Parade Lap at Rennsport
09-28-2015 | 03:13 PM
#1
Thread Starter
Burning Brakes
Joined: Mar 2015
Posts: 1,123
Likes: 6
From: Stevenson Ranch, CA
Parade Lap at Rennsport
I just wanted to comment on my parade lap experience at Rennsport both because it was an experience to remember for me, and because I had read a comment somewhere else before the event that the parade lap would be an awful experience.
The criticism being that you had to stage a half hour early and then sit around waiting to get on the track. Once on the track the cars barely moved and it was like being in stop and go freeway traffic.
Those comments are both actually true, but it was still an experience of a lifetime for me. From the moment you enter the track at turn 5 you immediately have to stop. And when the cars finally are allowed to move again it is a painful clutch burning stop and go trip up the hill to turn 6.
However that is when things change for the better. The reason for the stop and go up to turn 6 is that everyone is slowing down to create some space just prior to turn 7 and the Corkscrew. Which means I got to take the corkscrew as fast as my ***** would allow me to.
I want to stress my ***** were small on Sunday, and I did not want to damage my car or get black flagged and ejected so I did not take it too fast but still fast enough to experience it and send my camera flying around the back (I didn't secure it thinking I would be "parading" lol). My son had to turn around and catch it as it careened back and forth. It was in his hands for the second lap so I was able to take it a bit faster the second time.
I was right behind a 997 GT3 RS so when he got on the gas I was able to get on mine and I think I matched his acceleration quite well. there was another GT3 behind me and he too kept up with us both. Just playing with the two GT3's made it all worth it!
All three of us accelerated hard down the front straight and the sound of all three cars at the same time was nothing short of glorious.
In short I highly recommend buying the parade lap next year if you can, unless you already track your car at Laguna Seca. It is the only other way you will get to drive your car in "mild" anger down the corkscrew.
Also if anyone happened to take a a picture of the white GT4 in the parade lap on Sunday please send it to me!
The criticism being that you had to stage a half hour early and then sit around waiting to get on the track. Once on the track the cars barely moved and it was like being in stop and go freeway traffic.
Those comments are both actually true, but it was still an experience of a lifetime for me. From the moment you enter the track at turn 5 you immediately have to stop. And when the cars finally are allowed to move again it is a painful clutch burning stop and go trip up the hill to turn 6.
However that is when things change for the better. The reason for the stop and go up to turn 6 is that everyone is slowing down to create some space just prior to turn 7 and the Corkscrew. Which means I got to take the corkscrew as fast as my ***** would allow me to.
I want to stress my ***** were small on Sunday, and I did not want to damage my car or get black flagged and ejected so I did not take it too fast but still fast enough to experience it and send my camera flying around the back (I didn't secure it thinking I would be "parading" lol). My son had to turn around and catch it as it careened back and forth. It was in his hands for the second lap so I was able to take it a bit faster the second time.
I was right behind a 997 GT3 RS so when he got on the gas I was able to get on mine and I think I matched his acceleration quite well. there was another GT3 behind me and he too kept up with us both. Just playing with the two GT3's made it all worth it!
All three of us accelerated hard down the front straight and the sound of all three cars at the same time was nothing short of glorious.
In short I highly recommend buying the parade lap next year if you can, unless you already track your car at Laguna Seca. It is the only other way you will get to drive your car in "mild" anger down the corkscrew.
Also if anyone happened to take a a picture of the white GT4 in the parade lap on Sunday please send it to me!