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Well, I got the crazy idea to run back-to-back race weekends. So Friday morning I ventured down to CMP for the NASA Southeast's Pit Bull Brawl. This was my first time running with the Southeast region.

I did know a couple of the CMC drivers and they introduced me around the paddock. So by 3 o'clock I had a bunch of new friends, a cold beer, teched and registered. Things were going well.

The American Iron guys had quite a spread set up for dinner and snacks. Then mother nature decided to throw a wrench into the evening. From about 9 o'clock on, we were under tornado watches and warnings. For the first time in my life, I knew how those in trailer parks feel.

Saturday was a wash, literally. About 2 inches of rain feel at the track. One heck of a way to figure out a track I have been to once and now has a new configuration. I qualified mid-pack and simply wanted to make it through the race. Not having rain tires made it all the worse. But not so bad that I was going to spend $800 on a new set of full tread depth Toyo's. That and the prospect of changing tires in the race sealed the fate of running the Toyo's on the car.

The race got off without a hitch. Funny thing, I could not even see the starter stand and barely the brake lights in front of me due to the rain and spray. But everyone made it through turn one. I was doing ok through the race and then made a mistake. To be honest, I had made the same mistake in practice and qualifying but had used my expert skills (luck) to recover from it. This time, my luck ran out! Going into turn 14, I checked my mirror to see where a super fast Porsche was going. Well, that cause me to brake 20ft too late. I tried the manual ABS brake trick that save me previously, to no avail. Hello sand trap!!! With all the rain, the Camaro was axle deep in the sand. I wish I could say I came close to saving it. I didn't.

So there I sat, stuck. Worse, if some one else made the same mistake, two of us would try and occupy the same spot. Luckily, they threw a full course yellow after a BMW almost joined my beach party, so the wrecker could get across the track to pull me out. So as he pull me onto the track, the decision on what to do. I knew I was a lap or two down and it was tempting to pull into the pits and call it a day. But I decided to continue on as the windshield slowly started to clear from all the steam. It sucks not having a defroster in the car. I managed a third place out of all the effort.

The after race party was first class. I kind of slunk up for my third place trophy, but did enjoy the trophy girls adulation Then after the race trophies, I heard my name being called to come up for another trophy. What could this be for? Maybe an award for being me? No such luck. I was presented with the third annual AI/CMC beach award. The trophy girls handed me a child's beach bucket and shovel. Hey at least I got another hug.

Sunday the rain stopped and it was time to go racing. We only get a 15 minute qualifying session on Sunday and no practice. But the Southeast runs 40 minute races! I qualified 17th out of 32 drivers, but third in CMC.

The leading CMC car is a Camaro that is being "detuned" from American Iron. This was the second race where no dyno sheet wasn't present for the car. But this not my region and only my first time with the Southeast, so I bit my tongue. He out qualified me by 4 seconds. Honestly, I need to start qualifying better. Because for the 17 race laps, I was faster on 12 of those.

The Sunday race was awesome. After 3-4 laps I caught the leading CMC car. I actually made my first pass for a lead and held that lead for over lap. Boy, I wanted the race to end there. I made a mistake coming into turn 1, not protecting the inside. I should have slammed the door shut and not given the inside to him. Lesson learned. For about 25 minutes we went nose to tail. A couple of times I manage to get under him, but did not want to win by wrecking another car. Let me tell you, running that close for 25 minutes when I am used to races lasting only that long was tiring. But it was fun as hell! I did feel the brakes going away, so I had to back off a lap or two to cool the brakes to make another run. That was a first for me also.

So Barney and I brought home a second place. The car is running awesome and I am pretty happy with it.

Yes, I do have video from the Sunday race.

Now I have a few weeks off to recover and clean the car up a little. Back to back race weekends are tough on the driver and car.

_________________
Jim Pastorius
2008 Silverado VortecMax
1992 Camaro CMC#92
2002 BMW R1150R

2009 3rd Place CMC Mid-Atlantic Championship
2009 CMC Hyperfest Winner

Nice race Jim!

