HWFM Racing Sebring Update: The Turtle that Roared (yep, it's long)
02-17-2004, 07:55 PM
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HWFM Racing Sebring Update: The Turtle that Roared (yep, it's long)
Sebring was terrific. Over 250 cars in 3 race groups and a DE group. Big rigs from all over the country. Professionals getting Sebring smart in preperation for next month's 12 Hour. And more than a couple turtles.
In fact our teammates were moving faster than a turtle in alligator alley (sorry, it's Fla).
Got to spend a good amount of time with Mark in Baltimore who was down with his 993. No tortoise he. He was in the 2:30s by saturday, and not far off from the times the C class racers were turning. Very unHWFM behavior, but perhaps he speeds despite his committment to the team values.
Ran into Buckdr as well. Unfortunately we didn't have time to get together to catch up since Road America. Soon, Bill.
Mac McGehee was flying. He took 2nd in class for the enduro. Not sure about his sprint finish.
One of the highlights of the weekend was Saturday night's after dinner speaker, some English guy who said he knows a little about Porsche's. I think his name is Derek Bell.
ok, ok, I know who he is. (He actually drove my first P-car once, and scolded me for my driving -- but that's a story for some team bench-racing session). He was hilarious, regaling us on everything from driving for Ferrari, to filming Le Mans to driving the 962 with Al Holbert to Derek's five-year-old grandson who calls Derek's five year old son "Uncle"!!!! (figure it out)
My esteemed co-turtle, Jeff Phillips, was down to share the Cyranski Special water-pumper with me for the Enduro. Unfortunately, that meant he couldn't get into the car til Sunday morning, so he had to sit and watch the rest of us play. It was killing him. Me and a couple of good ol' racers from South Carolina tried to numb his pain at the Wild Turkey Tavern on Friday Night. Still he suffered all day Saturday while only being able to do the lunch time track touring for charity in the rented cavalier (in which he was within five seconds of my personal best)
Then came qualifying in which I did the team proud. Was I DFL? No. Was I DFL in class?
Well do I get to count the DQ'd guy behind me or the car that went into the wall?
So I'm sitting 51st out of 70 cars with a 2:46.115 Top F car qualifies with a 2:33.22 Hey Wait for Me indeed.
Then comes the race.
And for some reason I'm hooked up. Dialed in. In as much of a ZONE as a turtle can be in.
I'm passing cars left and right. Literally and figuratively. Not just G and H cars and other low letters of the alphabet, but actual F and E cars, and even a couple that began with GT5.
Instead of watching the cars that are way back in my mirrors catch me, I'm catching the cars that are way out in front of moi. WooHoo
Best lap was a 2:41.36, which I might boastfully add was faster than that of nine cars ahead of me. Being a turtle in qualifying hurt the one time I turn into a (for me) hare.
So the team owner's feeling pretty good. Then that night, after Derekfest, Jeff and are are sitting in the lobby of Inn on the Lakes watching my race video. Someone walks up behind us says "nice line through that turn". We turn around and it's Kevin Buckler . He then watches a lap of the action, with commentary, compliments and a few pointers. (I haven't received a contract from him yet to drive the 12 Hour, but I'm sure it's in the mail.) A nice guy.
It then started to rain like crazy Saturday night, and the forecast called for more. Figured this should make the enduro fun.
Dark clouds would threaten but no further further. But perhaps the waterpumper didn't like moisture. It started to act up, just as Jeff got to drive. The power kept cutting out on him during the warm-up. We figured it was the balky ignition cut-off switch that was a problem last summer. Midwest Eurosport to the rescue with a jury-rig that worked great. Jeff's back in the seat for qualifying. He gets two laps in, and pulls off the track just past the Safety Pin. After the tow back in, the engine's running fine. the wheel;s just won't turn. Sheared half shaft. Not Jeff's doing at all, just decided to let go at that moment. But thanks to fellow Chicagoan Chris Inglot, we found someone with a spare. The wonderworkers at Eurosport had it in a 25 minutes. (Thanks Brian, Tony and Matt.)
We make the race. Finished up 4 spots from our grid.
The weekend wasn't without it's dramatic moments. Sunday a guy I was chasing through one chose the HWFMR mode of hitting the apex. Slid right, then over-corrected, and went around. I didn't even need to think about where the threshold braking point was. During Qualifying Saturday, I had a bit of Hewland Blindness. Setting up a guy going into three, he suddenly veered off line left, revealing a 911 straddling the track out point. I had no choice but to go off for my only agricultural work of the weekend. I was so intent on the guy ahead of me, I had missed the waving yellow.
It was a terrific weekend, all in all. Wish you guys, and girls, had been down there.
In fact our teammates were moving faster than a turtle in alligator alley (sorry, it's Fla).
