July 17 & 18 - S2000s at Watkins Glen with SCDA
07-22-2017, 05:13 PM
#81
Thank you Aashish for organizing the event. It was really nice to meet you, Shiv and Jeff. I had a blast driving WG for the first time. It was intimidating in the first session but by the last session, it was just really fun. I will definitely try to do the 2 days next year. You guys are so nice with the polo shirt and personalized bottle. Oh and stickers from Jeff. It's true, people outside of metro are just nicer. In any case, I've signed up for Lime Rock so hopefully I'll get to see you guys soon.
07-22-2017, 06:36 PM
#82
Former Moderator
Thread Starter
Thank you Aashish for organizing the event. It was really nice to meet you, Shiv and Jeff. I had a blast driving WG for the first time. It was intimidating in the first session but by the last session, it was just really fun. I will definitely try to do the 2 days next year. You guys are so nice with the polo shirt and personalized bottle. Oh and stickers from Jeff. It's true, people outside of metro are just nicer. In any case, I've signed up for Lime Rock so hopefully I'll get to see you guys soon.
Looking forward to seeing you at Lime Rock in August.
Did you sign up Liz for the Car Control Clinic?
07-24-2017, 10:29 PM
#83
Well, I have to admit it. I had the best time on the extended weekend, what first with the Levi Drive and then with the two days on track at Watkins Glen. Variable driving conditions, so I guess that I’ve given up on trying to avoid driving in the rain.
And then there are those two nincompoops, Shiv and Aashish. Good company and a lot of fun. What an unlikely trio. The new guy at Watkins Glen this year was Rico Chen(?), who fortunately (unfortunately for her!) brought his lovely wife, Liz. This geezer had someone to chat with at dinner. Of course the two young guys couldn’t believe how smooth I am with women, and razzed me the whole time thereafter. They’re just jealous! --- But then, Rico’s +1 wanted to avoid me for the whole next day, preferring to stay in town than to come to the track.
Rico’s reaction to the professionalism of the SCDA menu was startling and evidenced that we’ve been able to drive on track with a higher level of training and professionalism. He had done several New York Safety Track S2000 events with Metro and at least one Track Nights in America event. I hope he had fun and that we see him in the future. I liked his car.
Prior to the event, I decided that I needed new tires, and with that, an alignment. I was on Summitomo HTR Z III tires which I thought were much better than the Bridgestone Potenzas that had come with the car. I could have gotten away with just a pair of front tires, but I bought a set of the new Continental ExtremeContact Sport in the stock sizes and had an alignment last week. On the Levi Drive, I didn’t notice any difference and thought that I may have made a mistake with my choice, as the ExtremeContact Sports were specifically developed for rain grip – and since I don’t do much driving in the rain, so what.
For the Glen, I prepared by looking over my data from 2016. We had some variable conditions, but in the dry, it looked like I was mostly running in the low 2:40s. My best lap in 2016 was a 2:37.427 which I thought was a fluke, but on re-examination today, I see in my last two runs that I had six sub 2:40 laps. In any event, with the new tires, I had high hopes for improved lap times. Unlike the event at Palmer where I had just pulled the car out of the garage and went to the track after a 6 month layoff, I would have put about 300 miles on the car on the back roads of the Adirondacks and theoretically at least, I would have learned the shift differences between 3rd and 5th and 4th and 6th. Of course, that was just theoretical!
Shiv and Aashish went out in “advanced” as I went into class. When I came out, Shiv was there, having run only one lap and reporting poor handling. I encouraged him to get the car jacked up so he could look at the suspension, and after he pulled the tires off, I sort of noticed that he wheels were toed out. You know, it was sort of looking at a guy with eyes pointing in two different directions. But the car was up in the air, so not sure what it would look like when on the ground and suspension loaded. But sure enough, when back on the ground, it seemed like his tires were toed out. He made some calls and was able to schedule and alignment. It turned out that his left front was toed out 4 degrees, although the right front was zero toe. Not much, so surprised I could see it. He missed several runs, but had it fixed and then ran fast!
