HG Motorsports Speed Ventures COTA 2016
05-26-2016 | 01:45 PM
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HG Motorsports Speed Ventures COTA 2016
HG Motorsports at Speed Ventures COTA 2016
by Patrick Hoffstetter (Hooniverse)
When Dieter-Heinz got in touch with me the week before Speed Ventures came to COTA and invited me to hang out with the HG Motorsports crew I knew that I was going to have some fun.
The Circuit of the Americas is one of my favorite places in the world and getting any chance to get out there and see some amazing drivers and machines take apart one of the only F1 grade circuits in the world. Ever since COTA opened their doors in 2012 enthusiasts and race fans from all over the world have come to Austin, Texas to come experience the challenging twenty turn track. From the pros in F1 and WEC to amateurs getting their first taste of track time, COTA is for everyone. And seeing the amazing machines that HG Motorsports brought take on the track was just a treat that I couldn’t turn down.
After a late start on Saturday getting to the HG garage was a nice sight for sore eyes. Between the MOMO race seats on rollers to sit about on, to the cavalcade of Porsche hardware sitting in waiting for their next chance to go out and attack the circuit. Combine that all with the machines that Speed Ventures had attracted to and I could tell it was going to be a good day. Before I got to the business of talking to everyone in the HG crew, I thought paying a visit to the event organizers would be a good idea.
Since it’s opening, COTA has always allowed amateurs and track day organizations to rent the track and tackle the same course that the masters do. From local organizations to national tours of tracks like Speed Ventures, the level of professionalism and safety is always top notch. Since I hadn’t had the pleasure yet, I got to chatting with Aaron Bitterman of Speed Ventures. Aaron told me a little bit about the history of the organization, starting in 2001 out of the LA area, and providing everything from Intro to Road Racing, to time trials, and of course, amazing track days all over the US. This was the second year that they had come out to Austin for a COTA event, and they were almost completely booked out. And in a twist that I hadn’t seen before outside of a professional event, each car had a transponder to help manage lap times throughout the day. The Speed Ventures team was courteous and quick to answer any questions I, or anyone else had.
Wandering back over to the HG garage it was hard not to feel giddy with all of the machines humming and burbling to life in the pit lane. From an old stock car, to the fleet of Exotics Racing cars, to brand new supercars like the McLaren 675LT it was a sensory overload. And when I finally made my way into the HG pit, I decided to poke around the cars for a bit, then interrogated each member of the HG crew on what they had brought out and what they had modified it with.
Dan Wierck was my first victim, and as a local, it was interesting to me that this was the first time that Dan had run the full COTA circuit. Him and I had first met last year when the Gold Rush Rally had made a stop here. And in the vain of Gold Rush, Dan’s 2016 GT3 was fully wrapped with a Deadpool themed livery by KI Studios for Gold Rush Rally 8 this year. Along with the wrap the car was sent directly to HG Motorsports for an Akrapovic exhaust, BBI Street Cup Suspension and BBI GT3 roll bar. In fact, all of the HGMS Porsches at COTA (3 GT3s and a GT3 RS) are rocking BBI Autosport Street Cup suspension and GT3 roll bar. Most are on a Akra too.
Having the HG crew come in for Speed Ventures attracted him to tackle the whole circuit this weekend.
After Dan, Mark Hull, another local, was on deck to answer questions about his car. Another COTA newbie, he brought his 2014 911 Turbo with a COBB stage three tune. Combine that tune with an exhaust, intake, and an intercooler upgrade, all riding on ADV1 wheels means that he sure has the right hardware for his first time at COTA. Mark and Dan know one another from Gold Rush and they then decided to do the Porsche performance driving school together. They plan on going back and tackling the Master Class course.
Casey Wallace is my first out-of-towner to talk to, and in my opinion has one of the baddest cars out there. His 2016 GT3 was modified by BBI Autosport and HG Motorsports. It was his second time at COTA, and with a car that was only three to four months he certainly seemed to know what he was doing around the track. He got hooked up with the HG crew about four years ago when he met Dieter doing a Targa Trophy rally. Casey was in a GTR then, and Dieter in a Black Series Mercedes. Casey and Dieter continued to hang out, with Dieter instructing Casey and helping out with track prep on the car side. And coming out again with the HG crew here seemed to really be up his alley. He called COTA his second favorite after Laguna Seca, something that I can’t really argue with, even with my own biases.
