This is the story of my first PCA club race, the Racing Into Spring event at Lime Rock Connecticut.
For me, the event started Thursday afternoon when I left my house at 3:00PM. I had to be at LRP at 6:30 for the rookie driver meeting. The trip to LRP was uneventful, and I registered at about 5:50. I was able to quickly get through tech inspection and then the rookie meeting. As I set up my site in the paddock, I was intimidated by the amount and quality of the cars at the event. I expected LRP to be empty Thurdsay night, but it was packed. If a business was located on the east coast, and advertised in Pano, they were there. RACE, Dougherty, Windward, GT Racing, EPE, Autosport, Stable Energies, Formula Motorsports, you name it, they were there, and all were very professional looking.
I saw big rigs unloading cars right and left. I was in my totally stock 944 turbo that I drove to the event; I was quite surprised. In checking the event schedule, I saw that I was in race group 3, comprised of GT cars (no limit to amount of preparation) in groups GT5 and GT6 and stock cars in class C, D, E. I’m in class E. Since this was my first race, I figured I would run in the back of the field. Now I find that my class should be the slowest class in the group. That should mean that I do a LOT of checking in my mirrors, and should not have to do a lot of passing. I went to sleep that night with dreams of being run over.
I woke up Friday morning to the sound of air cooled motors warming up. Now that I think about it, that’s a better sound than my alarm clock. I got the car set up early, and went to the driver meeting. The race director, CR (don’t ask me to spell or speak his name) told us "I bet at the driver meeting, most of you are used to hearing ‘this is not racing, it’s driver education.’ Well, this is not driver education, it’s racing!" That really got my blood pumping. I walked back to my paddock space, and my crewman had arrived. I really have to say thanks to Mike Russel, who drove all the way down from Vermont just to help me out. At driver ed events, I do everything myself. At the race, I really needed someone to help take lap times, tire temps, tire pressures, etc. Mike did an excellent job, and his help really meant a lot to me. The price for his services was lunch, you can’t get a better deal than that!
Anyway, back to the track. First practice session. Get on the false grid early. See a bunch of people I know from DE events. Grid marshal give the 5 minute sign. In the car, put in window net, strap on harnesses, pull on balaclava then helmet, get gloves on. Start car and try to relax. Grid marshall’s give 1 minute whistle. Head onto the track. Yellow flag for two laps, then the green comes out. I know LRP pretty well, having driven there more than 5 times. I remember the track and start to drive the DE line. I’m taking it easy, trying to warm up mentally and physically. With the window net, I can’t see out my left mirror very well, and I can’t reach my arm out to give signals. This is going to be interesting. I’m pretty nervous, and not driving very well. I watch the cars come up behind me, and when they get close, I drive on my line, and the cars pass wherever they can.
After a few minutes I head into the pits. Mike adjusts the pressures, and I head back out. I feel a bit better, and I start to realize that driving is driving; I know how to drive, so I should be OK. The car works better, I’m not in traffic, and I start to enjoy myself. I come up on some of the low HP cars (GT5 and GT6 914’s) and I actually pass them. It’s a lot of fun to be able to pass anywhere, and not have to wait for a signal. Before I know it, the checker flies, and the session is over. I drive back to my spot and take tire temps and pressures. We adjust the pressure some more, and then review lap times. I’ve been driving easy, and the lap times show it, in the 1:08 range. Not fast, but I don’t care. Even better, I didn’t get blown into the weeds. Sure, I got passed a lot, but I can drive with these guys, and not be dangerous.
