One Lap of America 2007
Apr 17, 2007, 04:25 PM
#18
Evolved Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: South Carolina
Posts: 769
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Apr 20, 2007, 08:06 PM
#21
Evolved Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: South Carolina
Posts: 769
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Luke is in a 96 Impreza 2.2L meaning GC8 version Impreza, 2600lbs, STI drivetrain.. will have to find a picture around here somewhere.
Adee is running, the Tube Frame Viper is back and stronger than ever.
Adee is running, the Tube Frame Viper is back and stronger than ever.
Apr 21, 2007, 02:28 AM
#24
Evolving Member
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Sconsin
Posts: 388
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
I just checked out nabisco and Luke is serious, he's getting track time at tracks he hasn't driven for and there will only be one track during the event he hasn't driven
Any idea how the Mongoose car compares to this car?
http://www.factoryfive.com/photogalleries/ls7gtm.html
Last edited by Ike; Apr 21, 2007 at 02:42 AM.
Apr 21, 2007, 02:52 AM
#26
Evolved Member
iTrader: (10)
Join Date: Jan 2007
Location: Logan Ohio, USA
Posts: 1,092
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The one lap guys that I have talked to seem to feel that the AWD guys have a pretty serious advantage and had very complimentary things to say about the EVO chassis as its easy to drive fast which is a big deal when you get so little practice then go at it for real.
I do think that the EVO is just about perfect for the race as it's decently easy to live in for a week and when prepped well is just lights out fast.
Not this year... maybe next year.
I do think that the EVO is just about perfect for the race as it's decently easy to live in for a week and when prepped well is just lights out fast.
Not this year... maybe next year.
Apr 21, 2007, 07:36 AM
#27
Evolved Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: South Carolina
Posts: 769
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Thanks, I remember him talking about that now. Will be very interesting to see how he does. My gut tells me he's going to have some reliability issues with a car that's a little pieced together. Though it's probably not much different from a Noble or even your car. If it's done right it'll be fine, and even if it's done right **** happens...
I just checked out nabisco and Luke is serious, he's getting track time at tracks he hasn't driven for and there will only be one track during the event he hasn't driven
Any idea how the Mongoose car compares to this car?
http://www.factoryfive.com/photogalleries/ls7gtm.html
I just checked out nabisco and Luke is serious, he's getting track time at tracks he hasn't driven for and there will only be one track during the event he hasn't driven
Any idea how the Mongoose car compares to this car?
http://www.factoryfive.com/photogalleries/ls7gtm.html
I can tell you that he is a little worried about reliability, and his words to me were "We are probably going to be where you and AMS were in 2005, fast, but finding problems"
I am not sure how the Mongoose GTP compares to the factory 5. I know that the suspension geometry is C5, and the weight is 2400 lbs. with the engine in the middle, on paper it looks VERY good. Not sure how the Factory 5 is set up, though I do think it looks nice.
For reliability issues, the guys at Mongoose have told me that since its all stock parts, nothing should break. Should and won't are a long way apart though.
I am going to test the Mongoose at Nelson Ledges on Wednesday and Mid Ohio on Friday, and I will give reports of course.
Apr 21, 2007, 07:47 AM
#28
Evolved Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: South Carolina
Posts: 769
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
The one lap guys that I have talked to seem to feel that the AWD guys have a pretty serious advantage and had very complimentary things to say about the EVO chassis as its easy to drive fast which is a big deal when you get so little practice then go at it for real.
I do think that the EVO is just about perfect for the race as it's decently easy to live in for a week and when prepped well is just lights out fast.
Not this year... maybe next year.
I do think that the EVO is just about perfect for the race as it's decently easy to live in for a week and when prepped well is just lights out fast.
Not this year... maybe next year.
That being said, I think it isn't going to be a cakewalk for an Evo to win it. It also has a weight disadvantage. The Noble/Ultima cars are around 2100 lbs and probably pretty easy to drive as well.
