Motorsport Tourism?
Aug 21, 2013, 5:50 pm
#92
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Elmira > Taiwan > Elmira
Programs: Delta, Continental, United, USAir, Marriott, Best Western, Super 8, Holiday Inn
Posts: 47
My son moved to Atlanta a few months ago, so I'm going down for the Petit LeMans weekend. As I'm just down the road a bit from Watkins Glen and it being an ISC track, we never had the ALMS here. My son and I are looking forward to going to Road Atlanta...
Aug 22, 2013, 4:48 pm
#94
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Elmira > Taiwan > Elmira
Programs: Delta, Continental, United, USAir, Marriott, Best Western, Super 8, Holiday Inn
Posts: 47
Usually we're closer to the garage area than that, if not actually in it.
We've seen guys repair crippled race car that you thought were only destined for the hauler. Amazing work sometimes...
We've seen guys repair crippled race car that you thought were only destined for the hauler. Amazing work sometimes...
Aug 22, 2013, 10:26 pm
#95
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: New Jersey
Programs: Credit Cards
Posts: 3,009
I will be at Road Atlanta for Petit this year. Will post what station/corner I'm on once we get assignments.
Anybody going for ALMS at Baltimore GP next weekend? or Grand-Am at Laguna Seca the week after that? I'll be at both.
Anybody going for ALMS at Baltimore GP next weekend? or Grand-Am at Laguna Seca the week after that? I'll be at both.
Aug 29, 2013, 4:29 pm
#96
Join Date: Nov 2008
Location: It's hot here
Posts: 4,284
This will be my first year missing Petit in years (other than what was it, 3 or 4 years ago when it pretty much flooded). Maybe something will line up and I'll be in town but it's likely I won't be there. have fun!
I'll be at Laguna Seca next weekend.
I'll be at Laguna Seca next weekend.
Aug 29, 2013, 7:41 pm
#97
Join Date: Nov 2010
Location: Seattle, WA
Programs: Hilton, United, Gold DL
Posts: 993
Be a sad Petit. The end of ALMS. I'm not sure how many races I'll do after the merger which is part of the reason why I am going to Australia for F1.
Sep 3, 2013, 5:36 pm
#98
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: New Jersey
Programs: Credit Cards
Posts: 3,009
Nov 5, 2013, 9:45 pm
#99
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Elmira > Taiwan > Elmira
Programs: Delta, Continental, United, USAir, Marriott, Best Western, Super 8, Holiday Inn
Posts: 47
Well, I did make it to the Petit Le Mans!!! My son and I were there Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Rained Thursday and Saturday, but Friday was just SUPER.
Road Atlanta is a really neat course. Very fast in some sections with lots of blind crests and ups and downs. Makes you wonder what it was like when the GTP cars ran there with 800-900 horsepower and tons (literally) of downforce.
We talked to one of the DeltaWing engineers at some length. I asked him why they were slow through the corners at VIR a few weeks previously. Basically he said that the coupe body behaves differently and they don't have the front to rear balance sorted yet. They tested earlier in the week before Petit Le Mans and that helped quite a bit. What I noticed during the race was they did seem to run much better than they did at VIR. Still fast on the straights, but much improved through the corners. Katherine Legge put in some strong seat time until they had gearbox trouble. I couldn't get over how narrow the front tires are. I have a fJCW MINI Clubman with 205/45-17s and they are about twice the width of the DeltaWing front tires. Overall, the car seems tiny also. Should be interesting next season as Elan Technologies will be building 3 potential customer cars.
It's quite a hike from the paddock area to the far end of the course and it doesn't help that it is up and down, up and down. However, the free shuttle busses they have make a world of difference. I was surprised as to how close you can get to the edge of the track in some places. There's a relatively straight section that takes you out to the far end of the course. At the end are 2 rights and the long straight that takes you back towards the paddock area. At the end of that first straight, you can stand at the inside of the corner and be less than 20 feet from the edge of the track.
