Prepping the car - Starting the 2nd week in January
We did quite a bit to the car for this year, starting several months prior to going to the track. Some of these were updates and some were done because we had problems with the parts in previous years. We replaced the rack, installed new injector plugs and wiring, new fire bottle system, new reverse scoop, drivers door handle, slave cylinder, braided clutch line, new oil pump, water pump, timing belt, compressor outlet, rewired the starter circuit, installed a new Fidanza lightened flywheel, stage 3 clutch and pressure plate with T/O bearing, TMO stage 3 Chip, Lexan W/S, Urethane motor mounts, Poly control arm bushings, new front strut bar, Megan 3" downpipe, replaced the AFPR, and throttle cable. A week before the event we were informed that rain was a distinct possibility and therefore re-installed the W/S wiper motor and new larger 20" blade for the drivers side only. Whew we were a little busy the last couple of months. It's been a long time since the car was on a track, it was last year at this time, at the same track.


Late Thursday Mar. 9th - Setting up

During the day I'm thinking that this is really going to be an experience, running on the track at speed, with the forecasted rain / sleet / snow. We decided to setup the tent tonight, so we are assured to get a decent spot. I get off work early and David (my brother in law to be) and I load my truck up with a tent, tent poles, chairs, tables, coolers, and a number of other little comforts of life. We then hook up to the car which is already snugly tethered down to the trailer and looks like it is just itching to be let loose. It's 6:00 PM, pretty dark at this point and also getting a lot cooler. We head off for California Speedway, which is fortunately, just a few miles East of my current residence. It was a short trip only about 15 - 20 minutes, although the LA traffic heading out of town on Friday evenings is pretty fierce. We get to the entrance to the track, pull through the main gate and the attendant smiles and ask if we've been there before and if we know where we are going. I say yes, we've been here quite a few times. He ask us to sign a facility track waiver and motions us on through. We proceed up to, and around the enormous grandstands for the Speedway oval, and then on, to the opposite end, where we go through the tunnel under turn 3 of the oval track, and into the infield. We drive up past two of the garages, and I'm thinking, I sure wish I had gotten a garage like usual, instead of deciding to use a tent setup. (we thought we were going to have several cars to run this time, and that was the reason for using a multi car tent, instead of utilizing a garage). The unpleasant thought of not having a garage left me, and we trek on and pick out a spot we think will work well, on a corner with access from 2 sides, and start to unload the car from the trailer. We get the car off and back the trailer into our prime spot and unhitch it. We start to attach the primary tent poles to the trailer and then each successive pole and crossbar. As we continue working, someone out in the dark ask if I am going to run my car in a PT class. I stop working and look up, it is Greg Greenbaum, the TT and PT director for NASA. We talk for a bit and I explain that we intend to run PT when we get to that point, but for now, I am still in the HPDE ranks. We shoot the breeze for a few minutes and then it is back to working on the tent setup. As David and I are squinting to see in the dark, we get the rest of the poles and framework up and pull the canvas up into place and lash it down. We pile back into the warm truck and call it a night. As we are leaving, we are wondering where Greg Collier is. We don't see him anywhere, and decide that he must have run late and gone straight to the dyno shop, in Colton. Again it's a short drive home and all I'm thinking is how much I'm looking forward to the upcoming event, and if the tent is going to withstand the winds and rain that are expected.


Early Friday Mar. 10th - Another setup day for me

I get up early and set off for the track, it's about 6:30 AM. David and Ginger (my better half) have to work today, so it's up to me to finish things up at our pit. It's cold but the sun is shining and the traffic isn't to bad going out of town. As I'm driving out, I’m just hoping that our tent is still where we erected it. The track is in line with a major mountain pass and can get winds 40-50 mph without to much trouble. I get to the front gate and I'm motioned through. I again follow the road around by the stadium and through the tunnel. As I approach the gate into the pits I'm stopped this time by a lady and she ask me to sign a NASA waiver and then hands me a green wrist band. She says you need to wear this one all weekend it shows that you have signed the waiver. I proceed through the gate and by the 1st garage. I can see that Greg is setup with his car, in a nice protected garage. I continue past the 2nd garage to where we setup our tent, and low and behold, the tent made it through the night, in tact. I just tightened up a few areas and it was as good as new.

I unlock the car, begin removing stored items and cleaning the floor pan and realize I need some additional cleaning things from the truck. I proceed to the truck and start gathering some things up. I’ve gathered quite a handful and shut the door. Immediately I realize something is very wrong. I have a terrific pain in my right index finger and I look down and sure enough, my finger is compressed nicely to fit within the 3/16" space between the truck body and door. I carefully open the door and ease my finger out, it's painful but I don't see any blood, so I continue on. I return to the car and take up where I left off. I work for a few minutes and notice something doesn't seem quite right, there is an additional puddle of liquid forming in the floor pan of the car. I look down and yep there's a cut that almost spans the width of my finger on the palm side. I wrap it up in a shop towel but keep on working, wiping out the floor pan, which is now accompanied by some additional red liquid.

