Running Road America in a G - Pt. 1 (PICS!)
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Running Road America in a G - Pt. 1 (PICS!)
Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin April 8-10, 2005
PICS and impressions on the course .... (full story on freshalloy.com G35 forum)
The cure for what ails thee - 1 coupe, 1 driver, 1 course - mix and consume with gusto!
The coupe almost looks bathed in flames here as it reflects the colors off of the Snap-On Tools bridge.
Lots of work went into making this picture -- that is getting the car ready and driving -- not taking it! But the preparation is all worth it.
Turn 1 a very fast turn that is best late-apexed (turning in late for the inside tip of the corner) so that maximum speed can achieved on the short straight down to turn three. I am already crowding a Miata and EVO VIII even though I am not allowed to pass on the warm-up lap. Those students are obviously slowing down even more to listen to their instructors.
Successive shots of the rush down the hill between Turns 1 & 3.
Turn 3 Road America is so special a course that it has turns that aren't turns!
For example, there is no Turn 2 it is merely a barely perceptible kink in the straight downhill to the sharp, slightly increasing-radius turn that is Turn Three. I take a direct path from my turn-out point down to just pat brake marker 1 and then shoot over in a late-apex to clip just past the inside of the inside apex and then wind-out just to end of the outside rumble strip.
Moraine Sweep the highest speeds can be obtained here up to 150 and more for the most powerful cars like the modded RX-7 turbo that had a 2:31 best lap and the race-ready Cobra that had the low lap time of the weekend 2:23!!! My tuner says the coupe is capable of times in the 2:30s at Road America. Right now I am happy with times in the low 2:50's.
Turn Five This is the toughest turn on the brakes on a course renowned for being a brake-eater. On street tires you cannot take this decreasing-radius, uphill turn at more than 50 one more MPH more and you may well be spinning into the kitty litter or tire walls beyond that turn. I found the Beastie Coupe comfortable at 47-48 through the turn, or maybe that was ME that was comfortable at that speed. Like my good friend Eagle1 says the G35 Coupe is so much better as a car than we are as drivers. It could probably dance the turn well into the 50s but I am not (yet anyway) the driver to take it there.
Turn Six After the rush of Turn Five there is the charge up a hill on the right side of track and under the Toyota bridge for a quick, hard brake and a late apex turn following a cut line on the track and following it out onto the far rumble-strip. I have to take this slowly as the EVO VIII in front of me is apparently listening to his instructor as he tries to talk him through the rush of turns that is five-six-seven at Road America.
Turn Seven NO BRAKES! This is a NO BRAKE turn! Repeat . NO BRAKES on this turn! You wind out of six at good speed, blip the throttle, downshift, and charge right and across the apex of seven and to the outside rumble strip that starts the Hurry Downs.
Hurry Downs I was a bit disappointed that we were not allowed to pass in the Hurry Downs in our HPDE session. It is a thrilling part of the course, coming off the no-brakes Turn Seven and wailing down past the large West Grandstand and over to the right for Turn Eight. But it is a short straight and there is no doubt not much room for error here.
Turn Eight Somewhat of a recall of Turn Five, though with not quite as much speed into, nor the decreasing uphill slant of the exit. But be careful because those rumble strips at the turn-out point will rush up on you if youre not ready! If youre to the far right and take another cut-line in the asphalt into and out of the turn, the G grins as it dances out to just flick the edge of the rumble strips and snarls back into the middle of the track as it approaches The Carousel.
The coupe leaning in the exit from Turn Eight.
The Carousel This is where you find out whether you would enjoy being a fighter pilot! The reason for the parallel to jets is that this turn is a looooong, winding right turner that just . keeps . going . until . you . start . to . grunt . like . pilots . do . when . they . make . sharp . turns. You should hear your street tires start to squeal on this turn. If they arent making noise, they have more grip. Only when they begin to howl should you back off. So I take the Ecsta MXs up to the uuuuuuuhh-aaaahhhhh-uuuuuhhh sound they make when theyre starting to get pushed. When you leave this turn you want to be as far right as possible, near the red-and-yellow rumble strip that marks the last apex of the long right-hander and then you can wind out with your foot pushed into the firewall, gunning the eager VQ to rush towards the fiendish Kink.