Second session - I start to drive harder. The car is great and I start to push it. I’m running with a pack of 3 other cars, two 944 TS, and 1 911. We’re all pretty even. Passing these guys is NOT easy. I’m second, behind the 911 and ahead of the 2 944 TS’s. I can tell that the car behind me is faster than I am, but he can’t (or more likely isn’t really trying to) get by. I’m probably a little faster than the car in front of me, but I don’t know where to pass. He can pull away from me (by a little) down the front straight, but I am faster through big bend. He’s much faster through the Esses, but I’m a LOT faster making the right that leads up the hill. I’m also faster on the downhill that leads onto the front straight. I follow him for two laps and then I decide to try a pass at the end of the front straight. I follow him down the front straight, then move to the inside to make my intent to pass clear. As we start to brake, I see he locks his inside rear wheel, so the pass is very easy. The 944 TS behind me also passes, now I have to try to keep him back there. We go around for another lap, then on the front straight I see a fast 914 behind the 944 behind me. I go through big bend, and start to make the left for the Esses. I’m starting to turn in when I hear a motor just on my left. It’s that 914! I never even saw him. I didn’t think he got around the 944, then all of a sudden he was just there! A scary moment. I make a note to be even more aware of all the cars.
I find Mike in the pits and we go over lap times. Much better, down to high 1:06, low 1:07, best lap of 1:06.67. When I drove at LRP last, my best laps were in the 1:05 range, so I know I can go a little faster. I just have to figure out how! Third session was like the second. Find some people to race with. The car is not sticking as well as before, and the lap times are little slower, most in the 1:07 - 1:08 range. We lower the pressure some more.
Now it’s time for the practice starts. All rookies must participate, it’s optional for others. I’m gridded 14th of 24, so I’m mid pack, much better than I anticipated. We are to form up behind the pace car, do a warm-up lap, come down the front straight. If the green is flown, we race until the uphill turn, and then get back in line, and do another start. After the third start, there will be a ten lap fun race.
I’m on the outside. We follow the pace car around the track and then down the hill. I can’t see the starter, and then everyone takes off. I floor it and stay in line. We go into big bend, and I can’t get to the inside because there are too many cars. So I stay on the outside and drive around 2 cars. We make the left and I’m in a better position, so I get another place. Then we form up again. I’m on the outside again. I’m looking for the starter, when again, everyone takes off. This time I don’t get a good jump, and 3 cars get by me. I move over to the inside because I want to give that side a try. We come down the straight. I am looking for the starter, and there it is, the green flag. I stand on it and take off. I pull to the inside and start to pass a car when brap brap brap brap, my car won’t pull anymore. I look down, and I’m bouncing off the rev limiter. In the stress, I forgot to shift. I grab the next gear and stay tight. I get around the car I was trying to pass, and now the fun race is on.
I passed one car during the race. Then when we encountered traffic, he got around me when I got hung up with a slower car. I have a lot to learn when it comes to dealing with traffic. I can handle chasing down a car, or being chased, but I seem to lose a lot of ground when either the faster cars pass me, or I pass the slower cars. Anyway, I finished the fun race in something like 15 place. The 10 laps seemed like a long time when I was driving it. Especially since I spent the last 4 laps trying to hold off the 911 from before.
That’s it for Friday.
Saturday was a beautiful day. Sunny, warm, a little windy, but not bad. Out in the warm-up session, not too much happened. I warmed up the car, the tires felt good. I ran easy laps in the 1:07 range. Next was qualifying.
The qualifying session was long, about 20 minutes. I got to the grid late, and was last onto the track. I spent about 10 minutes passing cars, then I got some clear track. I spend the last 5 minutes trying to run down an 86 944T. I never did catch him. I would get close, but then I would make a mistake and slide back. Eventually I gave up and just drove some smooth, fast laps. I qualified 19, with a time of 1:05.628. The 944 turbo I chased qualified 14th, with a 1:04.741. I thought I was a lot closer to him than that, but I guess 1.1 seconds isn’t that long.
Lunch break, time to rest and think about the race.
