jorj7

Hello All,

I finally got around to digitizing the video from the 2004 Pony Express 130,
Open Road Race. This was a disapointing event for me. After swarms of
Mormon Cricket delayed the start, then a Viper engine fire caused a restart
of about 20 cars, a thunder storm, causing a lightning fire on the side of the
highway. The dispatching of BLM fire trucks on the road stopped the southbound
leg for those of us that hadn't run yet (9 cars in the 155-170 mph classes).
The race was restarted for the northbound leg at 2 PM, with the 9 cars
that did not get to run the southbound going first. I was the ninth car
to leave. I got 8 minutes into the run (19 miles) when they red flagged
the race. The speeds and distances on the video are from the gps log.
Sorry about the windshield wiper being in the way. I usually don't run
with them, but because of the rain, I was forced to run with the driver's
side wiper. Warning, this is a large video file, about 47 mb, so a fast
internet connection is recommended. The URL is:

http://sis125.berkeley.edu/928/mpeg/2004-pony130.wmv

Also, my intercom broke during practice, so we had to yell to hear each
other. You'll actually hear some of our conversation on the video.

For more info on the event and the six 928s that participated, you can go to:
http://sis125.berkeley.edu/928/2004-pony/

IcemanG17

George
Nice video work (again), too bad your race got canceled!

AO

Very cool George. Looks like a lot of fun. Thanks for sharing! :Cheers:

rixter

ROG100

George,
Awesome!! That really wets my appetite to try this.
On some of the long straights you never got over 155-160mph Why?
Is the race governed to a certain max speed?
Was this because of the class you were in?

Thanks for sharing - that was wonderful.

Thilo

Two minutes into the video the text layover states: 145 mpg. Did you lift? :-)

Thilo

SharkSkin

Great vid, George. My morbid curiosity is kicking in though, and I have to ask... do you have video of you running into a cloud of mormon crickets at 150mph?

Bill Ball

Probably most of the speed drops were due to elevation changes not conveyed well at all by a cabin-mounted camera. Headwind can be an invisible factor too. I've run the same race several times, and even I wondered the same thing just looking at this video. This part of the course undulates like a rollercoaster in spots. Oh, then there were the Mormon crickets which may not show in the video but really messed up the course, almost completely cancelling the race and resulting in a yellow flag area for several miles (George never got to that area). Oh, and I think George is tech limited to 168 even though the car with SC is capable of greater than that. You have to be careful not to get caught over tech.

There are miles of straightaway punctuated by blind crests that MIGHT have blind turns. Your navigator or course notes alert you to those, so you can motor full speed over the blind crests that you know are followed by more straight road. I run without a navigator. Sometimes I get so busy trying to spot landmarks, calculate speed adjustments to keep on target speed, as well as read my turn notes, that I am not 100% positive what's over a particular crest and I have to slow down to play it safe and regain my bearings. Also, it is clear that George and I often underestimate the speed limits through a turn from "practice" at lower speeds. I've gone through turns at noted speed only to conclude I could have kept the hammer down. I don't have any good way to indicate that for future reference, while George can shout that to the navigator. You can see George taking several turns about 10MPH over what Tim, his navigator, shouted. There's even a lot more turn speed left unused, but you are not trying to find the ragged edge, as the consequences of going over it are certain disaster. Unlike a track, the road course is bounded in most areas by deep drainage, so off-roading means airborne flips are almost certain.

So, this course has a lot of area where you should be able to wind it out, which for me is 165, while George could romp almost to 180 if it weren't for the tech limit. This may not look too exciting, but holding 165 for miles on a narrow, crowned 2-lane road commands your attention (Whitecar at 211 - unimaginable).

All the time you are blasting down the straights getting ready for the occasional turn, you are thinking about THE GAP. The race was cancelled before George approached the GAP. This is an area of 15 miles or so that has a bunch of turns that are strung together tightly enough that you have to carefully plot apexes and where you want to hit them considering getting properly set up the next turn. There are a few giant very fast looking sweepers that tighten up late - apexing them too early can lead you off the road. There are several turns where the best route is to not use all the road on exit, but stay over to the other side to get ready for the next opposite handed turn. Nobody gets through this area at more than 130.

