Don't believe it? Check out this video from the NASA North East debut race at New Jersey Motorsport Park this past week end.
You ride with our friend (and Merritt BMX boss) Sean Curran, the gray 477 car is driven by Chris Allen. Curran finally got the best of it when Allen went "agricultural" on Lightning's turn 7.
Unfortunately, despite a worldwide production of over 2 million chassis, E30's are starting to get more difficult to find so please, don't crash any more of them!
It was the culmination of a year of planning. A new motor was built, 140 gallons of diesel burned for the 15 hour tow from New Jersey to compete for the NASA Eastern National championship at Road Atlanta and things were looking good.
It would be fair to say Peter Thibault is the most naturally talented racer among our Team Axis group, speed comes easy to him. An amazing mechanic with seemingly endless knowledge of how to get things fixed, one way or another, Pete spent countless hours making sure the Axis of
Oversteer Spec E30 was, if not exactly pretty, as quick and reliable as possible while staying within the rules.
The NASA Championship consists of a qualifying session and two qualifying races leading up to the big final on the Sunday. Positions on the earlier races determine the grid for the final.
Pete qualified 10th for the first race out of almost 40 cars, he finished the race in fourth. Race two he started fourth and finished third insuring a row two starting spot for the final.
If front, top dogs in SpecE30, Robert Grace and Eric Palacio, winners of the qualifying races respectively. Sharing row two, Steven Lako.
Unlike most other classes, Spec E30 feature a standing start. The cars are off climbing though Turn One, up and over the roller coaster of the Road Atlanta "esses" and on to the the back side of the track.
Thibault holds his third place position behind Grace and Palacio as the cars start down the long back straight.
In racing, especially in spec racing, so much is about that opening lap. You need to get it done and set the tone for the rest of the race, after that it becomes about managing the car. Pete got it done.
It was a brilliant move: as Grace and Palacio were fighting it out for first into the T10a and 10b chicane, Thibault laid back a little thinking
Photos Matt Russell/Axis of Overster
the two would end up compromising their exit speed on the climb towards the bridge.
I worked perfectly, Pete took the inside line and swooped past on the plunge towards the start finish line, he was first at the end of lap one.
Lap two saw Thibault stretch out his lead while others fought for position. It would be a long race but the hard work was done, from there it would be a matter of managing the tires and not making any mistakes...
but it was not to be...
At some point in lap three, the shifter starts feeling stiff and then, approaching turn 10 the transmission just fails, Pete left with a box of neutrals and understandably upset...
A small part inside the transmission, a piece that had never failed before decided to pick that very moment to do so.
And that's motorsport in a nutshell for you, a cruel mistress to be sure but one hard to resist.
Congratulations to all of this year's National Champions, see you next year!
Axis Pete Thibault decided to celebrate the spirit of Audi at Le Mans with his own crash and rebuild.
There was no was something as minor as a major high speed crash was going to keep Pete from the SpecE30 race at Road Atlanta. It was a 15 hour tow from Jersey and his first visit to the daunting Georgia track. The idea was to get aquatinted with it ahead of NASA's national championship there later in the summer.
An overoptimistic entry into turn one on the first lap of qualifying resulted in wheels off, a snap spin on the damp grass and a 56 mph hit into the barrier. Lucky for Pete, Road Atlanta has adequate tire walls there: Axis 343 was pretty bent but he was OK.
Some may have called it quits but he found a local body shop with a chassis jig. Overnight they pulled it, slapped on a couple of fenders and this morning Pete qualified P5 for today's race!
2012 Air Force 25 Hours of Thunderhill winner Ehret Porsche by Danny Sullivan
The 25 Hours of Thunderhil, because only 24 hours is for wimps. The NASA sanctioned event is the enduro equivalent of turning up to 11, it's one more, isn't it?
Have a look at this film, sent to us by Pete Billington showcasing three Miata fielded by the Atlanta Motorsports Group.
The main sponsor for the guys is Optrix, makers of cases which allow you to use an iPhone as an "action cam". Beyond simply protecting the phone, the Optrix case has a high quality built in wide angle lens allowing for a 175 degree field of view. All the onboard, cockpit, POV and time lapse pit shots in the film were done with iPhones.
Optrix also offers an app, Optrix Video Pro, allowing real time overlay of GPS and accelerometer data. Some of you may be familiar with Harry's LapTimer Pro, this is a reworking of the the same software by the same designer.
