Any feedback on the repave at Road America? We have heard that the braking zones in turn 5 and 12 are “sketchy” and that there are tram lines all over the track. Hope this isn’t the case!

 

Ugh I hope not. We will be there at the end of June for the SCCA races

 

Talks about changes in this video.

 

Camera position higher than first video.

 

I am doing the WRL race there this weekend. I have raced there before, can report back comparison.

 

It's true.

I was there hanging out yesterday and tramlining is quite bad per a few friends on the run down to T5. Front stretch suffers a bit from this as well. The whole track seems to have less grip as people were commenting on it throughout the day. A really good friend who has run 20,000 miles there said he was 6-8mph slower around the carousel than normal. Speculation is the oils from the repave are starting to come up.

On the positive the surface is really smooth so tires, namely the slicks I saw, look perfect when coming off a properly aligned car. Apparently Firestone was at the track recently gathering data on the surface and claims it's 70% smoother and will get faster over time.

 

That's odd. Doug's video of a PSC2-shod 981 GT4 seems to be achieving good corner speeds, even in the Carousel. And he said the driver noted a 2-second improvement in his personal best.

The new-style asphalt binder that most tracks have been using for the last decade or more is epoxy based, so it would be unusual for "oil to come up."

I'll ask some pro teams and others that have a lot of time there and a long historical record of data, but I would be surprised if it were deficient.

Typically, tramlining comes from putting a wheel on or across irregular heights between pavement lifts, or lanes. Can't wait to hear more.

 

Exactly. The surface on the downhill run to Five always had a crown to help with drainage but it's apparently more pronounced now.

Worth mentioning yesterday's conditions were sunny and 70.

 

Sweet, me too! Well, assuming we survive Mid-O this weekend...

Stop by and say hi! To date, we've been down the hill in the lower paddock...

 

Will do! I will be there coaching & kind of running a small team for that event. Not sure where we will be. We are doing the Thursday test day also. We may actually be in one of the garages--waiting on confirmation for that...

 

So strange to see a uniform color everywhere! How long ago was the repave? I drove Sebring very soon after they repaved sections and initially T7 was a bit scary. Less grip and braking zone had to be lengthened. But next time there it was significantly better than the original surface. Maybe it just takes a little time for the surface to mature and those first, negative impressions may dissipate.

 

Repave was Oct/Nov 2022, after closed for the 2022 season

 

Ran the WRL race this weekend in GP1. Pavement is smooth. No tramlining noticed at all in the braking zones noted above. Turn 12 braking is definitely not sketchy, it's excellent IMO. Braking into turns 5 and 6 is notably smoother. The bump in the turn 6 braking zone is gone. Carousel is faster w/ more grip. Of course all visual markers that were in the pavement are gone, including the track-out patch on exit of the carousel. Overall the track is faster than when I was there last year, but tough to compare b/c I was in 2 different cars. Hope this helps.

 

I was at the WRL race in GP1 also! The track is crazy fast, plus there was nearly zero tire wear this weekend. The carrousel was the corner that I felt sighted the most different with the absence of tire marks.
Most GP1 teams saw best lap times 3-4 seconds faster than last year. Granted, in a close series like GP1 which leaves lots of room for changes, cars are never the same year over year.
I think ~2 seconds is about what the actual track improvement is worth though. Here is my best lap from Saturday 5/13.

 

Yep, the data supports about a ~2 second gain.