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racer_tim
05-05-2008, 12:24 PM
Congrats to Josh who won group 5 with an overall win over ITS winner Doug Makashima in a great drive yesterday.

JoshS
05-05-2008, 12:37 PM
Thanks Tim! Between the previous race at Infineon and this one, Doug and I (with Donna Gilio, who blew a motor this weekend, and Steve Borlik, who was at Thunderhill with NASA this weekend, I think) are having some really fun races.

I'm still hanging around ITR with a totally stock engine, which is one of the reasons why I'm still racing with the front-runners in ITS. But it's really fun this way. As long as both ITS and ITR track records continue to drop like this, why spend the big bucks to go faster?

I'll have video of this race posted this week to my website (www.godoggoracing.org). In the meantime, I recommend watching the group 5 race from Infineon a few weeks ago, that was a great race too.

racer_tim
05-05-2008, 05:38 PM
Donna didn't have a good weekend. She got caught up in the Group 2 fiasco @ turn 2 on the first lap, when #83 tried a bonzai pass on the 3 leading Formula Atlantic cars, and took out 7 cars. They ended up only having about 13 minutes of green flag racing due to the cleanup and getting all of the cars cleared from the track. Donna's left front wing received damage in the incident. #83 DQ'd and put on a 6 race probation. That's what I heard.

I was in the tower both events, and we don't get to "watch" too much of the racing, so I'll look through the videos.

See you @ TH on May 23-25 with big blue doing worker trans, as well as being in the tower.

JoshS
05-05-2008, 06:01 PM
Donna didn't have a good weekend. She got caught up in the Group 2 fiasco @ turn 2 on the first lap, when #83 tried a bonzai pass on the 3 leading Formula Atlantic cars, and took out 7 cars.

She actually got lucky and threaded the needle through that mess. Her wing damage came in turn 3 of the first lap. But despite that, she says she had a great weekend, since she set new qualifying records in both ITA and FE, and she managed to win the FE race despite the wing damage. But yeah, 13 minutes sucks.


See you @ TH on May 23-25 with big blue doing worker trans, as well as being in the tower.
I won't be there unfortunately ... no racing for me until the TH race at the end of July :-( I really need to find a way to do some suspension tuning before then though, hopefully I can at least pull that off.

tom_sprecher
05-05-2008, 06:21 PM
Congrats, Josh. :happy204:

While I'm here do you guys have a name for the "IT West Fest" or are we going with that?

JoshS
05-05-2008, 06:28 PM
While I'm here do you guys have a name for the "IT West Fest" or are we going with that?
I think we're just going with that. The e-mail blasts have gone out (here too) with that name, so let's stick with it. If we get a lot of feedback suggesting we need to change it, we'll do it for next year.

Z3_GoCar
05-05-2008, 11:46 PM
Congratulations Josh,

Good luck on finding a place to test and tune your suspension. I suspect Buttonwillow will be having a test and tune day on the 16th before the Single Regional/National. I've gotten lots of track time with these Friday T&T days at Buttonwillow, if you attend for the whole day it's like 6-8 half hour sessions.

James

JoshS
05-06-2008, 12:50 AM
Infineon, Thunderhill, and Buttonwillow all have plenty of open test days for race cars. Infineon's a little expensive for testing, but it's the closest and most handling-oriented. So it shouldn't be a problem finding a track, it's just a matter of finding the time.

Z3_GoCar
05-06-2008, 01:44 AM
There's test days at Infineon??

I thought they'd be rarer than test days at Laguna. My second club race that I ever went to was at Sear-Point. I was helping crew for a Vee driver, so it was pretty easy going, and I got to spectate a lot. I remember his last name was Bell, and he drove an old Z-bar Carocal B I think. In those days, they didn't have the track events, you had to attend someones school, and drive their vehicle to get on the track. That's when I decided to take up Karting. Maybe I'll post some pictures from that race tomorrow morning.

lateapex911
05-06-2008, 09:14 AM
Nice job, Josh. Someday I have to drive Laguna.

racer_tim
05-06-2008, 09:54 AM
James, the day before most SCCA events @ Sears Point, is a track test day. SCCA is Sears Point's best customer when it comes to test days before regional events.

They see the cash cow coming, but I don't think Topeka does.

Z3_GoCar
05-06-2008, 10:12 AM
Hey Tim,

Thanks for that info. I'd rather race with some knowledge of the track, and test and tune days get me lots of time for the money. I've uploaded some pictures you might be interested in, from the Sears Point Fall regional, 1990:


http://www.improvedtouring.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=5&pictureid=31

http://www.improvedtouring.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=5&pictureid=32

http://www.improvedtouring.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=5&pictureid=33

http://www.improvedtouring.com/forums/picture.php?albumid=5&pictureid=35

racer_tim
05-06-2008, 11:46 AM
Man, have things changed in 18 years.

Check out my pictures / movies of the classic Sears Point from my IT days, circa 1993-1994 in my ITB Scirocco. Back in those days, we had 9 run groups. Group 9 was ITS and ITB, Group 8 was ITA and ITC. Each of those groups had over 50 cars.

http://www.timlinerud.com/racing/videos/index.html

The bottom of the page are the links to 1994

wagnerov
05-06-2008, 04:08 PM
My memory is hazy:

I think those 1990 photos might be from the lamented Pacific Coast Road Racing Championships, something a bit bigger than a fall regional. The 26 Volvo was from Oregon, and I think the 42 VW was Marty? Miller from Cal Club. The white 2002 in the same photo might be Pete Carlotto.