I was optimistic as I went out for my first run and I did well despite being fairly intimidated by all of the Corvettes and the Viper running in Intermediate. I was able to get them around me fairly well – and I think over the course of the event we developed a very good and compatible rhythm. My lap times in run 1 were respectable, averaging about 2:42 with one lap at 2:40.293.
I didn’t get good data on my second run, as I arrived late to the false grid and didn’t get the Aim Solo started in time to pick up all the satellites. But I felt slower and was disappointed - and what little data I picked up confirmed my seat of the pants assessment. Bummer!
Then it rained with thunder and lightning and activities were suspended. Fortunately Harry arrived just in time with his new Civic and entertained Aashish and I. I enjoyed seeing Harry, sitting in his air conditioned car, listening to good music and staying dry while the clouds burst.
Just as it finished storming, I went out for my third run. Doing my duty on behalf of the next group by going out and drying the line. I didn’t get much of a feel for the new tires’ much touted rain grip as I was moving at a slower pace, but I had no grip issues.
The track had dried off by the time I arrived on grid for my fourth run. I thought I had a pretty good run and was disappointed that I lost the second half video, because that’s when it got to be interesting. But my lap times turned out to be depressingly slow. My average time was about 2:46, with my best time being a 2:43.829. I seemed to be progressing in a rearward direction. Perhaps it was traffic.
Before I went to bed that night, Shiv or Aashish (I can’t remember which, but I think Shiv) broke out the Applejack and gave me a dose. Was the bottle mislabeled? I think it was - because I somehow got my MoJo for the next day.
We had a beautiful day on Tuesday – perfect for being on track. I started off well, with lap times in the low 2:40s and with three 2:40 laps. While the lap times were not impressive themselves, I was becoming confident in the tires. I was trying to run the Circuit Studies line, with threshold braking into many of the corners. I felt that I was carrying more speed through the Carousel with greater confidence that I wasn’t going to lose the rear end. And in the toe of the boot, I was hugging the inside rumble with no feel of understeer. I had fun chasing down some cars. I felt it was a good run.
With confidence in the tires, I started to work on keeping my eyes up. Holly cripes! I actually got faster. Six of the eight laps were sub 2:40! My average lap time was probably about 2:39, with two laps in the mid 2:36s. A new personal best at 2:36.418. I was still missing about 15% of my shifts, but I was mostly catching and correcting them rather quickly. Top speed of 217.8 mph, and I was stoked!
Perhaps the last run was a fluke, but I felt slower in run 3. But I still had a lot of fun. Instead of being the slowest car on track, I could actually run down and pass some of the cars with consistency. A couple of old NASCAR cars were running, and thinking that Aashish’s car was rather drab, I was getting some ideas for some needed graphics for his car. In the meanwhile, I seemed to be getting all of my shifting done quite early sometimes down to third - and thinking that I was overslowing the car in the braking zones. But with eyes up, and the added torque in third, I felt that I was able to power on, sometimes well before hitting the apex. On the last lap, I hit another new personal best lap time at 2:35.902!
The final run was late in the day, and only about 1/3 of cars showed up on the false grid. I almost considered foregoing the run for fear of fatigue and hurting the car. But fatigue be damned!
I felt that I had a pretty good run, once again noting that I was getting my shifting done quite early and fearing that I was overslowing in the braking zones – especially turn 1. I was holding on for dear life and trying to keep my foot all the way to the floor through the esses and in turn 9, but there was nothing new about that. Most of my lap times were sub 2:40, with another new personal best lap at 2:34.681. So, me thinks a successful run!
It was time for a celebratory beer with Aashish & Shiv and then to load up and head home. Once again, it was a tremendously fun event with good company and I hope to be able to come again next year. It’s too bad, so many of the past participants have dropped out.