The AMG crowd survived the 25 quite well at this year, a 1st, a 3rd and a 4th in class. Well done guys!
E0 Class, 4th Place
Daniel Deckers
Michael Hall
Stephan Tisseront
Kevin Baillie
E1 class, 3rd Place
Todd Lamb,
Andrew Caddell
Brad Rampelberg
Ryan Winchester
E2 class, 1st Place
Guy Laidig
Beau Borders
Todd Launchbaugh
Travis Wolcott
Film by Landis Fields, Brian Berringer, Pete Billington, Punn Wiantrakoon, Zac Wollons and Anna Fields. Music by Vincent Tone - Astronaut.
I've done a few interesting things in my tracktard "career": dodged cones in parking lots, more track days than I can possibly remember. Driven on the Nürburgring a few times and on the Monaco GP track in a Ferrari, I've driven a Gumpert Apollo at Paul Ricard, I've won Time Trials, I even won my class in the One Lap of America but I don't think anything came close to the thrill of my fist standing start in a twenty four year old, 168 hp BMW!
I've wanted to get a racing license for a while now. I don't think it's fair to comment on racing without at least minimal experience doing it yourself but also, most of my friends have one at this point and many have race cars of their own.
Living in New York City, owning any car is not an easy proposition much less one that needs to be trailered to the track. But can that excuse: my Axis buddies Freep, Styles and "Crazy" Pete have been having a blast racing NASA's Spec e30, a class based on 1984 to 1991 BMW 3-series, for a few years now and "arrive and drive" e30 rentals are easily available through Drive-Gear.com . If you don't like BMW's there are similar companies that will rent from a Spec Miatas to, I suppose, whatever your wallet allows.
This is what you will need to do to get your NASA racing license:
Arrange to have a three day week end free, typically your Comp school will be on Friday and if you pass, you can race that Saturday and Sunday.
Download and complete your medical forms. Yes, you will have to go see a doctor to get a physical including, depending on your age, an EKG trace.
You will need a helmet that meets at least SA2005 spec.and a HANS device, a racing suit with an SFI 3.2A/1 or FIA 8856-2000 rating. Fireproof gloves, socks and shoes complete the package.
Obviously, procure or prepare a car according to the rules.
Sign up via NASA Pro Racing's web site. Cost was $495 for the Comp School, costs and format of schools may very with the different regions. NASA NorthEast is a bit more relaxed about their format but, unlike SCCA who will allow people who have never been on a race track before to attend comp school, NASA asks that you have at least "advanced" track day experience. That is not to mean everyone automatically passes but it's not rocket science, you do have to show common sense and not be "that guy".
The object of the game is to learn the flags, learn the rules of conduct, show you have a clue and will not mess up. Do that and you will pass any race school, all these organizations are businesses after all and they do want you, they don't want idiots but they do need fresh faces.
At the comp school I attended, only one guy did not complete the week end after a shaky performance in the first race. Ironically he was a guy who came in with very much of an "I drive flat out" attitude and ended up blocking and hitting a bunch of other cars... Like I said, you don't want to be "that guy".
School alternates classroom instruction with on-track exercises, usually with drivers paired practicing overtakes, driving side by side at speed, mock starts, mock races.... sometimes it got interesting.
Once you passed your comp school you are free to join the race (entry fee not included in the Comp School price) week end under provisional "rookie" status. Complete four races without incidents and you will be able to apply for a NASA Competition License. You are still considered a Rookie even with a full license until you complete eight races. That essentially means you have to run with a large "R" on your car marking you as a potential hazard.
Rentals for an e30 runs $800/day and includes all consumables, the car Drive-Gear gave me was well set up and competitive. Arriving at the track and just having to suit up and drive was an amazing treat. No tire changes, no unloading no gassing the car no checking tire pressures.....aaaah, luxury!
In our first race I had an extra treat, a rare standing start as opposed to the usual rolling one. I loved it, actually gained a spot for an all too brief stretch, in the end I finished, where I qualified, third in class field of eight.
Sunday, I got an extra bit of education, I rained cats and dogs. I qualified P4 and ended the race in P2 when Axis Pete had a mechanical issue. I certainly have a much finer appreciation for anyone racing in the rain because truthfully, you cant's see shit in front of you....
