Duryea waiting lines
Posted: Wed Aug 24, 2011 10:02 am
Thank you Rich Rock, Nelson & Rick K, John the starter and all those who helped make Duryea such a wonderful event.
Thanks Merlin for your most exciting driving -- courtesy of a spin out I got to watch you and most of group 2 negotiate the Pagoda turn. Merlin is positively in a league of his own. I've seen Lotus Cortinas and front wheel drive VWs three-wheel turns but never a front engine, rear wheel drive GT-2 car. Not until last Saturday. Up until then I would have said dirt tracking on asphalt is no way to win a hill climb -- now I'm going to go find a parking lot and practice my power slides.
My following comment is an observation that I offer, hoping someone might have a solution:
Duryea and Pagoda by their very nature involve a lot of delays, mostly due to accidents on the hill. This results in very long stints trapped in the starting lines along pit lane. I, like many run a formula car. It was never meant to idle for long periods nor can it easily be shut off and repeatedly restarted without killing the battery. Several times I made runs on seven or less cylinders because the plugs had fouled during the long wait. Perhaps the last cars to pull to the line should be the formula and other fragile all-out race cars that cannot endure the long idling, etc. Maybe the announcer could call "formula cars to the line" after all the other Gp 2 vehicles have cleared the starter's line? We don't have those problems at Giant's, Polish or Weatherly because we can easily watch the line move and pick our spot in it.
I tried to be the last car in the line Sunday afternoon and darned near got left behind. Only an accident delay got me the time to make the line in time. As it turned out I arrived 3/4 of an hour early.
I don't like trying to get in the line too early as it fouls up the Gp 1 cars coming back down into their pits.
Brgds,
Bob D'Amore
I
Thanks Merlin for your most exciting driving -- courtesy of a spin out I got to watch you and most of group 2 negotiate the Pagoda turn. Merlin is positively in a league of his own. I've seen Lotus Cortinas and front wheel drive VWs three-wheel turns but never a front engine, rear wheel drive GT-2 car. Not until last Saturday. Up until then I would have said dirt tracking on asphalt is no way to win a hill climb -- now I'm going to go find a parking lot and practice my power slides.
My following comment is an observation that I offer, hoping someone might have a solution:
Duryea and Pagoda by their very nature involve a lot of delays, mostly due to accidents on the hill. This results in very long stints trapped in the starting lines along pit lane. I, like many run a formula car. It was never meant to idle for long periods nor can it easily be shut off and repeatedly restarted without killing the battery. Several times I made runs on seven or less cylinders because the plugs had fouled during the long wait. Perhaps the last cars to pull to the line should be the formula and other fragile all-out race cars that cannot endure the long idling, etc. Maybe the announcer could call "formula cars to the line" after all the other Gp 2 vehicles have cleared the starter's line? We don't have those problems at Giant's, Polish or Weatherly because we can easily watch the line move and pick our spot in it.
I tried to be the last car in the line Sunday afternoon and darned near got left behind. Only an accident delay got me the time to make the line in time. As it turned out I arrived 3/4 of an hour early.
I don't like trying to get in the line too early as it fouls up the Gp 1 cars coming back down into their pits.
Brgds,
Bob D'Amore
I