[s-cars] Okay the real ..Road America Trip Report

[Airbil at aol.com]

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>Bob wrote
>Well, How did the station wagon perform on the track?   And the driver?
>I'm dying to know!
>Bob

Hey Bob
This car rocks ya know!  What a blast.
Kind a longish story, but as alignment was delayed at mechanics till he
finished at like 8pm friday nite.  These shops are nuts!  But he stayed and
did it while my buddy and I hung out in the shop marvelling at all the
P------ goodies:)  Only have time to add the bottle of Techron and drive to
RA.  Dinner at DQ and only 3 beers later.. sleep.  like 12:30 .
Up at 6am for 7:30 sign in and tech session.  Its an absolutely perfect sunny
blue autumn day.  RA is I believe about 4 miles long with lots n lots of
variety in a road course.  Ovals seem sooo stupid.
They look at my brake lights yank on my wheels, marvel at the big silvers and
 Yeah  I'm in the B group prolly cause I'm a personal friend of Bob Pastore
or because of Porsche hub caps and probable thinking that any idiot entering
a station wagon must know something:) ha  I get no.28 (same as my age) ha
Find a parking place and untrailer Ricks zr1.  I unpack & set up practically
my whole tooltime collection as I aint got that much anyway, so I brought it
all.  Gotta get the stock fpr in there I know.  Drive nail into the clamp to
open it.  Nice.
pull out rs2 fpr. .. I'm a friggin genious!  Clamp falls off hose into
engine... I'm a friggin idiot.  Look on ground  under car.  Theres the clamp.
 I'm a friggin genius.  New fpr install complete.  No time to change spark
plugs.
Group A finishes first lap session after only one minor wreck and we (all
drivers) get threatened with something, I couldnt hear what cause some car
from group C thought he was in group A or something.  9:25 group b lapping
session.  I'm sitting in line reflecting just how th F I had arrived at this
place n time.  Stubbling onto the list, lurking, trying to figure out just
wtf is this rs2 crap.  Quite a collective education I got. Then spending the
dough over the last 18 mos. piece by piece addin parts.  Bilstein eibachs,
big reds, stromung, maf, x cam, header, turbo, software, cup wheels, v1,
boost gauge.  $$$
There I am lined up with many corvettes, alfas (their event) Ferraris, mini
coopers, (the S version rocks)
There I am going round and round just like I dreamed of.  But car stumbles a
bit if pushed too hard too fast.  No problem.  Im just trying to learn the
line.  Through turn 13 ..... under der bridge ...woops off to the left some
never to be seen again Integra (I think) head first into the wall.  Engine
smoking, Dazed driver walking away helmet in hand.   Whoah..  I am sooo glad
that that couldnt possibly happen to me:)
Afterall, ..I gotta drive this thing home:)
Okay back in the pits.  Examine nearby "A group" corvette that had its rear
buffed by some track barrier.  No time to change them friggin plugs yet cause
engine is uhmmmm hottt!  Add 1qt m1 15 50 though.  Back out for lapping
session II.  Still slight stumble, but I'm doin okay holding my own. Back in
pit, open hood and let car cool for 30 minutes or so.  This is it.  Gotta go
for the plug change.  WTF is that guy doin there?  Mr porsche turbo (very
nice car) thinks I'm field stripping the injectors.  Yank out my pre set at
home handy dandy (non kmart he he) spark plug torque wrench with socket duct
taped to extender.
Working from firewall forward the plugs seem progressively blacker.  Whatever
that means.  But even to my very untrained eye, they did not look great.  New
ones.  Beautiful shiney platinum:)  In they go.  With new rubber connector
tubes too.  Tighten to 22, loosen, tighten again.  How do I know this stuff?
Annoucement for the touring session.
Ya know 70 mph no helmet necessary.  Leisurely touring session ..not, as I
soon found out.  Hurry up , finished the last allen screw and get in line.
The engine is now rock steady idle,  hmmm we'll see.
Car after car goes.  Lottsa cars.  Upon my turn, I WOT  1 , 2 , 3, 4  yhowsa
smooth as silk.  All of sudden Im cruisin... yeahess.  What a sound!  I dont
know what happened but the speed limit didnt seem to mean too much so okay
