L8Apex

Never lift over the crest of turn 11!!

I think my father-in-law said it best; "All toys eventually get broken!"

Lambo OUCH!!

David Floyd

Was the driver ok ?????????

I hope he is buddies with his insurance guy !

That is a spooky area of the track, topping the hill and then the bottom falls away

I think it was Rennlister Doug Donsbach that lost a spindle in that same section.

GlenL

The before shots make the after that much worse. Yes. Insurance is nice.

Bryan Watts

That part of the track isn't too spooky anymore, since you are forced to slow down for the slowest corner on the track at 10A. I never got to drive the old configuration, but I did get a few rides in the passenger seat as a kid. T12 today is nothing like the pucker factor it once was!

As it is now, every car I've ever driven, once you exit 10B, you never actually lift off the throttle until the end of the front straight...from a street tired WC Touring Car, to a M3 (1:33's) to a Formula Mazda (1:28's), it's just a foot to the floor turn. In the old setup, you were actually turning and balancing the car on the limit of adhesion as you came under the bridge instead of simply driving straight under with your foot to the floor. There was a huge price to pay for not having the car "right" as you came over the dropoff

I've seen those pictures before...supposedly, the driver was ok. You don't see anyone on the stretcher in the picture. In fact, there seems to be someone standing around in a driving suit.

David Floyd

Easy for you to say Bryan, still plenty of pucker power for a rookie like me.

I can imagine what it was like back in the day before the change, I would think the faster cars could get airborne ?

rdstemler

Sure were a lot of other tire marks at the same spot! Guess he wasn't the first!!!

Bryan Watts

They still do today. I know most of the ALMS cars do, because you can hear it. I've also experienced it in both a BMW M3, and a Formula Mazda. You can hear it and see a RPM spike in your data acquisition. It's at least wheelspin, if not the complete rear of the car lifting off the ground. Now, imagine that occuring while you are turning at speed instead of going straight...

A930Rocket

I used to run the old configuration before 10a and 10b. It really did take a leap of faith there cresting the hill into the unknown. You really did feel light there. There was also a lot of paint on the bridge concrete so lots of cars wiped out there and beyond like the Lambo did. Once you got used to it though, it wasn't as bad.

One good thing about the old configuration was that you had gravity helping you slow down some before you went through 11. Now with 10a, brakes are a lot more important.

Bryan: Was that a stock M3 at 1:33? Seems pretty quick for a stocker.

Bryan Watts

Heck no...if I drove a stock M3 around Road Atlanta that fast, Sir Williams himself would have me in an F1 car alongside JPM.

That's in a Dunlop slicked, 2500 pound M3 (noted, with only 248 RWHP).

David Salama

Just got back from the Peachstate PCA event at Road Atlanta this weekend. What a blast ! It was my second time to the track, but the first time I was only running on 3 cylinders. My car was performing fantastic. It felt well balanced in all of the corners. I was in the 4 group with some instructors and other advanced students and was able to do a lot of passing. My best time was 1:42.06. I felt like I was flying around, not holding back at all. I could perhaps improve by getting out of the s's to the left hander faster with more experience, and I was not at full throttle from 10a through the the end of the front straight. I would be part throttle at the crest of the hill and full throttle at turn in. You must have an incredibly modified M3 to run a 1:33, so please let us know what you've done to it. The only problem of the weekend was that it went way too fast.

Bryan Watts

Assuming you're on R-compounds, I bet it can be done. It would take a REALLY high powered car to get up to a speed before cresting under the bridge that would require you to lift before turning in. There's a lot to be gained, but at the same time, there's a LOT to lose as well. If you aren't 110% comfortable with trying it, it's not a place to be taking chances...as you can see from the pictures, a screwup on that part of the track almost always results in a big hit. Same for T1. That turn is FAST, FAST, FAST...so fast that some Formula and Sports Racers with aero aids don't even lift from the exit of 10A until T2. We are talking full throttle in 5th through T1 (they usually downshift to 4th on the exit after scrubbing off speed through the turn in order to better accelerate up the hill). But, if anything goes wrong, there's not much room for error.

Too much to list. Modified class BMW CCA Race car. Haven't invested much in the power department (we run against some guys making 80-90hp more), but we've got the car pretty light, a solid suspension, and stuffed some wide Dunlops underneath some widebody fiberglass fenders. It's my dad's race car, I just codrive with him on occasion. Probably shouldn't go into too many details, though most of the stuff on the car is pretty basic "go-fast" parts from Ground-Control, BimmerWorld, and Turner Motorsports.

David, looks like we are both in Charlotte. You aren't any relation to Don Salama, the World Challenge and Grand-Am Cup driver, are you?

David Salama

Must be an awesome car to drive !! Here are some pix from my weekend.

PMS993

I too love Atlanta. This weekend's DE did collect a 944 at turn 12. The driver apparently wiggled under the bridge and starting spinning around there. He ended up about 100 yards from the bridge against the outside wall. As with any track, concentration at all times is critical...but, at least it didn't rain.

I hate rain on race tracks.

Bryan Watts

Don't ever let your competitors know that! The mental advantage you gain by being confident in the wet, particularly when your competitor doesn't like it, is unbelievable.

Personally, I don't believe it's a proper race if there isn't some rain falling on the track.

PMS993

Ooops, OK forget I said that...you don't race in the Southeast I hope?