Compound that with the windows fogging up and it really gets funky. at this point I could only see flaggers out the open side windows, just enough to avoid something like this guy and his clever re-entry after a spin...
I had a blast. Hey, I even won a whopping $175 of contingency tire money! I will do it again and encourage all of you to give it a go.
There is only one drawback: it is highly addictive and you will probably not want to go back and just lap around the track in the future!
Great time to go, a freak early NorEaster storm hit the east coast covering much of the East Coast with a half a foot of snow. We were lucky in southern New Jersey, only torrential rain and 30 degree temperatures. Perfect conditions for a track day, don't you think?
In any case we soldiered on, I ran the trials and won my class (mostly because most other competitors would not come out and play in those conditions) and Pete won his Spec e30 race in the deluge.
Sunday saw temperatures barely in the 40's but with sun and drying condition. Pete qualified 3rd overall in his run group and was ready to go out without any intention of taking prisoners when disaster struck: on the way to the grid, the engine in the 343 BMW died.
We all hopped out of our cars to help: jiggle this, bang on that, pull this fuse, whack that fuel pump. As the field rolled out of pit lane, a DME was swapped in and the car roared back to life. Freep did a valiant job zip-tieing the DME in place, doors were slammed and off Pete went. This is where you pick up the action in the video below.
What happens next is awesome and dismal at the same time. Pete launches out of the pits and catches the field just as the green drops, he passes 14 cars in one lap, 15 if you could the end of the front straight. slashes though the field and is about to catch the leading group when he gets black flagged.
His crime? you guessed it, speeding through the paddock. Fair enough, for sure he was faster than the prescribed 5 or 10 mph. I believe that is an offense punishable perhaps with a drive though. But what happened next, is inexcusable.
The NASA race director meets him in the pits and accuses Pete of speeding and "...almost taking out two officials'. This is clearly shown as a complete fabrication by the video.
What is worse is that said race director tells Pete, a client of NASA after all, to the "the F-ck off the track". This is simply not acceptable and unprofessional.
Later he threatened to ban Pete for the 2012 season.
While we understand many of these positions are manned by volunteers, NASA is a for profit business, NASA racers are customers and customers should be accorded some respect by the organizations they choose to patronize, not be hectored by hysterical frustrated people lacking facts.
Anyway, that's our story, here's the video, you tell us what you think.. Pete's version of events is after the jump
Pete:
"This past weekend, NASA NE hosted its last event of the season at Thunderbolt Racetrack at New Jersey Motorsports Park. After Freep and I packed up at the secret warehouse, it was off to the rack to meet up with AC.
I excited about the event, expectations were high. I had been watching videos and going over data for the prior two weeks, trying to find new speed. But all those notes went in the garbage with a weather forecast for Saturday calling for lots and lots of never ending rain and near freezing temperatures.
I wish I could say Saturday practice was uneventful: first trip into turn 1 and I quickly found my brakes and tires were not up to temperature. I locked up the rears and spun a 720 ending up in the run off area.
Note to self, Brakes, especially rear brakes need careful warming on freezing days.
Deep water streams were running through the track. So much water we were getting wheel spin in 4th gear down the main straight, this with a 155 RWHP car. I qualified on pole but I was very disappointed the e30 field went from 8 to 3 due to breakdowns and the snowpocalypse north of the track
The race saw the same crappy weather but was able to take the win even with a spectacular mid race spin. A new braking line into turn 1 resulted in a spin right into a gigantic puddle. I was told the water went pretty high into the air. (Ed.: it was a spray about the height of a two story building! we thought he was a goner) Most went inside the car and soaked me, great feeling on a 33 degree day!
Sunday,the rain was finally gone but temperatures were barely hitting 40F, Our cars and anything we had left outdoors were covered with ice.
Qualifying took place on a near damp track, with some standing water. I again started at the top of the spec e30 pack and had a great overall spot of p3 on the grid.
Right at race time, luck ran out. As I drove 343 to the grid, the car sputtered and shut off maybe 200 yards from the track entrance.
It became immediately apparent this was not a simple bad electrical connection, it was something worse. Quickly AC, Freep, Johnny A from Drivegear and I, went into diagnostic mode. Just as we narrowed it down to a faulty computer, we heard cars rolling off the grid for the pace lap. Then, just as the pace car led the field through turn 3 on the track, the Axis 343 fired up! Freep frantically secured the DME as I pulled on the belts. I was so excited!