As far as the event itself, the P1 class only had 4 entries so it was going to be relatively quiet. The only real competition was between the Rebellion and Muscle Milk teams. However, Muscle Milk qualified a bit over a second slower. Rebellion tried to shoot themselves in the foot with a couple of minor incidents that forced 2 nose changes, but once they settled down, they were flat fast. P2 was more competitive and some good battles took place there.
In light of the short P1 and semi-short P2 and PC fields, the GT classes assumed more interest. How could it not be with Corvette, Viper, BMW, Ferrari and Porsche all in the running? Great to hear the Corvettes and Vipers thundering around! Sad, though, that the 8+ liter V-10 in the Viper is only making about 500 horsepower. I realize the idea is to even the competition, but it's a shame that they race at nearly 150 horsepower less than the street car.
The K&N East series ran on Friday. I'm sure that the majority of drivers didn't have much road course experience, but they did a pretty decent job.
SOme years ago, Tommy Kendall was here at The Glen as Grand Marshall for the US Vintage GP weekend. My wife and I were fortunate to get to have lunch with him that weekend. So, it was great seeing Tommy again and having my picture taken with him. There aren't many folks who have had as serious a crash as he had in the early 90's and return to driving. Whatever it takes to do that, he certainly has. More power to him!
Also, my son believes he saw Jimmy Vasser walking around. Hmmmm... You never know.
Anyway, that's my synopsis of the weekend. If anyone is interested, I can send links to some of the photos I took...
Road Atlanta is a really neat course. Very fast in some sections with lots of blind crests and ups and downs. Makes you wonder what it was like when the GTP cars ran there with 800-900 horsepower and tons (literally) of downforce.
We talked to one of the DeltaWing engineers at some length. I asked him why they were slow through the corners at VIR a few weeks previously. Basically he said that the coupe body behaves differently and they don't have the front to rear balance sorted yet. They tested earlier in the week before Petit Le Mans and that helped quite a bit. What I noticed during the race was they did seem to run much better than they did at VIR. Still fast on the straights, but much improved through the corners. Katherine Legge put in some strong seat time until they had gearbox trouble. I couldn't get over how narrow the front tires are. I have a fJCW MINI Clubman with 205/45-17s and they are about twice the width of the DeltaWing front tires. Overall, the car seems tiny also. Should be interesting next season as Elan Technologies will be building 3 potential customer cars.
It's quite a hike from the paddock area to the far end of the course and it doesn't help that it is up and down, up and down. However, the free shuttle busses they have make a world of difference. I was surprised as to how close you can get to the edge of the track in some places. There's a relatively straight section that takes you out to the far end of the course. At the end are 2 rights and the long straight that takes you back towards the paddock area. At the end of that first straight, you can stand at the inside of the corner and be less than 20 feet from the edge of the track.
As far as the event itself, the P1 class only had 4 entries so it was going to be relatively quiet. The only real competition was between the Rebellion and Muscle Milk teams. However, Muscle Milk qualified a bit over a second slower. Rebellion tried to shoot themselves in the foot with a couple of minor incidents that forced 2 nose changes, but once they settled down, they were flat fast. P2 was more competitive and some good battles took place there.
In light of the short P1 and semi-short P2 and PC fields, the GT classes assumed more interest. How could it not be with Corvette, Viper, BMW, Ferrari and Porsche all in the running? Great to hear the Corvettes and Vipers thundering around! Sad, though, that the 8+ liter V-10 in the Viper is only making about 500 horsepower. I realize the idea is to even the competition, but it's a shame that they race at nearly 150 horsepower less than the street car.
The K&N East series ran on Friday. I'm sure that the majority of drivers didn't have much road course experience, but they did a pretty decent job.
SOme years ago, Tommy Kendall was here at The Glen as Grand Marshall for the US Vintage GP weekend. My wife and I were fortunate to get to have lunch with him that weekend. So, it was great seeing Tommy again and having my picture taken with him. There aren't many folks who have had as serious a crash as he had in the early 90's and return to driving. Whatever it takes to do that, he certainly has. More power to him!
Also, my son believes he saw Jimmy Vasser walking around. Hmmmm... You never know.
