Epic Battle Part 1

Hopefully this will be the first of many epic battle write-ups this year.  Round 1 was on January 14th and 15th at the Firebird Main “Fast Configuration” Track.  All of the NASA Time Trial TTD track records are up for grabs this year as Tage Evanson has prepared his car to challenge for them.  Saturday we all introduced ourselves to the fast configuration and quickly realized it was going to be a close battle.  I opted to use the last 2 sessions of the day after seeing the time of 1:08.5 that I would to beat.  In the final run I put in a 1:08.4 to take the win for the day.  However, there was no celebration as I knew Sunday would be the real fight.  Tage and I both went out in the 2nd session and I quickly found myself in traffic and although I was on a 1:07.5 laptime, I didn’t space myself out properly and hit traffic before I could complete the lap.  Rain would prevent both of us from running the in the 3rd session, setting up for a final run winner take all showdown.  Tage led the way out, so we both got to gauge our strengths and weaknesses.  Unfortunately, although I improved my time, Tage did even better and took the win and track record with a 1:07.9.  Getting beat in the first event of the year was not how I wanted to start things out, but it has motivated me to identify my weaknesses and improve.

On to UMS Time Attack, where I drove Robert Smithson’s wicked Turbo Miata.  Again, I made a mistake and got stuck in 6th gear, but it was good enough to take 3rd in class.

NASA-TT: 1:08.2
UMA TA: 1:06

What happened to him?

A job happened.  Failure must happen sometimes in order to improve and move forward.  Or you can just say I got lazy and stopped updating my site.  In either case you’ll notice that the look of the site is different and there is fresh content.  But a quick update on what has transpired since my last update way back in August.  I kept racing on a more limited budget, so the lack of development has really put my on the backfoot to start this year.  I started a company called Turn2 Solutions and started offering private instruction, getting to travel and drive some pretty cool cars.

At August 21/22 event when I re-set my track record I actually broke off a piece of the engines head due to the stress from supercharger yanking on it constantly.  I was able to salvage the head but it required a delicate welding repair.  This repair got me through the rest of the season, but it would come at a great cost.  From here I took a trip to Chicago to see my best friend Brian and enjoy a change in scenery for a few days.

The next event would be INDE where I annihilated the competition at the previous event earlier in the year.  However, due to the cost of my recent repairs I had to go racing on tires past their prime.  Skating around the track for 2 days wasn’t much fun but good enough for 2 Time Trial wins.  Only to throw away the Time Attack Championship when I drove off track earning zero points that event.  The season went back to Firebird West where again on old tires I got my 2 wins in Time Trial and then drove my friend Noz’s wicked fast Miata to the Time Attack win.  In between this time, I had to move and simultaneously stopped riding my bikes.  Both things were not ideal and I felt the effects both financially and physically.  So moving on, the season finished up at Firebird East where I got 2 more wins, ending a year with 18wins out of a possible 19 in Time Trials and 9wins out of 10 attempts in Time Attack.  Now if you if asked me what do I remember most from this season, the top 5 would be:

1. My 1st loss in Time Trial on Firebird West at the biggest event of the year.  The mistakes I made that could have prevented them.
2. My 1 loss in Time Attack, the mistakes I made that could have prevented them.
3. Beating my track record at Firebird West with an engine that had a cracked head.
4. My first Time Attack win
5. Seeing my friend Noz transform into an amazing driver who embodies all the qualities I only wish I could have.

So now I’ll post the full recaps on my 2 previous events this year at Firebird Main and Chuckwalla.  Both will be good and I promise to stay on top of them moving forward!

After the NASA season finale I hosted my first private trackday through my company Turn2 Solutions.  Since then I have been able to put on a 2nd event and the future looks bright as to what we’re going to do next.  This journey has been very rewarding and time consuming at the same time.  I now also have the opportunity to compete in a 24hours of Lemons race and also get into some Honda Challenge races.  I’ll actually be testing the Lemons car I hope to race this weekend, so that will be another update coming up soon, like next week!

Month Late and a Tire Short

The long overdue update from my August 20-21 event at Firebird West has finally arrived. More than a day late, and I have no excuse, so let’s get to it!