The ride home was long. I made the last gas station seconds before it closed, so could rest easy that I wouldn’t run out of gas. I stopped in the middle of nowhere to rest my eyes for a bit. It was pitch dark and not a car passed by for the half hour I sat there. I arrived home at about 2:30 a.m. Saw quite a few deer.
I felt very good about my driving – much better than after Palmer – and by the seat-of-the-pants, felt quite fast. But perhaps not so much. After throwing out the first and last laps, comparing my last run from 2016 to my last run from 2017 reveals the following: slowest lap – (2016) 2:43.816, (2017) 2:41.500; fastest lap – (2016) 2:37.427, (2017) 2:34.681; average lap (2016) 2.40.187, (2017) 2:38.330. So assuming that the driver is the same incompetent boob both years, that means that the new tires were worth roughly 1.7 seconds a lap, or 17 seconds in a 10 lap race. That may not sound like much, but it is the difference between being at the start finish line and being at the apex to turn 2, a distance of about 2,250 feet! And the added bonus is that I don’t need to beat myself up over my “performance”.
I’d like to thank Aashish for organizing the event, and Shiv for getting us housing. I know it’s a thankless task for Aashish. Only four of us showed up after so many expressed a firm interest and after negotiating the discount. I’m sure it was embarrassing for him to report our meager turnout to SCDA. Nevertheless, I am encouraging Aashish to work his influence again next year in organizing the event. I will mark the dates on my calendar now so I will be sure to be available then!
Our community ranks are getting thin, our events are few, so we need to pull together and participate. Just my 2 cents.
The following video is a compilation of all 4 runs on Tuesday – the more interesting stuff – at least to me. Chasing down cars, some passing, some being passed, Corvettes and Viper, old NASCAR cars. Run 1 ends with a Miata spin at about 7:48. Run 2 starts at 7:50. Run 3 at 18:24. A personal best lap at 26.30. Run 4 starts at 29:10 with my final and new personal best lap at 39.12.
And then there are those two nincompoops, Shiv and Aashish. Good company and a lot of fun. What an unlikely trio. The new guy at Watkins Glen this year was Rico Chen(?), who fortunately (unfortunately for her!) brought his lovely wife, Liz. This geezer had someone to chat with at dinner. Of course the two young guys couldn’t believe how smooth I am with women, and razzed me the whole time thereafter. They’re just jealous! --- But then, Rico’s +1 wanted to avoid me for the whole next day, preferring to stay in town than to come to the track.
Rico’s reaction to the professionalism of the SCDA menu was startling and evidenced that we’ve been able to drive on track with a higher level of training and professionalism. He had done several New York Safety Track S2000 events with Metro and at least one Track Nights in America event. I hope he had fun and that we see him in the future. I liked his car.
Prior to the event, I decided that I needed new tires, and with that, an alignment. I was on Summitomo HTR Z III tires which I thought were much better than the Bridgestone Potenzas that had come with the car. I could have gotten away with just a pair of front tires, but I bought a set of the new Continental ExtremeContact Sport in the stock sizes and had an alignment last week. On the Levi Drive, I didn’t notice any difference and thought that I may have made a mistake with my choice, as the ExtremeContact Sports were specifically developed for rain grip – and since I don’t do much driving in the rain, so what.
For the Glen, I prepared by looking over my data from 2016. We had some variable conditions, but in the dry, it looked like I was mostly running in the low 2:40s. My best lap in 2016 was a 2:37.427 which I thought was a fluke, but on re-examination today, I see in my last two runs that I had six sub 2:40 laps. In any event, with the new tires, I had high hopes for improved lap times. Unlike the event at Palmer where I had just pulled the car out of the garage and went to the track after a 6 month layoff, I would have put about 300 miles on the car on the back roads of the Adirondacks and theoretically at least, I would have learned the shift differences between 3rd and 5th and 4th and 6th. Of course, that was just theoretical!
