[King Tut]

My weekend didn't go as well as I had planned. Saturday practice was cut short due to one of the ITC Caymans crashing. I didn't get many laps in qualifying do to the fact I spun at the exit of turn 1 when I got out too wide out on the rumble strip and locked it down resulting in flat spotting my only set of shaved RA1s as I slid up the track looking at the inside wall. So I had a total of 6 laps going into the race and confidence wasn't high. I started 12th out of 16 and finished 11th:

http://www.vimeo.com/27510611

I felt really good after the race maintaining position and getting laps in feeling confident in the car. That confidence was working great in Sunday qualifying until on my 2nd hot lap I got punted in the brake zone at 10a resulting in a trip into the gravel and spinning my tires trying to get out. I got to sit in the gravel and watch 10a for the rest of qualifying till they came and pulled me out. Luckily on my first hot lap I dropped my time and still qualified 12th out of 16. The car took very little damage as the bumper was bent up, the spare tire well was dented, and my exhaust was bent along with an exhaust hanger ripping. The hit was hard enough to move my seat back brace and bend the strap holding my battery down. The combination of the HANS and seat back brace meant I felt fine after the hit. I was able to fix it enough to race easily and the car who hit me got much more damage but also got his car fixed in time for the race. The contact resulted in me flat spotting my already worn tires again and now the metal bands were showing, so I switched to my full tread RA1s. This was a mistake as I was almost 3 seconds a lap slower than I was in qualifying. I ended the Sunday race in 15th. I'm hoping to get this video up tonight.

Looking forward to Roebling Road on Labor Day weekend.

[wilsel]

Main thing is you had fun. That's what it's all about. Oh how I miss Road Atlanta, such a great track. Better luck next time.

PS: Is AMP open yet?

[King Tut]

AMP isn't open yet. I am hoping for a NASA race weekend at AMP late next year though. I haven't seen an update on the track in awhile though.

[King Tut]

Sunday video if anyone is interested:

http://www.vimeo.com/27566233

[Bents]

Just watched the first one and will watch the second at lunch. Great stuff. Amazing track (only been, haven't driven it yet) and Spec E30 is such a great class. It's what amateur racing should be.

[Viceroy M]

Damn dude, that looks like a blast!! Thanks for posting. Is that your phone on the dash there?

Do all those E30's have to have the same power output? How do they regulate that? Or do they just make sure they're all stock powerplants?

[AlpineEcstasy]

Great stuff Tut! Would love the chance to do this one day.

[King Tut]

That's my old HTC Touch Pro with some velcro on it. I use it for GPS lap times using RaceChrono (free Windows Mobile GPS laptimer). We are required to use all OEM engine components. They were actually working on a way to regulate how much power a SpecE30 "should" have this weekend by placing Traqmates in random cars during qualifying and the race then getting a weight afterwards. This allows them to estimate hp to within a couple hp of a Dynojet reading. They are going to be looking for outlyers or guys with motors who appear to be making more than they should. Mine is a bone stock 200,000+ mile motor that came in the car, and it put down 146 hp and 157 ft/lb on a Dynojet SAE corrected. The rebuilt engines tend to make between 150 and 160 hp. The cheaters are probably making over 160 hp. By the way we aren't allowed to open the ECU and tune it, but that is another thing that is VERY hard to detect.

[tenfifteen]

Rad as sh*t, Tut. Always enjoy your vids, love that track, and really love your car.

[Viceroy M]

Originally Posted by King Tut

That's my old HTC Touch Pro with some velcro on it. I use it for GPS lap times using RaceChrono (free Windows Mobile GPS laptimer). We are required to use all OEM engine components. They were actually working on a way to regulate how much power a SpecE30 "should" have this weekend by placing Traqmates in random cars during qualifying and the race then getting a weight afterwards. This allows them to estimate hp to within a couple hp of a Dynojet reading. They are going to be looking for outlyers or guys with motors who appear to be making more than they should. Mine is a bone stock 200,000+ mile motor that came in the car, and it put down 146 hp and 157 ft/lb on a Dynojet SAE corrected. The rebuilt engines tend to make between 150 and 160 hp. The cheaters are probably making over 160 hp. By the way we aren't allowed to open the ECU and tune it, but that is another thing that is VERY hard to detect.

I see. Always wondered about that. You would think there would be no cheating, as one would feel like a fool if they were to win a race with the unfair advantage of a juiced up motor, although I'm sure it happens.

Very cool though, thanks again for sharing.