I'm off to the long pit lane. Excited to be on the track, I began to push the car on very cold tires to catch up with the pack. Somehow I managed to catch up just before the last corner.
Green flag and I was on a mission to pass everyone! Up to 4th overall in just 2 laps, I began to throw down qualifying pace laps trying to catch the first 4 cars.
Just as I was getting close to the P3, a car that was smoking and blowing oil on the track, I got a black flag pointed at me at start/finish line.
I thought that it was a mistake but at turn 6 the corner worker had my number and a black flag.
So now I know that black flag is for me and I start to wonder if something is wrong with the car , maybe my hood is open.
I roll into pit lane thinking it was something simple and kind of enjoying the prospect of going out and having to pass more cars again, which is always fun to do.
Not so. I am directed off the course and accused of almost hitting two officials in the pits. I was confused so instead of making a big deal out of it, i just went to the pits to check the camera: it had been a chaotic start of the race and I had been very focused on getting in the race so wanted to make sure I hadn't done anything wrong.
After checking the video, it was clear I was not even close to anyone, much less almost "taking out" not one but two officials.
I approached the race director, same one that told me to get (the F...) off track, to try and figure out what the problem was. After politely starting a conversation, I was quickly blown away with the completely disrespectful attitude that I was getting from him. Listening to him curse and preach safety, I quickly had enough all his BS. Did I mention that he stated he was banning me for the 2012 season over this?
I took the matter up with the owner of NASA NorthEast. He was aware of the problem and addressed why I received the black flag but had no real answer as to o why I was kick out of the race.
He said thatI would not banned for 2012, which was good, but if things dont change with his staff, I won't be back anyway. The rude, cursing race director is an employee of his, and I am one very unhappy customer at this point. What a disappointing end to a season. This is a good example of why Chris Cobetto and his NASA Mid-Atlantic group, draws in cars from all over the country. When you drive in a NASA Mid-Atlanticevent, you treated with upmost respect!
Pete and the Freep raced their Spec e-30 at Summit Point in August. Here is a chronicle of their week end as told by Pete.
"Last minute" would be the operative word for the Spec E30 race at Summit Point in August.
Freep and I planned on leaving New Jersey early for West Virginia but, of course, it was not to be. Freep had trouble getting down to the Axis secret warehouse due to some very bad thunderstorms. In reality his being late was not the end of the world as Justin and I were still in the process of replacing the transmission in the Axis #343, cracked housing mount. After a very quick gearbox swap, 66 minutes to be exact, we loaded up the cars and headed down into the night and never ending rain.
Morning brought us lots of sunshine and dry track conditions. Some triple checks on the cars and it was off to practice. Freep in # 232, ran only a few laps to shake down the car, I on the other hand used every second of available track time. In the middle of the previous race at Pocono, #343 had ABS issues and during practice at Summit it became clear the fix had not worked.
Qualifying was uneventful in a good way, I was only a few tents off the leader. i would start the race in P4 with the Freep in P5.
Rather than the usual roll and go, NASA decided on a traditional standing start, WOW we were excited: Australian V8 super car style with 500 less HP! Continues, with videos, after the jump
The green flag dropped and the action was on. Freep and I got off to a great start, the first few laps were exciting. The lack of ABS was hurting me, I could not slow down as well as other Spec E-30s and in Turn 5, Robert Grace in the orange car, hip checked me pretty hard. The incident left Grace's car blowing smoke all around the track. At first though was tire rub due to contact, but soon after my windshield was filled up with oil. My car was feeling very different than in qualifying and for the rest of the race I battled with the Freep. After Grace had thoroughly filled the track with oil and smoke he finally pulled off about halfway through the race, handing me the last podium step and P4 to the Freep.
On Sunday I had to figure out what changed with the car. A quick check on the alignment jig and found both left side wheels not pointing in the proper direction. Damaged alignment corrected, it was time to qualify.
Sundays times were almost a second quicker for everyone, the track was in great shape. I would start the race in P4 again, with the Freep in P6. We all set up and ready to go.
But then, a rain shower came about 45 minutes before the race. Minutes before the race and conditions changing by the second. After extensive conversation, Freep and i decided full wets were the way to go. Rolling to the grid it wasn't clear we made the right decision but everyone else was on the same tire. A rolling start for Sunday was called because of conditions.