Also, Z06s are easy to drive fast, scary easy. A driver on his game in one of those should win. If Danny Popp just straight brings a stock C6 Z06 other than suspension and getting as much weight out of it as possible, I don't see him getting beat.
If an Evo is going to win it, it is going to need a reliable 550-600whp and a hard focus on downforce, and a driver familiar with the car. (Both years I ran with AMS I had limited testing time, last year I had no dry time in the time attack car before I took to the track on One Lap)
If I had my choice as to what to bring, it would be an Ultima GTR with the LS7 engine, a year's worth of testing aero/tires and some sort of engine mapping with traction control. (A good ABS system would be nice as well) The question of course would be "Who want's to spend $100k to win the event?"
Apr 21, 2007, 08:27 AM
#29
Evolved Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: South Carolina
Posts: 769
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Since we are a week out, a piece I have done for pre-event.
So why is Spring called Spring? Perhaps it is because of bright flowers springing up through the melting snow, or the spring in your step when you get to shed the heavy winter clothing and think about outdoor activities that don’t involve numb extremities or shoveling the driveway.
As an automotive enthusiast, it might be for the events that spring up across the country and tracks springing to life for racing and track-day events. Spring might be their chance to try new springs and various other parts installed on their cars during the winter.
For those that follow or run The TireRack One Lap of America presented by Car&Driver, this year Spring is for what looks to be one of the most competitive fields to be sprung on the countries interstates and racetracks for those eight days in early May.
One Lap of America is the modern day evolution of the Cannonball Run – yes that cannonball run. What started as a chance to prove that fast cars could go across the country quickly has turned into a more politically correct event where transits are done with some moderation and time trials at racetracks each day give competitors a chance to stretch their legs (literally) and their cars rpm limits. The event starts and finishes in South Bend, Indiana with skid pad trials and in between visits tracks across the country with overnight drives between each. No section of American motorsports is left untouched with an oval and drag racing events thrown into the mix of road courses.
A few years ago running at the front of the pack in One Lap of America meant bringing as much horsepower as you could, including power that comes in big blue bottles common to the drag strip but taboo at road courses. Big corvettes and vipers gobbled up straights and hoped that they could get slowed down enough to take the corners.
Over the last few years things have begun to change. Nitrous bottles no longer appear in the front of the field. Tuning does. What kind of tuning? Engine of course; good old fashioned horsepower is still the way to get from point a to point b in a timely manor. What else though? Suspension. One Lap is primarily a road course event, and getting through the corners counts for a lot. With the onslaught of factory cars from Mitsubishi, Subaru and those Z06s with exotic-type lap times for an affordable price, the old “just throw horsepower at it” philosophy has been thrown out the window. You have to get up to speed, and then stay there through the corners if you want to run with the big (lap) dogs.
What other kinds of tuning? How about wind tunnel? Yep - for one event consisting of 4000 highway miles and about 100 track miles, competitors are turning to the playground of pro-racing engineers; big fans in a tube finding out how to make cars slicker and produce as little lift and as much downforce as possible.
The real tale is in the times. In 2006 I drove a Mitsubishi Evolution to a 6:17 run at VIR for three laps and finished eighth. Had I run the same time the year before, it would have put me fourth. Not only is it getting harder and more sophisticated to run up front, but cars that might have been a shoe-in for a top five only a few years ago now have little hope of even seeing the top ten.
“You guys keep getting faster and faster,” Brock Sr. said after the Roebling Road Raceway time trial in 2006. That was just after Karl Troy had lapped the Savannah, GA track in the 1:16 range – a time usually reserved for racing cars with no fenders or at least slick tires. Troy had done it on true street tires with a sight-blurring front straight speed of 168mph.
