This past weekend was WDCR championship event #2. The course was an excellent design by Ian Baker and included a good 'balance' of elements. It wasn't an easy course to read and many drivers finished all four runs w/o feeling like they had gotten everything right.
Shawn and I finally made the switch to Hoosier A6's and we went with a similar size to our former V710's - 245/35/18. Unlike the V710's, the Hoosiers are slightly wider, weigh 3lbs less per tire and are also 0.1" shorter in OD. So on paper, these tires definitely looked good!
As I'm in the only co-driven car, I was first out on course in the 5th heat on Sunday. Temps were in the mid 70's and as hoosiers work well even when cold, I had no issues with grip on my maiden run. My biggest issue was actually finding a good line on course while at the same time figuring out these new Hoosiers which have a completely different feel than the V710's. A few spots caught me "off guard" - the 1st slalom right after the start had a funky rhythm to it (especially at the end), and the final slalom between poles 43 & 52 was much tighter than it walked. I came in with a clean 64.3xx knowing that a ton of time was still out there. Other drivers in my class had 1st runs in the 64-65 range and Shawn led the way out of the gate with a clean 63.6xx.
On my 2nd run I wanted to start fixing some of the issues on my first run. Did the first slalom much better but didn't get a good line coming down through the 'S-turns' between poles 33 & 31. I carried a lot of speed up through the walled slalom by pole 42, and the final tight slalom really caught me by suprise!! Snap. Got on the brakes hard but it was too late - center punched a cone and went around the wrong side of the next slalom cone. Finished with a 63.6xx +dnf. Shawn had now dropped the hammer with a clean 62.4xx followed by a 62.8xx by Wade (who won event #1).
On my third run I set out finally feeling like I knew how these hoosiers behaved at the limit. The first slalom went well, fast straight was sweet, set up well for the downhill S-turns, and executed the walled slalom and the tight slalom with aplomb. Came through the finish with a clean 62.6xx and was now 2nd in class, 2/10ths behind Shawn. Shawn didn't improve on his 3rd run and went 1/10th slower.
4th run time! I went out with a vengance attacking the course even harder than before. I realized I could carry more speed in the downhill S-turns (but still left some time on the table there). Uphill walled slalom was fast, tight slalom wasn't too shabby, and I got on the gas early after clearing the last cone before the finish. My time was a 62.3xx!!! I moved into the lead in my class! Booyeah!!! But several other drivers in my class still had to run including Shawn. Wade finished and didn't improve on his prior 62.8, Shawn finished with a 62.6 and had to stand on his earlier run as well. Only person left was Dr. Weichold whose best time was a 63.4xx. Weichold set out and absolutely burned through the course. He really stayed on the gas coming downhill through the S-turns and absolutely rocked that section. His excellent pace continued all the way to the finsih. I ran to check the time. It was a clean 61.594! Wow - talk about smashing my final time to pieces!!!
I clapped as Weichold returned to grid - that was a clutch run executed perfectly!
Summary:
2nd out of 9 in class
15th out of 227 in PAX
Results:
'B Stock' - Total Entries: 9 Trophies: 3 Car Color Times Total
1T bs 99 Frank Weichold 2005 Mazda Rx8 Grey 65.851 63.494 64.060 61.594 61.594 -
2T bs 90 Chike Dellimore 2006 Mazda Rx-8 Grey 64.377 63.658 dnf 62.607 62.376 62.376 0.782
3T bs 190 Shawn Roberts 2006 Mazda Rx-8 Grey 63.610 62.443 62.523 62.688 62.443 0.067
4 bs 88 Dave Wade 2004 Mazda Rx-8 Gray 64.087 62.889 63.544+1 63.046 dnf 62.889 0.446
5 bs 98 Steve Barber 2004 Mazda Rx-8 Green 66.378 64.576 63.932 63.654 63.654 0.765
6 bs 77 John Wise 2004 Mazda Rx-8 Yellow 74.937 65.746 +1 64.644 +1 63.963 63.963 0.309
7 bs 199 Learic Cramer 2009 Nissan 370Z Yellow 68.455 dnf 65.664 66.134 65.082 65.082 1.119
8 bs 16 Danny Chao 2004 Mazda Rx-8 Grey 71.359 dnf 67.762 66.844 67.547 +2 66.844 1.762
9 bs 22 Alfred Derenzis 1989 Porsche 911 Cabriolet Grand Prix White 96.517 +1 79.114 77.846 dnf 74.746 74.746 7.902
Results: http://www.wdcr-scca.org/SoloAutocro...9/Default.aspx
Max Q speed graph of my fastest run:
Video of best runs
Chike Run 4 (62.376)
Shawn Run 2 (62.443)
Pics:
Shawn
Katie
Chike
Frank