This event was very crucial for me as I was going up against Tage Evanson and his wicked grocery getting Honda Accord. Don’t laugh cause this car has more track records and in multiple classes than Black Betty does. So the pressure was on to rise to the occasion and get the win, no excuses. First session out Saturday was pretty cool as Tage and I ran together throughout the session, but I ended up 1 tenth down, 1:07.8 to 1:07.9. A quick adjustment to the car and driver for the 2nd session and we were back at it again. This time I just slayed the track and beat my own previous track record by 2 tenths to set a time of 1:06.3! This time would hold up for the rest of the day, but Sunday was still up for grabs.

The goal for the first session Sunday morning was to break the 1:05 barrier, but it was not to be as my transponder didn’t communicate with timing and scoring. Having to go back out in the 2nd session was not the plan, but there was no choice other than to suck it up and get the win. A 1:06.7 was not what I was hoping for, but it was good enough for the win and the much needed tire so I could get some more Hoosier tires. I had a good run in Time Attack, backing up my Time Trial time with another 1:06.7. So 3 events, 3 wins and a couple of tires from Hoosier made it a successful weekend.

Half the time, twice the pressure

Last weekend’s event was the final event before a well deserved Summer break.  The event schedule was only half a day, so there would be fewer sessions and less time in each to get the job done.  First session was at 6:15am and all was going well until my foot slipped off the brake pedal heading into turn 4.  So I had to use the 2nd session to put it all together and set a time of 1:06.4.  The time was about .5 off my track record, and since the track was slowing down at that point I decided to wait til Sunday to better my time.  I used Saturday night to pinpoint the corner adjustments and figure out what setup changes I wanted to make.  I decided on making a rear sway-bar change and dialing some more brake bias to the rear. First session on Sunday I went out and was running fast and the car was handling more to my liking.  However, I had the same issue occur with my foot slipping off the brakes, this time coming into turn 2.  After getting back to the pits I found that the rubber pedal cover had broken and slipped off and thus my foot went with it!  I was pleased the changes allowed me to get more rotation on corner entry without locking up the front brakes.  The stop watch never lies though, so considering how much better the car felt I was bummed to only lower my time to 1:06.2.  Given the track conditions and my tire life, or lack there of I can be happy with 3 wins.

I have been fighting Black Betty all year long with the changes I made over the off-season.  So with the big 11 week break in the schedule I am going to get everything sorted out and get the handling back on track.  So I can put the fear back in my competition again!

Weekend Results:
Saturday
1st Place NASA-TT: 1:06.4

Sunday
1st Place NASA-TT: 1:06.3
1st Place UMS Time Attack: 1:06.2

New track, same old story

Victories and track records! INDE Motorsports Ranch is a new track located down in Wilcox, AZ. Preparation was the key to my success. I networked my way into getting some test time before the event. So heading into the weekend I was well prepared and ready to win. Saturday morning I hit the track for the first Time Trial session and immediately found traffic. With the track folding in on itself, I was able to see my competition, so I let the group fight it out ahead of me. I then focused on getting a gap to nail a winning time. With a time of 2:04.1 I locked up the win early on and let the rest fight for 2nd place. This was good as I had some overheating issues due to my new radiator overpowering my old hoses. A quick run up to the store and it was fixed. After a quick test run to confirm it was resolved, it was onto the Time Attack, with a 2:04.7 I was able to hold onto the win.

That night I went over the track map and found 3 places I could go faster and put it all together in one session. So first time out Sunday I put down 2 laps in Time Trial and ran 2:03.3! I then went on to a 2:03.7 in the Time Attack. So 4 first place finishes in as many attempts, and no off track excursions. It was nice to tackle a big event like that with the travel to get there and the unexpected that the track can throw out you. The next event is June 4/5 @ FIR East, so not much time left before the next event and there is always more preparation that can be done.

Weekend Results:

Saturday
1st Place NASA-TT: 2:04.1
1st Place UMS Time Attack: 2:04.7

Sunday
1st Place NASA-TT: 2:03.3
1st Place UMS Time Attack: 2:03.6

If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again!

