June Sprints Supertour 2017

[Robert Finlayson]

I think we have a legitimate chance of getting 20+ FE cars in this race! If you are planning on coming, get registered soon. The Chicago region is doing deferred billing so your card doesn't get charged until June 15th. Formula cars are getting preferred status regarding paved pit space, but you must register by May 19th for that, otherwise it will be open to all cars. So if you want to be on the pavement, you need to register by Friday.

Registered:
Rhett Barkau
Clemens Burger
Thomas Burt
Keith Carter
Sabre Cook
Eric Cruz
Matt Cutter
Jim Dziewior
Elliot Finlayson
Justin Gordon
Dennis Marklein
Ray Mason
John Mcaleer
Dean Oppermann
Lee Rackley
Becker Reardon
Daniel Smith
Total: 17

[SStadel]

Two more One Formula driver's should be entering soon: Elliott Sohn and Dale VandenBush. That puts us to 13 without 6 others that ran Blackhawk.

[Robert Finlayson]

Actually, that would put us at 14. Justin Gordon, from Florida, has now entered.

[Robert Finlayson]

Now up to 17 entered.

Still expecting:
Elliot Sohn
Dale VandenBush

Other possibilities:
Charles Duncan
David Budres
Mike Mueller
Marshal Mauney
Alex Conger
Paul Schneider (get over here!)

[Keith Carter]

We were originally going to pass on the Sprints since it's always kind of a circus in our race group and running with the FAs and xSR's, our race is always cut short, but the FE car count for the Mid-Ohio Super Tour race that we were planning to attend is horrendous!! We may opt for the Sprints instead since the car count is looking extremely healthy!

[Robert Finlayson]

Elliot is going to both mid Ohio and sprints. Pretty sure Dean is as well. No deferred payment there so no need to enter early.

[Keith Carter]

Elliot is going to both mid Ohio and sprints. Pretty sure Dean is as well. No deferred payment there so no need to enter early.

Right, but they do charge a $75 late fee for entering after May 5th... Not sure the rationale behind that...

[Peter Olivola]

Don't know if it's still the case, but the early cut off for the Sprints is due to it being a spectator event and RA wanting the entry information for inclusion in the program. Also, the size of the event, even with online registration, generates a lot of offline work for the registrar. Late entries just compound the effort required to be prepared at the event.

Right, but they do charge a $75 late fee for entering after May 5th... Not sure the rationale behind that...

[Keith Carter]

I can understand that with the printing of programs and whatnot. I was referring to the late fee for the Mid-Ohio Super Tour race deadline being a month in advance though with the $75 penalty. Are the Super Tour events spectator events too?

[Peter Olivola]

All SCCA races are spectator races but it's a question of whether the region and/or track consider it worth the effort. SCCA's sanction and insurance no longer differentiate, but track rental does as a spectator event requires additional security, ticket takers, etc.

I can understand that with the printing of programs and whatnot. I was referring to the late fee for the Mid-Ohio Super Tour race deadline being a month in advance though with the $75 penalty. Are the Super Tour events spectator events too?

[Keith Carter]

Just registered.... We're skipping Mid-Ohio, unfortunately, since it looks like a poor showing. We're at 15 cars now.

[Robert Finlayson]

Glad you're making the sprints. Steve says he has 2 more to enter. Dean Oppermann is coming. There is a new girl with 1st Alliance named Sabre Cook that is coming. Michael Mueller is at most races at RA, I believe he lives in Plymouth. Should make it to 20+.

For what its worth, Mid Ohio should have 6 or 7 entries. There is only 3 now, but Elliot, Dean and Sabre are coming. I thought Louis Concalves was coming too. Also the May 5th late fee date is a typo. It says elsewhere in the supps that on line entry closes at midnight on May 25th. After that date there is a $75 late fee.

[Paul Schneider]

Now up to 14 entered.

Still expecting:
Elliot Sohn
Dale VandenBush
Dean Oppermann
Keith Carter
Sabre Cook

Other possibilities:
Charles Duncan
David Budres
Mike Mueller
Marshal Mauney
Alex Conger
Paul Schneider (get over here!)

Guys, I'd love to go to the Sprints. We were planning on Mid-Ohio and Watkins Glen as well, But, this Majors/Super Tour season has been an utter disaster and I refuse to participate in any more events until I see a significant improvement in talent and green-flag laps. The amount of money and time we've spent vs. the amount of fun we've had this year is so disproportionate, it's not even funny. With that said, it's very hard to stick to my guns and not attend. I love the Sprints. We even toyed with the thought of renting an SRF3. But, we decided against that. So, I really hope the quality of racing drastically improves over the next few marque events. As of right now, we're going to run local regional races and work on setup.

[Robert Finlayson]

Updated to 16 entered and expecting 3 more. May not make 20 but still an awesome turnout. Can't wait for the race!

