I was reading that this is a rather non-forgiving track, with little to no run-off space, and a huge pucker factor. I think I also heard that anyone who damages the blue railing (Armco), needs to pay for repairs, or something like that - ouch, more than once.

Be safe guys. Run a smart race.

 

Randy - That's why I wished you "No Fear"! Best of luck in the race!

You aren't going fast enough unless you're scared white each lap! Go for it and have fun!

 

Following the race now... lap 19, 15th in class, and moving-up. Consecutive best laps on 21 and 22! Gradually realing-in the 14th place car... Best lap now on 23, then 24 also, with a 2:18's. Get after it RSR! The 16th car, driven by Beede is closing on us though, pulling 2:14's for best laps... Best lap times dropped into the 2:17's, and now into the 2:16's. Nice work guys! Pit stops are happening now. We are in 11th...

 

Results?

 

I believe 11th. I had to leave at about the 1/2 way point... a promise to my wife...

Here you go:

http://www.grand-am.com/Events/Event.asp?ID=196

From there, you can see a lot... including the results:

http://www.grand-am.com/Events/Event.asp?ID=196

From what I can tell, they did a heck of a job, finsishing ahead of cars with faster lap times, and with higher top speeds. I wish these were televised. And in-car videos would be awesome...

RSR is finishing races, moving-up in the pack, and it seems that the car(s) is/are getting sorted-out further as well. I like the progress...

No much of a break guys. A week off, then Barber:

 

11th in class! Good solid finish guys...

 

A mixed bag at Watkins Glen.

On the plus side we finished 11th in class and 37th overall (58 starters) with the #198 car. The #197 was 'punted' off at about the two hour mark by a GS car. It was too damaged to continue. No one was hurt but we will have to scramble to have it ready for Barber in two weeks. The #197 was still posted in 16th place even though it did not finish.

We are a little puzzled by the lap count for the #198. We thought we were on the lead lap right to the checker but they scored us two laps down. The laps are counted by the GS leader so we understand we were two down to them. We can't figure out how we got two down to the ST class. We will check the downloads on 'mylaps' and see what happened. There was a lot of confusion at the end with a pair of back to back full course cautions.

Both the cars ran very well. The 11th place finish is our best of the season at a track where we were at an extreme disadvantage. Watkins Glen is a big horsepower track and very fast. Most of the track is 4th and 5th gear. Aerodynamics play a big part. The race temps were on the plus side in the mid/high 80's, so all of our handicaps were in full play.

We had a good pit strategy and it seemed to pay off to the end. We are very pleased with the 11th place.

Two weeks till Barber . . .

Here is a picture of the paddock as we were suiting up for the race:

 

Starting a new thread for Barber.

Both cars are signed up but we will have to scramble to get the #197 ready. It was wrecked at Watkins Glen.

Looking forward to meeting the local NAM members. Please stop by.

Current Driver line up:

Randy Smalley
Mark Congleton
BJ Zacharias
mystery driver to be be named later . .


Thanks!
Randy

 

Randy, as far as I could tell from the Live Update thingy, you were on the same lap as the ST leader the entire first half at least...

On average fast lap time deltas of let's say 4 seconds, for 69 laps, that's a little over 4 1/2 minutes, or a couple plus laps. That said, there were at least 10+ caution laps in the first half of the race....

I can't imagine that the lead ST cars finished on the same lap as the GT's. I think the problem lies there... Good luck getting that sorted-out.

 

Great job again guys!

Nice to see that you've got the reliability sorted out.

Did the GS car that took out #197 get any penalty?

 

Randy, really great job at the Glen. I must say that it's great to have a team as well organized as yours representing Mini. Good things will surely come!

 

Thank you all for the positive comments. As Randy mentioned, it was an up and down race. I was very encouraged that in the #197 we could run 1:15's with a few 1:14's which is fast in race conditions. To run at 4 sec faster than qualifying is not the norm, I think it shows track time is what we need.

Needless to say, I think the Kensei Acura behind me enjoys the hole in the air the MINI is creating.

Thanks again for the positive comments the are appreciated.

Mark

 

Mark, the lap time improvements, I feel, as I noted during the race, are very encouraging. I applaud the team on the progress. Very proud of you guys!

 

Fabulous job, guys! Congratulations on a great finish at a tough track for the MINI. You are doing a lot of things not only right, but very well done!
May the force be with you and continued improvement coming you way.

 

Good job guys

 

Good job guys. Well done!!! Where is your next race?

 

Going down south:

http://www.grand-am.com/Events/Event.asp?ID=203

I've said it before, but the RSR MINI's really look good!

Seeing the Acura behind you with its lights on, do the RSR MINIs have fuctioning head lights? It would seem beneficial in certain conditions...

 

Tony... yes Barber (7/19-22) is the next stop. Yikes.. I hope the 197 will be ready.

We do not have headlights due to weight considerations. If required, lights will be installed for the season finale at VIR which is a 6 hour race. In the photo above, I really like the attitude of the wheels on the MINI. It shows the car is set up properly. This is going up the esses (at T3) flat out in 5th gear.

Mark

 

Fix it by Barber ...... no problem!?!

 

It looks worse than it actually is . . . lots of cosmetic damage but the frame, engine, etc are intact and unharmed.

Thanks for posting the picture! I forgot to take any . . .

We will keep you posted!
Randy

 

From the photo of the damaged 197 car, it looks like the strust tower brace is triangulated into the firewall. If so, very interesting. The heat exchanger up front, to the left, seems to be for oil... God speed to you guys!

 

Correct on both counts!
Randy

 

Next year, and there will be a next year... please make it to Laguna Seca! Would like to meet you, and your cars.

 

+1.

If this happened, I would set aside time for a road trip and also volunteer to help you guys in any way possible.

 

Looks like the #197 WILL make it to Barber. The graphics and paint may not be right . . . but we think the mechanicals will be done and the car will be ready to race.

Randy