After a very limited visibility run down to turn 1, it was time to test braking without abs for the first time. I guess i was so excited about actually having made it into turn 1 that I quickly ran out of talent on the exit. Too much gas for too little grip and I lost three spots in three turns. I gave an encore exiting turn 9 and ended up in the middle of the track yet somehow, didn't get hit. (on board with the Freep)
Next lap a full course caution came out and we ran around with the pace car for a long time. by then, I could hardly see Freep, i think he was in P3 and i was P13. During the yellow flag the rain stopped but the track was still very wet. After the caution it was looking like a 2 lap shootout. Freep lost a position then got it back before the end of the race to finish P3. I guess the long caution period helped me remember how to race in the rain again. I managed to pick up 7 spots in 2 laps to finish P6. At the finish line i had P5 to my right and P4 about 3 inches ahead.
Overall i think the Freep and I were happy with our week end results. Without mistakes and mechanical problems, i think we would have been fighting for the top spot each day. Competition is so tough in this series and i think the equipment has gotten better year by the year. Winter will definitely be the time to build some motors that can compete with the Mid Atlantic motor supplier. This years focus has been on setup, which has kept us up in the top of the pack.
Team Axis was at New Jersey Motorsports Park this past week end and we had a change to grab some real life Traqmate data from young Eddie's new BMW 1 M Coupe and compare it, side by side, on the same day, on the same track with my 2001 M Coupe. As usual we give you our data so you can dig into for yourself, at your leisure.
OK, lets start with the various disclaimers so you can calibrate this comparison. The 1 M is stock save for:
- KW Clubsport shocks and springs. Serup comes with Camber plates which allowed a -3.2 degree of camber up front.
- the car was corner balanced with driver
- Stock brakes with Hawk race pads (sorry, can't recall the compound now)
- 18x10 wheels with non sticker Toyo 888, 275 all around
Not stock, but not an unreasonable setup for anyone doing regular track days. Best lap time: 1:15.097, Theoretical best lap 1:14.614 (combined best segments from the whole session)
Top speed in session, 133.28 mph
My 2001 M Coupe (s54) is also modified:
-Ground Control/Koni Shocks/camber plates
-Diffsonline LSD, 3.46 final drive (from 3.15, making the gearing almost identical to the e-46 M3)
-stock brakes, PFC Direct Drive rotors, PFC race pads
-9x17 and 9.5x17 wheels with 245/45 and 275/40 Kumho 710 (year old)
Best lap time 1:14.470, theoretical best time 1:14.342
Top Speed in session 132.58 mph
What do we see from the data? well, while it's not the perfect comparison because it's two different drivers, it's amazingly close. I was surprised by the acceleration curves being so matched but I think I had to work much harder to get there than Eddie did even with an almost 300 lbs weight advantage. Slap some fresh Hoosiers on that puppy by and you got something pretty awesome on your hands.
Here is the bonus, there were no overheating issues at all despite the 95 degree, 100% humidity day and the brakes held up fine. Great news for the lucky 1 M owners!
Have a look at the Traqmate data for the BMW 1 M vs MZ3 , play around with it by downloading the free software (windows or mac via parallels) HERE
Couple of weeks back, our Spec E-30 heroes, The Freep, Pete and Sean were at Pocono raceway with NASA. The configuration for the day was long course reversed, that would be the North course infield and then out to turns 2 and then 1 of the NASCAR try oval.
Aside from the, to me still incredible, GPS speed of 150 137+ mph in a car with 23 hp and brick shaped like the e-30 (I kid, I kid...I know the e-30 has a better Cx than the M Coupe...or even the 1 M Coupe). Yeah, aside from that you got insane speed differential with some of the faster classes on track, check out the Porsche fly by at. 4:45 secs, woah!
In the top video , you are riding with the Freep in a Drive-Gear.com rental. Freep drives the boobs off the tires, eventually overheating them with predictable results. Please join me in amusement at all the 500HP Corvettes getting owned by the e-30 in the corners...
In the bottom video we are riding with Sean (green and white e-30) , check out the bump drafting with Pete in the gray and orange Axis-SOH machine... Pete's a big NASCAR fan, he doesn't like lifting.
