A&Q about Lotus
Q:
To everyone who attended this year's LOG 26 in dallas/Fort Worth, Thank you!
This was my third event and my first to actually be involved in and it was by far the best yet. The main reason being those of you who came out and participated.
It was a pleasure to meet you and actually place a face to the email names.
Seeing all your cars, getting a ride in the track prepped S1 Exige, (sorry I never got a cahnce to go around the track with you, duties had me running non-stop), and having a chance to chat, made for a very enjoyable time.
I just wish I had more time to chat further.
Michael Holmes and the DFW crowd did a fantastic job putting the Concourse event together and the Scenic/fun run course, albeit a bit soggy, was still an excellent event. Thanks Steve Brightman and company.
I've kept the course packet and will endeavor to try it some day soon.
I had a chance to speak with Nick Adams, Alastair McQueen, Dave Minter, and some of the other Lotus folk and it's good to see that those in charge are such a decent lot.
Watching Nick and Collin standing out there in the rain during Auto-X really brought home how down to earth these guys are.
For those who did not make LOG I want to pass along something that happened at the Auto-X event that should bring a chuckle to all you Lotus owners.
As I was standing by the bleachers watching the cars go about a mother and her two young sons passed by, obviously watching someone they knew out on the course. At one point one of her boys pointed at one of the Loti going by and said, "wow Mom, look at all the Lotus'es running around the course".
The mother turned and replied, "oh yes , their okay, but I really don't care much for those little cars". To which the elder of the two boys replied, "but mom, their beating all the other cars!"
Good kid.
The two day track event started off a bit wet but by 2:00 the track was dry enough to put the DOT race tires on and the pace picked up drammatically.
Even in the wet the course was fun and a real challenge to get around. I think those that went out at that time learned a good bit about what their cars could and could not do.
I can't wait now to see all the different photos and vids that will pop up.
Thanks again to all, Kyle and I had a blast and will have good memories for a long time to come.
Al "phonse" B.
A:
Al,
Thanks for helping put on such a fantastic event!
Getting to drive around a track with Alastair McQueen telling me what I was doing wrong (quite a bit!) and Dave Minter telling me what I could do better (quite a bit!) and Andrew Barron telling me what I did well (a few things here and there) and finally Chelmer [not sure of the last name] trying to tell me to heal and toe into little bend (I finally did it a few times at the end of Tuesday) was the highlight of the trip for me.
Getting to ride around the track in a Seven with Pete was great, especially when he showed me a completely different line than I had been taking through a few turns.
You and I had a great time on the track and were running neck and neck. I got to watch your off from a few feet back. (Andrew said that you went to brake and nothing was there).
This was an amazing event. The amount of track time that we got was unbelievable!
Anyone who could have come out to the LOG but didn't REALLY lost out!
I'm really looking forward to LOG 27.
Rich
A:
Thanks Rich, it was fun dicing it up with you. I could'nt believe it when I went to hit the brakes going into little bend there was nothing there.
Talk about a moment of sphincter check. I was standing on the brake and the car was not slowing down. Finally I got off the pedal, turned the wheel and hoped for the best. I did manage to make a decent and controlled exit and wound up pointing back in the right direction.
Lessons learned:
1. going out on a track, in a 2500 pound car with standard OEM brake pads, will eventually limit ones braking ability.
2. jumping out of a Type 61 and iommediately going back out in an Esprit is not neccessarily an easy transition.
3. even though one my think one is up to the task, one has to remember that one is an "old fart" and therefore should consider a longer rest period between sessions.
4. wear plastic skivies so that only a quick hose down is needed.
Glad to hear you had a good time. That's all that matters!
See ya some time, keep the shiney side up!
cheers,
Al B.
A:
Al, I'd like to echo what Rich said about the great fun and the generous amount of track time. I did the autocross on Sunday--and it was nice to get four runs at the TMS "road course" event, but there was certainly as much time as one would want during the track days. I feel like I got more than my money's worth with just the one day and I learned a lot.
This was the first time I had tracked the Elise (or any car for that matter) and it was nice to try some different lines and adjustments around the course. I was following a yellow Elise for one of the later sessions--thinking we were moving along pretty quickly--only to see a silver (Codymac) and then black (Rich) Exige grill filling my rear view mirror. At least there are plenty of spots to move out of the way!
A:
Very memorable times guys and gals, I still can't stop thinking about all the fun I had over LOG and trackdays. As much as I enjoy the cars, it's the people you meet that has made such a difference to me ...
Al, thx for all you hard work and check out the Day 2 vidi I posted, got some good vidi of you working that Type 61 and Ron S in his Type 51. Awesome to see those cars out with us, that was an extra special plus ...
Scott you layed the smack down at the autox, excellent work man. Trackdays are fun huh...
A:
Gosh on Tuesday we got probably eight sessions on the track! Since there were only about half as many participants, especially after lunch when some more people I guess had to start heading home, they combined the four groups into two groups. This resulted in only waiting for one other group session before it was your turn again. What a fantastic couple of days!
xtn (Official founding member of the YouThreeTroubleMakers Club along with RichS and CodyMac who, with determination, teamwork, small acts of heroism, amazing good looks and no small amount of dastardly scheming, cheating and diversionary tactics, plan to eventually usurp YAUDI from his throne-O-speed.)
