosiers are stickier than my Nittos, but the horsepower difference is substantial. I thought I was driving my car at 7/10 once I warmed up, but I think I'll have to dial that down to a 4/10 now. Very depressing...
I think, compared to Elivan in his race car, we all are at 4/10s... But that is only in comparison to one of the best of the best drivers, in car that is specifically prepared to be the quickest it can be. I am not sure that is a fair comparison, especially in comparison of our MINIs to a fully prepped race car. Our MINIs are a long ways away from being in the same league as those Miatas. A better comparison would be to rent one of his Miatas for a day and see how close we can come to his time... that, I am sure, would be an eye opener... Our talent vs Elivan...
We can only be as quick as our cars will allow. I always look at my times as how close can I come to being as quick as my car can do. Not what someone else can do, in some other car. An indication as to how fast my car is comes from looking at sector times on data... And I am not there. I have sector times that when added together are quicker than my best overall time. This is where a real race car driver makes their money. That is, being able to put together overall lap times that are a match to the total of their best sector times.
As for HP, I am sure you have heard this many times... LRP is the great HP equalizer. LRP is all about how quickly you can get around the corners, and a Miata is one of the best platforms for doing that. And Elivan is clearly one of the best at motoring one of those little beasts around this track.
So, don’t be depressed. Be content in doing what you do and doing it well. But recognize that even the best of the best have coaches. This is how they get better. The same goes for us. If we are looking to improve, a coach in the car is the best place to start.
Then again, meeting up with good friends on a beautiful day is more meaningful than a 1/10th of a second improvement on the track. But being able to enjoy some time out on the track, while being with good friends, is the icing on the cake...
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