The Kink The temptation is to treat the track between the end of The Carousel and the Canada Corner as one long straight and to try to flat-out fly through the Kink. It can be done, but if you miss the apex on the Kink by so much as a couple of feet disaster can ensue. The Kink is very subtle and unpretentious, especially when contrasted with attention-grabbing portions of the course like Turns Five and Eight and the Canada Corner. But it is where you can suffer the most damage to your car and yourself! A quick tap of the brakes just before entering The Kink is warranted here, not so much to slow the car, but to settle the front end down and try to reduce the understeer that can send one pinballing down the walls on either side of the straight that lies beyond!
Kettle Bottoms A tricky straight that has a couple of bends in it. After running the gauntlet that is The Kink, it takes a steady hand and light touch to settle your car into the right line to get the most speed while passing or being passed on this fast portion of the course. I was used to passing in this stretch since I had done so in my sessions with the F-Body boys. However it was a no-no to do so for HPDE 1 & 2 drivers.
Canada Corner The turn was easily the most problematic portion of the course for me. I twice came into the sharp uphill right-hander with an early apex (not a good idea on most turns and REALLY a bad idea on a turn like the Canada Corner) and with too much throttle and I had two relatively quick excursions into the sand and litter beyond the turn. Both times I was lucky enough to enter at angle parallel to the turn exit and was in-and-out of the sand very quickly. In fact, on the second (and thankfully last) time I did it my instructor (after he probably re-commenced breathing) said hey, the track worker gave you thumbs up for getting out so nicely!
Thunder Valley The rush uphill between the Canada Corner and Turn Thirteen under the Billy Mitchell Bridge is mostly a concern with getting whatever speed you conserved through the Canada Corner and converting it into an effective slingshot to send you without braking under the bridge and onto setting up for Turn Fourteen and the Home Straight. This is a portion of the course where you become reacquainted with the noises of your car and those around you the sounds bounce off the hillsides on either side of you and effect is that of being immersed in the middle of a giant engine.
Turn Thirteen The slingshot through this turn is a fun portion for the coupe. If you have managed your speed well and are coming through at over 65-70 you can flick the tail of the G35C like a whip and accelerate like mad into the setup for Turn Fourteen. Bog the speed down and youll feel like a pregnant pig on heavy doses of cough syrup. Lash the tail just right and youll hear the VQ howl and the exhaust roar and you'll be wearing a big grin.
Working the Beastie Coupe past Turn Thirteen and onto Fourteen.
Turn Fourteen This used to be the most frustrating portion of the course for me. I was early apexing the turn and ending up too far to the left on turn-out and having to release throttle, gear down and brake in order to make the turn. This KILLED exit speed for the heavy coupe and ruined any chance of reaching 90 by the pedestrian bridge at the top of the Home Straight hill. But after review of my videos of running Road America, I was able to get a good line this time. I head for just past the last brake marker, THEN turn-in, and over to just past the apex at the inside portion of the turn. That would set up the coupe perfectly for winding out to the rumble strip at the turn-out point and then on to full throttle well before finishing the turn!
Home Straight If youve done it all right, nows the time to hear the intake, engine, and exhaust howl like enraged mechanical harpies on the hunt. Now I can pass the Miata and the EVO VIII. I wait for them to follow procedures fade to right, slow down, then point with a straight arm (no fingers!)
---- MORE PICS AND TEXT IN PART TWO ----
- Riff
PICS and impressions on the course .... (full story on freshalloy.com G35 forum)
The cure for what ails thee - 1 coupe, 1 driver, 1 course - mix and consume with gusto!
The coupe almost looks bathed in flames here as it reflects the colors off of the Snap-On Tools bridge.
Lots of work went into making this picture -- that is getting the car ready and driving -- not taking it! But the preparation is all worth it.
Turn 1 a very fast turn that is best late-apexed (turning in late for the inside tip of the corner) so that maximum speed can achieved on the short straight down to turn three. I am already crowding a Miata and EVO VIII even though I am not allowed to pass on the warm-up lap. Those students are obviously slowing down even more to listen to their instructors.
Successive shots of the rush down the hill between Turns 1 & 3.
Turn 3 Road America is so special a course that it has turns that aren't turns!
For example, there is no Turn 2 it is merely a barely perceptible kink in the straight downhill to the sharp, slightly increasing-radius turn that is Turn Three. I take a direct path from my turn-out point down to just pat brake marker 1 and then shoot over in a late-apex to clip just past the inside of the inside apex and then wind-out just to end of the outside rumble strip. Moraine Sweep the highest speeds can be obtained here up to 150 and more for the most powerful cars like the modded RX-7 turbo that had a 2:31 best lap and the race-ready Cobra that had the low lap time of the weekend 2:23!!! My tuner says the coupe is capable of times in the 2:30s at Road America. Right now I am happy with times in the low 2:50's.