The Axis of Oversteer 343 car of Peter Thiboult and the 77 of Sean Curran started side by side in Sunday's NASASpec e30 race at New Jersey Motorsport Park's Lightning.
Pete and Sean have great opening lap scraps until Sean reads lapped traffic a bit better and slips ahead. Then Sean gets hit (11:40) trying to squeeze by a blind man driving a yellow Miata and 343 gets in front. There are a couple of full course yellows...one inexplicably with no pace car and the fight goes on between the two BMWs.
Real bumpers show their value as the two make their way through slower and sometime apparently clueless traffic until Pete's luck runs out (around 16 min.) as he gets taken out by a car that had spun next to him. Sean takes the win, Pete will be back at the secret warehouse fixing some body panels.
Spec E30 race with NASA NE at Lightning. Started P2, finished 1st. There were two full course cautions, one only lasted a lap and the pace car never came out, that's why the first restart is a bit weird.
First, I think I can speak for all enthusiasts in the greater New York area, we're hoping the track pulls through and stays open. That said, given its financing plan was contingent on sales of trackside vacation homes and shopping mall style retail...in Millville NJ, we are not surprised....
I enjoy NJMP's Thunderbolt track layout. Many are not so enthusiastic but I like the combination of the two fast corners and the more technical section. They have hotel rooms right above the garages, which is nice. and it's relatively close to NYC.
What I keep wondering is why, when they designed this facility, they did not think big enough for a track up to real international standards, with properly done runoffs, with tunnel access rather than bridge access to the infield, with the possibility of joining the two tracks into a single long course... I know it's not a fair comparison, but having driven at a track like Paul Ricard HTTT, I have seen what can be accomplished if you have the right combination of financing and knowhow (Paul Ricard is owned by a company controlled by Bernie Ecclestone, I would bet it's not losing money), I wish, someone would step up here in US... Oh wait, Austin and Tavo Hellmund's group are thinking right. Bummer about Texas being 1800 miles away!
Read the story by the Press of Atlantic City HERE (thanks to Preeth Kumar and Jaffster for the news)
NASA 25 Hours of Thunderhill, the endurance racing equivalent of Nigel Tufnel's amp, exists because, say you've raced for 24 hours and you need to go just that little bit extra, to push you over the cliff so to speak, what do you do?
Check out the story of Krider Racing as told in this documentary by "Racer Boy" Rob Krieder. You might recognize Rob from Speed:Sport:Life and Jalopnik. Set aside about a 1/2 hour.
NASA Pro Racing announced a new race series for 2011 centered around the Porsche Cayman platform. The International Trophy Cup is the most ambitious effort yet from NASA, the "anti" SCCA, which has had such success with regional spec series racing like Spec e30.
Certainly the idea of a Cayman based series will have come from the existing Cayman Interseries brilliantly conceived by Florida's Napleton Porsche. If NASA is smart, they will make sure their spec for ITC is at least very close to that of interseries so they can have a fleet of ready made cars and competitiors.
ITC plans to offer a complete sponsorship, marketing and media exposure service package aiming to take that grind away from those willing to commit to the series.
The two per week end, fifty minute, standing start races will be broadcast on the internet, live and on demand via a partnership with RacefansTV.com end of post .
Of course, with AxisCG having a (ok, slightly bent at the moment, but hey...) CaymanS race car, there is a good chance you hear a lot more about ITC on Axis!
Our friend Sean during Sunday's NASA race at Thunderbolt. Some guy in a shiny GTS4 Cayman S thought he passed the SpecE30... He would not try it again for the remainder of the race!
Axis Pete Thibault was up at Watkins Glen recently for the NASA Spec e30 race and you can find his tales of dodging Porsche 944s after the jump.
Have a look at his full race videos: Pete is way too modest about his skills behind the wheel, he made some great moves in that race (an opportunistic outside pass in turn 10 comes to mind).
Just to give you an quick idea, I think the difference between a racer and a guy with a race car is illustrated PERFECTLY in this video: faced with a closing gap, the racer will always press the right pedal (or in the case of an e30...not lift :)). Pete is a racer!
Pete writes:
After a crack of dawn tow from New Jersey, Justin and I arrived at the Glen with Axis 343 Spec E30 ready for battle.
Team Axis quickly hit the track for practice and the car immediately handled very nicely, perhaps a little soft up in the higher rpm range, but i was running good times.
