October Fastrack!

[Reijo]

http://cdn.growassets.net/user_files/scca/downloads/000/009/358/15-fastrack-October-solo.pdf?1442847036

R

[MurrayPeterson]

Looks like they are going to leave the C5 in BS(probably the right/only decision).  The AP1 is dead, but the AP2 still has a chance -- provided the course designers don't do more ridiculous courses like this year's east course.  Sure wanted my AP1 for that course

[Reijo]

Looks like they are going to leave the C5 in BS(probably the right/only decision).  The AP1 is dead, but the AP2 still has a chance -- provided the course designers don't do more ridiculous courses like this year's east course.  Sure wanted my AP1 for that course

Actually I heard the Corvettes beat up the S2k's worse on the west course ... never mind the east!  The west course you needed torque to get out of the tight corners ... and into the crooked straight slaloms... ridiculous course I thought.

R

[James@SpecR]

I just keep reminding myself I bought the S2000 because it is enjoyable to drive, not because its a winning car...

[Sprockett]

the AP2 still has a chance -- provided the course designers don't do more ridiculous courses like this year's east course.

Actually I heard the Corvettes beat up the S2k's worse on the west course ... never mind the east!

I just keep reminding myself I bought the S2000 because it is enjoyable to drive, not because its a winning car...

Did anyone actually look at the results of BStreet this year?

[Stuart]

Did anyone actually look at the results of BStreet this year?

Facts are irrelevant, racers simply need excuses 

[Reijo]

Take a look at A Street.   1st CR is in 10th place ... all Corvettes in front.

R

[Reijo]

And, interestingly enough in B Street, Brian Colson (Idaho - corrected) beat the winning S2000 in his Corvette on the so-called "tight" west course of Roger Johnson's.  So the west course favoured torque/hp and we saw that in CSP as well ... with one car obviously out-accelerating the rest of us.

Makes me wonder if an AP1 might have done ok on the west course since it could have used 1st gear in at least 2 or 3 places ... but the wheels are still too narrow to properly fit sufficiently sized tires to carry much speed out of corners compared to an AP2 ...

R

[MurrayPeterson]

the AP2 still has a chance -- provided the course designers don't do more ridiculous courses like this year's east course.

Actually I heard the Corvettes beat up the S2k's worse on the west course ... never mind the east!

I just keep reminding myself I bought the S2000 because it is enjoyable to drive, not because its a winning car...

Did anyone actually look at the results of BStreet this year?

West course (Tuesday): top 2 spots taken by S2000s.
East course (Wednesday): top 6 spots taken by Corvettes.

The drying conditions on the west course make it hard to draw any conclusions about B-street cars on that course.

[James@SpecR]

the AP2 still has a chance -- provided the course designers don't do more ridiculous courses like this year's east course.

Actually I heard the Corvettes beat up the S2k's worse on the west course ... never mind the east!

I just keep reminding myself I bought the S2000 because it is enjoyable to drive, not because its a winning car...

Did anyone actually look at the results of BStreet this year?

I am talking AP1 vs AP2 advantages here, let alone the tire width and major torque advantages of the Vettes.  Any one car could excel at any one course as we all know.

I'm super budget building my car (other than the complete tear down and refresh I have planned over winter) now since I lost so much on my previous vehicles.

[Sprockett]

Take a look at A Street.   1st CR is in 10th place ... all Corvettes in front.

No idea how this is relevant to AP2s 'having a chance' in BStreet.

And, interestingly enough in B Street, Alex Mursan (SoCal) beat the winning S2000 in his Corvette on the so-called "tight" west course

come again? Muresan was driving an S2000

[Reijo]

Take a look at A Street.   1st CR is in 10th place ... all Corvettes in front.

No idea how this is relevant to AP2s 'having a chance' in BStreet.

And, interestingly enough in B Street, Alex Mursan (SoCal) beat the winning S2000 in his Corvette on the so-called "tight" west course

come again? Muresan was driving an S2000

Well, it was more of a comparison of how the Corvettes vs. S2k's was going ... lots of background on the 'net etc. ... controversy about moving the S2000CR from BS to AS ... and leaving the regular AP1's and AP2's in BS.  The results were also affected by the course designs (as can always be a factor).   Conversations I overheard in Lincoln was that the S2000's (CR's) in AS would have a better chance on the west course,  but in reality it turned the other way around with the west course actually being a point-and-shoot course (tight U/turn-arounds followed by crooked straights (slaloms that were more open and thus flat out for S2000's ... but maybe not at the end for a Z06).  I know the middle turn-around, followed by the slalom after on the west course in the CSP Miata was essentially a "straight" by virtue of being flat out and into the showcase U-turn in the NW corner of the course area.

So the BS and AS comparison was how the Corvettes had an advantage on a course that people did not recognize as a point-and-shoot course favouring torque over high-end power ... if that makes sense.

And, sorry, I got Muresan wrong, the 3rd place finisher, Colson, from Idaho, in his Corvette beat everyone on the west course.  The 2 S2000's of Muresan and the winner beat him on the "road course" on the east ... which, as I say, was interesting since a lot of people thought it would be the other way around in A and B Street classes.  I guess I was remembering the radio/loudspeaker comments during the event about the battle between the Corvettes and S2000CR's in AS.

[MurrayPeterson]

I am talking AP1 vs AP2 advantages here, let alone the tire width and major torque advantages of the Vettes.  Any one car could excel at any one course as we all know.

Having driven all three cars now, I feel willing to make a few judgements (my opinions only):

1. AP1 excels when the course is small, tight, and allows 1st gear.  No 1st gear == lose
2. Ap2 has way more torque, but runs out of 2nd gear too soon on the faster courses (Lincoln east course)
3. Corvette has the gearing and the torque and huge lateral grip.  However, it seems to "take time" to reach its peak lateral grip, so slaloms and highly transitional courses are not where it shines.  Everywhere else, it's a winner.

[Reijo]

Actually I would argue that the AP1 is really not competitive in autox any longer on the SCCA National level.

Last time I brought my car there I trophied ... barely ... (but also drove 2 AP2's on day 1 which saved my neck/trophy - my wheel bearing went when I arrived in Lincoln and could not get it fixed over night to drive on day 1).  The Day 1 course would have been a non-competitive day in the AP1 so I got lucky my car broke down and Deana let me use her car ... which broke the FSB after the 1st run ... and then Todd Cochrane (thanks to Neal Tovsen) let me use his AP2 on BFG's to run my last two runs ...

The Day 2 course "favoured" the AP1 (btw, the ONLY AP1 entered in the entire field!), in that I could use 1st gear a few times ... and I placed 6th again ... .no way I could catch the CR's or AP2's for that matter.  The car was faster than it had ever been with Penske shocks, Hoosier 275's all around (I don't know of anyone else who tried this ... but it was definitely faster!), etc. - pretty much fully prepared.

That is the last time I brought my car to run at Lincoln and I will not bring it again ... even if I fix it up.  It will be a street car now and nothing more .... which I thoroughly enjoy on the street ... or maybe the occasional local event. 

I need to find something else to autox.

Incidentally, Kevin Dietz said the same thing at Nationals this year .... that he had wasted a couple (few?) years trying to be competitive in an AP1 in STR.  He gave up on it, got an AP2 and was leading after day 1 but fell back to 2nd place in a tough class.  So Kevin is now back near the top of the heap ... again ... but he needed the AP2 to get there.

The AP1 could not get it done in STR.

[Terry Johns]

I think Shane has the right idea that Focus in HS is a real competitive.