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Day Two - Willow
Springs International Raceway Park
"Smooth is
fast... fast is smooth."
After watching TV and
using the Internet until 12:30am, the alarm clock at 7:00am was a
rude surprise. We needed to leave the hotel by 8:00am at the
latest to make the drivers meeting and get setup for the first run
session. Dave did pretty good today but Mav (Steve) was
lagging so we didn't get out until 8:15am, at which time I already
had checked out and pulled the rig around to the side of the hotel.
After signing in, I sprinted to the drivers meeting while Dave
parked the truck.
We got the car set
and Dave headed out for the first run. He started around 1:49
and worked it down to 1:37 by the end of the session. That's
within a second of his best time last year so I'd say that he's
getting back in the groove quickly. The car continues to run
well with no issues. The rear axle seals are holding up, as is
the driveline.
I took the car out
for the second session and ran the same routine as my second run in
Las Vegas. I started slow and smooth, remembering the line,
and slowly increasing my speed. I started off with a 1:59 and
finished the session with a 1:46. Not fast, but good progress,
The car was well in control the whole time and I was holding back
quite a bit, trying to get used to track. All in all, and good
run. The Mini was out too and didn't have such a good run.
They got loose and hit the curb hard, breaking one of their nice
lightweight racing wheels. They'll have to run the rest of the
event on three racing wheels and one stock wheel that's an inch
narrower. Major bummer.
Dave wanted another
run so we decided to stay for the afternoon instead of leaving right
after my run. We've got a monster drive to Thunderhill tonight
(about 450 miles) so the earlier we leave the better. I want
to run, but not that badly so we'll leave right after Dave's last
session. In the mean time, we eat and shoot the breeze with
some other teams. Wayne cleaned up his car and called AAA to
come tow it back to Orange County. Danny was a no show today
in his 944 so we can only assume the smoke we saw yesterday was not
a good sign. It seems that the Datsun has gotten over it's
cooling problems and is laying down good lap times. Jason
Rhoades towed is autocross Civic up and ran for a while too.
We got Dave out on
the track for the first afternoon session and started packing up the
trailer. We discovered that the scooter makes a great
transporter for fuel jugs. It sure beats hoofing them over to
the fuel station! Just after Dave came into the paddock, the
green Shelby Cobra comes in spewing oil and smoke. It looks
like they broke an oil line. They shut down the engine before
they lost oil pressure but we'll see what the final verdict is
tomorrow.
We got the car loaded
and hit the road at 2:45pm. Today was a good day at the track
and the car is running good. So far, so good.
8:20pm update: We just had dinner at got gas at one of our
favorite T&A Truck Stops. Actually, there was very little T&A
and the restaurant is scary so we went across the street to Wendy's.
We're still over 100 miles from Sacramento and have a long way to
go. Jack Olsen blew by us in his Porsche an hour or so ago.
It looks like someone is transporting his tires for him so he
doesn't have to deal with a giant roof mounted air brake at 80+ on
the freeway. It's raining off an on but so far traffic has
been clear.
9:40pm update:
We're almost to Sacramento and it's raining again. Jack just
passed us again, and so did the Mini! That was ten seconds ago
and they're long gone already!
10:14pm update:
We're just passed Sacramento and Dan and Rick Lofgren just blew
by us in their T3 Porsche 944. Rain is still hit or miss.
We're getting closer!
11:43pm update:
We're at the hotel! I'm getting a cold, great! Time
for bed and another early start tomorrow.
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