There was some concern in Brock’s voice that day, and for good reason – it isn’t getting any less popular and popularity brings in better – and faster – cars. The internet age is sitting pretty, and teams now bring the action into the homes of enthusiasts through streaming video, blogs and message board posts. Thousands live the event online, cheering on their favorite cars and drivers. This year there are no fewer than five film crews, some of them with real-time video as the event goes on. Last year lake-effect-racing.com, a web-site that covered One Lap from the road with a crew of video editors, got 2.3 million hits in the first 15 days of May, and over 200,000 video downloads.
That attention lures professional shops. The old-guard “One Lappers” are being challenged by tuners with 500-600 horsepower entries from shops that do nothing but produce cars that go fast.
All of this isn’t saying it is impossible to have a private entry do well, it’s just getting harder. Rain can and will play havoc with the best and the faster the front guys have to push, the more chance of breaking something.
So what is in store for 2007? Lots. The usual suspects are back, faster and more reliable than before. Over 100 entries are ready to go, including pro shops and pro drivers. Import and domestic rockets will fill the front of the pack and don’t let class labels fool you; economy doesn’t mean what it used to. May 5-12 this year is going to see some fast cars, probably a couple of upsets, and lots of very self-confident and fast drivers focused on pushing personal and equipment’s limits each day.
As the One Lappers say, “See you in South Bend.”
To follow along with the 2007 TireRack Cannonball One Lap of America presented by Car&Driver, here is a list of sites that will be covering the event.
www.onelapofamerica.com (Be sure to check the bulletin board for a list of teams with on-the-road daily blogs)
www.car&driver.com
www.lake-effect-racing.com
So why is Spring called Spring? Perhaps it is because of bright flowers springing up through the melting snow, or the spring in your step when you get to shed the heavy winter clothing and think about outdoor activities that don’t involve numb extremities or shoveling the driveway.
As an automotive enthusiast, it might be for the events that spring up across the country and tracks springing to life for racing and track-day events. Spring might be their chance to try new springs and various other parts installed on their cars during the winter.
For those that follow or run The TireRack One Lap of America presented by Car&Driver, this year Spring is for what looks to be one of the most competitive fields to be sprung on the countries interstates and racetracks for those eight days in early May.
One Lap of America is the modern day evolution of the Cannonball Run – yes that cannonball run. What started as a chance to prove that fast cars could go across the country quickly has turned into a more politically correct event where transits are done with some moderation and time trials at racetracks each day give competitors a chance to stretch their legs (literally) and their cars rpm limits. The event starts and finishes in South Bend, Indiana with skid pad trials and in between visits tracks across the country with overnight drives between each. No section of American motorsports is left untouched with an oval and drag racing events thrown into the mix of road courses.
A few years ago running at the front of the pack in One Lap of America meant bringing as much horsepower as you could, including power that comes in big blue bottles common to the drag strip but taboo at road courses. Big corvettes and vipers gobbled up straights and hoped that they could get slowed down enough to take the corners.
Over the last few years things have begun to change. Nitrous bottles no longer appear in the front of the field. Tuning does. What kind of tuning? Engine of course; good old fashioned horsepower is still the way to get from point a to point b in a timely manor. What else though? Suspension. One Lap is primarily a road course event, and getting through the corners counts for a lot. With the onslaught of factory cars from Mitsubishi, Subaru and those Z06s with exotic-type lap times for an affordable price, the old “just throw horsepower at it” philosophy has been thrown out the window. You have to get up to speed, and then stay there through the corners if you want to run with the big (lap) dogs.
What other kinds of tuning? How about wind tunnel? Yep - for one event consisting of 4000 highway miles and about 100 track miles, competitors are turning to the playground of pro-racing engineers; big fans in a tube finding out how to make cars slicker and produce as little lift and as much downforce as possible.
The real tale is in the times. In 2006 I drove a Mitsubishi Evolution to a 6:17 run at VIR for three laps and finished eighth. Had I run the same time the year before, it would have put me fourth. Not only is it getting harder and more sophisticated to run up front, but cars that might have been a shoe-in for a top five only a few years ago now have little hope of even seeing the top ten.
