BMW at MSR (Lapping Event)

[Fair!]

BMWCCA had a Lapping Event at MSR this weekend...

Wow, what a nice facility! Neither of us had ever been and it was worth the drive (80 miles, one way) to check it out. Weather was clearing up as we arrived and we saw lots of familiar faces and customers. Had to be over 100 cars, it was PACKED, and most were BMWs.... They had some crowded run groups.

http://vorshlag.smugmug.com/gallery/1411695/1/66899192

We had to get out of there before we took any rides, or else we would be building a lapping car next week. MAN that looked like a fun track to drive on. Facilities were impressive - garages, shops, observation decks, covered paddocks, and even private track-side "villas" with 3 floors, garages and observation decks.


See the private villas? Several more under construction.


Main admin building w/ bathrooms & showers


conversing with customers


This was the cleanest, coolest E30 I have ever seen!

[Shortcutsleeping]

Re: BMW at MSR (Lapping Event)

I've driven MSR both directions and it is a fun track. The rattlesnake is a huge waste of pavement but I like the rest. I have not driven on the new longer section but probably will before the year is out (I instruct for a group that runs msr, msr-h, and tws).

If you are going to build a 'track car' go ahead and make the jump to the top of the pyramid and build a w2w car. The 'trackers' are a fun group but waiting for a point to pass and dealing with the egos is (IMHO) a pain. Build the race car and track it if you must, but (oh) so many of them see this as 'racing' and report as such and...er...uh....IT'S NOT!

'yeah, I passed this z06 twice in one session' , 'omfg, did you see how much closure I had on that guy in wagon-wheel?', 'my instructor said I was the fastest car in my run group'. <sigh> Whatever, dude.

You've probably seen it, but here it is:
http://www.nsxfiles.com/Pyramid_of_speed.htm

I understand lots of your customers are here, but build a car that you can really race (when you can) and show them your stuff is 'race proven' versus 'point to pass proven'.

Just my .02
Costas

[Wirtz]

Re: BMW at MSR (Lapping Event)

100% agree with Paul (what?? that is twice in one day!), if you are going to do it, go wheel to wheel. AND! when you are ready to build that car, I happen to know where a great E36 starter car is

Jeff

[hancheyb]

Re: BMW at MSR (Lapping Event)

Road racing is a whole other level of resources. As Paul said, "I understand lots of your customers are here" is really our focus for now. As funds would allow, I can see going another step. We can't afford to NOT be somewhere where 150 BMWs show up.

[Fair!]

Re: BMW at MSR (Lapping Event)

Club Racing classing for what we want to build is ... terrible. Thinking somehting along the lines of light E36 (sub 2400lbs) + LS1 + giant tires. Pretty much that simple. We found an SCCA Solo2 class it fits in (XP), but more importantly, it lets us showcase ALL of the motor-force + vorshlag goodies and gives us a darn good shot at setting FTD at regional type autocross events, maybe even with poor driving (which is pretty much the norm).

• BMW Club Racing requires a BMW motor. BZZZZZ! Wrong answer. This would be the best market / customer base, but no fun with weaknut/expensive motors.
• SCCA Club Racing classes - most have total motors, too. BZZZZZ! ITE might work, if this is still around, but it's a clown, catch-all, Regional only, no rules class. Might as well be lapping...
• NASA Club Racing... ? Doubt there's anything we could run in with it, but we'll check. Not a lot of BMW racers there, tho?

Costs for wheel-to-wheel are more than Solo2 + occasional lapping. We know DEs are non-competitive, and I make fun of the same people that call it "road racing". We wouldn't fool ourselves into that nonsense.

