Did my first laps around lime rock park today. This week they're doing the full combination.
Its a pretty fun track, but real easy to screw up. I think it plays to mine, and the car's strength...which is floating through the corners at full throttle and minimal traction
Its real neat when you hit the turn "the uphill" just right and rocket up the hill in 4th gear hoping you don't hang a tire in the grass. My worst turn is definitely the west bend...its quite difficult.
Anyways, I hop on the track kinda expecting that I'm going to have to slide the car everywhere from what I've read, but haven't seen any videos. Its the same old frustrating experience for me again...too stubborn to slow down...getting really good at the pit out and turn 1 :P
I get pretty consistent in the 1:05s and go online to see where I'm at. There weren't really any times for the track yet since the series just started (I'm assuming they used the chicane 2 weeks ago).
I run qualifying and put a really really clean lap together and get a 1:04.30 (i practiced a bit more before qualifying and got down to like 1:04.50). This puts me in first...in front of second who had a 1:05 something, and no one else qualified...I already had a pretty bad feeling.
This was only my second race, and coming off the high of an experience I had around laguna...I could already tell this one was a train wreck waiting to happen.
We started with a field of 10 cars, ended with 7...and only 3 on the lead lap. By the 3rd lap I think 7 people had reset and left the pits. I got a good jump and slid my way to a hefty lead at the beginning. Second place didn't feel like pushing it as hard on cold tires...but I guess my track learning exercise teaches you the first few on cold hides
Coming down the main straight, I see a reset car leaving the pits. I get past him, and he falls in front of 2nd place...my lead gets longer.
The race came down to me driving around for 20 something laps by myself with second place finishing 45 seconds back, and 3rd even more than that.
I cruised for all of the race fearing that if I pushed it I'd be into the wall with a broken car. I already put it off in turn 1 on the second lap, did not want to get any more safety rating docks, or lose my position.
It was nice to pick up a win, but would have been real exciting to push it with at least another car to drive with.