Anyway, that's my synopsis of the weekend. If anyone is interested, I can send links to some of the photos I took...
Nov 6, 2013, 1:00 am
#100
Join Date: Jul 2010
Programs: HHon Diamond, IHG Plat, SPG Gold, TG Gold, QR Plat, OZ Gold, AF Silver, Hertz #1 Gold, Priority Pass
Posts: 447
Well, I did make it to the Petit Le Mans!!! My son and I were there Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Rained Thursday and Saturday, but Friday was just SUPER.
Road Atlanta is a really neat course. Very fast in some sections with lots of blind crests and ups and downs. Makes you wonder what it was like when the GTP cars ran there with 800-900 horsepower and tons (literally) of downforce.
We talked to one of the DeltaWing engineers at some length. I asked him why they were slow through the corners at VIR a few weeks previously. Basically he said that the coupe body behaves differently and they don't have the front to rear balance sorted yet. They tested earlier in the week before Petit Le Mans and that helped quite a bit. What I noticed during the race was they did seem to run much better than they did at VIR. Still fast on the straights, but much improved through the corners. Katherine Legge put in some strong seat time until they had gearbox trouble. I couldn't get over how narrow the front tires are. I have a fJCW MINI Clubman with 205/45-17s and they are about twice the width of the DeltaWing front tires. Overall, the car seems tiny also. Should be interesting next season as Elan Technologies will be building 3 potential customer cars.
It's quite a hike from the paddock area to the far end of the course and it doesn't help that it is up and down, up and down. However, the free shuttle busses they have make a world of difference. I was surprised as to how close you can get to the edge of the track in some places. There's a relatively straight section that takes you out to the far end of the course. At the end are 2 rights and the long straight that takes you back towards the paddock area. At the end of that first straight, you can stand at the inside of the corner and be less than 20 feet from the edge of the track.
As far as the event itself, the P1 class only had 4 entries so it was going to be relatively quiet. The only real competition was between the Rebellion and Muscle Milk teams. However, Muscle Milk qualified a bit over a second slower. Rebellion tried to shoot themselves in the foot with a couple of minor incidents that forced 2 nose changes, but once they settled down, they were flat fast. P2 was more competitive and some good battles took place there.
In light of the short P1 and semi-short P2 and PC fields, the GT classes assumed more interest. How could it not be with Corvette, Viper, BMW, Ferrari and Porsche all in the running? Great to hear the Corvettes and Vipers thundering around! Sad, though, that the 8+ liter V-10 in the Viper is only making about 500 horsepower. I realize the idea is to even the competition, but it's a shame that they race at nearly 150 horsepower less than the street car.
The K&N East series ran on Friday. I'm sure that the majority of drivers didn't have much road course experience, but they did a pretty decent job.
SOme years ago, Tommy Kendall was here at The Glen as Grand Marshall for the US Vintage GP weekend. My wife and I were fortunate to get to have lunch with him that weekend. So, it was great seeing Tommy again and having my picture taken with him. There aren't many folks who have had as serious a crash as he had in the early 90's and return to driving. Whatever it takes to do that, he certainly has. More power to him!
Also, my son believes he saw Jimmy Vasser walking around. Hmmmm... You never know.
Anyway, that's my synopsis of the weekend. If anyone is interested, I can send links to some of the photos I took...
Road Atlanta is a really neat course. Very fast in some sections with lots of blind crests and ups and downs. Makes you wonder what it was like when the GTP cars ran there with 800-900 horsepower and tons (literally) of downforce.
We talked to one of the DeltaWing engineers at some length. I asked him why they were slow through the corners at VIR a few weeks previously. Basically he said that the coupe body behaves differently and they don't have the front to rear balance sorted yet. They tested earlier in the week before Petit Le Mans and that helped quite a bit. What I noticed during the race was they did seem to run much better than they did at VIR. Still fast on the straights, but much improved through the corners. Katherine Legge put in some strong seat time until they had gearbox trouble. I couldn't get over how narrow the front tires are. I have a fJCW MINI Clubman with 205/45-17s and they are about twice the width of the DeltaWing front tires. Overall, the car seems tiny also. Should be interesting next season as Elan Technologies will be building 3 potential customer cars.