[Redwood]

Re: BMW at MSR (Lapping Event)

I was at MSR Houston this weekend watching a friend lap in his S2000. MSR Houston is apparently less than a year old. It would have been two friends, but 1 sold his S2000 on Friday to get a C6 Z51 (he's tired of getting pulled on in the straights). I got taken for a ride with an instructor in a C6 non-Z51 on Toyo RA-1s. He was following a C5 Z06 and couldn't manage to pass him (but kept up). Every time he shifted, the back of my helmet would hit the roof. The morning was tropical storm-like, but it cleared up late in the morning and by afternoon I had changed into dry clothes. There were some sweet cars there, including a modified C6 Z06, Hennessy Viper, 3 911 GT3s, a bunch of Elises, an Exige, some NSXs, SLK55, and even a new E90 330i. There were a bunch of slip & slides in the morning rains, but only 2 cars went off track. Both were 90s Mustangs and one ended up trashing a giant wing after getting friendly with a chainlink fence (see pics). The other just barely went off course near where we were watching, but the rains made that a swamp adventure and he got stuck. I took a bunch of pictures in the afternoon with a friend's micro thin Sony camera. I didn't know the settings so I left it on auto. Some of the action track shorts are a little blurred becaue of it, but you'll live.

It was fun riding around the track. I'm definitely interested in attending a DE here and there, but I wasn't really hooked like my friends expected. I would just end up spending more money on brakes and tires anyway. Surprisingly though, I did see quite a few cars in the pits on Falken RT615s.

http://redwood.smugmug.com/gallery/1422852

[John in Houston]

Re: BMW at MSR (Lapping Event)

I found MSR-Cresson to be not so fun. The rattlesnake just sucked balls. edit: I was in the 347 mustang which might explain some of that

I also found MSR-Houston to be boring. Nothing as craptastic as the rattlesnake, but they bunch all of the technical parts of the course up into one section. Sure, you have to get your line / braking / etc setup for that section, but the rest of the course was, "long straight, sweeper, long straight, sweeper". I was turning sub 2:00 laps by the end of my first session on greasy Azenis (where I heat cycled the crap out of them).

TWS is balls-out fun though.... I think the added factor of death increases the level of excitement.

Overall, I'll probably do 1 -2 DEs a year, but I won't be hooked.

John

Hey... can I just get 3 timed laps? No, really, no 20 minute session. Just 3 timed laps

[Redwood]

Re: BMW at MSR (Lapping Event)

TWS is balls-out fun though.... I think the added factor of death increases the level of excitement.

Hey... can I just get 3 timed laps? No, really, no 20 minute session. Just 3 timed laps

I'm told the no timing thing is for insurance reasons. You just need a DL1 like Terry/Brian. One of the 911 GT3s in Houston had one in the car. My friend that did lap in his S2K was a first timer at that track, but had been to TWS 5 or 6 times. He said that at a Porsche Club event (if I remember correctly), a Mini put 2 wheels off, came back on too fast, and ended up flipping end over end with the door smashing back and forth against the car and an airlift to a hospital ensued. This was with an instructor in the car. Apparently they don't allow Minis any more. Also at MSR Houston, a female instructor for PC put her shiny new Porsche Cayman S into the wall near the pits at a PCA event. They have since moved the wall further out from that turn (Turn 17). After seeing many cars go off or start to lose it there, I'm not surprised.

[John in Houston]

Re: BMW at MSR (Lapping Event)

I'm told the no timing thing is for insurance reasons.

That was a joke... aimed at those who slam auto-x and say DEs are more challenging

[John in Houston]

Re: BMW at MSR (Lapping Event)

...a Mini put 2 wheels off, came back on too fast, and ended up flipping end over end ... instructor for PC put her shiny new Porsche Cayman S into the wall near the pits

The world is full of NDACs (No-Driving Ass-Clowns).... your goal is to stay away from them. That was the biggest challenge I had at MSR-H (which had two shiny Ferraris eat it coming out of the back section at the 'hump'). At least 30K in damage.

[Dean!]

Re: BMW at MSR (Lapping Event)

TWS is balls-out fun though.... I think the added factor of death increases the level of excitement.

John

Heh. Been there, done that!

Turn 7:
First 20 minute session:
Braking for turn 7

Next session:
Lifting for turn 7

Next session:
Maintaining acceleration for turn 7

Next session - the ball shrinker:
Accelerating through turn 7

Next thing I knew I was sharing a rental car with a ZR1 driver to get home to Dallas and the tow truck driver dropped the Formula off at Todd's house!!! Which coincidentally enough, it's still there! The next morning the inside of my arms had burn marks from the bag deployment....