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Season Wrap Up: Midwest TTC Champion

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Since the double win and lap record at Gateway, I've completed four more NASA TT events: Autobahn South in April, Gingerman in June, Blackhawk Farms in July, and Autobahn South again earlier in September. The Autobahn South event in April saw a tough duel at the top of the TTC boards between my AP1 S2000 and local Patrick Reyes' bright orange wrapped AP2 S2000.  On Saturday I managed to edge him out for the third consecutive win of the season with a time of 1:36.476, but on Sunday Pat put down an time I could not reach and had to settle for second. Next, the schedule took us to Gingerman, a track I had never been to before.  Throughout the weekend, as I learned the track on old tires, I was consistently behind both Pat and John Eiler.  John's Lotus Elise, running a lightweight setup on street tires, had taken third both days at the Autobahn event, but never challenged for the lead.  However, I believe John used to work at Gingerman and his track knowledge had him...
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Gateway NASA Central Lap Record Video

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Here is the video and data from the third session on Saturday of the Gateway event.  The third hot lap (lap 4 in the data) tripped the transponder at a 1:10.518, good enough to take the TTC record for the Central region.
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Double Win at Gateway with Record Lap

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The S2000 returned to the track this weekend in full form, running in the crossover event between the NASA Central and Midwest regions at Gateway International Raceway.  I was able to secure the class win on both days with a 1:10.518 best lap on Saturday and a 1:10.719 on Sunday.  Saturday's time, while short of my personal best and NASA Midwest record of 1:09.729, did take over the top spot in the Central record books for the TTC class. Since the last time it hit the track, the S2000 has had the engine replaced (with another stock unit), the exhaust replaced, the catalytic converted removed, and the splitter added.  As a compromise to the added power and downforce, I was also required to add weight this year, taking the competition weight up from 2815 to 2880 lbs. Given the slower than personal best times, the jury is still out on whether the shift in setup has been an improvement.  I'll have to get back into the swing of things as a driver before I can ...
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Soon.

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Here is the S2000 at my local Autotire, where I am getting the new Hoosier R6 rubber mounted to the track wheels (which aren't on the car, but will ride home on the Tire Tail). You might notice the giant splitter protruding from the front bumper.  This is a new piece replacing the smaller unit I made and only ran in test sessions.  Gateway this weekend will be my first event using the front aero. The splitter began life as a piece of three quarters plywood.  It is shaped to follow the curvature of the bumper, extending about 6 inches.  The back piece extends the flat bottom to about the centerline of the front axle (as limited by NASA rules). The old splitter, in black above, shows how much larger the new piece is.  Hopefully this addition will allow me to utilize more of my rear aero as well.  The old splitter also provided a quick template for drilling the mounting holes. After a quick test fit, primer and multiple coats of plasti dip were applied, result...
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Location: Autotire 3742 S Lindbergh Blvd, Sunset Hills
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Return for 2014 Season

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After just doing a few events in 2012 and taking the 2013 season off to refresh the engine (thanks to Aaron Leicthy at The Winning Formula  in Louisville for solving the power issues I was having) and focus on a new job, the S2000 will be returning for the 2014 season! I plan to compete in the NASA Midwest series, running the car in the Time Trial C class again. The first race of the year will be March 29-30 at Gateway in St. Louis, where I currently hold the NASA Midwest TTC Record . However, NASA Central will be hosting this crossover event, giving me a chance to chase that region's TTC record as well! There is still a lot to do in the next week to get the car ready...looking forward to some warmer weather this weekend to help out!
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August at Mid Ohio

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Well I'm finally taking some time to catch up on the website. August at Mid Ohio was another sold out event with everyone preparing for Nationals the following. I again managed to take second place both days, in a field of 12 on Saturday and 11 on Sunday. With the packed field, it was tough to find open track (a hint of things to come), but I managed almost identical best times of about 1:38.6 both days. This put me about half a second off the lead, setting me up well for the National competition.
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Second At A Crowded Mid Ohio

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With two months to go until Nationals at Mid Ohio, the July Great Lakes event was PACKED. We had what must have been a record 57 TT cars putting in times and the traffic on the track reflected it. I came to the track with the same setup and tires as Grattan and was hoping to chase down both the regional TTC record of 1:41.974 and the National record of 1:38.723. However, due to (insert long list of excuses here), I wasn't up to the challenge. Nevertheless, I took home a solid 2nd place finish in a field of 8 TTC cars, behind Aaron Leichty in the #190 S2000 both days. This scored a pair of new tires and extended my lead in the Great Lakes season championship. Though I did break the previous regional TTC record with a best time from the first timed session of the weekend of 1:40.068, Aaron came out of the weekend with the honors of being the fastest TTC car ever on the Pro course with a 1:38.705 on Saturday. He even bested this time in a lap on Sunday, but in an incident eerily ...
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