I want to get my car teched today to alleviate the rush on Saturday morning. So I walk over to the inspection pit to see when this can be accomplished. I’m told that it can be done anytime today, so I continue over to Greg’s garage, to see how he is doing. When I get there, they are rushing around getting ready for his 1st run with his new engine. He and Kathy (his wife) inform me that they got very little sleep the night before and that they were on the dyno, in Colton, till the weeee hours of the morning. I wasn’t there but a few minutes and it was time for Greg to make his practice run. Kathy and I take off in different directions, me to my truck, and her to the bridge area, both of us to get some pictures of the inaugural run of his new super motor. As I’m driving along I see Kathy walking toward me, I pick her up, and she informs me that the bridge over the track is closed for some reason. So we drive toward turn #9 which is a nice picture spot, but I am having a little trouble with my exact orientation. When I get closer to the corner, it becomes clear why I was having problems. They have completely removed the spectator stands from the corner area. We find a spot in the fence which has a huge 3’ x 3’ opening and take pictures as Greg makes his way around the track. Before the session is over Kathy gets a call, It’s from Mitch (Greg’s engine builder) He is on his way up to the track in a cab. So we make our trek back to the garage area to meet up with him. By this time Greg is off the track and on his way to Tech, so we meet up with him there. As we walk over I see a familiar face standing by Greg’s car. It’s Scott Gray, he had been at the all nighter Dyno pull and engine break in, the night before. Greg gets his yea’s and nay’s from the inspector and we head back to his garage. Work is started on the couple of infractions on the car, I stay for a bit and then bid them goodbye and head for home to pick up my tools, jacks, stands and any additional items I think I may need.


Afternoon Friday Mar. 10th

It’s only around noon but the sun has retired and the sky is getting dark and gloomy as I start out for home and, before I get to the main gate it’s already drizzling. I make my way home and start to accumulate an assortment of tools. I walk back outside to add a few items to the pile of things I’m gathering, and to my ultimate surprise It’s hailing. Now, I’m thinking this IS going to get real interesting, very quickly. I take the time to post a picture of Greg’s 1st run and make a few post to his thread. Ginger calls and says she’s taking off early and wants to accompany me back out to the track. I get everything loaded up and we pile into the truck, and I’m eager to get back out there. Before I can get out of my drive, my phone beeps, and I discover that I have left it in the truck and there is a message on it. It’s Greg and he has found that the pivot bolt for his alternator is missing. I call David and ask him to pull the bolt from his car and we head over to pick it up. He places the bolt and nut into a semi clean green shop rag and we’re off for the track.

When we get back to the track, we have to stop at the pit entry and get Ginger a green wrist band. We drop the alternator bolt off with Mitch, he unfolds the shop rag and just smiles. He thanks us and we’re off to our pit. We unload the truck and I notice it’s getting late and I haven’t gotten my car teched yet. I start in to make a few last minute wrench turns and I’m off to the inspection pit. The inspector takes his time looking at the car and finally informs me that my helmet is not here, and that I have a loose wire under the hood. Crap, in my haste I forgot the helmet and the wire that was still not connected. So I run back to our pit and grab the helmet and run back . I then have to explain that the wire is there to hook up to the alternator as part of the electrical cut off system. (I had been waiting to talk to someone at the track for a little more info on the correct connection of these wires). The car and helmet passed with no infractions other than the wires under the hood that needed to be taken care of. So he signs my tech form, which is to be put under the w/s wiper blade and to be picked up at my 1st pre grid, and I’m off to park the car back under the tent.

It’s getting late in the day and cooler and darker by the minute. We stopped by Greg’s pit to see how their day had gone and then it was off for something to eat and pick up an air tank, which we now needed, because we didn’t have a garage. We picked up a few things for Ginger to stay warm and the air tank and then met David at our favorite restaurant. The discussion at the table was centered around the upcoming weekend and hopes of it being better than some others that we’ve experienced.