Shiv and Aashish went out in “advanced” as I went into class. When I came out, Shiv was there, having run only one lap and reporting poor handling. I encouraged him to get the car jacked up so he could look at the suspension, and after he pulled the tires off, I sort of noticed that he wheels were toed out. You know, it was sort of looking at a guy with eyes pointing in two different directions. But the car was up in the air, so not sure what it would look like when on the ground and suspension loaded. But sure enough, when back on the ground, it seemed like his tires were toed out. He made some calls and was able to schedule and alignment. It turned out that his left front was toed out 4 degrees, although the right front was zero toe. Not much, so surprised I could see it. He missed several runs, but had it fixed and then ran fast!
I was optimistic as I went out for my first run and I did well despite being fairly intimidated by all of the Corvettes and the Viper running in Intermediate. I was able to get them around me fairly well – and I think over the course of the event we developed a very good and compatible rhythm. My lap times in run 1 were respectable, averaging about 2:42 with one lap at 2:40.293.
I didn’t get good data on my second run, as I arrived late to the false grid and didn’t get the Aim Solo started in time to pick up all the satellites. But I felt slower and was disappointed - and what little data I picked up confirmed my seat of the pants assessment. Bummer!
Then it rained with thunder and lightning and activities were suspended. Fortunately Harry arrived just in time with his new Civic and entertained Aashish and I. I enjoyed seeing Harry, sitting in his air conditioned car, listening to good music and staying dry while the clouds burst.
Just as it finished storming, I went out for my third run. Doing my duty on behalf of the next group by going out and drying the line. I didn’t get much of a feel for the new tires’ much touted rain grip as I was moving at a slower pace, but I had no grip issues.
The track had dried off by the time I arrived on grid for my fourth run. I thought I had a pretty good run and was disappointed that I lost the second half video, because that’s when it got to be interesting. But my lap times turned out to be depressingly slow. My average time was about 2:46, with my best time being a 2:43.829. I seemed to be progressing in a rearward direction. Perhaps it was traffic.
Before I went to bed that night, Shiv or Aashish (I can’t remember which, but I think Shiv) broke out the Applejack and gave me a dose. Was the bottle mislabeled? I think it was - because I somehow got my MoJo for the next day.
We had a beautiful day on Tuesday – perfect for being on track. I started off well, with lap times in the low 2:40s and with three 2:40 laps. While the lap times were not impressive themselves, I was becoming confident in the tires. I was trying to run the Circuit Studies line, with threshold braking into many of the corners. I felt that I was carrying more speed through the Carousel with greater confidence that I wasn’t going to lose the rear end. And in the toe of the boot, I was hugging the inside rumble with no feel of understeer. I had fun chasing down some cars. I felt it was a good run.
With confidence in the tires, I started to work on keeping my eyes up. Holly cripes! I actually got faster. Six of the eight laps were sub 2:40! My average lap time was probably about 2:39, with two laps in the mid 2:36s. A new personal best at 2:36.418. I was still missing about 15% of my shifts, but I was mostly catching and correcting them rather quickly. Top speed of 217.8 mph, and I was stoked!
Perhaps the last run was a fluke, but I felt slower in run 3. But I still had a lot of fun. Instead of being the slowest car on track, I could actually run down and pass some of the cars with consistency. A couple of old NASCAR cars were running, and thinking that Aashish’s car was rather drab, I was getting some ideas for some needed graphics for his car. In the meanwhile, I seemed to be getting all of my shifting done quite early sometimes down to third - and thinking that I was overslowing the car in the braking zones. But with eyes up, and the added torque in third, I felt that I was able to power on, sometimes well before hitting the apex. On the last lap, I hit another new personal best lap time at 2:35.902!
The final run was late in the day, and only about 1/3 of cars showed up on the false grid. I almost considered foregoing the run for fear of fatigue and hurting the car. But fatigue be damned!
