Because it's been a bit slow

steve remchak · **Posted:** Wed May 08, 2013 8:54 pm

Like the title says, this forum is a ghost town these days. The AutoX crowd seems to be the only folks talking. OK, there is some RallyX traffic................

I don't know why or how but this topic just popped in to my bean......

Track Days.... proudest moment?

Myself, the day Mark put his Scirocco ITB car off in the carousel at CMP trying to stay in front of my Instructor and me. I think Mitch was in the Kirkey that day.

Arthur McDonald · **Joined:** Fri Aug 29, 2003 1:54 am **Posts:** 2052

No takers? I'll bite, since the statue of limitations has run out.

1994, Roebling Road, Car Guys school,: I'd borrowed a set of rock-hard off-brand street tires from club member named Bobby Woodell to use for the weekend. The rubber was very dry and they squealed in any kind of cornering situation. My instructor was a Corvette driver named Jan Harte, and she was probably not thrilled to be assigned to a stock Fox-body Mustang, but was trying to be polite. As we were negotiating the turn 7 (per NASA map) carousel, you could easily tell if I was over or under steering by the direction and pitch of the squeals. Jan said: "Those tires are really talking to you, what kind are they?" I turned to her, smiled, and said "They're Laramies!" Her face fell.

1997, Roebling Road, Car Guys school: I had finally made the top student group - white group. Same FS Fox-body Mustang, but this time on RA-1s. Shortly after being signed off, I made my best effort at being patient with my turn in for the last turn, turn 8, and was rewarded with an indicated 100mph at track out! Pretty proud of myself, but something was wrong, and sure enough, in my mirror was a Ferrari 333 SP driven by a 17 year kid. Point by... and as my ego deflated, I heard that famous ripping Ferrari 12 cylinder howl. (At the end of the day, a course worker said she clocked him at 170 mph in the turn 1 braking zone)

2000, VIR-S. Since I believe THSCC held the first time trial on VIR-S after the track re-opened, I can lay claim to the ESP lap record on that course, at least for a few days. 1:26.something

Mark Barnes · **Posted:** Tue May 14, 2013 2:53 pm

1. Running VK down at VIR and forcing him to give me a point by then slowing down to let him back by and then doing it again just to piss him off....
2. Running with the Porsche Club at CMP. Catching many expensive, shiny Porsches in the 93 Mustang and making them give me a point by (or them getting the move over flag). Nothing more fun than messing with some tools ego.....

clinehall · **Posted:** Tue May 14, 2013 3:04 pm

Much like Mark, I have many best moments at PCA events. Easy to feel superior there. I've lost count of how many 911s (and all variations) that have spun out in front of me because they don't want a Mini to catch them much less pass. Of course my worst moments were at PCA events as well. First, in the last session when they merged a couple of the groups I almost rearended a GT3 when they hit the brakes going up the uphill Esses. Second, when riding with Patrice and going off track left the back on the track then off to the right in the uphill Esses and wondering where the car was we had just passed

steve remchak · **Posted:** Tue May 14, 2013 3:10 pm

clinehall wrote:

Much like Mark, I have many best moments at PCA events. Easy to feel superior there. I've lost count of how many 911s (and all variations) that have spun out in front of me because they don't want a Mini to catch them much less pass. Of course my worst moments were at PCA events as well. First, in the last session when they merged a couple of the groups I almost rearended a GT3 when they hit the brakes going up the uphill Esses. Second, when riding with Patrice and going off track left the back on the track then off to the right in the uphill Esses and wondering where the car was we had just passed

Don't forget "Mr Whoa" :lol:

Les Davis · **Joined:** Fri Aug 29, 2003 2:04 pm **Posts:** 2059

I've only had one track event, but the highlight of that would have to be my last session, after I decided to finally take my skirt off and drive, reeling in Cash after giving him many points in earlier sessions, I guess I caught up to him so fast through the uphill esses that it startled him and he spun off into the grass trying to avoid giving me a point.

Vincent Keene · **Posted:** Tue May 14, 2013 4:55 pm

I had a older gentlemen in an old GTV Alfa as a student at VIR-S. His car had so much body roll I almost ended up in his lap in the Bitch turn. He had brake issues and had to retire early, so I offered him a ride a ride in my old Z-24 after lunch. After the 20 min session was over I stopped near all my buddies in the paddock and he jumped and and said "Wow, this car is awesome! I gotta get me one of these!"

That was the one and only time anyone has ever said that about my old Cavalier.

Bernie Baake · **Posted:** Tue May 14, 2013 8:03 pm

2010 ford GT hpde event at VIR....40 plus ford GT's I was one of about five or six local instructors helping GT owners navigate the track (in the pouring rain). Took my student out in the miata, All 92whp of it. And proceeded to pass every ford GT on the track except one that was prepped in Europe for the GT3 FIA racing season, it was driven by the European drivers. When we returned to the paddock my student told his wife we passed everything on the track except the GT3 car she exclaimed "in that thing". To which her husband replied " you better ride in it before you rush to judgement. She did and we repeated the scenario.
Two weeks later he Emailed that he bought a MIATA!!!!!! Miata's really kick ass in against 550hp rear wheel drives in the pouring rain!!!!!
.