Turn Five This is the toughest turn on the brakes on a course renowned for being a brake-eater. On street tires you cannot take this decreasing-radius, uphill turn at more than 50 one more MPH more and you may well be spinning into the kitty litter or tire walls beyond that turn. I found the Beastie Coupe comfortable at 47-48 through the turn, or maybe that was ME that was comfortable at that speed. Like my good friend Eagle1 says the G35 Coupe is so much better as a car than we are as drivers. It could probably dance the turn well into the 50s but I am not (yet anyway) the driver to take it there.
Turn Six After the rush of Turn Five there is the charge up a hill on the right side of track and under the Toyota bridge for a quick, hard brake and a late apex turn following a cut line on the track and following it out onto the far rumble-strip. I have to take this slowly as the EVO VIII in front of me is apparently listening to his instructor as he tries to talk him through the rush of turns that is five-six-seven at Road America.
Turn Seven NO BRAKES! This is a NO BRAKE turn! Repeat . NO BRAKES on this turn! You wind out of six at good speed, blip the throttle, downshift, and charge right and across the apex of seven and to the outside rumble strip that starts the Hurry Downs.
Hurry Downs I was a bit disappointed that we were not allowed to pass in the Hurry Downs in our HPDE session. It is a thrilling part of the course, coming off the no-brakes Turn Seven and wailing down past the large West Grandstand and over to the right for Turn Eight. But it is a short straight and there is no doubt not much room for error here.
Turn Eight Somewhat of a recall of Turn Five, though with not quite as much speed into, nor the decreasing uphill slant of the exit. But be careful because those rumble strips at the turn-out point will rush up on you if youre not ready! If youre to the far right and take another cut-line in the asphalt into and out of the turn, the G grins as it dances out to just flick the edge of the rumble strips and snarls back into the middle of the track as it approaches The Carousel.
The coupe leaning in the exit from Turn Eight.
The Carousel This is where you find out whether you would enjoy being a fighter pilot! The reason for the parallel to jets is that this turn is a looooong, winding right turner that just . keeps . going . until . you . start . to . grunt . like . pilots . do . when . they . make . sharp . turns. You should hear your street tires start to squeal on this turn. If they arent making noise, they have more grip. Only when they begin to howl should you back off. So I take the Ecsta MXs up to the uuuuuuuhh-aaaahhhhh-uuuuuhhh sound they make when theyre starting to get pushed. When you leave this turn you want to be as far right as possible, near the red-and-yellow rumble strip that marks the last apex of the long right-hander and then you can wind out with your foot pushed into the firewall, gunning the eager VQ to rush towards the fiendish Kink.
The Kink The temptation is to treat the track between the end of The Carousel and the Canada Corner as one long straight and to try to flat-out fly through the Kink. It can be done, but if you miss the apex on the Kink by so much as a couple of feet disaster can ensue. The Kink is very subtle and unpretentious, especially when contrasted with attention-grabbing portions of the course like Turns Five and Eight and the Canada Corner. But it is where you can suffer the most damage to your car and yourself! A quick tap of the brakes just before entering The Kink is warranted here, not so much to slow the car, but to settle the front end down and try to reduce the understeer that can send one pinballing down the walls on either side of the straight that lies beyond!
Kettle Bottoms A tricky straight that has a couple of bends in it. After running the gauntlet that is The Kink, it takes a steady hand and light touch to settle your car into the right line to get the most speed while passing or being passed on this fast portion of the course. I was used to passing in this stretch since I had done so in my sessions with the F-Body boys. However it was a no-no to do so for HPDE 1 & 2 drivers.
Canada Corner The turn was easily the most problematic portion of the course for me. I twice came into the sharp uphill right-hander with an early apex (not a good idea on most turns and REALLY a bad idea on a turn like the Canada Corner) and with too much throttle and I had two relatively quick excursions into the sand and litter beyond the turn. Both times I was lucky enough to enter at angle parallel to the turn exit and was in-and-out of the sand very quickly. In fact, on the second (and thankfully last) time I did it my instructor (after he probably re-commenced breathing) said hey, the track worker gave you thumbs up for getting out so nicely!