It's quite a hike from the paddock area to the far end of the course and it doesn't help that it is up and down, up and down. However, the free shuttle busses they have make a world of difference. I was surprised as to how close you can get to the edge of the track in some places. There's a relatively straight section that takes you out to the far end of the course. At the end are 2 rights and the long straight that takes you back towards the paddock area. At the end of that first straight, you can stand at the inside of the corner and be less than 20 feet from the edge of the track.
As far as the event itself, the P1 class only had 4 entries so it was going to be relatively quiet. The only real competition was between the Rebellion and Muscle Milk teams. However, Muscle Milk qualified a bit over a second slower. Rebellion tried to shoot themselves in the foot with a couple of minor incidents that forced 2 nose changes, but once they settled down, they were flat fast. P2 was more competitive and some good battles took place there.
In light of the short P1 and semi-short P2 and PC fields, the GT classes assumed more interest. How could it not be with Corvette, Viper, BMW, Ferrari and Porsche all in the running? Great to hear the Corvettes and Vipers thundering around! Sad, though, that the 8+ liter V-10 in the Viper is only making about 500 horsepower. I realize the idea is to even the competition, but it's a shame that they race at nearly 150 horsepower less than the street car.
The K&N East series ran on Friday. I'm sure that the majority of drivers didn't have much road course experience, but they did a pretty decent job.
SOme years ago, Tommy Kendall was here at The Glen as Grand Marshall for the US Vintage GP weekend. My wife and I were fortunate to get to have lunch with him that weekend. So, it was great seeing Tommy again and having my picture taken with him. There aren't many folks who have had as serious a crash as he had in the early 90's and return to driving. Whatever it takes to do that, he certainly has. More power to him!
Also, my son believes he saw Jimmy Vasser walking around. Hmmmm... You never know.
Anyway, that's my synopsis of the weekend. If anyone is interested, I can send links to some of the photos I took...
For the delta wing, they say that one of the biggest advantages are those skinny front tyres and the reduced drag. Rather cool engineering there!
Nov 6, 2013, 12:54 pm
#101
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Elmira > Taiwan > Elmira
Programs: Delta, Continental, United, USAir, Marriott, Best Western, Super 8, Holiday Inn
Posts: 47
I'm an engineer also, so it was a very fortuitous meeting. After we parted, I realized that I didn't ask about the Active Differential. Next time, I guess. Since the merger with Grand-Am, we will finally have an event at The Glen. Not that the Grand-Am Series was bad, but it did lack something in sophistication. Anyway, the 6-Hour will now be a TUSCC race.
Well the front of the car is maybe about 1/3 of the width of the back, so aerodynamically it is pretty slick. Also, there are no wings on the car which would be a major source of drag. Remember that the thing is being pushed along by only 350 horsepower. It is noticably quicker than the P2 cars on the straights, but I didn't get a good read compared to the P1 cars. I suspect, however, it still has a bit to go compared to the P1 cars. The light weight and small engine definitely make a difference in terms of tire wear and fuel economy. I wouldn't like a whole field of them, but they are a welcomed addition.
Last edited by flatlander_48; Nov 6, 2013 at 6:57 pm
Nov 6, 2013, 3:39 pm
#102
Join Date: Oct 2007
Location: DEN
Programs: UA1K, F9 Ascent
Posts: 187
First time seeing this thread but great timing.
My company has just signed a new contract for a project next door the F! circuit in Yeongam, South Korea. We were on site last month one week after the F1 race. Still a lot of action and the noise was incredible. I guessed they were still testing?
I have never been to an F1 race but we have already scheduled a site visit to coincide with the F1 race in April 2014. I am stoked! Has anyone been to this circuit? Any advice? The client will be supplying the tickets and lodging. As this is a business trip they are also picking up the TPAC C fare on SQ. Can it get any better?
Thanks,
My company has just signed a new contract for a project next door the F! circuit in Yeongam, South Korea. We were on site last month one week after the F1 race. Still a lot of action and the noise was incredible. I guessed they were still testing?