Race time. On the false grid. Nervous, butterflies. Pull onto the track. The splitter directs me to the outside. I just want to make a good clean start and not hit anyone or have anyone hit me. Two laps around the pace car. Down the hill, pace car pulls in. I give up looking for the starter. I concentrate on going as soon as the car in front of me goes, and remembering to shift at redline. We’re off! Hard on the throttle, smooth shift. Pull to the inside, get around 2 cars. Through big bend, watch out for cars on my left, stay to the outside. I have a good line onto no name straight, and I’m racing! I’ve been wanting to do this since before I had a driver’s license, and now it’s for real! Down the hill, drift right out to the concrete. Fly down the straight, hard on the brakes and early apex it into big bend. Slow down for the second apex and then make the left and then the right onto no name. I’m in clear track, no one close ahead of me, or right behind me. This goes on for a lap or two. Then a white 993 appears behind me.
I try holding him off, but start driving poorly. I almost slide off the track after west bend, and then again after the downhill. I can carry more speed into big bend, but he’s all over me through the Esses. I gain some distance in the uphill, but lose it all on the rest of the track. One more lap and I scare myself by cooking it into big bend too hard. We get onto no name straight, and I stay left and let him by. I try to follow, relax, and drive better, I watch the 911 start to hound the 944T from my qualifying battle. The 944T slips letting the 911 by, and I start to really catch him. We’re battling, when we come up on a GT6 914. The 911 that I battled with in the fun race is now right on my bumper. So all three of us (944T, me, 911) pass the 914, but I’m slow doing it and damn, The 911 gets around me!
There are about 10 laps to go. I try to catch up to the 911, but I’m pushing too hard, and lose even more ground. 5 laps to go. The leaders appear in my mirror. I don’t want to get in the way, so I wave them by as I approach the left hander in the Esses. Scary place to be passed. The leaders go around me and I follow them onto no name straight. I catch a major break when the leaders pass the 911 (that I’ve been following) before the uphill, and I am right on his bumper. I follow him through west bend and down the hill. He brakes early, and I almost nail him. Then he gets onto the front straight, and pulls a little ground. I catch up to him BIG TIME going into big bend. Again, he brakes early, and I think I am going to hit him as I frantically try to slow down. I feel my ABS start to pulse as his bumper gets bigger and bigger. Finally, I slow enough and get back on the throttle. Now I know that all I have to do is stay close on the front straight, and I can get him going into big bend. I drop back and then gain on the uphill. Stay close through west bend. Drop back a little so I can go all out down the hill. I do that and close up on his bumper onto the front straight. I hear his exhaust bellow as he pulls away 1 then 2 car lengths. As we cross start - finish I pull over to the middle of the track to make my pass intention clear. The brake markers fly by on the left, 5, 4, 3, he brakes, I wait a little and then brake, brake, BRAKE. I slam a lousy downshift to third and then hold on. I’m too hot and drift wide of the apex. but I’ve got the line, and the 911 can’t turn inside me. I’m ahead (and still on the track) as we head into the Esses! The 911 is all over me as we head down no name, but I gain a little on the uphill. Down the front straight, I’m in the lead. I go a little slower into big bend. I’m prepared to give up the corner if he tries, but there is no pass attempt from the 911.
2 laps to go. I’m starting to gain on the 86 944 turbo in front of me, but unless he makes a major mistake, I won’t catch him. The 911 is all over me. I think I can hold him back there, but I want the race to be over. We come up on a black 944 turbo. I recognize the car, and it’s very slow. In fact, I’m going to lap him. I’m approaching the black 944T on no name straight. I really want to get by ASAP, because I’m afraid that if I don’t, the 911 will get both of us. I’m zooming down no name, into the braking zone, I decide to make the pass now. I pull down to the inside, slow and right before I start to make the turn, I see the 944 start to turn into me. Not good! I debate (in about a millisecond) if I should beep the horn, and decide not to. I pull over onto the curbing, and then the driver sees me and moves back to the left. I climb the hill and take off. Last lap, uneventful. As I make the downhill, I see another 911 behind me and gaining quickly. It’s one of the leaders, and I don’t want to be lapped by another car. I get a good run onto the straight, but he keeps coming, and passed me by about 1 foot at the checker.
So I came in 14th out of 26, and 9th in class out of 14. I’m very happy. Nothing broke or went wrong. Slept like a baby, and had an easy trip home the next day.