Early Morning Saturday Mar. 11th

I woke up early this morning around 5:00 AM. I don some extra layers of clothing including my fire resistant long johns, get a few extra things together and head out to pick up David. I meet him at his house, at our pre-determined time, of 6:45, and we’re off for the track. There’s not much traffic, on the road and it only takes about 10 -15 minutes to approach the track. As we’re nearing the gate, David says, there’s a big blue tarp loose and blowing, out in an immense parking lot, just outside the confines of the track. My thoughts go back to the tent, and what we may find at our pit site. We take the same route to the pits and again have to stop at the pit gate, just short of our goal, and get David a green arm band. We arrive at our pit, thank God, it’s in pretty good shape. There is what seems to be 100+ gallons of rain water being held, in several different saggy places, by the suspended tarp. It’s presently not raining, but the sky is dark, and looks like it could at any moment. David and I start relieving the tarp, of it’s extra wet weight, that comes down like huge waterfalls, when we push it down toward the peripheral edges. We tighten everything back up on the tent and start in on the car. David checks wheel nut torques, tire pressures, fluid levels, and I make a trial run in the seat with belts cinched. I also find a home, inside the car, for my gloves and helmet, so I can reach them easily when I make ready to set off for pre grid. By now it’s time to go to drivers orientation meeting which is set for 7:45. You must now make this meeting, in our region, or you won’t be able to run all day long.

David and I make our way over to the meeting room where we find a seat, and standing at the podium, I see a face I’ve seen many times that I’ve run with NASA, John Mathew, He is the SoCal HPDE director, and a very quick driver. He starts off by asking who has been on a race track before, then, who has been on this track before. I raise my hand for both questions, I’ve run here 6 days prior to today. John proceeds to go over the need for numbers and their size (10”) on each side of your car. Next it’s where to line up for pre-grid, how and where to enter and exit the track, and the condition of the track. He then begins discussing NASA’s flag system and what they all mean. The discussion then moves to what passing areas we are going to be using on our 1st run. He also explains that passes are the responsibility of the car doing the passing and that it must be completed before the braking zone. He then discusses point by’s and although they are not necessary, they are highly recommended. He explains a point by is an invitation for someone to pass, along with which side you would like them to pass on, not a command to do so. He also emphasizes that everything is wet today and if you do go off track, try to go straight off. He goes on to explain that a race track is nothing like the street, no matter what street you live on . He continues with explanations regarding your comfort on the track and that, to start with, it is going to be quite exhausting with so much input and so much to remember. He calls roll and passes out magenta wrist bands which is our group color for the day. He dismisses the meeting, it’s now 9:15 AM and we have 45 minutes till our 1st run of the day at 10:00 AM.

We walk back to our pit, the asphalt is damp but not soaking wet, the sky still looks like it could start dropping cats and dogs at any minute. We proceed to warm up the car, button up the hood, drop the hatch, and check the w/s wiper. I bring the car up to temp and then flip on the fans. In the back of my mind, I’m still thinking this may get really crazy with the anticipation of a possible wet track. It’s now 20 minutes till start time and I decide to wear my jeans and rain suit, instead of my drivers suit, just in case we get rain. I climb in the car find all the belts and latch them up loosely. I then snap the steering wheel in place, making sure that it’s orientation is correct. I take a look at the gauges, everything looks good 14v, 190 temp, 20lb’s oil. I then don my helmet, strap it up tight, slide my glasses through, and put on my right glove. I cinch up my harness a little tighter and sit there for a few minutes anticipating what was to come. David directs me, as I back out of our pit and I make my way around to the pre-grid area. I pull up behind a race built, black, full size Chevy, to my left is a silver WRX, behind me a black BMW pulls up, and behind the WRX on my left , another BMW pulls up. I look around and there are a lot of pretty quick cars out here. One of the grid personnel walks between all the cars I hand her my tech sheet and show her my wrist band. I look at my watch it’s 5 minutes till 10:00 and I don my left glove, not anticipating needing to show my wrist band again. I check my gauges again, look at my fan switches, just to make absolutely sure they’re on, and cinch my harness even tighter. My mouth is getting dry now, and another one of the grid personnel at the very front of the group, holds up his hand with 3 fingers showing. In unison, we all hold up three fingers, to show we have seen him. It’s 3 minutes till track time. I’m outwardly calm, but I can feel my heart beating pretty heavily, I’m ready to get going. I look at my gauges again, everything looks good. A whistle blows and the line in front of me starts to move. I make my way up to the front and turn in and under the tunnel and onto the hot pit lane, that leads to the track.

