ARRC updates....

[BobsAuto]

First of all.....a huge congratulations to Greg Amy for his win!!!!!! Great going.
And to Rob McCabe, Derek Lugar, and Mike Reece who finished 4th, 5th, and 6th in the ITB race.....good job guys. You gave them a run for their money. And Fred White in ITC.....Congratulations!!!!!!!

THE NORTHEAST RULES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Bill Miller]

Great video Dave, thanks for putting it up. I had no idea that 'Captain Panty' was so graceful!!!


Once again Greg, congrats on your win, you worked hard, and it paid off.

[924Guy]

Congrats Greg!! Well earned, I'm sure

Sure wish we'd been able to drag our ITB show down there this year! Oh well, maybe one year we'll have funding...

I thought something must've happened with Kellermeyer and some of the ITS guys, looking at the results.

Back to ITA, did Rief tangle up with Joe mid-race? They were both out on the same lap...

[benspeed]

Fantastic updates - way to go to all the competitors - particularly Greg aka Captain Panty! How'd he get stuck with that new moniker? $100 to the person who puts that sticker on his car Crazy Joe - huge move up through the field! Nice job to Rick also. I would never have figured Kip would be on the podium with his ITS Miata (he did run that car, right?)

Now I gotta race these ITA guys next year in the Fiero??? Can't Wait! (but the focus remains SPO) If I go to the ARRC next year I'll run the ASA stock car in GTA which is what it's really classed for.

DAMN I MISS BEING AT THE TRACK!

Andy - you gotta be suffering too

[KelleyHux]

Lesley ...

Thanks for posting. We were concerned when we didn't find any times, even in qualifying!

Despite the utter frustration at chasing electrical gremlins for days, at least Chris can still push the car in the trailer. We were worried he might have found one of Road Atlanta's concrete walls.

The "thing" you referred to was the ITFest (at Heartland Park). And, yeah, we were there too!

Kelley Huxtable
DMVR
"PLAY SAFE"

[Greg Amy]

Thanks, all, for the the kind words. I'll have more to write once we get home, but the quick summary is that Joe Moser didn't make it easy; he literally drove the wheels off that CRX trying to keep up. He would KILL me in the corners and under braking, but the power of the Kessler SR20DE is what kept me ahead. By the same token, he drove an amazingly clean race; he had several opportunities to use the chrome horn but chose to avoid it. As I told him in person, he did a hell of a job and I'd race door-to-door with ANY day.

The tech shed kept us honest; at one point we were concerned that we had miscalculated on compression ratio (this is the same engine we've been running all year; we ran out of time to install the new one), but in the end our fears were unfounded. Whew!

As of this moment we're sitting at an exit off I-77 in Boonville, NC; Crazy Joe melted a trailer wheel bearing. Matt, Joe, and Dave are off looking for a replacements (I told them to stay close and watch out for each other...) It's been a hectic, but extremely satisfying year, and I'm proud to have raed with you guys. - Greg

P.S. Dave Gran, you're gonne get yours...

[Bill Miller]

Thanks, all, for the the kind words. I'll have more to write once we get home, but the quick summary is that Joe Moser didn't make it easy; he literally drove the wheels off that CRX trying to keep up. He would KILL me in the corners and under braking, but the power of the Kessler SR20DE is what kept me ahead. By the same token, he drove an amazingly clean race; he had several opportunities to use the chrome horn but chose to avoid it. As I told him in person, he did a hell of a job and I'd race door-to-door with ANY day.

The tech shed kept us honest; at one point we were concerned that we had miscalculated on compression ratio (this is the same engine we've been running all year; we ran out of time to install the new one), but in the end our fears were unfounded. Whew!

