Dave532
15+ Year Contributor
- 98
- 0
- Jun 5, 2006
-
Minneapolis,
Minnesota
The New Season:
The Car: After looking back at last year's disappointing season, I found the car performed fairly well once it was sorted out. Therefore I didn't see much need for too many performance improvements...not to mention the PGT rules package severely limited what could be done to the car. Due to what the SCCA called, unsafe speeds, all PGT cars
were forced to install a 32 mm restrictor on the compressor side of the turbo. Eventually we found the real reason to be that the international Group N cars were
complaining the PGT cars were too fast. Either way, it definitely inhibits power. I had a hard redline at 5500 RPM now. My narrow power band (limited by street gear ratios)
was even more narrow.
I had to replace and re-paint the right front fender along with repairing a section of the sub-frame from our off at LSPR last year. A new control arm and catalytic converter were also fitted.
The Crew: Once again, my brother and father were both willing to invest their time to help me attain my goal...the 2003 Divisional Championship.
Pre-race: We arrived in the Lewiston Hotel Thursday night and adjusted the Hella lights on a nearby lake. Had some dinner and registered for the event in Atlanta, MI. Temps
were around 30 degrees with a light snow covering the icy roads.
Friday: We were still starting out as Seed 4. The snow banks are higher this year but we still cannot use to help change the car's direction. Considering the tire carnage
we saw last year, we brought 2 spares to this event.
Stage 1: I quickly remember how slippy these stages can be. We settle into a rhythm fairly quickly and just do our best to not go off into the snow.
Stage 2: After some adjustment of the DMS dampers, the car is really starting to do what I want.
Stage 3: Pass a couple cars stuck in the snow. The car is performing well and we are taking no chances.
Service: Upon exiting the car, I hear the fender crinkle a bit...It appears my fender replacement wasn't exactly perfect and the front of the passenger door caught the
fender lip. No major damage done but one more thing I have to repair when
I get home. Otherwise the car is doing well. We top off the fluids and grab some lunch. After looking at the stage times Bob states we are leading PGT by 30 seconds.
Stage 4: I believe this is called 'Henry Joy's stage' due to it being entirely on his land. The roughest and most narrow stage all weekend. We did fairly well and passed 4 cars stuck on the stage. Relieved to make it through here unscathed.
Stage 5: Numerous spectators...a fun stage.
Service: We mount the lights and grab some dinner. Car is still performing well and we are leading PGT by over a minute. I plan to drive conservatively the rest of the night and grab as many points as possible.
Stage 6: The stages become more slippy when night falls. I brake a wee bit earlier and assume every corner has little or no grip.
Stage 7: The last stage of the night. Halfway through I come over a crest while in a left-hand corner and see an exposed rock in the road. It is too late to avoid it and my right front Blizzak strikes the rock square-on...immediately flattening the tire. We soldier on but at a greatly reduced pace. We finish the stage and limp out to the road. We still have 11 miles to transit back to headquarters to finish the race. We change the tire on the road and beat cheeks back to HQ as fast as we (legally) can.
Friday finish: It appears we lost about 2 minutes on stage due to our flat tire. This drops us to 2nd in class and 6th overall. Running silica-based snow tires gives you amazing grip on the ice and snow but due to it's softness, they are easily punctured. It was just a matter of time before it happened to me. The owner of the Lewiston Hotel is generous enough to allow us to use his heated shop for the evening. Our puncture also ruined the wheel but otherwise no damage done. We go over the rest of the car and hit the sack, vowing to do better tomorrow.
Saturday start: We get up at 06:00 in the morning and prepare for a long day.
Stage 1: Even though we didn't win our class last night I feel confident we can wrap up the win tonight as long as the tires stay on the car.
Stage 2: Very icy roads in the early morning with a threat of snow later. We see one of our competitors in class have a big off at the end of a longstraight...reinforcing my belief in driving conservatively and going for points.
