Thanks for the words of wisdom guys. my current engine only has 45k miles on it and is in really good shape. i got a dyno tune from the guy at jk tuning. He has a degree in physics. super spart dude. designs his own ecu software for nissans. so im hoping this engine lasts a while.

i have had some time to weigh my options and have a plan going forward to clear my debt and do some reliability mods. But i wont be on track again until september next year.

 

Sorry to hear about your weekend Derek. I hope things improve. I feel your pain with the car trouble and missing track time. I'm probably done for the foreseeable future as well.

 

Damn man, people are dropping like flies.. I heard you had some engine trouble, you still planning on doing HC next year or you have other plans?

 

Sorry man, i know you would have won the east coast championship this year had it not been for those issues. Your the fastest guy ive ever met. Keep us posted on your status and let me know if you need a hand wrenching. Ever figure out what went wrong at watkins glen?

 

lol not to speak on Clark's behalf, but word on the street is he's getting married you may be flying solo next year SlowTeg

 

Ya we'll see. I give him another year or so, but ya, I wouldn't be too surprised to see him sell his car to pay for the wedding.

 

he would never! lol

 

I did my first Time Trials Event this past weekend with NASA Mid Atlantic at Summit Point. It was also my first time using Slicks. I bought a used set of tires from the continental sports car series. They are the rebadged Hoosier R6s produced for Continental for the series. It was very cold the first morning--just above freezing--so this was not a great intro to these tires for me... I was sliding around on them quite a bit as they felt like hockey pucks in the cold morning weather with a cold track. Just as the warmup session was ending they were starting to get some grip. They were better in the later sessions through out the day Saturday but I was still driving like I was on street tires and not "trusting" the increased grip enough. My best time of the day Saturday was a 1:28.25 and I got 3rd place in TTC. (My previous personal best was 1:27.6 on street tires--so I was not too happy with the results.) Sunday was a different story. I skipped the morning warmup session because of how cold it was and ran much harder in the timed sessions trusting the grip of the tires more. I managed to do a 1:26.55 which was a new personal best for me and got me 1st place in TTC on Sunday. I was pumped! I had no issues with the car other than cracked rotors(typical) and no "offs" or on-track incidents. Going into it I wasnt exactly sure what to expect, but I had a great time and met a lot of cool people--all in all it was a great first time trials experience! Here is a photo of the car on the trailer getting ready to head home at the end of the weekend.

 

Yeah, the temps and traffic were an issue with the big field. I was having issues getting the A's up to temp before we would run into the back of the field on lap 2. It's all part of the game. We had to sort of resort to putting around at 30-35mph to try and bunch everyone up. Gave us a few extra corners before hitting traffic. TT is good times and there is some definite strategy to be had. Can be tough in the mid pack because there are cars around you that make speed in very different ways....good on ya for keeping your nose clean and staying on!

My weekend ended on lap 1 Sun Morning...

 

Track name: Summit Point Main
Little action from Seat Time last week at Summit Point Main.

Track configuration: Normal
Track location: WV
Lap time: 1:24.20
Estimated total vehicle weight with driver: 2840lbs
Estimated wheel horsepower: 200rwhp
Tire size and model: 255/40/17 Nitto NT01
Estimated ambient temperature: 60
Notes: AST4150 Coilovers, Stoptech BBK, APR GTC-200 Wing, AEM V2 Intake, T1R-ES Exhaust, Test Pipe.


And some good times at Thunderbolt the week before