A Lap or so from the Kojote Event

[TailWagger]

For those of you unfamiliar with Kojote Motorsport, they are a group of PCA racers who were somewhat discontent with the way typical DEs are run. they wanted to have an event for advanced drivers that would allow open passing and the ability to ride along with very skilled racers who perhaps were not all that interested in attending a standard DE. Limited to under 70 drivers the event provided 12 hours of open track over two days. A very ecletic group of cars and drivers including such oddities and rarities as an Ulitma GTR, a pair of Porsche 962s, a Ferrari 333SP and even an ex-Mass State Police Crown Vic interceptor. This was my second year there, it's such a hoot, I figured I 'd post some video. The father of the genius who works on my car is in the turbo in front of me. We did a few dozen laps together alternately leading and following. Of course, I posted the lap where I got back around him :D... yeah he had to lift while I pedalled for all I was worth.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZGTKnLPpbA

[kbrew8991]

looks fun :)

I am not the biggest fan of open passing currently... but that could change as I get into a car with more horsepower

[Lobo6]

TW, Well it is apparent the Ken Conway was in a cartible mood to finally finally give you the point bye. :) Enjoyed the vid. Got any of the 962's or the Ferrarri prototype from the Kojote event?

[TailWagger]

TW, Well it is apparent the Ken Conway was in a cartible mood to finally finally give you the point bye. :) Enjoyed the vid. Got any of the 962's or the Ferrarri prototype from the Kojote event? Indeed, that car has tremendous thrust. He pulls me everywhere on that track. You'll note, I waved him off, he lifted anyway and I shot past. We did a lot of that back and forth in a couple of sessions which was a ton of fun.

As for the open passing, while I've come to the conclusion that its obviously inappropriate in lower run groups, I'm beginning to believe that it should be the normal state of affairs in black or red. What this really means is that the bar to enter the top run group or instructor corps should be high enough that drivers in those groups are completely comfortable with this situation. This is Driver Education after all, how well educated are you if you can't deal with a pass in a corner? For those that don't want open passing, there is noone forcing them into the top run groups. They can decide not to move up.

I didn't see the 962s while I was out Lobo, although I was passed by the 333SP once. None of them spent a lot of time on track and most of it was in the late afternoon when I was already done in by the 98% humidity. Haven't found any of them on the tape I 've reviewed yet. I ran low on tape, re-recorded over some of it, so I might have lost the Ferrari. If I do find some footage, I'll post my brief glimpse of it.

[JimLill]

why not forget the use of cones.... and get even more like racing

[billy]

Cones probably don't matter in that situation given everybody is basically racing and running different lines for passing etc.

[JimLill]

cones deployed are cones observed..... even unconsciously...

[TailWagger]

cones deployed are cones observed..... even unconsciously...
Fully agree. I've often wished that the cones would disappear at least for a session or two to get an idea of how much I'm truly depending on them (which I suspect is far to heavily).

[Lobo6]

Several years ago at Mosport they didn't put any cones out. I was just a newly hatched solo driver and didn't mind their absence though I'll admit I was glad I had been there previosly with cones and an instructor.

IMO at most multi day events the cones get nudged, hit, re-set improperly, etc. By the 3rd day if you relying on them you are usually not driving the DE line for that corner.

[kbrew8991]

Im a little sore about it after being chopped by a 944 Turbo driver in between 11 and 12 at Road Atlanta, a not-smart place to pass to begin with...

and I also got surprized a little by a DSR that passed me under yellow in turn 4, another not-smart place to pass... nevermind the yellow flag...

[jstecher]

TW I liked the fist pump when he lifted and let you buy...laughed at that one considering you were waving him off. :D

Gotta say man it looks like you know that track like the back of your hand. You guys really know how to run that baby and use the whole track. The more I see the videos the more I want to drive there. Great great videos.

Also I always wondered what was under the dash of a 911 and now I know thanks to your video. Powder Blue steel.

[Lobo6]

TW I liked the fist pump when he lifted and let you buy...laughed at that one considering you were waving him off. :D

Gotta say man it looks like you know that track like the back of your hand. You guys really know how to run that baby and use the whole track. The more I see the videos the more I want to drive there. Great great videos.

Also I always wondered what was under the dash of a 911 and now I know thanks to your video. Powder Blue steel.

John, don't be fooled by TW. He has spent an incredible amount of money on the car, the baby blue powder coat is a just combination of Ron's (yes he has a name) and his Mechanic's obsession to do everything to the max. The wrench also has a name, Kenny Conway, has a shop, Conway Autoworks, and they are both good drivers and Kenny is a great wrench and a good and honest person on top of that. But I digress.

TW's pass was granted by Ken Conway Sr. driving his 996TT. Ken is a class act and a sportsman, TW got the pass because Ken wanted to have some fun. As good as TW's car is getting there's no way his car will ever get by a well driven 996TT. Or perhaps I'm still annoyed with TW's vid post of him tracking down my RSA at The Glen. I should have had made TW work as hard as possible for the pointer, and yes he would have reeled me in sooner or later. But you have one thing right...driving Watkins Glen is a must. My favorite track, a track with perhaps the most motorsports history of any in the US. Though it may scare the pee put of Billy, I don't see the blue Armco, guess if you are looking at it you are destined to meet it. :confused:

[TailWagger]

TW I liked the fist pump when he lifted and let you buy...laughed at that one considering you were waving him off. :D

Gotta say man it looks like you know that track like the back of your hand. You guys really know how to run that baby and use the whole track. The more I see the videos the more I want to drive there. Great great videos.

Also I always wondered what was under the dash of a 911 and now I know thanks to your video. Powder Blue steel.

Hmmm... no wonder everyone's pissed at me, I'm trying to give them a thumbs up, not a fist pump. If its a pass where I had a lot of fun chasing I do make it a double :) Thanks for the kind words, but actually I've still got a lot to learn about that place. This was about my 10th day there and while I'm now pretty comfortable with the track, there a lot more speed to be had.

For me its an unusual track in that there really are no combos, most of the corners are blind (can't see track out when you turn in) and over half the corners have true long midcorner sections where you corner at relatively constant G for a long period of time. I didn't like the track when I first got there as the speeds were high and the guard rail intimidating, but I'm now in love with the place as theres no other track around these parts that has those huge midcorners. Its not very technical, but it is unique and fun. The other great thing about the Glen is that the town loves the race track. Everywhere else in the northeast the locals tend to hate them.

Ken (the yellow turbo) and I were garaged together and ran most of our sessions on the first day together. His car pulls mine easily, so although we were lapping around doing around the same times, I'd catch him on the back part of the course and lose him on the front. Ken, as Loco err Lobo George (thats his real name) points out is a great guy and he wanted to see my lines and brake points so he would hang behind me for a few laps. We went back and forth a few times. It was a helluva a lot of fun.

As for the powder blue, actually originally it was body color. When we put the cage in as its chrome-moly it had to be painted and blue was cheaper than red and the white that was available was too bright, so thats the way we went. Actually, I'm thinking of getting some RS carpet for the dash as with the front oil cooler being vented through the nose, all I get is warm to hot air throught them.

Anyhoo, as Lobo says, if you've never been there, its certainly worth the trip. Its a true F1 track and there aren't many of those on this continent. You owe it to yourself to get there for a few days at least once in your life.