NASA-AZ’s night event at Firebird is the biggest event of the year and I’ve never had much luck.  I’ve had mechanical failures the 2 previous years I competed in the event.  But heading into the event this year I was confident there would be no mechanical issues.  The event would actually be split into two events, one in the morning/afternoon at the West track and the other in the afternoon/night on the Main track.  I was set to compete in both NASA Time Trial and UMS Time Attack.  Going for 3 wins on 2 different tracks in 1 day was no easy task.

So the plan was simple win everything, all day and night!  Well, that plan got derailed rather quickly as I struggled all over the West track.  With no grip and diabolical handling, I was unable to put a solid lap together.  One of my competitors put in a strong 1:06.8 laptime while I was way back with a 1:08.2 after the first session.  Unable to make it on track for the 2nd session I went out for the third and final session on the West track. I gave everything I had and more, but it wasn’t enough.  A 1:07:6 was the best I could produce with the car.  Having to settle for 2nd was tough to deal with, but fortunately the event quickly moved onto the Main track.  A fresher set of tires and I was out for the 2nd session on the Main track around 7pm under the lights.  Knowing that I had the car to get the job done, I hit the track ready to go for victory.  It was absolutely crazy out on track, with some 2-3 wide action and eating up slower cars mid session.  Somehow I was able to get a gap and put the hammer down for 2 laps and got the time I needed to win, 1:12.2!  I had a short break before I had to compete in the UMS Time Attack where I was determined to keep my Time Attack win streak alive!  So I ripped off another 1:12.2 and called it a night with another win in hand.

Weekend Results:
2nd Place NASA-TT: 1:07.6 (West Track)
1st Place NASA-TT: 1:12.2 (Main Track)
1st Place UMS Time Attack: 1:12.2 (Main Track)

Here’s a photo of my front splitter after my TT and Time Attack runs on the Main track.  My Dad said as long as I keep winning he doesn’t mind fixing the splitter, I’ll do as I’m told!

Another Track, Another Track Record!

What a day, what a track, what a car, thankfully it was not a day of what if’s!  The goal for the day was to compete and win in both NASA-TT and UMS Time Attack.  Mission accomplished, but it certainly was not as easy as it appeared.

Coming off a tough event at FIR East where I drove off track Saturday, I planned to have a smooth event this time around.  Having to get the car realigned in between events, I quickly found out the specs I provided were not so good.  The car was slow to turn in and then just understeered through to corner exit.  Rather than try to change a bunch of things on the car, I just let the track come to me.  Even when the car isn’t to my liking, it’s still one badass ride as long as I keep her on the road.  Within 2 sessions the track was in better shape and I was able to put in a solid time for NASA-TT.  Then it was onto UMS Time Attack where I planned just keep the car on the road, and bring it home in 1 piece.  Fortunatley, this was enough to get the win in Time Attack as well.  So 2 events, 2 wins again, but the car was not as I would like, bad news for the competition!  With less than 2 weeks before the big Firebird night event, I am going to get the another alignment with some better specs.

The night event is NASA-AZ’s biggest event of the year, and now we’ll be competing on 2 tracks in 1 day!  Black Betty is entered into 3 events, and she’ll be ready to win all three as long as Rubber Toes is up to the challenge!

Weekend Results:
1st Place NASA-TT: 1:53.07 (TTD Track Record)
1st Place UMS Time Attack: 1:52.6 (TA-A Track Record)

You might be down, but not out

What started out as a promising weekend, quickly turned into a trying weekend.  Black Betty had the fuel pump issue reslved, received new springs and had a fresh set of Hoosiers to break in for the upcoming AMP event.  The plan was to run 2-3 sessions each day to dial in the new springs and get a couple of fun runs in if time allowed.  First session out I had to get through some traffic to run some fast laps.  The car was great right from the start and I was able to lock in a time that would be good enough to win.  I made a swaybar change and was ready to attack the 2nd session…

The car was better, and I started to really attack.  As I slid off the track at turn 9, I knew it wasn’t going to be good.  I caught a little hangtime and spun the car as it came back onto the track.  It took two starts for the engine to keep running, then it was off to the pits to assess the damage.  The inside of the curbing cut my right front tire and bent the rim.  A fresh set of tires resolved that issue, but the alignment was off.  Right hand turns were not an issue, left hand turns however were sketchy.  Thankfully, FIR East only has 3 simple left hand, but 7 right hand corners.