This race was a doozy of mishaps. I was the first car to pass the Viper on fire - well at least smoking profusely when I went by - after passing another car broken down by the side of the road. I smelled the Viper first, passing though the odors of the dumped oil and thinking that my car had tossed it, but my gauges reassured me. Then there was the caution area where the crickets had slicked up the road surface by sacrificing themselves under the tires. Then the lightning fires that caused several hours delay while the firefighters took care of them. A few windbursts that reeked havoc. Finally a severe (but non-injury) crash at 190+ on the long delayed return leg put an end to it.

jorj7

ROG,

As Bill said, I have a tech limit of 168, but the main reason I stayed
in the 160 range was that was part of my strategy. This is a timed
event where you try and hit your target speed. My original plan called
for averaging 155 over this 25 mile stretch before the Gap, but because
of the cancelled first leg, I only had to average 150ish. I was planning
on averaging 135 through the GAP, and 164+ on the last 50 miles.
The last 50 miles are a lot more straight, without most of the elevation
changes, and the road is wider. Also, I'm a lot more familiar with that part
of the course at speed.

Thilo,

Yes I did lift, probably because Tim (my navigator) was yelling Right 125...

Dave,

No video of splattering Mormon Crickets, sorry.

All,

I have video from the 2002 Pony Express, going through the Gap at:

http://sis125.berkeley.edu/928/2002-pony/video/

This was a solo run, without a GPS, so no speed or distance info.

Also the 23 MB sample video from the 2003 Pony has some of the GAP:

http://sis125.berkeley.edu/928/mpeg/2003-pe-ad.mpg

ROG100

George & Bill,
Thanks for the explanation + I have been reading up on what it is all about.

Double Awesome.
Roger

Bill Ball

Roger:

Glad you are interested. The 928 is ideal for ORR. I do nothing special to prepare my car other than fresh tires, install the removable roll bar and harnesses, and make sure everything is mechanically sound. As a solo driver, I feel 145 average is about the safe target speed limit. There is just too much to do, so your attention is split. Once I learn all the turns over the 130 miles of the Pony Express and don't NEED my course notes (or if I get a navigator), I could go faster safely. George figures about 150 average is the limit for a stock 928. 145 average was not a problem for me. To average faster than 150 requires SC\turbo\stroker power.

Jim bailey - 928 International

quite frankly that video scares the hell out of me ......... I just kept looking at the sides of the road telephone poles, ditches ,high embankments. One of our customers recently on a track day at "SAFE" Willow Springs big track overshot a slow corner went off at maybe 65 mph and nosed his S-4 into a small embankment . It totaled the car(yes we got it) and he suffered compression of the spine which may require surgery. All at about 65 MPH and all that hit was under the nose which bent the frame ,wrinkled the fenders. The game you are playing there are no small incidents. I really wish you all the best but it is really a very dangerous sport in my opinion. I personally would not want the responsibility for having a passenger/navigator in the car with me as I would not want to live with knowing that my driving or car injured or killed someone. I have driven Big Willow , Firebird, Laguna ,old Riverside at speed and never thought much it . Maybe it helps if you are driving as you focus only on the driving and not on where you would end up in an Oh $hit . My hat is off to you , I do not think I would do that. That is the high wire act without a net.

bigs

Jim -

That's a great video, but there are plenty of roads out here where you can take your 928 at those speeds - at least for a pretty decent distance before you encounter traffic and have to slow down. I've done it many times. Didn't really think of it as scary risky. The 928 (or my 951's) have always been steady as a rock. It's just that the dotted white line becomes a solid white line! Now hang-gliding or sky diving - that stuff scares me to death!

Bill Ball

Jim:

I am driving so far within the limits of the car and the road that it is safer than a drive on the highway. I'm at least 40MPH shy of the edge of handling. I'm going this slow because I am alone, must read notes and lack power to go that fast. For this car, ORR is no different than going to work.

Now, the 200+MPH guys - that's another story.

Thilo

LOL. No, no, no...I was referring to the fact it said *mpg*!!! 145 *mpg* seemed unlikely at full throttle, so....

Sorry, I forgot this is *not* a place for subtle humor.

Best holiday wishes to all,

Thilo