Stage 3: Another uneventful stage. Temps still around 30 degrees. Even though I started higher up the field this morning, the roads are still basically polished ice from the cars before me.
Service: I go over the car while Bob checks our times. Even though we are leading our class, a new Polish team is running in PGT today and they are catching Bob and I.
However, the DSM's performance is outstanding and we grab some lunch reflecting on the event so far.
Stage 4: I decide to drive a little faster and attempt to widen the gap between myself and the 2nd place car.
Stage 5: A very fast and undulating stage. I come closer to going off on this stage then I have during the entire rally so far. No harm done and I push harder trying to make up any lost time.
Stage 6: A light snow start to fall giving us a wee bit more grip. The more snow, the better! Bob and I are synching well and the car is handling better than ever before. Everything appears to be going our way.
Service: I mount the lights while Bob checks our times. We are still leading PGT but not by much. the 2nd place team even beat us on one of the stages.
I vow to push harder when night falls...hopefully taking advantage of my HIDs. This will be our last service.
Stage 7: Night has fallen along with the snow. This has become a true snow rally! All the drivers are very excited and can't wait to hit the stages.
Incredible fun! I experienced a whole new learning curve trying to decipher road conditions under a heavy blanket of snow. I was still a bit paranoid about tire punctures
so close to the end.
Stage 8: The last stage and the snow is really coming down. So much in fact I cover the top portion of the rally lights with racing tape so they don't reflect off the snow back into my eyes. I push as hard as I possibly can hoping I can keep a good gap to 2nd place.
Saturday finish: We return to the SCCA pizza party and finish our second Sno-Drift weekend! The new car handled the best I have felt so far while Bob I worked
very well together. Bob comes back with the results: 1st in class, 3rd overall! What a relief! We win our class by only 10 seconds over a 12 hour day!
All the racers share war stories with each other throughout the night before we get some rest for the 15 hour tow home.
Heading home in a vicious blizzard, I decided I was satisifed with my first rally of the new season...it could have been better but not by much. Regardless, there isn't much time to reflect on this rally as I have only 3 weeks before the National Championship in Salem, MO
The Car: After looking back at last year's disappointing season, I found the car performed fairly well once it was sorted out. Therefore I didn't see much need for too many performance improvements...not to mention the PGT rules package severely limited what could be done to the car. Due to what the SCCA called, unsafe speeds, all PGT cars
were forced to install a 32 mm restrictor on the compressor side of the turbo. Eventually we found the real reason to be that the international Group N cars were
complaining the PGT cars were too fast. Either way, it definitely inhibits power. I had a hard redline at 5500 RPM now. My narrow power band (limited by street gear ratios)
was even more narrow.
I had to replace and re-paint the right front fender along with repairing a section of the sub-frame from our off at LSPR last year. A new control arm and catalytic converter were also fitted.
The Crew: Once again, my brother and father were both willing to invest their time to help me attain my goal...the 2003 Divisional Championship.
Pre-race: We arrived in the Lewiston Hotel Thursday night and adjusted the Hella lights on a nearby lake. Had some dinner and registered for the event in Atlanta, MI. Temps
were around 30 degrees with a light snow covering the icy roads.
Friday: We were still starting out as Seed 4. The snow banks are higher this year but we still cannot use to help change the car's direction. Considering the tire carnage
we saw last year, we brought 2 spares to this event.
Stage 1: I quickly remember how slippy these stages can be. We settle into a rhythm fairly quickly and just do our best to not go off into the snow.
Stage 2: After some adjustment of the DMS dampers, the car is really starting to do what I want.
Stage 3: Pass a couple cars stuck in the snow. The car is performing well and we are taking no chances.
Service: Upon exiting the car, I hear the fender crinkle a bit...It appears my fender replacement wasn't exactly perfect and the front of the passenger door caught the
fender lip. No major damage done but one more thing I have to repair when
I get home. Otherwise the car is doing well. We top off the fluids and grab some lunch. After looking at the stage times Bob states we are leading PGT by 30 seconds.