“You guys keep getting faster and faster,” Brock Sr. said after the Roebling Road Raceway time trial in 2006. That was just after Karl Troy had lapped the Savannah, GA track in the 1:16 range – a time usually reserved for racing cars with no fenders or at least slick tires. Troy had done it on true street tires with a sight-blurring front straight speed of 168mph.
There was some concern in Brock’s voice that day, and for good reason – it isn’t getting any less popular and popularity brings in better – and faster – cars. The internet age is sitting pretty, and teams now bring the action into the homes of enthusiasts through streaming video, blogs and message board posts. Thousands live the event online, cheering on their favorite cars and drivers. This year there are no fewer than five film crews, some of them with real-time video as the event goes on. Last year lake-effect-racing.com, a web-site that covered One Lap from the road with a crew of video editors, got 2.3 million hits in the first 15 days of May, and over 200,000 video downloads.
That attention lures professional shops. The old-guard “One Lappers” are being challenged by tuners with 500-600 horsepower entries from shops that do nothing but produce cars that go fast.
All of this isn’t saying it is impossible to have a private entry do well, it’s just getting harder. Rain can and will play havoc with the best and the faster the front guys have to push, the more chance of breaking something.
So what is in store for 2007? Lots. The usual suspects are back, faster and more reliable than before. Over 100 entries are ready to go, including pro shops and pro drivers. Import and domestic rockets will fill the front of the pack and don’t let class labels fool you; economy doesn’t mean what it used to. May 5-12 this year is going to see some fast cars, probably a couple of upsets, and lots of very self-confident and fast drivers focused on pushing personal and equipment’s limits each day.
As the One Lappers say, “See you in South Bend.”
To follow along with the 2007 TireRack Cannonball One Lap of America presented by Car&Driver, here is a list of sites that will be covering the event.
www.onelapofamerica.com (Be sure to check the bulletin board for a list of teams with on-the-road daily blogs)
www.car&driver.com
www.lake-effect-racing.com
Apr 21, 2007, 08:41 AM
#30
Evolved Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jan 2005
Location: South Carolina
Posts: 769
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes
on
0 Posts
Now of course the sad part.. it looks as though there are no Evos in this year's One Lap of America. The lone Evo that was on the list is gone, leaving the event void of the 4G63.
There will be Evo owners and Evo M members there of course. But no Mitsubishi to cheer on against the onslaught of Subarus. (Six of them)
Luke Russell in Mid-Priced sedan driving a Subaru for TopSpeed is an Evo owner, so maybe he can be a favorite, and Devin will be in an SRT-4, also an Evo owner. I will be there, but not in an Evo, and Leh Keen will be there. Enough with words though, let's see some pictures:
Mid-Priced Sedan
Dodge Neon SRT-4
Douglas Wind, Devin Clancy, Ken Brewer
SSGT1 Small Bore
1994 Toyota Supra
Greg Caloudas, Leh Keen
Econo Car
1996 Subaru Impreza
Luke Russell, Doug Wilkes
SSGT1 Big Bore
Mongoose GTP
Jon Krolewicz, TBA
There will be Evo owners and Evo M members there of course. But no Mitsubishi to cheer on against the onslaught of Subarus. (Six of them)
Luke Russell in Mid-Priced sedan driving a Subaru for TopSpeed is an Evo owner, so maybe he can be a favorite, and Devin will be in an SRT-4, also an Evo owner. I will be there, but not in an Evo, and Leh Keen will be there. Enough with words though, let's see some pictures:
Mid-Priced Sedan
Dodge Neon SRT-4
Douglas Wind, Devin Clancy, Ken Brewer
SSGT1 Small Bore
1994 Toyota Supra
Greg Caloudas, Leh Keen
Econo Car
1996 Subaru Impreza
Luke Russell, Doug Wilkes
SSGT1 Big Bore
Mongoose GTP
Jon Krolewicz, TBA