A:
Originally Posted by xtn
xtn (Official founding member of the YouThreeTroubleMakers Club along with RichS and CodyMac who, with determination, teamwork, small acts of heroism, amazing good looks and no small amount of dastardly scheming, cheating and diversionary tactics, plan to eventually usurp YAUDI from his throne-O-speed.)
LOL, bring it on ... Don't forget kverges and JeffersonR, they are/were real racers, I just seem like one on the TV. The faster and better we all get, the more and more fun we all will have... Let the goodtimes roll ...
A:
Originally Posted by YAUDI
LOL, bring it on... Don't forget kverges and JeffersonR, they are/were real racers, I just seem like one on the TV. The faster and better we all get, the more and more fun we all will have... Let the goodtimes roll...
Well, that's exactly why we don't wish to usurp those guys... only you.
And I just can't imagine having MORE fun. That would be insane! Well, I suppose if there were strippers hanging out with us between sessions...
xtn
A:
Originally Posted by xtn
Well, that's exactly why we don't wish to usurp those guys... only you.
That's right, you were gaining on me...
Originally Posted by xtn
I just can't imagine having MORE fun. That would be insane! Well, I suppose if there were strippers hanging out with us between sessions...
xtn
That's called F1, or Fomula Uh ...
There's nothing hotter than a hottie that can drive . Find me one of those, she's a keeper ... We need more in the sport ...
A:
Originally Posted by YAUDI
That's right, you were gaining on me...
It stands to reason that the improvements will come the fastest to newbies. For example, I probably decreased my average lap times by three seconds just between the first session Tuesday morning and the last session Tuesday afternoon. I'm sure Cody did the same, and RichS went from being just another car to have to wait to pass to almost keeping up with Cody and me. He really was catching on fast.
Another couple of weekends and the three of us could probably be running 1:30s or better on the 1.7mile course. It's those last three or four seconds getting down into your 1:26 range that's going to get hard and take ten or fifteen more events to eat into.
That's fine by me though. I got no problem whatsoever trying to squeeze ten or fifteen more weekends into my schedule over the next couple of years. Only problem is by the time we can turn in 1.26s then you're going to be turning 1.24s! We gotta devise some sneaky underhanded scheme to prevent you from practicing!
I had so much friggin fun in the beginner group, and really did benefit from the expert instruction. I was going to ask you at the track, but I never did remember to... Have you ever done the Apex events? Would you say they are run as well as the TDE ones? Any major differences?
xtn
A:
Good times! When they combined the run groups we ended up with more track time than we knew what to do with! It seemed like I was getting back into the car as soon as I got out... PERFECT! Just enough time to sit in stage and visualize a few clean runs.
Originally Posted by Scott Bowman
This was the first time I had tracked the Elise (or any car for that matter) and it was nice to try some different lines and adjustments around the course. I was following a yellow Elise for one of the later sessions--thinking we were moving along pretty quickly--only to see a silver (Codymac) and then black (Rich) Exige grill filling my rear view mirror. At least there are plenty of spots to move out of the way!
Hee, hee - Hope I didn't bug you too much, Scott! It's nice to have a rabbit to chase!
Apologies to everyone I annoyed by starting every conversation off with, "So, what line are you taking through..."
Funny how every thread about LOG26 eventually ends up being about the track day. I think that says more about how much fun we all had out there than anything else. A big thanks to everyone who helped make the event happen.
From now on, I'll never be able to picture Santa Claus without a big sign that says "GO!"
A:
Cody are you signing up for the Nov. 11-12 DriversEdge thingy?
xtn
PS - be back in a bit... going to Radio Shack to see if they have one of those little RC helicopters.
A:
Originally Posted by xtn
Cody are you signing up for the Nov. 11-12 DriversEdge thingy?
I'm in! Details, man. I need details!
A:
Originally Posted by xtn
Have you ever done the Apex events? Would you say they are run as well as the TDE ones? Any major differences?
xtn
I'm instructing for Apex this coming Sat (10/21) at MSR 1.7. They offer a slightly different experience, but track time is track time in the end...
I'll probably be at TDE Nov event one way or another...
I'm always happy to help anybody try to build their skill, seeing you guys grow, is a very rewarding feeling. If high performance driving was easy, I would be doing it. The challenge is what drives you, as anything in life...
A:
Originally Posted by RichS
I'm in! Details, man. I need details!
www.thedriversedge.net
www.apexdrivingacademy.com
Feed you hunger ...
And to stay on topic, LOG 26 was really super...
A:
Rich go to:
Click on "Events/Track Layouts."
Click on "Registration" next to the Nov.11-12 MSR event on the list.
Fill out the form as best you can; click "Register."
Choose to pay by credit card.
Print out the credit card payment form that comes up.
Fill it out with a pen and fax it to them.
Hurry up, the event is filling up fast.
PS - I'm suprised nobody has yet mentioned how much fun the track days were.