Got to spend a good amount of time with Mark in Baltimore who was down with his 993. No tortoise he. He was in the 2:30s by saturday, and not far off from the times the C class racers were turning. Very unHWFM behavior, but perhaps he speeds despite his committment to the team values.
Ran into Buckdr as well. Unfortunately we didn't have time to get together to catch up since Road America. Soon, Bill.
Mac McGehee was flying. He took 2nd in class for the enduro. Not sure about his sprint finish.
One of the highlights of the weekend was Saturday night's after dinner speaker, some English guy who said he knows a little about Porsche's. I think his name is Derek Bell.
ok, ok, I know who he is. (He actually drove my first P-car once, and scolded me for my driving -- but that's a story for some team bench-racing session). He was hilarious, regaling us on everything from driving for Ferrari, to filming Le Mans to driving the 962 with Al Holbert to Derek's five-year-old grandson who calls Derek's five year old son "Uncle"!!!! (figure it out)
My esteemed co-turtle, Jeff Phillips, was down to share the Cyranski Special water-pumper with me for the Enduro. Unfortunately, that meant he couldn't get into the car til Sunday morning, so he had to sit and watch the rest of us play. It was killing him. Me and a couple of good ol' racers from South Carolina tried to numb his pain at the Wild Turkey Tavern on Friday Night. Still he suffered all day Saturday while only being able to do the lunch time track touring for charity in the rented cavalier (in which he was within five seconds of my personal best)
Then came qualifying in which I did the team proud. Was I DFL? No. Was I DFL in class?
Well do I get to count the DQ'd guy behind me or the car that went into the wall?
So I'm sitting 51st out of 70 cars with a 2:46.115 Top F car qualifies with a 2:33.22 Hey Wait for Me indeed.
Then comes the race.
And for some reason I'm hooked up. Dialed in. In as much of a ZONE as a turtle can be in.
I'm passing cars left and right. Literally and figuratively. Not just G and H cars and other low letters of the alphabet, but actual F and E cars, and even a couple that began with GT5.
Instead of watching the cars that are way back in my mirrors catch me, I'm catching the cars that are way out in front of moi. WooHoo
Best lap was a 2:41.36, which I might boastfully add was faster than that of nine cars ahead of me. Being a turtle in qualifying hurt the one time I turn into a (for me) hare.
So the team owner's feeling pretty good. Then that night, after Derekfest, Jeff and are are sitting in the lobby of Inn on the Lakes watching my race video. Someone walks up behind us says "nice line through that turn". We turn around and it's Kevin Buckler . He then watches a lap of the action, with commentary, compliments and a few pointers. (I haven't received a contract from him yet to drive the 12 Hour, but I'm sure it's in the mail.) A nice guy.
It then started to rain like crazy Saturday night, and the forecast called for more. Figured this should make the enduro fun.
Dark clouds would threaten but no further further. But perhaps the waterpumper didn't like moisture. It started to act up, just as Jeff got to drive. The power kept cutting out on him during the warm-up. We figured it was the balky ignition cut-off switch that was a problem last summer. Midwest Eurosport to the rescue with a jury-rig that worked great. Jeff's back in the seat for qualifying. He gets two laps in, and pulls off the track just past the Safety Pin. After the tow back in, the engine's running fine. the wheel;s just won't turn. Sheared half shaft. Not Jeff's doing at all, just decided to let go at that moment. But thanks to fellow Chicagoan Chris Inglot, we found someone with a spare. The wonderworkers at Eurosport had it in a 25 minutes. (Thanks Brian, Tony and Matt.)
We make the race. Finished up 4 spots from our grid.
The weekend wasn't without it's dramatic moments. Sunday a guy I was chasing through one chose the HWFMR mode of hitting the apex. Slid right, then over-corrected, and went around. I didn't even need to think about where the threshold braking point was. During Qualifying Saturday, I had a bit of Hewland Blindness. Setting up a guy going into three, he suddenly veered off line left, revealing a 911 straddling the track out point. I had no choice but to go off for my only agricultural work of the weekend. I was so intent on the guy ahead of me, I had missed the waving yellow.
It was a terrific weekend, all in all. Wish you guys, and girls, had been down there.
Last edited by Mike in Chi; 02-18-2004 at 08:37 AM.
02-17-2004, 08:10 PM
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THERE'S the Sebring report! I've been waiting with baited breath. Great to hear you guys had a good time.
So, who all is coming to Texas in March? It'll almost be time for bluebonnets along the highways, and great spring weather (that's the season without the white stuff, for you Yankees).
So, who all is coming to Texas in March? It'll almost be time for bluebonnets along the highways, and great spring weather (that's the season without the white stuff, for you Yankees).
02-17-2004, 08:17 PM
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Originally posted by Robert Henriksen
great spring weather (that's the season without the white stuff, for you Yankees).
great spring weather (that's the season without the white stuff, for you Yankees).