The 16 510 is Sal Versaggi. Not sure about the rest.

Z3_GoCar
05-06-2008, 09:14 PM
My memory is hazy:

I think those 1990 photos might be from the lamented Pacific Coast Road Racing Championships, something a bit bigger than a fall regional. The 26 Volvo was from Oregon, and I think the 42 VW was Marty? Miller from Cal Club. The white 2002 in the same photo might be Pete Carlotto.

The 16 510 is Sal Versaggi. Not sure about the rest.

Thanks for the ID on who was driving what. This was the second time I'd gotten in the paddock and closer to a track than outside in the public areas. I was in Salinas for about 8 years, and Laguna was so close. Yet in those days you didn't get close to the track unless you had credentials that I didn't and so it was still far. That was untill some club racers with a super-vee asked to use the air hose at the gas station I worked at and invited me to come out to the paddock on Sunday. That's how I got to meet Mr Bell, and hang out at the PCRRC in '90.


James

ps. Tim, I remember a pinto hit the tires at the same place as the rabbit in your video. Thanks for the look around the track.

wsracer23
05-07-2008, 01:53 AM
It was a great weekend.. Cold but fun.. Here is a video of my race in group 1. http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh198/wsracer/th_LagunaSeca_0001.jpg (http://s256.photobucket.com/albums/hh198/wsracer/?action=view&current=LagunaSeca_0001.flv)

JoshS
05-07-2008, 02:10 AM
Hey, I know that car. I've even driven that car!

Derek was my teammate when we were in T2. I've known him for many years.

Nice editing on the video. What have you done to the car since you bought it?

Z3_GoCar
05-08-2008, 12:18 AM
Any plastic on your Lexus? I don't think you belong in ITE any more than I did. Can you take the wing off and join me in ITR??

James

JoshS
05-08-2008, 12:22 AM
Any plastic on your Lexus? I don't think you belong in ITE any more than I did. Can you take the wing off and join me in ITR??

I helped prep that car. Except for the engine, it's quite a ways beyond ITR. All Lexan, lots of interior stuff removed that can't be removed in IT (like wiring, rear windows, etc), but the biggie is the cut fenders and the wide flares. The fronts can be put back to stock easily enough, but the rears would be a lot more work.

JoshS
05-08-2008, 12:26 AM
Thanks Tim! Between the previous race at Infineon and this one, Doug and I (with Donna Gilio, who blew a motor this weekend, and Steve Borlik, who was at Thunderhill with NASA this weekend, I think) are having some really fun races.

I'm still hanging around ITR with a totally stock engine, which is one of the reasons why I'm still racing with the front-runners in ITS. But it's really fun this way. As long as both ITS and ITR track records continue to drop like this, why spend the big bucks to go faster?

I'll have video of this race posted this week to my website (www.godoggoracing.org (http://www.godoggoracing.org)). In the meantime, I recommend watching the group 5 race from Infineon a few weeks ago, that was a great race too.
My videos are posted:

Round 1 (http://www.godoggoracing.org/gallery/v/Videos/2008/Infineon-080330-G5.wmv.html) from Infineon (30 mins, too exciting to edit!)
Round 2 (http://www.godoggoracing.org/gallery/v/Videos/2008/LagunaSeca-080504.wmv.html) from Laguna Seca (16 mins)

Z3_GoCar
05-08-2008, 01:11 AM
I helped prep that car. Except for the engine, it's quite a ways beyond ITR. All Lexan, lots of interior stuff removed that can't be removed in IT (like wiring, rear windows, etc), but the biggie is the cut fenders and the wide flares. The fronts can be put back to stock easily enough, but the rears would be a lot more work.

Wiring, we don't need no stinking wiring!! do we?? Oh, and never mind what's not under the dash:p You do know that TC gutted my car? Just so you don't blame me for what's not there, yet. But, I will have the washer bottle installed. I promise.

James

jimmyc
05-08-2008, 03:20 AM
james thanks for those pictures!!!

While i was only 6 years old at that time, damn that was a long time ago, i still have vivid memories of Sears point at that time. From the time i was 4 years old untill i was about 12 i went to the NHRA top fuel races every year there. My uncle worked for Garry Ormsby (sp) at that time, and we always camped across the road, which is now gone too.

There was a gap from about 1998 untill 2003 when i didn't go nor see Sears point. I did my first DE there in 03 and it was a whole lot different then i remeber!

wsracer23
05-08-2008, 02:29 PM
Josh, The car is still pretty much the same as when you drove with Derek. It is a great car and I am having a ton of fun with it. It looks like we will be going all in and adding a turbo so I can run with the high hp guys in ITE. I am also entertaining the idea of adding a more aggressive body kit to go with the wide wheels and tires on the car. I have had a few tires go away with some of the rubbing. Come by and say hello sometime we are running both SoCal and SFR this year..

Z3_GoCar
05-09-2008, 01:15 AM
Jimmy,

Glad you were taken back by the pictures. I'd just found them a few months ago in an old desk out in the garage.

WS,

I hope you've got a good look at Joe Hall's car because that's how to build a killer ITE car. Pretty much like an old trans-am car, a tube frame with a body welded on the outside. As it stands now you should be able to run with Uncle Joe Bensen and Bill Stearns when he gets his AS Cobra back togeather.

James