Stage 4: I believe this is called 'Henry Joy's stage' due to it being entirely on his land. The roughest and most narrow stage all weekend. We did fairly well and passed 4 cars stuck on the stage. Relieved to make it through here unscathed.
Stage 5: Numerous spectators...a fun stage.
Service: We mount the lights and grab some dinner. Car is still performing well and we are leading PGT by over a minute. I plan to drive conservatively the rest of the night and grab as many points as possible.
Stage 6: The stages become more slippy when night falls. I brake a wee bit earlier and assume every corner has little or no grip.
Stage 7: The last stage of the night. Halfway through I come over a crest while in a left-hand corner and see an exposed rock in the road. It is too late to avoid it and my right front Blizzak strikes the rock square-on...immediately flattening the tire. We soldier on but at a greatly reduced pace. We finish the stage and limp out to the road. We still have 11 miles to transit back to headquarters to finish the race. We change the tire on the road and beat cheeks back to HQ as fast as we (legally) can.
Friday finish: It appears we lost about 2 minutes on stage due to our flat tire. This drops us to 2nd in class and 6th overall. Running silica-based snow tires gives you amazing grip on the ice and snow but due to it's softness, they are easily punctured. It was just a matter of time before it happened to me. The owner of the Lewiston Hotel is generous enough to allow us to use his heated shop for the evening. Our puncture also ruined the wheel but otherwise no damage done. We go over the rest of the car and hit the sack, vowing to do better tomorrow.
Saturday start: We get up at 06:00 in the morning and prepare for a long day.
Stage 1: Even though we didn't win our class last night I feel confident we can wrap up the win tonight as long as the tires stay on the car.
Stage 2: Very icy roads in the early morning with a threat of snow later. We see one of our competitors in class have a big off at the end of a longstraight...reinforcing my belief in driving conservatively and going for points.
Stage 3: Another uneventful stage. Temps still around 30 degrees. Even though I started higher up the field this morning, the roads are still basically polished ice from the cars before me.
Service: I go over the car while Bob checks our times. Even though we are leading our class, a new Polish team is running in PGT today and they are catching Bob and I.
However, the DSM's performance is outstanding and we grab some lunch reflecting on the event so far.
Stage 4: I decide to drive a little faster and attempt to widen the gap between myself and the 2nd place car.
Stage 5: A very fast and undulating stage. I come closer to going off on this stage then I have during the entire rally so far. No harm done and I push harder trying to make up any lost time.
Stage 6: A light snow start to fall giving us a wee bit more grip. The more snow, the better! Bob and I are synching well and the car is handling better than ever before. Everything appears to be going our way.
Service: I mount the lights while Bob checks our times. We are still leading PGT but not by much. the 2nd place team even beat us on one of the stages.
I vow to push harder when night falls...hopefully taking advantage of my HIDs. This will be our last service.
Stage 7: Night has fallen along with the snow. This has become a true snow rally! All the drivers are very excited and can't wait to hit the stages.
Incredible fun! I experienced a whole new learning curve trying to decipher road conditions under a heavy blanket of snow. I was still a bit paranoid about tire punctures
so close to the end.
Stage 8: The last stage and the snow is really coming down. So much in fact I cover the top portion of the rally lights with racing tape so they don't reflect off the snow back into my eyes. I push as hard as I possibly can hoping I can keep a good gap to 2nd place.
Saturday finish: We return to the SCCA pizza party and finish our second Sno-Drift weekend! The new car handled the best I have felt so far while Bob I worked
very well together. Bob comes back with the results: 1st in class, 3rd overall! What a relief! We win our class by only 10 seconds over a 12 hour day!
All the racers share war stories with each other throughout the night before we get some rest for the 15 hour tow home.
Heading home in a vicious blizzard, I decided I was satisifed with my first rally of the new season...it could have been better but not by much. Regardless, there isn't much time to reflect on this rally as I have only 3 weeks before the National Championship in Salem, MO