Out on the Track

I make my way down the hot pit lane, and on to the track apron, going past turns 1 and 2, running it up to 4500 RPM’s in 1st the same in 2nd then to 3rd and then 4th holding at about 3500. I’m staying on the low portion of the track apron till I get to the back straight and ease up onto the banked portion of the track, which is above me to my right. I make my way to the outside of the oval track and look for my old friend a photographer’s camera hole in the chain link fence, that I’ve always used as a braking point. Son of a gun, it’s still there. All the corner workers are holding yellow flags and we proceed on our warm up lap, at a reduced rate around the infield portion of the course, till we come up to the oval again just past the normal last turn of the oval track. I start accelerating down the front straight, waiting to see the green flag, there it is, I floor it through the gears and make it up to around 120 mph before turn # 2. I let off slightly and keep it close to 100 till I see my reference hole in the fence. Then it’s hard on the brakes, I and can feel my harness holding me away from the steering wheel. I look for the turn in point for turn #3, which is a left hander at 90 degrees. I find it, make my turn in, it feels great. The next turn #4 a right hander, is immediate and only 35 yards away. I line up for the apex and look for the run-out point, and hit them almost perfectly. I’m now on the inside for the next turn #’s 5 and 6, which is a left hand carousel . So I ease over to the right of the track, to set up for it. I make my turn in, it’s a little early, and I make a correction in the middle of the turn. The back end slides out a foot or two, to my right, and I accelerate out past the apex to the run-out strip on the outside of turn #6. The next real turn #9, is quite a ways away, with a chicane between me and it. I head for it pedal to the floor, I slip through the chicane at full blast and on to the #9 right hand sweeper. I wait, wait, wait, then late brake deep and turn in for a nearly straight run through the apex and out to the run-out pad. I’m thinking the car feels great but it’s on to another full speed chicane that leads to a straight and under the pedestrian bridge. My run out from the chicane is to the right onto the straight and coming up is another chicane to the right. We’ve been instructed to stay right till we clear the bridge unless we’re being overtaken. That wasn’t the case so I stay to the right till I’m clear of the bridge and move over to the left to set up for the right-left slower speed chicane. I set up for it, take a look at my speed 95+ and look for my braking point the second set of cones, and brake hard. Again I can feel the harness holding me back. I make my turn in and accelerate through the chicane, first right then left and track out to the right, on the opposite side. Then it’s an immediate apex to my left then on my right and on to a group of left turns that lead back onto the oval. That felt amazing I’m thinking, and it’s time to do it all again for 5 or 6 more laps. I pulled onto the hot pit and proceeded back to my pit. As I turned under the tent, David say’s I had a grin on my face a mile wide. I pulled the car in making sure to not pull the E brake up, and let the engine run for a bit, while I proceeded to disconnect myself from the car and my gear. I stepped out and I know I must have looked like a little boy with his first candy bar. It had felt so good to be back in the car and have it perform decently. I shut the car off and let the fans run for a bit. I decide that we’ve gotten rid of our previous car demon, at least for the moment. It’s 10:30 and time to go over to the meeting room for a download session, you have to make these downloads also, or you can’t run the next session.

Post Session Download

We walk over to the drivers lounge and sit down. David makes a comment that it was very quiet in the initial session and now everyone has big smiles on their faces and there is a lot of talk going on.” I did this”, “I missed this apex” etc, etc. John starts discussing the bad things and good things that were done, then gives some lessons on the fast line vs. the race line and ways of going faster. He then takes roll and simultaneously passes out stickers for the next session, and dismisses us. It’s 11:05 AM now and we’re scheduled to go back out on the track at 11:40, so it all starts again.

Synopsis

On my first session, I had remembered the track pretty well, the car seemed fast, turning well, stopping well, it was all good. The rest of the weekends, runs were some good and some not so good. Greg and Mitch stopped by and talked with me while I was sitting in pre-grid before one of my runs. We trashed an alternator, and had to replace it with a new one. On my last run I had a car dive bomb, and cut me off in the chicane #12 -#13 between the last infield stretch and the oval. When I looked down at my gauges I had the infamous four idiot lights on. I figured it’s the alternator again, and I don’t want to get stranded on the track, so I just drove it back to the pits. The weather set some records for low temperatures during the weekend. David was able to get a first hand look at the way NASA does things, and is better prepared to start his HPDE’s.

All and all, with it’s good and bad and cold, rain, hail and dry, I have to say, it was a super weekend. The car is still on the trailer and we haven’t looked at it yet. I’ll take a look at it this next week.

I can never say enough, about how much help David and Ginger were to the whole weekend. It makes it so much easier when you don’t have to think about every little thing, and someone is doing some of that thinking and doing, for you. David ended up working on the car quite a bit during the weekend, keeping the car going, and a huge thanks, to him. Also, a big thanks to Greg, for the use of some of his garage features, and also his parts lending. We would also like to thank, Inland Cosmetic Surgery, and Dr Jacob Haiavy, which without his support, none of this would be possible. Thank You. Also a big thanks to Allied Automotive (Dave and David) , in Upland CA, for their endless help, and the use of their facility for getting the car ready for this event.

Now I’m really looking forward to the rest of the season, so onward we go!!!!

Tom