02-17-2004, 11:15 PM
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Mike,
Great write up. Wish I was there with you guys!!! You know, by putting my name on the car, you were bound to have some issue with the kill switch (my road america enduro fiasco last year) Great work in the sprint!! How was the turtle pound with out the luxo trailer??? Any pics to share? How did it feel to be living the Rock Star Racer life, did you even get your hands dirty with all the attention Eurosport was lavishing on your car?? Lets not make this a regular thing. Jeff must have really felt like a fish out of water, nothing to repair, no parts to beg. 3 months until Mid Ohio, cant wait!!!
Great write up. Wish I was there with you guys!!! You know, by putting my name on the car, you were bound to have some issue with the kill switch (my road america enduro fiasco last year) Great work in the sprint!! How was the turtle pound with out the luxo trailer??? Any pics to share? How did it feel to be living the Rock Star Racer life, did you even get your hands dirty with all the attention Eurosport was lavishing on your car?? Lets not make this a regular thing. Jeff must have really felt like a fish out of water, nothing to repair, no parts to beg. 3 months until Mid Ohio, cant wait!!!
02-18-2004, 12:35 AM
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Mike,
It was great honor to shake the hands of our fearless leader, founder and team owner. I was impressed with how you allied yourself under the powerful umbrella of Midwest Eurosport, their two tractor trailers and awnings creating an impressive quad for the cars, drivers and support people. Congratulations are in order for your barracuda-like slashing through the field, but I daresay that the team is whispering that perhaps our leader has forgotten the philosophy of his pride and joy. Not to worry, though, since I have not heard of any planned coups.
What a fantastic four days it was! Since I was not club racing, my experience started with the hour and half DE session on Thursday. An hour and a half! After ten laps or so, I was finally able to figure out that not all of the right hand turns were exactly alike, despite the conspiracy to confuse me. Thank goodness I resisted Zone 2 rep and fast club racer Manny Alban’s cajoling and pushing and had too much work to do to make Sebring my first ever club race. It would have been so ugly.
I thoroughly enjoyed Sebring and the history of the track and desperately want to go back, if for no other reason than to figure out how to get through Turn 17 more cleanly and more quickly, as well as to not be so fearful of spinning in the fast Turns of 14, 15 and 16. Yikes, those walls are close!
And then there was Derek Bell. When I heard that five time LeMans and three time Daytona winner Derek Bell, very fit and trim at 62, was going to speak at our Saturday dinner, I could barely contain my excitement. Hearing Bell speak of his Grand Prix days with Ferrari, his experiences with Jochen Rindt and Graham Hill, the challenges of driving the Ferrari 512S, and blasting down the Mulsanne straight at 246 mph in the 917 was the most delectable of treats and attested to the influence and organizational abilities of the Goldcoast and Suncoast regions of PCA to be able to bag such an esteemed racer.
Just in case any of my teammates think that my lap times went against the HWFM grain, understand that I still need to find seven seconds before I can beat the best qualifying lap of last year’s fastest D stock driver. Umm, last I checked, seven seconds is a bunch of time to make up. Also, doing DE’s and passing on the straight is one hell of a lot easier than passing in corners and defending your position in a real race.
As further proof that my status in the team should not be questioned, Turn 16 proved to be, ah, challenging for me. On the last day of the event, I was chasing an extremely well-driven RS America, driven by Bill Buff(?), and a GT3 car, when I managed to do a 270 spin on the back straight. Very HWFM. It was the first time I had not tried to fight a slide and, frankly, it was a stupid tactic to take. The oversteer was not particularly fast or sudden, but the credo to not fight the car and “drive off” the track had been hammered into my head. A very annoying spin.
Although it was a shame that Kristoffer and Flying Finn could not have made it to their backyard bash, I still had a chance to meet Bill (buckdr), who drove a very nice looking red 964, an RS America, I believe. Bill and I spent some time talking about his Isaac device while waiting on the grid. Unfortunately, I never was able to find Mac McGhee. Todd B and I had a great time freight training down with the other six trailers and enjoyed a fine drag race down the back straight to 17.
Cheers to all of you that made it to this well-run event!
It was great honor to shake the hands of our fearless leader, founder and team owner. I was impressed with how you allied yourself under the powerful umbrella of Midwest Eurosport, their two tractor trailers and awnings creating an impressive quad for the cars, drivers and support people. Congratulations are in order for your barracuda-like slashing through the field, but I daresay that the team is whispering that perhaps our leader has forgotten the philosophy of his pride and joy. Not to worry, though, since I have not heard of any planned coups.
What a fantastic four days it was! Since I was not club racing, my experience started with the hour and half DE session on Thursday. An hour and a half! After ten laps or so, I was finally able to figure out that not all of the right hand turns were exactly alike, despite the conspiracy to confuse me. Thank goodness I resisted Zone 2 rep and fast club racer Manny Alban’s cajoling and pushing and had too much work to do to make Sebring my first ever club race. It would have been so ugly.