Scottie Burrough was the one who I think brought the coolest project out, and might have one of the baddest GT3 street cars on the planet. Scottie has a 2015 GT3 with full Porsche Motorsport bodywork. Combine that with BBI Street Cup suspension, HRE R101 19 inch wheels running Hoozier R7s. The build looks and sounds amazing. Seeing that big wing on the back of a streetable car is in itself amazing. Scottie told me that he had always wanted to come out to COTA and that seeing the facility is amazing. He said the track is smoother than most, and that it’s technical and fun. That and testing out the current build at a world-class track was something he couldn’t pass on. When I poked his brain about future plans for the Super Street Cup he told me that brakes or an engine build is probably on the way in for the future.
And finally, the man who invited me out, Dieter sat down with me at the end of the day to talk about the entire trip, and how he was enjoying his time in Austin. Dieter told me that he considered COTA the holiday track for HG Motorsports. Having friends out here helps the idea of taking time off to attack an awesome track that’s different from the tracks out west. Dieter also impressed me with the way he arrived, Casey’s Ford F-250 with a forty-eight foot trailer that he drove straight from LA. After that, I asked for a little background on himself. Besides almost a decade of instructing, Dieter had several years of full time track work after taking the Daly and Bounderant schools in 2004. Combine that with his work at HG Motorsports and he has one of the most interesting backgrounds of any of the people I’ve talked to in my career. And going back to the event at hand, I asked him about the track and track day. This was his second year coming out for the Speed Ventures track day out here. He said that the fast blind corners are really the most rewarding. When we started talking about the Street Cup car, he pointed out that they were only one tenth of a second off of a GT3 cup driver in a GT3RS. A 1:24.1 versus a 24 flat was really impressive, especially when you factor in experience and hardware.
At the end of the day I felt like I had a new appreciation for what the HG Motorsports gang does, and I was proud to have them enjoy COTA so much. From the amazing machines, to the absolute fun I had with the group, Speed Ventures at COTA ended up being a day that was very much a fun day at the office.
Now on to all the photos...
Don't just sit there now... Learn more about HG Motorsports
by Patrick Hoffstetter (Hooniverse)
When Dieter-Heinz got in touch with me the week before Speed Ventures came to COTA and invited me to hang out with the HG Motorsports crew I knew that I was going to have some fun.
The Circuit of the Americas is one of my favorite places in the world and getting any chance to get out there and see some amazing drivers and machines take apart one of the only F1 grade circuits in the world. Ever since COTA opened their doors in 2012 enthusiasts and race fans from all over the world have come to Austin, Texas to come experience the challenging twenty turn track. From the pros in F1 and WEC to amateurs getting their first taste of track time, COTA is for everyone. And seeing the amazing machines that HG Motorsports brought take on the track was just a treat that I couldn’t turn down.
After a late start on Saturday getting to the HG garage was a nice sight for sore eyes. Between the MOMO race seats on rollers to sit about on, to the cavalcade of Porsche hardware sitting in waiting for their next chance to go out and attack the circuit. Combine that all with the machines that Speed Ventures had attracted to and I could tell it was going to be a good day. Before I got to the business of talking to everyone in the HG crew, I thought paying a visit to the event organizers would be a good idea.
Since it’s opening, COTA has always allowed amateurs and track day organizations to rent the track and tackle the same course that the masters do. From local organizations to national tours of tracks like Speed Ventures, the level of professionalism and safety is always top notch. Since I hadn’t had the pleasure yet, I got to chatting with Aaron Bitterman of Speed Ventures. Aaron told me a little bit about the history of the organization, starting in 2001 out of the LA area, and providing everything from Intro to Road Racing, to time trials, and of course, amazing track days all over the US. This was the second year that they had come out to Austin for a COTA event, and they were almost completely booked out. And in a twist that I hadn’t seen before outside of a professional event, each car had a transponder to help manage lap times throughout the day. The Speed Ventures team was courteous and quick to answer any questions I, or anyone else had.