Thunder Valley The rush uphill between the Canada Corner and Turn Thirteen under the Billy Mitchell Bridge is mostly a concern with getting whatever speed you conserved through the Canada Corner and converting it into an effective slingshot to send you without braking under the bridge and onto setting up for Turn Fourteen and the Home Straight. This is a portion of the course where you become reacquainted with the noises of your car and those around you the sounds bounce off the hillsides on either side of you and effect is that of being immersed in the middle of a giant engine.
Turn Thirteen The slingshot through this turn is a fun portion for the coupe. If you have managed your speed well and are coming through at over 65-70 you can flick the tail of the G35C like a whip and accelerate like mad into the setup for Turn Fourteen. Bog the speed down and youll feel like a pregnant pig on heavy doses of cough syrup. Lash the tail just right and youll hear the VQ howl and the exhaust roar and you'll be wearing a big grin.
Working the Beastie Coupe past Turn Thirteen and onto Fourteen.
Turn Fourteen This used to be the most frustrating portion of the course for me. I was early apexing the turn and ending up too far to the left on turn-out and having to release throttle, gear down and brake in order to make the turn. This KILLED exit speed for the heavy coupe and ruined any chance of reaching 90 by the pedestrian bridge at the top of the Home Straight hill. But after review of my videos of running Road America, I was able to get a good line this time. I head for just past the last brake marker, THEN turn-in, and over to just past the apex at the inside portion of the turn. That would set up the coupe perfectly for winding out to the rumble strip at the turn-out point and then on to full throttle well before finishing the turn!
Home Straight If youve done it all right, nows the time to hear the intake, engine, and exhaust howl like enraged mechanical harpies on the hunt. Now I can pass the Miata and the EVO VIII. I wait for them to follow procedures fade to right, slow down, then point with a straight arm (no fingers!)
---- MORE PICS AND TEXT IN PART TWO ----
- Riff
Last edited by riffster; Apr 12, 2005 at 08:23 AM.
Great review! Are you a writer? Glad you had a good time with NASA! RA is such a great track. Great pictures! How did you take so many of yourself while driving. 
BTW, the turn #'s aren't turn #'s. They were originally corner worker station #'s.
Are you going to join us at the Autobahn CC next week?
BTW, the turn #'s aren't turn #'s. They were originally corner worker station #'s.
Are you going to join us at the Autobahn CC next week?
Joined: May 2002
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Likes: 1,394
From: Aurora, Colorado
Enjoyed your story! Could you please post what the cost was to run the HPDE at RA? Although the drive from Colorado is quite a distance, I'm trying to get some of our Z guys to come out.
David, PM me your e-mail address, and I'll send you a spreadsheet I made of most of the HPDE's in the Chicago area with links. I think a bunch of us are planning to go to RA October 8 & 9 with the CAROC.
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From: Chicago Suburbs
Originally Posted by EnthuZ
Great review! Are you a writer? Glad you had a good time with NASA! RA is such a great track. Great pictures! How did you take so many of yourself while driving.
BTW, the turn #'s aren't turn #'s. They were originally corner worker station #'s.
Are you going to join us at the Autobahn CC next week?
BTW, the turn #'s aren't turn #'s. They were originally corner worker station #'s.
Are you going to join us at the Autobahn CC next week?
I won't be at Autobahn this weekend - I'm back at Road America with the F-Body boys and girls!
Yep, I have a serious RA jones, a serious one! I will be at the NASA HPDE at the Autobahn in June for sure though, and I just might be able to squeeze in the July one as well!Dave - the cost for the 3-day HPDE I went to at RA was $435 - I got more than my money's worth. You can also choose 2 days at $295 or 1 day at $195 - still great deals. They ran 30-minute sessions for this (NASA-run) HPDE - and you got hours and hours on the track. Let's put it this way .... I am a HPDE junkie and I had to give up each day and skip at least one session because I was too tired out (yeah, I'm an old man!)
And there are actually even cheaper deals - for example the F-Body Association I am running with this weekend at RA is costing only $340 for two days! That is an unbelievable bargain when you consider you're on one of the top course in the USA (and the world) with complete safety and rescue services and you will probably get from 8 to 10 sessions of 20 minutes (weather and circumstances permitting) of time on the track!
- Riff
Last edited by riffster; Apr 14, 2005 at 04:31 PM.
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