VIR-North NASA 7/29/06 weekend

My first podium ever! :) Battled overheating issues all weekend.... I think I have a head gasket issue :(

Sat race: Qualified 1st in GTS3; Finished 3rd after RedFlag:

http://www.3dluvr.com/crossbow/lites...hRace72906.wmv

Sun Race: Qualified 2nd in GTS3; Finished 1st after full course caution. Some nice action of a Mustang grenading his motor at about the 10:40 mark.

http://www.3dluvr.com/crossbow/lites...hRace73006.wmv

Video from the 996 that was behind me in Sunday's race (latest Quicktime required):

http://www.kingjuju.com/video/graphi...sundayFull.mov

Enjoy

Congrats Eric!

Alex

Good job!!! I'll be there to watch the BMWCCA race morning/midday on Aug 6 since my friends are going to watch a Time Attack on the Shenandoah... I told them to drop me off at the Main Circuit where I can watch real racing.

I'm assuming that you will be running, so long as there are no major engine issues found before then?

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Biggins

Good job!!! I'll be there to watch the BMWCCA race morning/midday on Aug 6 since my friends are going to watch a Time Attack on the Shenandoah... I told them to drop me off at the Main Circuit where I can watch real racing.

I'm assuming that you will be running, so long as there are no major engine issues found before then?

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Chris.. I need to sort out a head gasket issue. Most likely I will not be making it unless someone needs a codrive for the enduro. :(

In-car videos from SpecE30 #59. Completing the first half of my rookie races. With the stock exhaust and the catalytic converter still in place, the other SpecE30s pull away from me like I'm walking (that's already being taken care of).

Saturday's race: Started 11th, finished 12th. I blew the start, mis-judged the room I had to go around Carlton Goldthwaite on the right and then bore witness to an amazing grass pass when Carlton pushed the power to pass button between turn 6a and the bridge. After catching up to Ken Neuhoff's orange E30 and some pretty good racing for 11th place between the two rookies I got caught behind the tow truck, twice.

At the 8:22 mark in the video, you can see the black and green 944 drop its exhaust pipe in the passing line of turn 1.

At the 13:45 mark, pushing too hard, with extremely old RA-1s, I blew the first apex in Hogpen, pushed out onto the curbing, the fronts hooked up and I snapped in towards the guardrail, corrected the skid, but held it too long, tank slapped it to the left then right and put both feet in as I went off to the outside of 17a. :icon_omfg

(Video ends a few seconds before the checker.)

Quicktime:
http://www.dvsmith.net/images/bmw/sp..._7-29-06fs.jpg
click image to play

Google Video (now live):
http://www.dvsmith.net/images/bmw/sp...9-06google.jpg
click image to play

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Sunday's race: qualified 11th, started 10th, finished 6th(?) due to attrition.

A much better start - I got the jump on Al Taylor, who missed a shift, and began to pull on Scott Ferguson, until he hit the powerband and my asthmatic exhaust choked the engine. Mike Davidson dropped three off on the outside of turn 1, after zooming from last on the grid (he was late to the pits) While I could keep the pace through the turns, when flat on the throttle, the other cars just walked away from me. A much cleaner, smoother race on my part, I had to tiptoe through Hogpen to avoid the 31 heat-cycle RA-1s from sliding off.

At the 10:55 mark, you can see Mike Davidson spilling brake fluid down the inside of turn 7 (which is unfortunate, given Team Davidson's wheel bearing change less than an hour before.

A couple of interesting passes by 944s, including a pass under yellow in turn 4 by the orange 944 (16:25) and my 4-wheel grass cut into rollercoaster (17:10), in order to keep up my momentum while rejoining the main track.

Widescreen Quicktime:
http://www.dvsmith.net/images/bmw/sp..._7-30-06ws.jpg
click image to play

Google Video:
http://www.dvsmith.net/images/bmw/sp...0-06google.jpg
click image to play

Quote:

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Originally Posted by magnetic1

My first podium ever! :) Battled overheating issues all weekend.... I think I have a head gasket issue :(

Sat race: Qualified 1st in GTS3; Finished 3rd after RedFlag:

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That was me that fliipped. The FFR in turn 7 was the one that flipped me. Did you see me off to the left? I couldn't seen my car upside down from your video, you must have come through right after it happened b/c after he hit me he spun.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by white_2kgt

That was me that fliipped. The FFR in turn 7 was the one that flipped me. Did you see me off to the left? I couldn't seen my car upside down from your video, you must have come through right after it happened b/c after he hit me he spun.