Chuck Branscomb · **Posted:** Tue May 14, 2013 10:45 pm

Walter Mitty Challenge, 1981, Road Atlanta. My first track event. There was no instruction (still would be a number of years before clubs offered instructors on a regular basis), just open tracking for street cars in sessions between the Mitty vintage races. Passengers were allowed. Brian Redman ran the driver's meeting.

My wife was riding with me all weekend (insane, probably why she doesn't want to try autocross today, lol).

1) It was WIDE OPEN tracking, just pass with a point on any straight. Going into Turn 1, a Jaguar XJ12 sedan that wouldn't let me pass on the straights (in my 1972 Bavaria), but I was all over him from 1 through 5, then 6-7, so going into Turn 1, I super late brake and dive to the inside, get by him, followed by an almost full lock oversteer, just barely catching the car. Went right on going. Wife didn't say a word. Six years of autocrossing up to that point sure came in handy.

2) At same event, a Mercury (Ford of Europe) Capri came through the bridge turn (this was when it was still a turn since the back straight hadn't been filled in and made into the chicane), got loose on the outside then flipped end-over-end all the way down the hill in the red clay toward pit-in (pits were on the outside of the track then). Driver had to be air-lifted out of there.

3) Ok, organizers stop event, say speeds are too fast down the back straight, so they setup a chicane with cones about 1/2 down back straight to force everyone to slow down to about 30mph. In the very next session (which I happened to be in), a black 911 lost it in that cone chicane, and slammed face first into the tire wall/Armco along the right side of the straight totaling the car. Session stopped. Chicane now removed.

Somehow I never crashed at these Mitty events. I ran the same event in '82 and '83.

steve remchak · **Posted:** Tue May 14, 2013 11:26 pm

Chuck Branscomb wrote:

Walter Mitty Challenge, 1981, Road Atlanta. My first track event. There was no instruction (still would be a number of years before clubs offered instructors on a regular basis), just open tracking for street cars in sessions between the Mitty vintage races. Passengers were allowed. Brian Redman ran the driver's meeting.

My wife was riding with me all weekend (insane, probably why she doesn't want to try autocross today, lol).

1) It was WIDE OPEN tracking, just pass with a point on any straight. Going into Turn 1, a Jaguar XJ12 sedan that wouldn't let me pass on the straights (in my 1972 Bavaria), but I was all over him from 1 through 5, then 6-7, so going into Turn 1, I super late brake and dive to the inside, get by him, followed by an almost full lock oversteer, just barely catching the car. Went right on going. Wife didn't say a word. Six years of autocrossing up to that point sure came in handy.

2) At same event, a Mercury (Ford of Europe) Capri came through the bridge turn (this was when it was still a turn since the back straight hadn't been filled in and made into the chicane), got loose on the outside then flipped end-over-end all the way down the hill in the red clay toward pit-in (pits were on the outside of the track then). Driver had to be air-lifted out of there.

3) Ok, organizers stop event, say speeds are too fast down the back straight, so they setup a chicane with cones about 1/2 down back straight to force everyone to slow down to about 30mph. In the very next session (which I happened to be in), a black 911 lost it in that cone chicane, and slammed face first into the tire wall/Armco along the right side of the straight totaling the car. Session stopped. Chicane now removed.

Somehow I never crashed at these Mitty events. I ran the same event in '82 and '83.

Sounds kinda Chumpy...........

Chuck Branscomb · **Posted:** Wed May 15, 2013 7:20 am

steve remchak wrote:

Sounds kinda Chumpy...........

lol, yeah, it definitely wasn't a proudest moment post for me, instead just the most memorable since it was so insane compared to modern day track events, and it's not everyday you have Brian Redman running a driver's meeting and discussing the ins and outs of Road Atlanta.

Vincent Keene · **Posted:** Wed May 15, 2013 8:18 am

Chuck Branscomb wrote:

they setup a chicane with cones about 1/2 down back straight to force everyone to slow down to about 30mph. In the very next session (which I happened to be in), a black 911 lost it in that cone chicane, and slammed face first into the tire wall/Armco along the right side of the straight totaling the car. Session stopped. Chicane now removed.

They added a 1-car wide chicane at the first Lemons event down at CMP because they didn't want cars going too fast into T1. It created more wrecks than you can count. Next event, chicane removed, no big issues with cars going fast into T1, and much less carnage.

clinehall · **Posted:** Wed May 15, 2013 2:11 pm

Vincent Keene wrote:

I had a older gentlemen in an old GTV Alfa as a student at VIR-S. His car had so much body roll I almost ended up in his lap in the Bitch turn. He had brake issues and had to retire early, so I offered him a ride a ride in my old Z-24 after lunch. After the 20 min session was over I stopped near all my buddies in the paddock and he jumped and and said "Wow, this car is awesome! I gotta get me one of these!"

That was the one and only time anyone has ever said that about my old Cavalier.

I loved that event, It was one of my first few events but I felt like Sebastian Vettel with all those old Alfa's!

Andrew Jonell · **Joined:** Mon Mar 23, 2009 6:43 pm **Posts:** 1350

A self-entitled Justin Bieber look-alike? :lol:

steve remchak · **Posted:** Wed May 15, 2013 7:36 pm

Andrew Jonell wrote:

A self-entitled Justin Bieber look-alike? :lol:

Cline looks like Bieber? No wonder I want to ................

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