Thanks guys. The video link is at the bottom.
The Top Rookie description is more than generous. I’m still chuckling at that one.
This race was a support race for the Champ Car Grand Prix of Portland. As such we were pitted among all kinds of transporters and very expensive setups. It was fun to be at an event with this kind of atmosphere. There were people everywhere and all kinds of vendors and things to see. Unlike a typical club weekend, a jet blower cleaned the track between sessions and there were big screens setup around the track. I had never seen my car on tv – while driving! The most bizarre part was autographs. There was a surprisingly popular USTCC autograph session. They had to turn people away!
Prior to the weekend I had only run one session on the spec Hankooks. The wheel & tire size are quite a departure from what I normally run on the rear of my car, so I struggled with the feel and balance of the car initially. After adjusting the sways bars a few times and getting a feel for the tire on the limit, it started to click. I was third fastest in the final practice but fell to fifth in qualifying, despite going a second quicker.
Having never done (or practiced) a standing start, I was a little nervous on how it would go. Luckily, the car just hooked up and took off. I got a good jump on the SRT4 that qualified 3rd and the BMW 330 spun in the chicane. I exited T3 in 3rd place but the SRT4 was faster than I thought and had overlap before I could take the inside line away. I tried to keep the eventual 3rd place finishing Civic behind for another lap, but it was just too fast. He could drive around me on the straights. But hey, that should be expected when I’m running my 12 year old original stock motor against those things. The USTCC front runners are fast. I spent the rest of the race just out of reach of the leaders. I saw most of the race from a few seconds back and it looked like it was a good show. I saw 3 different leaders and several passes between them.
I was pleasantly surprised how open and friendly the NASA/USTCC guys were. I did also get the Top Rookie award, so I walked away with a trophy and fun time.
Here are the first 3 laps of the race:
USTCC Start (53MB .WMV)
Eric