Even though I already knew you didn't pass him a second time, I kept thinking "He's gonna get him soon!". You looked like you were running faster laps than he was. It looks like you were really faster than he was in 2-3 places. It looked like he was doing a good job with the last turn prior to the main straight and on the lap that he passed you, I could see just a bit of him pulling on you in your mirror as I think he got a run on you out of that turn. I wonder if after you passed him the first time he watched your line a bit and was able to defend a bit better for the second half of the race.

And traffic wasn't helping you much. Usually when I watch racing that has multiple classes at the same time, I don't think much about the impact of the faster classes on the slower classes. Usually it is the other way around. That the faster cars have to deal with traffic created by the slower cars. But it was interesting to watch you have to deal with cars that are slightly faster you (especially in a straight line), but at the same time hold you up in sections. Someone would pass you under braking and then hold you up through a few turns and then allow 1st place to increase his lead, then the offending car would motor away on the next straight. But you still pulled up on his bumper and I am sure he was sweating it the last handful of laps! You can tell that on the last turn before the flag he was giving it all he had.

I gotta give a thumbs up to the 914 that passes you at 30:24

_________________
Richard Casto
1972 Porsche 914
2013 Honda Fit Sport
2015 Honda Fit EX
http://motorsport.zyyz.com
Money can't buy happiness, but somehow it's more comfortable to cry in a Porsche than a Kia.

Nice observation on T14 leading to the main straight. He has more power than I do (curious to see what his dyno numbers were). You can't really hear it in the video, but my Camaro was a dog out of the that turn in 3rd gear.

If you notice, I did experiment out of turn 8 (sweeping right hander leading to the "kink"). Sometimes leaving it in 4th or dropping to 3rd. Both seemed pretty equal to me. But I never experimented out of T14. I should have dropped it to second gear. That is a 115 degree turn.

Speaking with Joe Lee (the blue Camaro) after the race, he was still in third turning 6800 RPM at the braking for turn 1! How the hell did they get a 305 to turn 6800 RPM? Mine quits in 3rd gears at 5600 RPM as you saw on the last lap.

A rookie mistake on giving him the inside line on his pass of me! I am allowed one block per passing attempt. I should have moved to the inside to protect my line into T1.

Funny things, according to MyLaps.com of the 17 laps, I was faster than him on 12 of those laps.

_________________
Jim Pastorius
2008 Silverado VortecMax
1992 Camaro CMC#92
2002 BMW R1150R

2009 3rd Place CMC Mid-Atlantic Championship
2009 CMC Hyperfest Winner

What was your lap time in the dry? For reference, all I could squeak out of the Cayman (on "real" street tires, don't forget) on the new config was 1:47. Hope to see 1:45 with the softer springs. Hard to say what I could get with some r-compounds...


--Donnie

I turned consistent 1:51's with a low of 1:51.200. I feel there is a 1:49 out there for a CMC car. Since this was only my second time on that track, I was pretty happy with it. I will have to step up my game for early May though.

How much do you have invested in your Cayman and how much was your instructor per hour?

_________________
Jim Pastorius
2008 Silverado VortecMax
1992 Camaro CMC#92
2002 BMW R1150R

2009 3rd Place CMC Mid-Atlantic Championship
2009 CMC Hyperfest Winner

Hey, I wasn't trying to make you feel bad! Just pointing out the "conditions." Obviously the Cayman is a bit, err, more expensive and capable! I was just curious where we were...I couldn't get but 2:17's out of it on VIR Full, but that was with rear shocks bottoming out badly thanks to some improper parts being installed. So we were close there and I wanted to know how "close" we were at CMP since I had the proper rear hats there.

My instruction was free, though. Well, it's not like I never did anything for him, but we didn't have to exchange money, anyway.

Brian thinks that softer springs should get the car to 1:45 on those tires. We shall see.


--Donnie