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Hey there, sorry to hear about your car... I came out of the lower esses and saw the FFR in the middle of the cutover... wasnt exactly sure why it was there, but I got around him. I could have sworn I saw in the corner of my eye something on the inside (right) and not the left though? Maybe that was the corner worker's car parked?

Speaking with Chip Stabler and Olivier Raoust (GTS3 guys ahead of me).. they saw it RIGHT after it happened. Both told me they saw your car flying through the air. What exactly happened with that FFR? I heard rumors of him helping you off.. and also that he was involved in another incident over the weekend? Then overheard something in the control tower about taking his license away?

Some crazy stuff this weekend. I had a Porsche Cup Car in GTS-U trying to pass under DOUBLE YELLOW. HELLO?! He missed FOUR (4) flag stations of double yellows. He passed KJ who was behind me... and in my video you can see him trying to pass me while Im frantically pointing at the corner stations. Idiots.

Dan... great job man!

Eric, BTW, once again, congrats!

Chad, I heard the incident in Saturday's Thunder race, but was still checking over the E30 when it happened, so I didn't see any of it or the aftermath. Glad you're okay -- it really does suck about your car, this was your last provisional weekend, right?

Sounds like Thunder was a little crazy -- the 944's in Autobahn were in their usual form: all over the place and aggressive as ever, even with cars not in their class.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by magnetic1

Hey there, sorry to hear about your car... I came out of the lower esses and saw the FFR in the middle of the cutover... wasnt exactly sure why it was there, but I got around him. I could have sworn I saw in the corner of my eye something on the inside (right) and not the left though? Maybe that was the corner worker's car parked?

Speaking with Chip Stabler and Olivier Raoust (GTS3 guys ahead of me).. they saw it RIGHT after it happened. Both told me they saw your car flying through the air. What exactly happened with that FFR? I heard rumors of him helping you off.. and also that he was involved in another incident over the weekend? Then overheard something in the control tower about taking his license away?

Some crazy stuff this weekend. I had a Porsche Cup Car in GTS-U trying to pass under DOUBLE YELLOW. HELLO?! He missed FOUR (4) flag stations of double yellows. He passed KJ who was behind me... and in my video you can see him trying to pass me while Im frantically pointing at the corner stations. Idiots.

Dan... great job man!

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Yes, the FFR hit me, got under my right rear tire and then I flipped off the left side of the track and landed on the roof, my car was upside down. What you heard that happened Sunday is pretty much what I have heard as well.

Do you know if Chip or Oliver have video of me? Could you contact them and ask for me please? My camera cut out when I landed on it, it was on the roof. When the red for me came out apparently a few other drivers kept racing from S/F to turn 5 before coming to a stop :eek:.

I think a few people need to take a few weekends of HPDE3 and go through compschool again after the stuff that went on at Hyperfest and this weekend.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SharkD

Eric, BTW, once again, congrats!

Chad, I heard the incident in Saturday's Thunder race, but was still checking over the E30 when it happened, so I didn't see any of it or the aftermath. Glad you're okay -- it really does suck about your car, this was your last provisional weekend, right?

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Yes, this was my last weekend on the Provisional, I did get signed off for the race on Saturday so I need 1 more, I did manage a 3rd in AI even though I was on my roof.

I found Oliver on the NASA Forums but no luck finding Chip so if you could ask him for me I'd appreciate it.

thanks,
Chad

I'd try emailing Chip at work -- http://www.atlanticautoexchange.com/

Quote:

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Originally Posted by SharkD

I'd try emailing Chip at work -- http://www.atlanticautoexchange.com/

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Thanks!

Chad, I saw the photos and the video... I take it the damage is repairable, then?

Oh, and here's a shot of (l-r) Ken Neuhoff, me and Carlton Goldthwaite coming out of Turn 6, right before the bridge. This pass is visible in lap one of my Saturday video.

http://spece30.northamericanbavarian...s/NASArace.jpg

[quote=SharkD]Chad, I saw the photos and the video... I take it the damage is repairable, then?

Oh, and here's a shot of (l-r) Ken Neuhoff, me and Carlton Goldthwaite coming out of Turn 6, right before the bridge. This pass is visible in lap one of my Saturday video.


I watched your video, nice pass :biggrin: You were the one I told on Saturday that your brakes lights were on going up the cutover? I was following you on Friday practice I think.

Damage to the body is pretty bad. Given how much the roof is crushed in it would have to be cut off and replaced. Then you have both doors and both 1/4's and 1 fender. I'm torn between trying to fix it and just scraping the whole body and starting over...

I think you have me confused... I wasn't out there on Friday. (I have the Blue & White SpecE30)