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Keep writing, you write it up so much better than I can or have time for,i havent had the time to even properly write on my own ED thread from a PC because the trip itself was a whirlwind and after coming home life has been rough, but I have time read this on my phone and I look forward to your posts!
"that apex and tracked out perfectly, but were carrying a LOT of speed. Had you been another 3-4 inches your wheel would've dipped into the grass, which is wet there due to the trees, and we would've spun into the wall. Game over."
I've done a few of those. Granted, I wouldn't have pushed nearly as hard on new tracks without the awesome SC and TC on!! A few times I thought to myself that I had it under control regardless but the computer simply beat me to it. Well driven it never comes on. I see absolutely no reason to ever turn it off. Well maybe at Sebring where the car is airborne a lot...
Excellent, Chris. The car made it through without a scratch and you were able to tell the tale in one piece. I'd say you accomplished your mission. Well done!
Its always interesting to read about first time on the loop, it something very special indeed. Will never forget my first days there back in 93, it was very much different from now. Only car maker on sight was BMW more or less. Now even Huyandai or how you wright it is present, and everybody else as well. A old man in a suit and a hat did clipp your paper ticket in t13 pit as entrance was over there. Meaning long straight was flat all time. No speed limits and industri pool cars, prototype cars was running on touristfharen with us
ESP, ESC or what ever it is called was not in My Bmw ALPINA B6 3,5l car, was it on any cars at the time?
Chris, thanks For your great write up, thanks for bringing back my memories, first time is very special I agree. Your story tell it very well
I'm glad you are all enjoying the thread. Its especially interesting to hear those that frequent the Ring get a flashback to their first impressions. I'm already thinking of ways I can do it again (in a less expensive car I can push more).
I remember seeing a lot of photographers around the track so I was hoping to find a picture of my 4 way tussle with the GT3s but I haven't been able to find it. I was able to find these though:
I think I'll have to buy (purchased and added above) these photos so I can blow them up and frame them as a souvenir!
We left for Liege, as I needed to drop my girlfriend off at the airport in Brussels the next day. I figured this was a good middle ground for the next stop: Spa-Francorchamps!
Over the next few days I encountered miles and miles (and miles - no exaggeration) of traffic. I was lucky to be going the opposite direction and avoid it in most situations; it was so bad people were parked and out of their cars talking in groups. I'm guessing they were stuck there for hours. It turns out there were protests against the government and they were shutting down roads. My Garmin again wasn't much help so I tried venturing off the main A roads to avoid the delays, only to find myself in strange places. I ended up in a field where the road turned to dirt and later in a roundabout where each exit was blocked by burning tires and men giving me the 'get outta here' look.
Given the lenghty delays I thought it would be wise to change my hotel stay and try to get as close to the track as possible. To my surprise there was a hotel called La Source. This has to be close, I thought. Heh, boy was it ever.
The drive in should have given me an indication. The town seemed deserted, I was the only car on the road. I know I'm in a foriegn country, but I started to notice odd signs. I began to realize that I was driving on the old circuit!
Yeah, I think its safe to say the hotel is close to the track.
The whole place sort of oozes a motorsports vibe. There was an old 70's Vette in the lobby and outlines of La Source everywhere. Checkered lines entering the underground secured parking:
Which was filled with covered race cars awaiting their turn on track:
Seeing how close we were to the track I asked if there were any rooms with a view. She said only the end unit and the suites have a balcony. I figured it can't hurt to flirt and flash a smile. She said she would see what she could do and what do you know - it worked. Here is the view from my balcony; I could hear the wail of the engines off in the distance:
In case you can't pinch to zoom, I'll do it for you:
Yes, that is Eau Rouge from my balcony! How cool is that? Whats not cool was the bad weather had returned. It began to rain and was projected to rain all through my track day. Oh well, nothing I could do about it, so I got some sleep in preperation for tomorrow.
Last edited by switchface; 01-25-2016 at 07:52 PM.
Reason: added purchased 'Ring photos without watermarks
Great read!! I am also a fan of all the pics. Helps tell the story. Just a thought ...how about some more pics of your LWBS.