As of this moment we're sitting at an exit off I-77 in Boonville, NC; Crazy Joe melted a trailer wheel bearing. Matt, Joe, and Dave are off looking for a replacements (I told them to stay close and watch out for each other...) It's been a hectic, but extremely satisfying year, and I'm proud to have raed with you guys. - Greg

P.S. Dave Gran, you're gonne get yours...
[/b]

Have a safe trip home Greg, and I hope Joe gets his trailer fixed quick. Watch the weather when you get farther North, it's supposed to pour. Oh, and I think you need to update your sig.

[dazzlesa]

reif,darling and moser broke, no contact. jeff lawton spun in turn 5 passing a car. congrats to Gregg. a well deserved win

[JLawton]

/edit/ Anybody know what happened to Jeff Lawton??
[/b]

Yup, Greg was killer out there!! And Crazy Joe also did a hell of a job this weekend along with Rick!!


All through practice and qualifying (along with some over used tires) I was was struggling to figure out the track. Only ended up qualifying in 19th with a 1:48.XX. At the start there were some bumps and check ups going into turn 1. I managed to get a good run on the pack and finished the first lap around 12th. I had worked my way up to 10th, trying to work Joe over when I over cooked turn 5 trying to over take a lapped car. Spun into the gravel trap and got stuck. Ended up turning a 1:46.xx. Boy is that Saturn torque sweet!!

The good part of ending up in the trap is that I got to watch Greg, Rick, Joe and Jake for the rest of the race. I was jumping up and down screaming from the bank as they took their cool down. They got me pulled out in time to join in the celebration in victory circle. Very cool stuff. It was a blast being part of this road trip!! And we had a ton of laughs!! (like watching Jake trying to corner weigh his car with 8 "helpers"!! )

Again, Greg, Rick, Joe and Jake did a hell of a job!!

I know the car can do well there, now the driver has to get his sh*t together!! Can't wait until next year!!!

[lateapex911]

I had worked my way up to 10th, trying to work Joe over when I over cooked turn 5 trying to over take a lapped car. Spun into the gravel trap and got stuck. Ended up turning a 1:46.xx. Boy is that Saturn torque sweet!!

The good part of ending up in the trap is that I got to watch Greg, Rick, Joe and Jake for the rest of the race. I was jumping up and down screaming from the bank as they took their cool down. They got me pulled out in time to join in the celebration in victory circle. Very cool stuff. It was a blast being part of this road trip!! And we had a ton of laughs!! (like watching Jake trying to corner weigh his car with 8 "helpers"!! )

Again, Greg, Rick, Joe and Jake did a hell of a job!!

I know the car can do well there, now the driver has to get his sh*t together!! Can't wait until next year!!!
[/b]

LOL, Jeff,...the corner weighing started with good intentions, and was a lot of fun. Not sure about the effectiveness, though, as the track scales told a story of the FL being 125 lbs heavier than the FR......oh well, at least the tires weren't rubbing anymore. I was so surprised to see that it was you in the kitty litter at 5...I had my windsheild full of RX-7 rear bumper for a bout 9 laps it seemed, and didn't ID your car. I was sad when i saw it was you on my cool down lap.

I'll second the comments from Jeff. It was a good time and I was relieved to finally turn a wheel and spend some time with the guys that I've gotten to know more online than in person. Joe is kinda crazy, LOL>

-Trip home. Joe was able to find a bearing set, but the time cost was high. Spares, Joe, ya gotta carry spares and a tub of grease! As I write this the Amy party is still driving, eta is after 2AM. Ugg!