[MAC Racing]

Paul,
You should re-consider the sprints. Our group is FE, P2 and FM. Right now there are only 7 P2 and no FM entered. With a 4 mile track and a split start, even though its not our own group its about as close as we can get in the super-tour.

Mat

[Paul Schneider]

Paul,
You should re-consider the sprints. Our group is FE, P2 and FM. Right now there are only 7 P2 and no FM entered. With a 4 mile track and a split start, even though its not our own group its about as close as we can get in the super-tour.

Mat

Hey Mat, the class that I tend to have the most problems with IS P2. I want no part of them. There are only a few that I've run with that cause no issues. Also, running the Sprints would make three weekends in a row out of town for me and the wife would NOT be happy with that. Believe me, I want to go. But, life is conflicting and my unhappiness with how the Majors/Super Tours have been going has me bitter.

[SStadel]

According to his father Rick, add Quentin Nelson to the list. That should make 20 by my count. I understand Paul's concerns. Not getting a top 10 finish looks ugly on his resume. (you know I'm kidding).

[Paul Schneider]

According to his father Rick, add Quentin Nelson to the list. That should make 20 by my count. I understand Paul's concerns. Not getting a top 10 finish looks ugly on his resume. (you know I'm kidding).

.

Haha, you noticed that too?? The truth has been exposed...

[SStadel]

We're up to 20 cars registered! Third highest in class participation for the 2nd CenDiv Major in a row. Thanks guys. Sorry I've been so late getting something out about the series, but we are doing it again. We've also picked up a contingency sponsor in Brakeometer. They will be providing product certificates to the 4th place finishers of the Northern Conference Majors starting with the Sprints. They will also provide an extra product certificate for the series champion. I'll give out more details when I post the series entry form. I will have the necessary Brakeometer stickers at the Sprints. You will be required to display them on the car to qualify for the contingency.

If anyone out there is feeling bored, could you look up when the last time we had 20 or more FE's at a race? Thanks in advance.

[Paul Schneider]

We're up to 20 cars registered! Third highest in class participation for the 2nd CenDiv Major in a row. Thanks guys. Sorry I've been so late getting something out about the series, but we are doing it again. We've also picked up a contingency sponsor in Brakeometer. They will be providing product certificates to the 4th place finishers of the Northern Conference Majors starting with the Sprints. They will also provide an extra product certificate for the series champion. I'll give out more details when I post the series entry form. I will have the necessary Brakeometer stickers at the Sprints. You will be required to display them on the car to qualify for the contingency.

If anyone out there is feeling bored, could you look up when the last time we had 20 or more FE's at a race? Thanks in advance.

2007 ARRC?? Man, I can't believe I'm going to miss this. I made a choice to go to Indy this weekend instead.

[dsmithwc04]

2007 ARRC?? Man, I can't believe I'm going to miss this. I made a choice to go to Indy this weekend instead.

You mean you would rather get track time at Indy in preparation for the runoffs? Who would do such a thing!


Currently wiping all the dirt off the car and looking forward to the Sprints!

[skl48]

Have fun this weekend- hope the weather is good. Would be fun to be there and crew for Kent... Was wondering if his "old" car is there with the new owner??

Looks like a big group!

[dsmithwc04]

Race Monitor was really screwed up this weekend. It had me listed as not even starting Sunday and then somebody mentioned to us on our way home that SCCA had us listed as out of Sundays race as well. I picked up an Official results for both days just in case. We finished 8th Sat and 7th Sun. I could not get the car through the carousel nor the kink without major understeer no matter how much wing we cranked in the front. We played with tire pressures, ride height, toe, rebound, etc and my times stayed right at the mid 1:25's the whole weekend. This was the third event on the tires and unfortunately our stickers never ended up at the track like we thought but even so I've heard somebody was on their 20th cycle during practice on Friday so I don't think it was the old tires holding me back? We did have fun though and congrats to Dean on Saturday for the win.

[Keith Carter]

This was the third event on the tires and unfortunately our stickers never ended up at the track like we thought but even so I've heard somebody was on their 20th cycle during practice on Friday so I don't think it was the old tires holding me back?

We used our tires from Blackhawk for the practice session and the first qualifier which was the 5th and 6th heat cycle on that set. We went to sticker tires for the second qualifier and ran the same lap times. I heard around the paddock at both Blackhawk and Road America about 15+ heat cycles on a set of tires with no difference in performance from new tires. There may be some QC issues going on, but if that is resolved and If we could run two or three weekends on a set of tires and have as close as a race group as we've had at previous events, I think this second generation AR tire could be a great cost savings to the class and make it even more attractive to budget club racers. Sure, it would be cool to be running 2:16s at Road America like the Hoosiers allowed, but if you would rather go fast instead of participating in extremely competitive cost controlled open wheeled/winged club racing I think you may be in the wrong class/car.

[LarryWinkelman]

Race Monitor was really screwed up this weekend. It had me listed as not even starting Sunday and then somebody mentioned to us on our way home that SCCA had us listed as out of Sundays race as well. I picked up an Official results for both days just in case. We finished 8th Sat and 7th Sun.