Happy to hear that; I was afraid I was getting a bit picture heavy, but I like pics. As for the LWBs, oddly enough I didn't take all that many of them. Here are the only ones I think I snapped:
Originally Posted by TRAKCAR
We had the balcony at the other end of the building :-)
Thanks for posting!
Buy the photo's !
Ah, the other end...you must have been in one of the suites. Nice!
Peter, you had some amazing pics taken - where did you find them all? Your avatar shot is stunning and I really like the widescreen pano shot from your thread (I only just now found it and looked at a few pages...its up to 66!). I was a bit disappointed that I didn't get a good one while at Spa despite a paid photographer being there. I mean, how do you setup as a photographer and not get a single shot coming up/down Eau Rouge?! I'll post my Spa shot when I write that post tomorrow.
+1 great photo's..
Whenever the organization sold or took pics I bought them or asked for them.
Some events I have no pics others several days with different photographers. My wife mostly took the trip photo's and selfies. My, cars, tire wear, track, pads, rotor wear LOL.
Yes suite, I dragged her out to Spa on her birthday.. Had to do something ;-)
Fell behind on my thread and haven't seen a PC in weeks to sit down and upload / reply yet.
I have some free time, so let's continue our story at Spa-Francorchamps. I pull into the pits and walk inside for registration, walking past the main control center on the way.
Seems simple enough:
Classroom instructor tells everyone that this will be a fun relaxed day. Passing will only be once indicated and via the straights. No need for timing gear, no need to go all out, no one here is setting records, we're all out to just have a good time. I'm grinning ear to ear at this point.
That is until I went back down to the pits. Seems most drivers heading out on track weren't in that classroom. There is some crazy serious artillery and I don't think they got the friendly non-competitive message!
Cup Car with tire warmers on airlifts:
Blancpain Lambo, seriously?
A few garages full of Radicals of all types:
Caterham 620R:
Race spec 1 series:
Race prepped Cayman:
There were a number of GT3s, there was even another GT4 with the sign "STUDENT DRIVER" on the side.
BMW was preparing for their driving school the next day:
So, my first time ever on a big track with true high speeds and this was the nicest it got all day. A high of around 45 degrees, with mostly drizzle turing to rain and back again, all throughout the day. The instructors just laughed, "it always rains here". It reminded me of Handsome Rob narrating Audi's Truth in 24 when he opens with "it always rains at Le Mans".
What a great event, it was open track open pits all day. No run groups, just head out or in whenever you want. The instructors were also very friendly; I highly recommend the RSR track days.
I was dying to push really hard and get in as many laps as possible, but the rain kept my intentions at bay. I got the back to step out a few times, each time at low speeds where I simply over-rotated due to lack of grip. I'm sure it was mostly user error while on Cup2s in the rain. I kept cutting myself short (4-8 lap mini sessions) as the rain intensified and thought it best to pull in. It was tough (for me) to push much in the rain, seeing how it didn't take much at all for my near-spins.
In one of my last stints, I started to fall into a rhythm and develop some speed. I caught up to this m3:
I was able to pass and put a small gap between us over a few turns. I'm assuming the driver didn't like being passed as he put on an aggressive charge and caught back up to me. Sensing he was pushing way harder than I, I signaled and let him pass...only to see him spin out in front of me exiting Pouhon.
The driver was fine, so I thought it would be neat to show the sequence as the photographer luckily caught the whole thing:
I felt it best to call it a day when I found myself hitting a patch of water in the valley of Eau Rouge, barely able to see, when the WAIL of the insect-blood colored Lambo goes from being a speck in my mirror to a dot in the distance, throwing a 30 foot tall rooster tail into the air behind it.
congrats on the experience and the lessons learned without dents
and what a great read ... beats a James Bond novel! Nicely done!
Yeah that was great! I literally felt intimidated myself when I saw the lineup of cars getting ready in the paddocks. Bimmer was lucky those giant oranges didn't do more damage;P
How was Eau Rouge? Always struggle there in Forza, but I believe F1 cars can take it without lifting?
11-03-2015, 08:01 AM
and industri pool cars, prototype cars was running on touristfharen with us