-ITS: 19 cars started

Kip ran the Miata, and it was a bit of a strange race..... pretty tight in the begining, with Huffmasters RX-7 leading, Kip in the Miata, the Z car of David Spillman, the Corrado of Bill Solouff and the RX-7s of Richard Wilke and Kent thompson running in a pack. Soon the front two eased out a bit, but the fight for 3rd -6th was tight. Then they started catching the Vette backmarkers, and it probably got very annoying for the ITS guys, esp Spillman who found a corvette in his nose...(Not sure of the details) and it ended a strong 3rd place run. (I think he was in 3rd at the time). Bill Solouff got the Corrado into third!!! Nice to see a VW up so high in S! Then his brakes went even further south, so he nursed it home to a fine 5th place finish.. Nice run Bill! At times the front two got seperated in traffic, but Kip reeled the RX-7 in, it seemed, each time. Reports were that the Miata had the RXs number in the twisty section and off turn 7, but Huffmaster was very wide in the first part of the straight, and Kip was just not strong enough at the end to make anything stick. In the end of the race a Corvette wound up between them costing kip time, and they finished about 30 or so seconds ahead of the rest of the ITS cars, but the lead cCorvette had lapped all but the front two, so the results appear lopsided. I think the race times were a bit slower than Q times, which were under 40, if I heard correctly. (I don't have the Q sheet with me) The fast lap was by Huffmaster with a 1:41.263 to Kips 1:41.417. No ITS cars were in the 42s...Wilkes43.304 was next fastest.

[roberthuff24]

"Reports were that the Miata had the RXs number in the twisty section and off turn 7, but Huffmaster was very wide in the first part of the straight, and Kip was just not strong enough at the end to make anything stick."


Actually, when i wasnt held up by corvettes in 3 i could pull about five car lengths on kip from there till 7, out of 7 we were dead even all the way till fifth gear and then via draft/5th gear in the miata he would actually close up to my bumber which made for some interesting 10a braking zones. All around we were very close in the mid laps of the race.

I have to thank kip, he was great to race with, very clean, i am sure he could have bumped me a couple of times coming out of 10a but he ran a clean race and i thank him for that. The start was good this year, kip and spillman were both great guys to meet and to race against and i hope to race against them more in the coming years.

The weekend was awesome, got to hang out with fellow waterford hills racers and had a great time saturday night in the infield. All around it was a great weekend and i look foward to coming back next year.

Good Job CenDiv 1, 3 in ITS 2, 3 in ITA 3 in ITC with the fastest laps in all three


Rob

[seckerich]

"Reports were that the Miata had the RXs number in the twisty section and off turn 7, but Huffmaster was very wide in the first part of the straight, and Kip was just not strong enough at the end to make anything stick."
Actually, when i wasnt held up by corvettes in 3 i could pull about five car lengths on kip from there till 7, out of 7 we were dead even all the way till fifth gear and then via draft/5th gear in the miata he would actually close up to my bumber which made for some interesting 10a braking zones. All around we were very close in the mid laps of the race.

I have to thank kip, he was great to race with, very clean, i am sure he could have bumped me a couple of times coming out of 10a but he ran a clean race and i thank him for that. The start was good this year, kip and spillman were both great guys to meet and to race against and i hope to race against them more in the coming years.

The weekend was awesome, got to hang out with fellow waterford hills racers and had a great time saturday night in the infield. All around it was a great weekend and i look foward to coming back next year.

Good Job CenDiv 1, 3 in ITS 2, 3 in ITA 3 in ITC with the fastest laps in all three
Rob
[/b]

Congratulations on a very impressive weekend Rob. I really appreciated your help Thursday helping me learn the line. You would think I would run Atlanta as close as I live. David Spillman will be hard to beat this year after his impressive drive from the back at VIR and a strong run at the ARRC before a bonehead move took him out. Met some great people at the event and made some new friends--That is what this is all about in the end.

[eho]

Oops, double post.

[JeffYoung]

Anyone know if KVanSteenburg ran his ITS Miata or his 944s?

[charrbq]

KVS=Miata Q3 was running 2 mid race didn't get to see finish

[lateapex911]

-ITA/IT7

Wish I saw this one, LOL! I knew Greg would be there, and i knew he had a good formula for RA. A fast motor and decetn brakes, and enough handling to hold off a charge out of 12 and under the flag. But they run races for a reason, and sure enough, he pulled it out. Nice run, and a great result for all the hard work he and Matt "Monster" Kessler put in. As many know, the NX2000 is pretty much the only one of it's kind in the country racing at anything close to this level. It's the result of a lot of trial and error, some sharp engineering and rulebook reading, and lots of custom fabrication.