I thoroughly enjoyed Sebring and the history of the track and desperately want to go back, if for no other reason than to figure out how to get through Turn 17 more cleanly and more quickly, as well as to not be so fearful of spinning in the fast Turns of 14, 15 and 16. Yikes, those walls are close!
And then there was Derek Bell. When I heard that five time LeMans and three time Daytona winner Derek Bell, very fit and trim at 62, was going to speak at our Saturday dinner, I could barely contain my excitement. Hearing Bell speak of his Grand Prix days with Ferrari, his experiences with Jochen Rindt and Graham Hill, the challenges of driving the Ferrari 512S, and blasting down the Mulsanne straight at 246 mph in the 917 was the most delectable of treats and attested to the influence and organizational abilities of the Goldcoast and Suncoast regions of PCA to be able to bag such an esteemed racer.
Just in case any of my teammates think that my lap times went against the HWFM grain, understand that I still need to find seven seconds before I can beat the best qualifying lap of last year’s fastest D stock driver. Umm, last I checked, seven seconds is a bunch of time to make up. Also, doing DE’s and passing on the straight is one hell of a lot easier than passing in corners and defending your position in a real race.
As further proof that my status in the team should not be questioned, Turn 16 proved to be, ah, challenging for me. On the last day of the event, I was chasing an extremely well-driven RS America, driven by Bill Buff(?), and a GT3 car, when I managed to do a 270 spin on the back straight. Very HWFM. It was the first time I had not tried to fight a slide and, frankly, it was a stupid tactic to take. The oversteer was not particularly fast or sudden, but the credo to not fight the car and “drive off” the track had been hammered into my head. A very annoying spin.
Although it was a shame that Kristoffer and Flying Finn could not have made it to their backyard bash, I still had a chance to meet Bill (buckdr), who drove a very nice looking red 964, an RS America, I believe. Bill and I spent some time talking about his Isaac device while waiting on the grid. Unfortunately, I never was able to find Mac McGhee. Todd B and I had a great time freight training down with the other six trailers and enjoyed a fine drag race down the back straight to 17.
Cheers to all of you that made it to this well-run event!
Last edited by Mark in Baltimore; 02-18-2004 at 10:13 AM.
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02-18-2004, 02:32 AM
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you 'da turtle!
In as much of a ZONE as a turtle can be. ----big turtle
n i c e .
thanks mike for such a great/entertaining post. can't wait to see that "nice line" on a soon to be posted clip?
best.
ps--- & mike, thx for the pm. btw: password on that site changed to: "rich" thx!
02-18-2004, 09:36 AM
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Originally posted by Mark in Baltimore
I thoroughly enjoyed Sebring and the history of the track and desperately want to go back, if for no other reason than to figure out how to get through Turn 17 more cleanly and more quickly, as well as to not be so fearful of spinning in the fast Turns of 14, 15 and 16. Yikes, those walls are close!
I thoroughly enjoyed Sebring and the history of the track and desperately want to go back, if for no other reason than to figure out how to get through Turn 17 more cleanly and more quickly, as well as to not be so fearful of spinning in the fast Turns of 14, 15 and 16. Yikes, those walls are close!
14 can be scary but I promise on a dry day you can take it WOT!!
GOD I WISH I WAS THERE!!
02-18-2004, 10:31 AM
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Kristoffer,
I guess I should clarify; 14 wasn't too bad but it was 15 that was superfast and scary because of the wide open speed I was carrying through before it. I originally tried to LFB in those turns but stopped doing that when someone told me that they were both WOT.
17 is so vast and gives you way too many options and surprising bumps that nothing felt 100% right to me.
Maybe I'll get a chance to meet you next year and you can give me some pointers!
I guess I should clarify; 14 wasn't too bad but it was 15 that was superfast and scary because of the wide open speed I was carrying through before it. I originally tried to LFB in those turns but stopped doing that when someone told me that they were both WOT.
17 is so vast and gives you way too many options and surprising bumps that nothing felt 100% right to me.
Maybe I'll get a chance to meet you next year and you can give me some pointers!
02-18-2004, 12:32 PM
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Great stuff Big T!!! I soooo wish i was there with you guys 
Hopefully at least Road America in a few months or if you guys decide to come down to H-town in March
Hopefully at least Road America in a few months or if you guys decide to come down to H-town in March
02-18-2004, 02:29 PM
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Originally posted by Mark in Baltimore
Maybe I'll get a chance to meet you next year and you can give me some pointers!
Maybe I'll get a chance to meet you next year and you can give me some pointers!
As soon as someone gives me one I can use for 17 I will be more then happy to share it!!
Every trip I take to Sebring trying to find the right way around 17 (for me) is my main goal!!