(Long) Track ride with a Studebaker owning race instructor

I found this while tracking members of a defunct chapter . (This takes place in 2000)

Gang, I had to opportunity to go to Thunderhill, a racetrack in Northern California. Bill owns several Detomasos, both Mangustas and Panteras. He heard about my loss, and wanted to help me turn things around. He called and invited me to join him at Thunderhill this weekend. So I said, what the hell. I love racing, and would enjoy helping out in the pits or whatever.

Well, Bill is also the Panoz distributor for the west coast ! I'm sure you racer-types know about the Panoz. It's a 351 (Windsor) powered, fiberglass, tube-frame chassis. The motor runs the GT-40 alum heads. Since they are setting up a "Panoz" series (all cars alike), the SCCA actually builds the motors, seals them up with special tags, such that every car has the same power, and race teams can not make any "fine tuning". These cars are light, and FAST !

Bill is setting up the "Boy - Racer's Dream". You can buy a car, even finance it, and he can supply EVERYTHING ! Dedicated mechanic, trailer, spares, even great driving instructors. I talk to one driving instructor, (Brian Geyer) who also supports NASA, Thunderhill, and everybody else, and he offers to take me out on a familiarization ride, just before the driver's meeting at 8. The cars are getting some minor adjustments, so he suggests we take Zack, my 1967, all original Firebird ! Out we go ! We are the ONLY car out. He is showing me the line, and suggesting different ways to take corners, all the while demonstrating how to push (thrash) my old, old 'bird around the corners. If he went a little slower, I would have noticed the icechest dumping water and ice around the back seat at every corner !

Note: ALWAYS empty your car, even for a (slow ???) check ride !

Thunderhill is a great track, smooth, new pavement, and a challenging layout. Blind (over the hill) off-camber turns, long straights (2125 feet), and turns that you can take FLAT OUT ! My stomach passed my heart heading towards my mouth several times !

We make it back in time for the meeting. The important thing I glean is that ANYTHING an official tells you overrides any other directions (like flags). This turns out to be VERY crucial later.

I help add a couple of real minor enhancements to one of the Panoz during the first sessions. A electric fan to one, and a "burp" valve to another. These are VERY early chassis', like #9 and #10 ! This is just GREAT ! I'm taking some photos here and there too ! Next thing I know the instructor say "we" need to go test a car ! #9 (car #21) has two seats, and I slip into the passenger side, and put on my helmet. (How did I know to bring my helmet ? Well what fool would go without one ?)

Visit

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(?) and view the images of a hot lap demo !

Out we go, with a Viper on our tail. The guy came by our pits earlier, after watching Brian "demo" my firebird, and asked Brian to show the correct line. Well Brian has to slow down often to keep the guy close behind. Not only does the guy improve quickly, Brian shows him some good spots to pass, and how to set up for them. We drag this Viper (GTS/R ???) down the straight, pulling away the whole time ! The only traffic ahead is a twin-turbo Porsche already 1/2 down the straight as we got on it. BLAST DOWN THE STRAIGHT....which ends too soon.... YIKES here comes turn one, a SHARPO-looking left 90 degree. Brian lets off only a little, but does not touch the brakes, drifts from the apex to the outside edge, RIGHT UP TO the Porsche ! Downshift to third ! Downshift to 2nd ! follow this Porsche thru the twistys (3,4, over a blind hill, off-camber 5, then 6...ease on a little power to nudge the Porsche on...) Then from the apex of 7...BOOM power is ON FULL ! At turn 8, did the Porsche stop ? NO he is just going only (?) 80+MPH maybe fast for a good Porsche, but no match for us. We slow WAY down, and then wave the frustrated Porsche guy by, to let the viper get back on our tail for some more "lesson time"...Turn 9 comes next, which starts with a slight left to the crest of a blind hill, then drifts right slightly...You have to go REAL slow if you don't know turn 9 by heart, but learn fast as others DO know it ! A sharp but fast left, turn 11, thru a chicane 12 + 13, then it's the back straight...half way down is that Porsche... POWER ON ! Hug the wall, upshift, then move across to the far left, BANG the Hawk brakes (Very loud brakes ?!?) because we are right on the tail of the Porsche ! Pass the brake markers and enter #14 + #15 which leads to the front straight. POWER ON ! Which causes my face to wrinkle into a funny-looking ear-to-ear grin....like those astronaut wrinkle faces on lift off ! Know what I mean ? Yea, I thought so.

After a few more laps of this, we pit, our session ended. I can't get rid of this silly wrinkle-grin, with such an adrenalin rush I nearly pee in my pants ! Then Bill walks up....and says with a stern face, wipe that grin off your face ! You have 5 minutes to get ready to drive the next session ! I stammer....wha wha me ???, in THIS ???? He cracks the smallest grin, turns and walks off ! His assistant runs up, hands me a form to sign. I can't read with the tears in my eyes, so I ask what is this ? She says, you wreck it you bought it, don't flat spot the tires either, they are $200 each. "Have Fun !" She takes my shaky "X" for a signature and giggles, and she is gone. I now have 2 minutes, so I run for the toilet....man I gotta pee.... Ever been so excited that you CAN'T pee no matter how much it hurts ?

I'll write about my first drive when I'm back !

Chuck Melton Panoz VIN 009

(Posted by Karl to show what a simple practice lap on a real race track is like)

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Reply to
midlant
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or you can be a prototype test engineer and keep repeating a sequence until something fails or you exceed the envelope and then repeat that to ensure it was not a fluke issue then slowly reduce until maximum laterial force benchmarked THEN you begin the test sequence. BTW it pays well too! BTDT!!!!!!!!!

snipped-for-privacy@earthl> I found this while tracking members of a defunct chapter

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Reply to
oldcarfart

I was a test engineer designing devices to test military Army laser designator batteries to see what might happen if they were subject to abuse. These might be from overheating, dropping from heights, if dad(or mom) took one home and a kid found it and drilled through it, running over it with a tracked vehicle and so on.

Six kids were volunteered by my co-workers - two survived,

Karl

oldcarfart wrote:

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Reply to
midlant

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