Whats cool about the finish is that its Nissan NX2000, Acura Integra, Honda CRX, Mazda Miata ("On the start of the development curve" according to Mr. Stretch), and a Nissan SE-r in the top 6 in ITA. I bet if we took these same 5 cars to another track, we'd see the same good racing, but the order might shake up. Add the 240 SX that we all know can run up front, and the Saturn, and we've got a real cool thing going in ITA! 25 cars took the green, and interstingly, the highest placing local driver (closer than 500 miles, LOL) was in 12th! That's right, the top 11 guys were all from over 500 miles away, from places like Texas and nova Scotia, and CT, and MI, and OH. I think that gives credence to this being more than just a "Regonal" race as some like to claim.

The IT-7 battle was fun for me. The opposite is true in IT-7, most of the guys are pretty local, and have lots of miles at the track. Other than me (950 miles away), we had only 2 other non locals, one from CO, and 1 from OH.

The IT-7 battle was fun for me.....I have to say, it was a hoot, and my race was very close and had some good battles. Clean though, which is more than I can say for my first lap in the Pro IT race when I got tagged going into 10a after making a pass on an Accord into 10. Ugg...sheesh! Sure, we were battling for 56th place, but still... But after that, i had lots of fun chasing and racing people. (I started dead last on the field due to no Q time) Was lucky enough not to run out of gas, and got a good finish out of it.

But the RX-7 guys know the track, and their cars, and it was great to run with them. I could get a nose along the 4th place car from time to time, but it really wasn't enough, and I ended up 5th. For being as woefully underprepared as I was when I got there, and cosidering my dismal qualifying I was pleased with the finish and the general lowering of my lap times. More is certainly needed, and possible. My only regret is the video camera not working in the race.

Misc comments and overheard items....

- Joe Moser drove his car HARD, and a control arm or something related failed. He wound up off 10A.
- Greg Amy is not a gymnast....
- The spread at Evan Darlings paddock spot had some tasty food that I can't spell, and was too late to get any quantity of....maybe I'll get more next year.

-ITB -15 cars.

No doubt about it, Justin Pooles '05 winning Accord is pretty fast, as it qualified 3rd this year in the hands of Scott Seck. Scott had the fast race lap with a 1:48.076.

Peter Keane had the pole, but when I talked to him before the race he was aprehensive about his transmission...trouble with 3rd and 4th gears. He had a spare, but not enough time to install. I'm not sure if that was a contributing factor, but he got swallowed on the start, and it looked to me like he was about 4th.



Trevor ran his Accord strong and the three Hondas were in lock step.

ITB was more notable for who WASN'T there than who was. As mentioned earlier, Chris Albin missed it, the first time in 13 years....the Blethens were missing, Dave Gran is currently building a new car,and not a Volvo was to be seen. But there WAS a Pinto!!!!

In the end, it was Trevor in the Accord by a second or so over Seck with Keane about 5 seconds back. After that lead group, Nova Scotians Rob Mcabe and Derek Lugar fought it out with Brooklynite Micheal Reese, with Rob taking 3rd, and Derek in 4th.

[RSTPerformance]

Thanks to all for the updates Especially you Jake- Great writeups!!!

Looks like it was a great weekend for most, I havn't herd any "drama" stories yet (maybe they will come?). Seeing all those Hondas up front in ITB really makes me wish I had coughed up the time and money to fix up at least 1 Audi Maybe next year, if not me someone else!!! One thing I did notice looking at the results was Micheal Reese obviosly got more comfortable with the car and track as he picked up .8 seconds in the enduro... Maybe a force to be reconed with next year??? Also I noticed that the pinto turned a 1:52... wow!!! I think that is dam good for an ITB pinto IMO. Also I am awaiting pictures of the Toyota Celica that was running mid pack... Interesting "oddball" car as well. Well anyway, for those ITB Honda's (Peter especially as you know Lime Rock well) you need to bring those things up to Lime Rock and show us what you have at the NARRC Runoffs next year .