I spent the rest of my evening driving laps in my mind as I prepared to redeem myself Sunday.  First session out, I got to grid early and put in 5 solid laps to set a time no one could match.  I then kicked back and prepared myself for the Time Attack later in the day.  I wasn’t pleased with my performance in TA due to overshooting my brake zone into turn 1 each lap.  But it was good enough to win and break the previous track record by over 2 seconds!

So you maybe down, but never out.  It was my fault for going off the track, but I had the opportunity to make it right.

Weekend Results:
Saturday: 1st Place NASA-TT, 1:06.6
Sunday: 1st Place NASA-TT, 1:06.4 | 1st Place UMS Time Attack, 1:06.6

Always believe and have a plan

Go Girl power!  Yesterday I had the opportunity to coach a 17yr old girl @ the track.  So how do you think it worked out?

It was a private test day at AMP with some drivers receiving coaching from Bondurants top instructor.  My driver was stuck with me, I think she got the better deal in the end though!

While the other drivers just worked on going faster without a clear plan on how to accomplish this, we went through a lesson plan I created.  Focusing on quality track time and target specific coaching we raised her awareness levels to an all time high.  The by product of this, was increased confidence that she would use to shock them all at the end of the day.

As the day got hotter and the times slower, my driver increased her pace and was smoother than ever before.  How did we do this?!  By shouting get on the gas here, slow down there!  No.  I made the driver aware of what she was doing as a whole and she naturally made the adjustments.  I just supplied the tools to use, she was the one who had to recognize, find and deploy them.  Vision was the key component to this, pushing ones self beyond to that “out of body experience”.

It was a great learning experience for both of us and it was awesome working with a driver willing to listen and try new things.  Anyone wanting some extra coaching at the next NASA event hit me up ahead of time!

Karma strikes again!

Fortunately this time I was on the right side and I was able to get the win.  The plan heading into the weekend was to compete in 3 car events and 1 mtn bike event since they were all in the same location.  However, the stars didn’t align and I was not able to compete in the mtn bike race due to an odd, patched but still unresolved issue on Black Betty.  After my first run of the day I found out that the session wouldn’t count, so instead of heading over to the mtn bike race I stayed to complete the 2nd NASA-TT session and go for the win.  I did so with a lap of 1:11.2 which is my personal best @ PIR.  The lap was sloppy as I could barely keep the car on the road, however, the gas pedal was matted to the floor.  Shortly after pulling into garage a fuel delivery issue arose and threatened the remaining car events if left unresolved.  Although feeling dejected as I did at McDowell mtn, I made the choice to stay and try to fix the problem rather than race my bike and risk missing the remaining car events.  So I started to trouble shoot the issue, not getting far at all, until fellow Miata and group 3 driver Stenos jumped into action.  Soon to follow was the help of another group 3 superstar Jared Lester.  Together they worked tirelessly and were able to diagnose and resolve the issue around 10pm.  After a late night I was looking forward to getting on with the job of winning on Sunday.  However, the gremlin reappeared and the car wouldn’t start in time for the 1st session Sunday morning.  Again the guys sprung into action and implemented a patch that would see me through the rest of the day as I went for 2 more wins.  I was able to get in another solid lap of 1:11.5 to take my 2nd TT win of the weekend.  Now it was on to the UMS Time Attack which I prepared to compete in for the first time.  A lap of 1:11.9 was good enough for the win, just .5 off from beating the next class up!

It certainly was a trying weekend and I didn’t accomplish all that I set out to do, however, I did reaffirm that good karma is better than bad.  I had a blast working with the group 3 drivers, no crashes just a few spins which is all part of the learning process.  It was a weekend that put many things into perspective for me and I am determined to use this as my guide for the remainder of the racing season.  March is going to be a busy month with at least 3 car events coming up, so more wins and track records coming soon!