Battlecry..!!!!!

[Mike]

Also, if you guys are at all interested in finding out more about the GTM-R as well as The Team, you can visit our team website at www.pdg4.com. (Ron/Fran-this is an informational site only-nothing for sale there- hope this is OK)

You can also see some of our videos on YouTube by searching "durbin gtm". A bit of HQ in car stuff.

 

[Mike]

None of you fellows are racing slicks are you?

DOT Hoosier R6s or Kumhos are fairly serious race tires and will net pretty good times for cars like these.

Don't know what the SLC will be running, but I assume slicks. We, the GTM, will be running a combination of Hoosier tires. They aren't the all out fastest setup, but, as you can probably gather, we are on a budget.:embarassed:

 

[John]

Crash,

How many sets of tires do you expect to go through for the race?

 

[Mike]

Fronts, we may get away with 1-2 tire changes the entire race. In other words, we will only use 4-6 tires for the front if tire wear is as anticipated and they remain fast throughout.

Rears, probably looking at 5 tire changes, for a total of 10 tires.

So total you are looking at 14-16 tires for the whole event...so long as they stay fast. Our testing shows that tread wear will not be an issue, but the only real test we will have for going more than 3 hours on the tires will be the race itself. Hoosier assures us they will last, but we bought extra just in case.

Our total tire budget is under $5k.

We also run on 91 pump gas, or the cheapest thing we are made to use, so our fuel budget is low also.

 

[Ron Earp]

Our testing shows that tread wear will not be an issue, but the only real test we will have for going more than 3 hours on the tires will be the race itself. Hoosier assures us they will last, but we bought extra just in case.

.

They'll last I think. Ho hos are pretty good as you are essentially not putting multiple heat cycles on them, which is bad for them, but you're just using the rubber up. Sooner or later the rubber is gone, but I bet they stay fresh and fast up until they are worn out.

 

[Mesa]

A 52 at TH is hauling the mail! (cars are faster than bikes - like for like) Is that with the 'car' turn 5? Or do you do the 'bike' version and go all the way up to the top of the hill in turn 5 ? Not so many years ago the lap record for a Superbike was a 52 there. I think bikes are in the mid 45s now.

 

[Mike]

1:52 was done with the "bypass". Same as how the track will be run at the 25.

Running the "crows nest" as it is sometimes called, will typically add about 2 seconds to the lap times. At least that's what our data system shows the lap times to increase by for us.

 

[Mike]

BTW- I can't even imagine what it would be like to run the crows nest on a bike. No doubt visibility would be better than in a low car, but even with all our down force, we get airborn and the landing can be a bit rough since we can't see where we are going to land. Again, just can't even imagine the nuts it takes to be fast on a bike over the "crows nest". The bikes must literally fly over that turn!

We get airborn even when running the bypass, and that's scary enough. Doesn't look like anything from the view from the pits, but from the drivers seat....YEE HAW!!

 

[Mesa]

It's not so bad - I didn't have a big 'ol hood blocking the view so I could see EXACTLY where I was going to crash On bikes we don't get airborne as the landing would be unmanageable - fill lean angle with both wheels off the ground would be a problem. Front wheel, yes, both wheels, no. If the bypass allows a little or no lean angle of attack then bikes would easily get both wheels off the ground. Not saying it would be safe - as some club racers are not exactly ready for 'Isle of Man' type landings, but using the bypass you'd have to learn to land or get whipped pretty bad. Surely the 'crows nest' is the better option for most bike racers.

I am def going to try and make it to the 25 this year, who knows, if Fran sticks me on pit duty you guys might walk away with it.....knowing me I'd stick on two wheels and call it good to go!

 

[Howard Jones]

I"ve run it both ways. With and without the seca want-a-be turn. I like the track better with the by pass. Maybe it's because the overall lap just seams to flow better, at least to me. I also understand that this track is run backwards from time to time. Never done it, but I think it would be pretty cool. The bypass is run when it is done backwards I believe.