Dan, it sounds like you have a transponder issue and were perhaps manually scored (but not necessarily timed) Sunday. A number of cars throughout the weekend had lap times in RM, but no sector times - which would also indicate transponder issues. You might want to check that it is charged or that the power wiring is intact, or have it checked at tech at your next event. Also, because RA is one of the highest speed S/F lines, mounting height may play a factor. AMB recommends 12" from the ground, I believe, so that the RF cone you "paint" along the surface is large enough to get picked up. Not sure that's possible on an FE, but higher than the floor might be ideal.

[dsmithwc04]

Dan, it sounds like you have a transponder issue and were perhaps manually scored (but not necessarily timed) Sunday. A number of cars throughout the weekend had lap times in RM, but no sector times - which would also indicate transponder issues. You might want to check that it is charged or that the power wiring is intact, or have it checked at tech at your next event. Also, because RA is one of the highest speed S/F lines, mounting height may play a factor. AMB recommends 12" from the ground, I believe, so that the RF cone you "paint" along the surface is large enough to get picked up. Not sure that's possible on an FE, but higher than the floor might be ideal.

Interesting, I'll have the tech folks check it at the Gingerman majors.

[Paul Schneider]

We used our tires from Blackhawk for the practice session and the first qualifier which was the 5th and 6th heat cycle on that set. We went to sticker tires for the second qualifier and ran the same lap times. I heard around the paddock at both Blackhawk and Road America about 15+ heat cycles on a set of tires with no difference in performance from new tires. There may be some QC issues going on, but if that is resolved and If we could run two or three weekends on a set of tires and have as close as a race group as we've had at previous events, I think this second generation AR tire could be a great cost savings to the class and make it even more attractive to budget club racers. Sure, it would be cool to be running 2:16s at Road America like the Hoosiers allowed, but if you would rather go fast instead of participating in extremely competitive cost controlled open wheeled/winged club racing I think you may be in the wrong class/car.

I agree that this generation of tires lasts a long time with ZERO drop-off. We have a set with 12 cycles and a set with 10. I feel no difference and see no difference in lap times. Also, the grids are much tighter now and the racing is much closer. Anyone can win. It's great for the class.

[mikey]

I suspect dan's transponder is just fine, because he showed up with times in the SCCA webpage results for Saturday

[riderxracer]

I suspect the new gen AR's will have more grip but will not last as long.

[Robert Finlayson]

It's true, we now have 20 heat cycles on our tires. We did put new tires on for qualifying at the Sprints, but didn't go any faster. We won the Super Tour race at Mid Ohio 2 weeks ago on our 19th heat cycle! If we go to Watkins Glen this weekend, we will run the older tires again. While I certainly enjoy the cost savings and the fact that the tires just don't seamto slow down at all, the overall grip leaves a lot to be desired. Hopefully, they will come up with something in the middle. Better overall grip that will last 2 weekends with little performance deteriation. I don't think any of us got into this thinking we could race 4 weekends on the same tires without any performance loss!

[riderxracer]

I feel sure they will get it figured out. Heck, they make one dirt tire in 11 different compounds. Some of their asphalt tires in up to 6 diff compounds.

[jcorsico]

I agree that the dropoff in performance on the 2nd generation of ARs is minimal (if at all) from cycle to cycle. That is a good thing.

But the overall grip level is noticeably down in comparison to the Hoosiers. The car is several seconds a lap slower. That is not a good thing.

So the final verdict? I don't know.

[Dale Carter]

I agree that the dropoff in performance on the 2nd generation of ARs is minimal (if at all) from cycle to cycle. That is a good thing.

But the overall grip level is noticeably down in comparison to the Hoosiers. The car is several seconds a lap slower. That is not a good thing.

So the final verdict? I don't know.

My 1st year in FF we ran a M&H hard as a rock spec tire that lasted for 9 race weekends. It was still a race and fun without breaking the bank. Running on a set of tires that are 2 seconds a lap slower than the old Hoosiers but last for 2 or possibly 3 race weekends lets us race more race weekends . How much are you willing to pay for 2 seconds a lap when everyone is on the same tire? I'm sure A/R and Hoosier want to sell tires. Buying new tires for every race weekend skews my fun to cost ratio.

[riderxracer]

It's probably one of those things that are easier said than done. We know that it can be done, Hoosier did it. But it also took them a couple of times to get to that great tire that we had. They have a big challenge to build a one compound tire that will work at all the different tracks in this huge country. Many different tracks with a range of different paving surfaces and wear, diff ambient temps and humidity,. My main concern is consistency in manufacturing that will give equal tires to all competitors. Also a comfortable tire slip angle that will give drivers a good feel, especially under braking. I know we are all hoping that will happen soon. My perfect tire would be one of great grip that will last for 12 heat cycles , 2 weekends of racing.