nasaforums.com

Join the party!
ROLL CALL:
1. Comeau
2. Delano
3. Richmond
4. Allen
5. Atteberry

I have not registered yet, still getting new car together. I should be able to make it but most likely will register at the track. Still need to get log book as well.

Hope to see you then.

CRE worked on Delano's and Niedernhofer's 944's, among others, this week. Haven't had time to touch my beat up ol' 924S yet!

Looks like I am a go. Roll cage is to be done today. I have all the rest of the parts in hand and will complete tomorrow.

Only possible hangup is the windshield. It had to be removed to weld up cage. Hoping new one can be installed tomorrow.

Be sure to check on your helmet. I relized yesterday that mine was no longer legal. New one being delivered tomorrow.

Looks like alot is hinged on TOMORROW, maybe I am not as ready as I thought.

First off in true racing fashion it all hinges on getting the the car prep finished by Thursday night. Good luck to both of you hope you make it this weekend with cars that are ready from a safety perspective but just a little off from a racing perspective need you two to be 2-3 seconds slower.

Second note I will be up there Friday morning and will try and reserve some space for all, look for me to be near bathroom and next to the single garage I will be the one with the tools spread out trying to figure out how to get the traqmate connected. Direction scattered on the ground.

Please register asap you guys!

Well,...............minus the @#$%^&* rain on Saturday, the racing was great! At least it wasn't SNOW!
The ride up on Friday night was hairy to say the least. Rain, fog, and even an overly aggresive tumble weed in the middle of the fog! What's next?! Sharks with laser beams on their frickin' heads?!
To top it off, a guy blew a tire in front of me. I knew about it before his dumb-a$$ did! Was up wit dat?!
Anyway, great bunch of guys turned up to fight it out at the fastest track in the west! There were 7 starters each day.
Buzzetti, Comeau, Richmond, Niedernhofer, Allen, Atteberry, Delano. It was fantastic to see old racing friends and their 944's. Mike Peters had lunch with us on Sunday as well. He's hungry for his new chassis to replace his totaled one. He'll now be driving CRE #001, donated by CRE. Parts swap over party date to be determined. Pizza, beer, and racing buddies swingin' wrenches in the name of 944 Spec!!!
Everyone was parked together in the paddock. We ganged the E Z UP's together to provide shelter from the rain. Rained all day Saturday. The race was an exercise in NOT overdoing it. I snap spun in turn 1 about the 2nd or 3rd lap. Decided to slow a little after that. There just wasn't much grip on old tires. Lost 2 spots to Allen and Delano. Got them back with some effort (those guys are getting faster!) and passed Richmond for 2nd and did my best to hang onto that position til the end.
1-2-3 Finishing order was:
Buzzetti
Comeau
Richmond
Visibilty was low. Speeds were slow. There was absolutely no contact and all 944's ran without problems.
Buzzetti was cock of the walk with a well set up car and fresh RA-1's. More than 2 seconds ahead of Comeau in the next fastest 944. Comeau was fighting a mid corner understeer problem and adapted by throwing the chassis into the turns. The adaptation was good enough to hang on to 2nd, but was no where near a match for the Buzzetti/924S combo, who posted a fastest lap of 1:45.X. That's normally tail of the pack in our class at Willow.
BEER, burgers and chicken wings were had a plenty by the drivers who gathered at Coach's near the track on Saturday night.
Sunday, the day turned out dry and the 944's were very happy to run flat out in the cold winter air. Again, Comeau, Richmond, and Niedernhofer were chasing down the optimum suspension set up. Atteberry put her off hard at the track out of T3 and rubbed the belly the length of the car on the curbing! He scraped the oil pan (Yikes!) and the cross member, swiped the slider clamp halfway off the rear sway bar, and totally ripped the front sway bar drop link out of it's heim joint!! OUCH! Tim, and Tony Comeau, who proved himself a valuable asset for the class during the weekend, lept into action and repaired everything before the race. The front right wheel was irrepairably damaged and Jim Richmond loaned Atteberry 2 wheel/tire combo's to get him back on the starting grid as per the 944Spec class tradition! That's how we are. Generous as hell before the race and selfish as hell during the race! Hey, it ain't no fun unless everyone is trying hard to win!
The dry conditions on Sunday brought much higher speeds and much better visibility. Buzzetti was on pole then Comeau, Richmond , et al. Buzzetti ran away like on Sat. , but Richmond and Comeau had some fantastic side by side dicing. Comeau ended up distancing himself and set to work dealing with out of class traffic in an effort to catch Buzzetti. Try as he might, that was all for naught, and Buzzetti won handily.
Finishing order was Buzzetti, Comeau, Richmond, ...Still, the dicing was outstanding and everybody in the class was challenged for every position! To top it off, everyone went home with their 944's in one piece. ZERO CONTACT! We're really looking forward to other drivers joining us at Cal Speedway in March!

Tim can you post a pic from Sat. That one from Sunday is just too nice

It was great to see everyone and to meet Everett and his daughter.

It appears that there is a new track record for WSIR in 944Spec. I posted a 1:36.766 in lap 2. Beating a time set by Jim Marks in May 2006.

JT's car is amazing. I did nothing to this car except check alignment, nut and bolt the suspension, change the oil and gear fluid, and replace the roll cage. The motor is strong (Rusikof) sp, and the car handled really well. It appears that installing all that Delrin may not be a good idea. This car seems to have mostly stock bushings. I will dissassemble it and report. If these cars work that good on stock suspension then that makes the build cost even lower for new guys. I have no issue with sharing speed secrets. If we can all go faster with lower cost it just makes the class better.

I don't know how much effect the Guards LSD had on handling. But this car was really good from mid corner to exit.

See you at Cal Speed.

Charlie,
Yeah, I could post a pic of Saturday, but that's probably bad marketing. The sun is always shining on 944 Spec racing.
A 1:36.7 lap is very impressive. There's only about 3 of us who have cut 36's. Hard to believe I threw down a 1:35.5 in my Zebra car while chasing down Weitze at a POC event in 2005. Planets must have been aligned AND all my 944 karma points cashed in at the same time. Even more amazing was the fact that Rick White posted 1:35's in his POC GP class 924S! Even if it was on the faster Kumho's.
When you said, "I have no issue with sharing speed secrets. If we can all go faster with lower cost it just makes the class better", I thought I heard a chorus of angels........music to my ears........... Perfect 944 Spec attitude. Help me teach the slower guys.
Maybe Everett's daughter, Isabell, will be crewing at more events?

Good weekend even with the not so fun race in the rain on Saturday. It was great to see the 944 crew again. For the first race of the season everyone drove well with many improving. The group will have some good racing this year.

Tim and I changed places 5 times on the first lap on Sunday. I passed him going into turn 1, he passed me back going into turn 2. We went door to door through 2 and he passed me entering 3. I passed him going up the hill into 4. He repassed me coming out of 9 on the front straight. After that I never had a shot at him.

Congratulation to Charlie for his two wins. Just what he needed was a faster car.