Wandering back over to the HG garage it was hard not to feel giddy with all of the machines humming and burbling to life in the pit lane. From an old stock car, to the fleet of Exotics Racing cars, to brand new supercars like the McLaren 675LT it was a sensory overload. And when I finally made my way into the HG pit, I decided to poke around the cars for a bit, then interrogated each member of the HG crew on what they had brought out and what they had modified it with.
Dan Wierck was my first victim, and as a local, it was interesting to me that this was the first time that Dan had run the full COTA circuit. Him and I had first met last year when the Gold Rush Rally had made a stop here. And in the vain of Gold Rush, Dan’s 2016 GT3 was fully wrapped with a Deadpool themed livery by KI Studios for Gold Rush Rally 8 this year. Along with the wrap the car was sent directly to HG Motorsports for an Akrapovic exhaust, BBI Street Cup Suspension and BBI GT3 roll bar. In fact, all of the HGMS Porsches at COTA (3 GT3s and a GT3 RS) are rocking BBI Autosport Street Cup suspension and GT3 roll bar. Most are on a Akra too.
Having the HG crew come in for Speed Ventures attracted him to tackle the whole circuit this weekend.
After Dan, Mark Hull, another local, was on deck to answer questions about his car. Another COTA newbie, he brought his 2014 911 Turbo with a COBB stage three tune. Combine that tune with an exhaust, intake, and an intercooler upgrade, all riding on ADV1 wheels means that he sure has the right hardware for his first time at COTA. Mark and Dan know one another from Gold Rush and they then decided to do the Porsche performance driving school together. They plan on going back and tackling the Master Class course.
Casey Wallace is my first out-of-towner to talk to, and in my opinion has one of the baddest cars out there. His 2016 GT3 was modified by BBI Autosport and HG Motorsports. It was his second time at COTA, and with a car that was only three to four months he certainly seemed to know what he was doing around the track. He got hooked up with the HG crew about four years ago when he met Dieter doing a Targa Trophy rally. Casey was in a GTR then, and Dieter in a Black Series Mercedes. Casey and Dieter continued to hang out, with Dieter instructing Casey and helping out with track prep on the car side. And coming out again with the HG crew here seemed to really be up his alley. He called COTA his second favorite after Laguna Seca, something that I can’t really argue with, even with my own biases.
Scottie Burrough was the one who I think brought the coolest project out, and might have one of the baddest GT3 street cars on the planet. Scottie has a 2015 GT3 with full Porsche Motorsport bodywork. Combine that with BBI Street Cup suspension, HRE R101 19 inch wheels running Hoozier R7s. The build looks and sounds amazing. Seeing that big wing on the back of a streetable car is in itself amazing. Scottie told me that he had always wanted to come out to COTA and that seeing the facility is amazing. He said the track is smoother than most, and that it’s technical and fun. That and testing out the current build at a world-class track was something he couldn’t pass on. When I poked his brain about future plans for the Super Street Cup he told me that brakes or an engine build is probably on the way in for the future.
And finally, the man who invited me out, Dieter sat down with me at the end of the day to talk about the entire trip, and how he was enjoying his time in Austin. Dieter told me that he considered COTA the holiday track for HG Motorsports. Having friends out here helps the idea of taking time off to attack an awesome track that’s different from the tracks out west. Dieter also impressed me with the way he arrived, Casey’s Ford F-250 with a forty-eight foot trailer that he drove straight from LA. After that, I asked for a little background on himself. Besides almost a decade of instructing, Dieter had several years of full time track work after taking the Daly and Bounderant schools in 2004. Combine that with his work at HG Motorsports and he has one of the most interesting backgrounds of any of the people I’ve talked to in my career. And going back to the event at hand, I asked him about the track and track day. This was his second year coming out for the Speed Ventures track day out here. He said that the fast blind corners are really the most rewarding. When we started talking about the Street Cup car, he pointed out that they were only one tenth of a second off of a GT3 cup driver in a GT3RS. A 1:24.1 versus a 24 flat was really impressive, especially when you factor in experience and hardware.
At the end of the day I felt like I had a new appreciation for what the HG Motorsports gang does, and I was proud to have them enjoy COTA so much. From the amazing machines, to the absolute fun I had with the group, Speed Ventures at COTA ended up being a day that was very much a fun day at the office.
Now on to all the photos...
Don't just sit there now... Learn more about HG Motorsports
Last edited by hgmotorsports; 05-26-2016 at 05:35 PM.
