VIR Test 3-11-11

Ready for the first test at VIR. The car is all unloaded and ready to hit the track. Unfortunately the weather was a little less than cooperative. The morning brought 40ish degree temps and strong gusty wind. The sun came out, but not until we were done around 4:30 in the afternoon. So, it was a blustery day of testing.

After the first session on the track, my crew (Mark Walthew in picture) were concerned that the RR brake might be dragging. The rotor was a little discolored with pad material, and they saw a little smoke wisping out from the rim as I pulled into the pit lane. Thankfully, it must have been one of those self healing gremlins from lack of recent use. We bench tested it (seen here) and saw no issue, so out on the track I went for session #2, a little apprehensive, but it cleared up on its own and was not an issue again.

Also, during the first session, I learned that I was not going to be able to use the seat that came with the car. I felt like I was driving like a senior citizen, bolt upright and 2-3" too close to the dash. So one of the big orders for the test was to get me comfortable in the car. And I mean literally comfortable - able to shift cleanly, move my arms around, work the pedals and other controls etc...

Thankfully the mechanical portion of the test was an unqualified success. Everything worked just as it should. The base-line setup was spot on, and the car was easy to drive and handled well with good manners. In fact as the day wore on, I found myself with the sinking feeling that this was all going just a little too well... (more on that later)

After the first session I was extreemly uncomfortable in the cockpit. As a test day adjustment, I removed the upper half of the seat entirely, and Mark helped me tape in some strategic foam padding (thanks to Eric Cruz who had it in his trailer). This worked very well and I was MUCH more at ease in the car the rest of the day.

The rest of the days test sessions went extreemly well. I began to concentrate on adjusting to the car and relearning to finer points of getting around VIR. We had a small mixed formula group from FV to FA, so closing speeds were a little concerning at first, but the FA and F1000 drivers were all very courteous, and I had no issues at all. There was at least one other Piper FF/Honda testing, but I never got to hook up with him during a session. My crew tells me that we were running similar times so I guess I was not too far off the mark.

To be honest, I had told myself that I would keep my driving VERY low key and concentrate on the task at hand - adjusting the car, and adjusting the controls to get comfortable with driving it. So I had gone into the day with a very modest goal - get under 2:10 by the end of the day. With the cold damp track I was doubting that even that was realistic.

But, I did, despite my promise to myself, start to press a little bit as the sessions wore on. With an adjustment to the gear lever, I found it much easier to shift, and as the forth session began I started to actually drive a little harder. Still not quite race pace, but not exactly loafing around either. Before long, I was seeing times dropping well below my goal. I was so pumped by this that on the final lap of the 4th session, I decided to see if the car could go through turn 10 flat. The result was my one spin of the weekend. A wild ride across the grass and a general wake up call. This was not the time to drive at 10/10ths.

As I motored back onto the race surface (thankfully with no damage, and minimal mud on the car) the car started to miss and sputter. No I was regretting that sinking feeling that things were going too well. I limped back to the pits and asked the crew to check for a loose wire or obvious problem. They couldn't find anything wrong, and as the checker was already out, I motored back to my paddock spot, spitting and coughing all the way.

Back in the pits, racing guru Frank "Doc" Malone, suggested that maybe I was just out of gas... NO WAY it couldn't be that! I had put 1-1/2 gallons in before the session - thinking that there was still a couple of gallons in the tank. We put the dip stick in the tank and it came up dry. Hmmm...

Gassed back up, I fired the engine up, and in a few seconds the miss was gone. I had also noticed that the dash Fuel Pressure readout was down 4psi when I motored back to the pits after the session. Now it was showing 52psi (my normal reading). So, while I was all preparred for a complex wiring problem, or a flat battery or God knows what - it was really that simple. I had run 11-12 laps at VIR and ran out of gas!

Unbelievably this was my worst problem of the weekend.

I had entered the day with low expectations. I was sure that something would go wrong. The car would handle badly with the compromise Koni shocks, a wiring issue would crop up, parts would loosen up or fall off, it would overheat, or leak or ????

But none of the above happened. In fact, after I got comfortable in the cockpit, the car was flawless. It was literally one of those very rare "add gas and go" days in racing. I had a lot of fun, learned a ton about the car, AND I went faster every session...

So, as the day came to a close, the transport wheels went back on, and it was time to pack up and head back home. Despite the unfriendly weather, it was a great day at the track. An unqualified success!

Sean

This is probably an appropriate to for a big "Thank You" to my MANY supporters who have made it possible to get this far:
Marsha and Sam - My wife and daugher who have put up with me living in the garage over the past couple of months.
Dad - Who helped all along the way and valently rode to the track for the test day with a back so sore he was almost in the fetal position.
Eric Langbein - Who's engineering and fabrication skills made this project work.
Steve Lathrop - Who told me this was possible, and has put up with countless dumb questions ever since.
Steve Oseth - Who has been very willing to share his experience with me.
Eric Cruz - Who helped me figure out the last minute wheel nut issues and is always there to pitch in when needed.
Mark Walthew - Who stepped in for my ailing father and strapped me in every session even though he was suffering from food poisoning and wanted to puke (thanks for not puking in my lap Mark)
"Doc" Malone - For stopping me before I tore the car apart and convinced me to check the fuel level first.
Neil Porter - For getting me wheels on time that worked when the first ones didn't.
Tom and Julian - And everyone at HPD for all of their help.
Jeff Phillips - Who helped me cart everything up to Eric's shop.
Mike Memory - Who helped me retreive the car back in late November in a 20 hour marathon drive.
Dan Greaves - Who did such a nice job rebuilding this car as a FC - it made the conversion that much easier.
Lee Williams - For helping me get through my gearbox and slave cyl. issues.
ApexSpeed - The open wheel community helped out numerous times.

And the many more people who supplied me parts and pieces, or gave me the moral support necessary to make this happen in such a short time.