The mid 30s Alantic laps I saw were without the bypass and with the seca turn. Those guys were getting down the front straight flat out just touching the brakes to set the front end and doing a little bitty lift into the 1st turn. I would NEVER have believed it if I had'nt seen it with my own eyes.

52's are real fast boys. We got our hands full.

 

[Mike]

The car looks pretty impressive. Guess we'll need to bring some CHICKENS!!:idea:

 

[Terry Oxandale]

Wouldn't the "damned if you win, damned if you don't" be somewhat negated with another "stock" entry. Risky at best, but imagine if it placed ahead of the GTM-R, which is what I would expect.

 

[Fran Hall RCR]

Terry...the GTM-R is very far from Stock...I talked with the owner at length today...

I would love to run a stock for stock pair of cars with exactly the same engine and trans packages...anyone with a GTM fancy a go.???..my car is ready to go anytime.

 

[Mike]

Terry...the GTM-R is very far from Stock...I talked with the owner at length today...

Not as far as some of us would like it to be!

Why don't you help us with some more of the mods, and we'll put the RCR name on the car as a sponser?:chug:

 

[Fran Hall RCR]

Richard offered me that deal a year or two ago when he was even more upset with FF than he is now....

If you guys had called RCR before FF you would have been driving an SL-C instead...I told Richard of the deal he could have had earlier today...:thumbsup:

 

[Mike]

If you guys had called RCR before FF you would have been driving an SL-C instead...I told Richard of the deal he could have had earlier today...:thumbsup:

I guess you don't remember our phone conversations then, huh? I told you I wanted to build an endurance racer before I went the FFR GTM route, and because I wanted to change a couple things on the SLC you told me you wouldn't sell me a kit!

So don't tell me you would have supported us had we talked to you a couple years back, fact is I DID!

That said, I'm still in the early stages of my GTM-R version 2.0 build if you want to talk turkey? The body work alone is gonna cost me >$20k!!

 

[Fran Hall RCR]

You are not Richard and you came at me with both guns blazing..you did not talk...you shouted..."oh yes" just the kind of approach that makes a manufacturer want to get involved in a long term project.......you have no idea of what I do/have done behind the scenes for RCR/Superlite owners....both street and trackday guys....

Why would I want to get involved with GTM-R2?..if the bodywork is going to cost you 20k then I guess its an "unlimited budget car"...:stunned:

 

[Mike]

I wasn't talking about you being a part of a GTM-R build, I was talking about still being interested in an SLC-R build.:drunk:

Really gonna be the same car either way, I could just save a ton of $$ in not having to have molds made because my mods to an SLC body would basically be nil.

 

[Fran Hall RCR]

So...with all the changes you would potentially like to make to the SL-C would you then tell everyone how its basically stock really ...much like I have read about the GTM-R...??...seeing as I would actually be a potential sponsor...not like FF on the GTM-R

 

[Mike]

Fran, I NEVER represented that MY GTM would be anywhere close to an "as delivered" GTM kit. To the contrary, to those that I have talked to about it I have said that it would be about as close to a GTM as a ALMS GT Aston Martin, or a Trans Am Jaguar is to their corresponding production cars. I mean really you know the truth about REAL race cars. They are only as close to the actual production cars they represent as the bodywork that is hung on them, and maybe their powerplant to some extent.

Would it really be so bad to start from scratch on the frame of an SLC race car with the sanctioning bodies rules as the primary guide as opposed to having to put in a "20 point cage"?

I mean let's face it, there are always compromises made when building a car that needs to meet DOT specs as opposed to racing specs. You know that.

As our conversation went years ago, I want all out performance, and am willing to pay for it, I'm just not willing to pay for things I don't need.

Again, had you had the options you have now a couple years ago, I would probably have an SLC body sitting in my shop instead of a GTM!