I have never been to an F1 race but we have already scheduled a site visit to coincide with the F1 race in April 2014. I am stoked! Has anyone been to this circuit? Any advice? The client will be supplying the tickets and lodging. As this is a business trip they are also picking up the TPAC C fare on SQ. Can it get any better?
Thanks,
Nov 6, 2013, 5:30 pm
#103
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: New Jersey
Programs: Credit Cards
Posts: 3,009
First time seeing this thread but great timing.
My company has just signed a new contract for a project next door the F! circuit in Yeongam, South Korea. We were on site last month one week after the F1 race. Still a lot of action and the noise was incredible. I guessed they were still testing?
I have never been to an F1 race but we have already scheduled a site visit to coincide with the F1 race in April 2014. I am stoked! Has anyone been to this circuit? Any advice? The client will be supplying the tickets and lodging. As this is a business trip they are also picking up the TPAC C fare on SQ. Can it get any better?
Thanks,
My company has just signed a new contract for a project next door the F! circuit in Yeongam, South Korea. We were on site last month one week after the F1 race. Still a lot of action and the noise was incredible. I guessed they were still testing?
I have never been to an F1 race but we have already scheduled a site visit to coincide with the F1 race in April 2014. I am stoked! Has anyone been to this circuit? Any advice? The client will be supplying the tickets and lodging. As this is a business trip they are also picking up the TPAC C fare on SQ. Can it get any better?
Thanks,
I really enjoyed checking out Mokpo before leaving that area. Korean food is amazing, but it seemed all the white faces were crowding western eateries which is sooooo wrong, I feel. Enjoy the culture, try some new foods! Its all part of the experience.
Nov 6, 2013, 5:41 pm
#104
Original Poster
Join Date: Jun 2006
Location: New Jersey
Programs: Credit Cards
Posts: 3,009
Brilliant review and great to hear the discussion with the engineer, obviously you are a true fellow petrolhead. We should do FT petrolhead events!
For the delta wing, they say that one of the biggest advantages are those skinny front tyres and the reduced drag. Rather cool engineering there!
For the delta wing, they say that one of the biggest advantages are those skinny front tyres and the reduced drag. Rather cool engineering there!
Last year I had a brilliant time flagging at turn 6... and it was great fun, but this year was a million times better.
I was at Turn 11 at the Patron bridge for Wednesday practice, which was awesome.
Then I was moved to Turn 3 for Thursday and Friday, which was fun especially when I worked as incident response and quite a few cars went off at Turn 2... the craziest thing was one of Skip Barber Miatas crashing into the wall... lost both of his right side wheels, while one of them embedded itself between the two concrete blocks, with the broken brake rotor still smoldering hot.
On race day I was at Turn 1 for the entire ten hours. Specifically on the island between the track (apex of the turn) and pit out lane.... so it was crazy fun blue flagging both on track and on pit lane... we had two blue flaggers. Many people rotated between Turns 1 and 2, as they had shifts... But I double-stinted my time so I was there for the duration. Got to see the DeltaWing lose it and take out one of the ad-boards on its way into the tire wall, but they recovered. The Rebellion car also made contact up the hill from us with a PC car while trying to pass the DeltaWing which cost them a penalty... at that moment the chief marshal from Baltimore GP was on pit lane blue flag, turned around to me and in very sincere voice said: "but I blue flagged that PC car" as if it was his fault they crashed.
Great fun indeed!
Who's going to Austin? I'm assigned the light panel role at Turn 12... apparently its good?
Nov 6, 2013, 6:56 pm
#105
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Elmira > Taiwan > Elmira
Programs: Delta, Continental, United, USAir, Marriott, Best Western, Super 8, Holiday Inn
Posts: 47
I couldn't believe that the Rebellion guys knocked the nose off TWICE in an hour or two!?!?!? Was Jani driving both times? For a bit there, I thought they were going to run out of nose sections. Damn quick car, though. You can see why they were just about the Best of the Rest at Le Mans.