Other things I noticed.... I expected it and I am glad to see it, did anyone else notice GREG AMY WINS 2006 ITA ARRC Sprint Race Championship (in panties) . Greg you have recieved a great deal of attention, and you deserve it... I know you put in a lot of work. Now my only question is, why isn't anyone else building one of those cars?

ITS, not many stories from that group??? Whats the deal, ITS used to be "all the talk" Now that the class seemes to be better alighned it seems as though a lot of people have run away from the class... disapointing to me anyway.

ITC... the results show some close times... where are the stories???

ok and one last thing... in tech... Greg you mentioned that you were worried about the compression test... How was it done, and with what tools (can you post a link to the equipment online?). I am very intersted in our local regions having the actual knowledge and ability to test compression ratios. Was anyone DQ'd in tech this year for that or anything else?

ok, I am out, great job to all, we all (The RST gang) missed you!!! Time to pray for snow and ice... skiing and ice racing here we come!!!

Raymond

PS: One last thing I noticed... when you have IT-7 cars finishing in the top 6 of a 36 car field of ITA and IT-7 cars, I don't think it is time for your car (the RX-7) to move into ITB!!! Actually a real question... do IT-7 cars get something that "IT" cars don't thus making it appear as though an RX-7 is still competitive in ITA when it really isn't?

[CaptainWho]

... do IT-7 cars get something that "IT" cars don't thus making it appear as though an RX-7 is still competitive in ITA when it really isn't?
[/b]

Not under the SEDiv rules ... an IT7 car is simply an ITA RX-7 with an IT7 sticker instead of an ITA sticker ... and some regions/series impose a spec tire on IT7 that isn't imposed on ITA. AFAIK, those are the only differences allowed under the rules. There is no doubt that there are some fast IT7 cars in the southeast, and especially at Road Atlanta (lots from Atl Region but a number from "neighbor" regions, too).

No one was DQ'd in ITS-A-B-C that I am aware of; I heard rumors an IT-7 was tossed for ride height or air dam infraction? Jake could speak to that.
[/b]

I can verify that. Freddy Klopper got DQed for having an airdam that extended below the bottom of the rim.

[dominojd]

Not under the SEDiv rules ... an IT7 car is simply an ITA RX-7 with an IT7 sticker instead of an ITA sticker ... and some regions/series impose a spec tire on IT7 that isn't imposed on ITA. AFAIK, those are the only differences allowed under the rules. There is no doubt that there are some fast IT7 cars in the southeast, and especially at Road Atlanta (lots from Atl Region but a number from "neighbor" regions, too).

[/b]

I was wondering the same thing about the IT7 cars. It seemed a little odd that I pulled every other ITA and IT7 car on the back straight except for a few of the IT7 leaders

[lateapex911]

I was wondering the same thing about the IT7 cars. It seemed a little odd that I pulled every other ITA and IT7 car on the back straight except for a few of the IT7 leaders
[/b]

Yes, well, I inquired with the IT7 Road Atlanta regulars, guys who can turn 47s all day long in their sleep, and my answer to the question of where that ungodly time of 1:45 came from resulted in two comments:

- The car is driven VERy hard, and uses ALL of the track. Not much left on the table there..
- And it handles VERY well on the straight.

When I pressed the last comment, I just got shakes and shrugs. And frowns. LOL.

All I know is I wish I could find a way to make MY car run like that down the straight!

(That said, just to put things in reference, my motor is a 1 yr old ISC build, but my carb is bone stock...borrowed just for this event, as my Yaw carb had to go back to Yaw for a looking at as it ceased to run correctly a year ago. Still waiting for him to return it- or a phone call. Thanks to NE racer Grant McStay for the kind loan of his never opened carb. Seemed to run OK, Grant. EGT temps were about 200 to 300 off front to rear though. Maybe theres a bit more power there? )