I'll blow by the fat dentist in his MB 500 something.   Am I cool or what?
Plenty of reserve power allowed quite a few passing opps.  Nice.  Time for
lunch of fine Wisconsin race track cuisine.
One more lapping session, then group B lines up for the days last event.
This one: 1 practice lap followed by two timed laps.  We're waiting waiting
.. were waiting.  45 minutes goes by.  Come on lets go.  Wait. Oh I get it.
Here comes the flat bed with a formerly beautiful silver Maranello.  Firewall
forward uhmmm completely and utterly schmushed:(  I am so glad that this will
never happen to me:)  So I decide to lose 10 seconds of time just to make
sure right then and there.  I'm running great.  A flyin fat pig I was.  Flyin
out of turn 14, WOT through to 4th gear I was able to get to I think 125 on
the up hill straight :)  Oh I wish I could have seen myself ! The Porsche
turbo guy told me he got to 140 on the straight.  Big silvers mit bluebox are
an incredible pig stopper!  FWIW The kids in the mini cooper and 200sx were
awed by the look of them. As it turned out my first lap 3:12 , second 3:19
(hey I was tired)  A good laptime at RA is I believe about 2:40.  Ricks Z06
buddy is 3:13xx.  I'm happy as hell to beat him by a full second..
It rained sat. nite, so the track was wet in spots this AM.  Very nice.. I
cant wait.  I'll own these corvettes today I thinks.   Three corvettes ..bye
bye.. m3  seeya... ac cobra (already shy one headlight)  waves me around.
Now theres a headline "Cobra waves Audi station wagon around!" ha!
If I'da had my "baby on Board" placard in the rear window, that guy would now
be on suicide watch after smashing his headlight then being humiliated by the
station wagon.  Now that was fun.
Returning to pit, I see that the Chgo tv weather guy has crunched the back of
his Callaway corvette while trying to get out of the refueling station.
Theres 3 grand.  Not to worry I'm sure Calllaway has them in stock, so the
black duct tape will be gone in no time.  His wife/girlfriend was quick to
remind once again that living in the city, theres no place to drive that car
anyway.  Once again I am sooo glad that this will never happen to me:)
I go for a quick lunch break then they call for todays touring session and as
I rushing back to take the wife out with me and I meet Ron xxx with yes a
green avant, WI plates!  We xchange this n that for like 2 minutes next thing
we're doing a touring lap.  Swap positions a couple times and I never got to
see him again.  So Ron if youre out there, that was a fun moment for sure.
We had another nice quick rain around lunchtime and many racers threw in the
towel.  There were prolly only 60 cars or so to begin with anyway.  This
would be a great 2 day weekend venue for the urS group to glom onto for a
gathering IME where we could get some serious track time and slug out some
minutia.
I couldnt get ole number 28 off the window for the drive home so my nice wife
tells me its cool just leave it.  uh huh.  So I learn theres an invitiation
for challenge from Maximas to Firebirds.  "I" happen to be freshly race tuned
and with V1 rolling its no contest when I can surge from 60 to 80 in the
blink of an eye;)
IMHO heres what could make this car better.  Its got Great speed, great
brakes (though I still believe rears would be the icing on the braking cake.)
 A solid 10 or 15 seconds of wot down the straight is something to
experience.  So, the car needs to be lower yet.  That 3900lbs is a little
unwieldy.  Set up a little bit wrong or runt to soon and its like whoa baby!
Rear coil overs.  Wide ass tires.  Flair fenders if necessary to get them
275s in there.  Thus my tongue and cheek previous post.  On 18 or 19 inch
light race wheels.
Oh and the 6 speed is a gotta have it.  There were a couple spots on the RA
course that second was too low and 3rd was too high.  Accomplish this and you
could charge around with total confidence.
I didnt stick around for the awards ceremony late this afternoon, but Im sure
theyl mail me the fat pig award. he he!
Now to sleep!  Thanks for all the help men!
Cheers'
Bill M
95 1/2 Racing Avant -happily not crunched.
75 Carrera