I felt that I had a pretty good run, once again noting that I was getting my shifting done quite early and fearing that I was overslowing in the braking zones – especially turn 1. I was holding on for dear life and trying to keep my foot all the way to the floor through the esses and in turn 9, but there was nothing new about that. Most of my lap times were sub 2:40, with another new personal best lap at 2:34.681. So, me thinks a successful run!
It was time for a celebratory beer with Aashish & Shiv and then to load up and head home. Once again, it was a tremendously fun event with good company and I hope to be able to come again next year. It’s too bad, so many of the past participants have dropped out.
The ride home was long. I made the last gas station seconds before it closed, so could rest easy that I wouldn’t run out of gas. I stopped in the middle of nowhere to rest my eyes for a bit. It was pitch dark and not a car passed by for the half hour I sat there. I arrived home at about 2:30 a.m. Saw quite a few deer.
I felt very good about my driving – much better than after Palmer – and by the seat-of-the-pants, felt quite fast. But perhaps not so much. After throwing out the first and last laps, comparing my last run from 2016 to my last run from 2017 reveals the following: slowest lap – (2016) 2:43.816, (2017) 2:41.500; fastest lap – (2016) 2:37.427, (2017) 2:34.681; average lap (2016) 2.40.187, (2017) 2:38.330. So assuming that the driver is the same incompetent boob both years, that means that the new tires were worth roughly 1.7 seconds a lap, or 17 seconds in a 10 lap race. That may not sound like much, but it is the difference between being at the start finish line and being at the apex to turn 2, a distance of about 2,250 feet! And the added bonus is that I don’t need to beat myself up over my “performance”.
I’d like to thank Aashish for organizing the event, and Shiv for getting us housing. I know it’s a thankless task for Aashish. Only four of us showed up after so many expressed a firm interest and after negotiating the discount. I’m sure it was embarrassing for him to report our meager turnout to SCDA. Nevertheless, I am encouraging Aashish to work his influence again next year in organizing the event. I will mark the dates on my calendar now so I will be sure to be available then!
Our community ranks are getting thin, our events are few, so we need to pull together and participate. Just my 2 cents.
The following video is a compilation of all 4 runs on Tuesday – the more interesting stuff – at least to me. Chasing down cars, some passing, some being passed, Corvettes and Viper, old NASCAR cars. Run 1 ends with a Miata spin at about 7:48. Run 2 starts at 7:50. Run 3 at 18:24. A personal best lap at 26.30. Run 4 starts at 29:10 with my final and new personal best lap at 39.12.
07-25-2017, 07:13 AM
#84
Former Moderator
Thread Starter
Great post Jeff. I was cracking up reading it.
As much as the group was small, the fun we had was as much as in the past. I'm very happy that the new tires have had a positive impact. Now it's time for you to run in Adv with Shiv and I. You'll note that I'm running laptimes that are slower than yours. It's all about managing traffic.
Hopefully we'll get a good turnout next year. I was thinking this would be the last year but Rico seems like he wants to come back and Shiv and you have said you'll do this event discount or not. So I'll ask Elivan again next year.
I know Greg would have been there if not for his racing schedule. I'm confident that next year will be bigger and I'm already looking forward to it.
As much as the group was small, the fun we had was as much as in the past. I'm very happy that the new tires have had a positive impact. Now it's time for you to run in Adv with Shiv and I. You'll note that I'm running laptimes that are slower than yours. It's all about managing traffic.
Hopefully we'll get a good turnout next year. I was thinking this would be the last year but Rico seems like he wants to come back and Shiv and you have said you'll do this event discount or not. So I'll ask Elivan again next year.
I know Greg would have been there if not for his racing schedule. I'm confident that next year will be bigger and I'm already looking forward to it.
07-25-2017, 07:14 AM
#85
Former Moderator
Thread Starter
And last but not the least, I have to thank Matt and Lisa Goss for getting the tumblers and shirts ready even with the last minute order I put in. Thanks guys
07-25-2017, 08:07 AM
#87
Former Moderator
Thread Starter
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