During this practice session, a 944 drove right into me. Yes, in practice and for no apparent reason other than total brain fade!!! That 944 driver insisted to officials it was me who hit him, a swift correction with some of my own, choice words followed. I love having video in the car!
We started the Saturday race in P3. Our Spec E30 group, running within the larger race group, paced itself at the back of the main pack, we would start the race as we got to the pit in wall. Got an ok start but then was powered by climbing up the esses. As always, some 944s got in the way with the racing, but ended up finishing up the race P3, little over a second back from the leader. The top 3 E30 fastest laps were 3 tenths apart.
Sunday i started the race in P4 with the motor really showing its lack of power in qualifying. Started to check some motor sensors and found that the air flow sensor was again, faulty. With Justin's help, I installed in a new unit about 10 minutes before gridding for the race.
After the first race lap, i could feel that the motor was back to power. Some great, clean racing i came out in P2 position.
Axis 343 was taken to battle at the Glen and came out with quite a few scars butI think that this race weekend will be hard to top. Running nose to tail with J. Allen, and S. Curran for both days was a blast. Congrats to J. Allen for the both Spec E30 wins.
And to some 944 drivers some situational awareness will do your class some good!
Cole Trickle: (v.) To avoid a crash by the narrowest of margins. Example: "In today's video, Axis Pete takes his chances and successully Cole Trickles his way through the nastiest club racing crash we've seen in a long time."
Bonus Entry: Pete Trickle: (n.) Mysterious, pot-bellied, little-known cousin of Cole who drives for Axis of Oversteer. Thought to be intimately familiar with Dick Trickle.
So you get the idea.
After the jump: A few more perspectives from Pocono. -Freep
Just because I've been on vacation it does not mean the rest of the Axis has been sleeping: check out the Freep's heroic climb from 17th on the grid to 5th place at the 2010 NASA HyperfestSpecE30 races a held at Summit Point in West Virginia last week. Check out the near misses, notice how "the Freep don't lift" and don't miss the Felipe Massa style opportunistic pass towards the end of the clip!
Thirty seven minutes into the 40 minute, the Freep was attacking fourth place but a fuel pickup problem forced him to pull back and maintain 5th place. NIce driving.
The Axis spec e30 division was at Summit Point for the NASA Mid-Atlantic race and our own Fearless Freep sent us this report from Day 2:
Day 2 produced another P4 quali result and a P6 finish out of 14 cars for Pete Thibault and Team Axis.
Robert Allen was on pole followed by Skip Bennet, followed by Johnny Allen and then Pete. Behind Pete was "The Hedgehog," Chris Cobetto and the rest of the pack.
Pete got a good start but was immediately out-powered by Cobetto who passed him before Turn 3. During the race, Pete suffered contact from behind when in Turn 1 his car slipped out of gear and Carter Hunt popped him from behind. Carter's car took the real damage and its hood release was triggered but they both soldiered on.
The next moment of fun came when Pete got into an argument with his ABS computer and the ABS won. Pete sailed off Turn 5. He reentered the track behind Carter, only loosing the one place. As the middle-of-class cars, Pete and Carter then joined forces and began to catch the front pack, using a good bumpdraft technique from about 6 seconds behind Robert Grace. They closed the gap somewhat as lap traffic and tire wear came into play (Pete's RA1 pressures were perfect thanks to help from a well knows ALMS team which shall remain anonymous), but the two ran out of race. After pushing Hunt around helpfully, Pete took a superb run through T10 and passed Carter at the checker flag for 6th place.
#343 Driver Quote, Peter "It Wasn't My Fault, Don't Call Me Fat, Stand Back And Let Me Fix It" Thibault:
"I had an excellent car today, better than yesterday thanks to fresh Toyos and some alignment tuning. Had I been able to keep it on the track, I'd have been fighting for podiums both days."
#343 Acting Crew Chief, Fearless "Why The Hell Am I Not Racing" Freep:
"I gave Peter a good car both days and helped him strap his fat belly in both days. Photos of Justin's sister were strategically placed in the cockpit and may have caused the offroad excursions... We'll revisit the cockpit photo strategy before the next race. My biggest challenge of the weekend was when I had to get us packed up and out of West Virginia as quickly as possible so the stewards couldn't find #343. My work here is done."
Videos from Thibault's and Robert Allen's cars are after the JUMP
