blubarisax

Excellent point Ian. Can't say that that speed with a pack of 3,000 lb cars made the most sense, but it sure was fun. I routinely get to 120 on the long straights with PCA, but stay well away from the big cars; except to keep right up with them in the corners!!! It would be lovely to have enough Caterham to run in a class of our own. Karl

140 was at 7600 rpm. The car felt fine, I had an instructor in the car urging me to go faster. Based on my gears and tires, I should run out of gears at 150 or so-given my 8200 redline. Who knows if wind resistance would prevent that top speed. I don't need to find out. I only had to slow to 100 in the banked corners!!!

More scary than fun actually... a good experience, don't need to do it every day. The twisties are more fun than a NASCAR track...

I got to run the full oval track at Pocono Raceway last Saturday... NASCAR in a Caterham is something. I zipped past a bunch of Porsches and one Ferrari (that had to bother him). The rest of the weekend we ran the double infield at Pocono and I had a great time. I finally got moved out of the green (beginner) run group and felt like I could keep up with the big cars. There is nothing more annoying than being on the but of a Porsche GT3 through all the turns only to have them not let you pass in the straight!!! Karl

I have been using Michelin slicks from Mog-racing.com. They are only lightly used and cost 50 euros, plus shipping. (I don't know the shipping rate as I got them mounted on wheels.) I have used the set six track days (4-5 runs/day), and they looked like they only had one day on them when I got them. They are still sticky once they warm up a bit. They come in a size 23/57-13 for the rears and 20/54-13 on the front. Avon also makes plenty of slicks that you can get at http://www.rogerkrausracing.com/

Mike, hope you can make it on Nov 12th. I'm in!

Well, apparently Croc knows all... SCCA apparently does not approve of sevens. We are stuck in the tube frame/open wheeled category. So no Lime Rock for me in the 22nd. I did to go to Lime Rock last weekend with the PCA and had a great time. PCA, NASA, SCDA all have no issues with sevens, I'm curious why the SCCA would be the outlier. Karl

Here is a company in the UK that makes pre-cut kits for Caterham in case anyone is interested. http://www.premierpaintguard.co.uk/caterham_paint_protection_film.html

Ron, I just sent the details for the Sound Check event by PM. Anyone else (Croc) in the NYC area who wants to test their sound levels to see if they pass the 88 dB limit is welcome. Karl

I used a little Warn ATV winch and glued a solar panel from Cabellas to the roof of the tralier. Throw in a couple of marine deep cycle batteries, a remote control for the winch and a disconnect switch and you will be all set. In fact, you may not even need a clutch at all this way. Karl http://i913.photobucket.com/albums/ac336/blubarisax/IMG00139-20110612-1639.jpg

Incase anyone is interested MoHud SCCA is hosting a HPDE at Lime Rock on October 22nd. The track should be beautiful this time of year and they still have openings. Yes there is a sound limit of 88 db, but if you stick a coke can in your exhaust you should be fine. I had one of these Dynatech Vortex Insert Cones inserted after my 4-1 collector and before the muffler. It made a good bit of difference in the volume and they claim there is now power loss. My mechanic says shoving a coke can with some holes poked in it up the tailpipe will do the same thing! Maybe now I can sneak up on Mike! :auto: Karl -----Original Message----- From: D.J. McArdle To: Karl Johnson Sent: Fri, Sep 9, 2011 9:49 am Subject: SCCA PDX @ Lime Rock Oct 22nd -Mohud SCCA Hello All, Mohud is holding it's second PDX On Saturday October 22nd at Lime Rock Park and we still have room for students and a few instructors. What is a PDX? High performance driver education ( HPDE) with a combination of classroom instruction, in car instruction and on track driving of course. Enjoy a nice fall day at Speed on the challenging LRP course. So if you are looking for some track time, have family or friends looking to see what you do with your race car or want to "give back" to a crew member --this is the opportunity. Pre registration required. Entry fee is $299 for SCCA members and $314 for non SCCA members ( temp membership) For thos of you used to our Patroon BMWCCA Driving schools, this will be the same format with many of the same faces -with some minor rules differences for car requirements by SCCA. More information is available here http://www.mohud-scca.org/PDX/If you cannot attend --please pass the word. See YaDJ

You can always trim a little off of the side of the carbon fiber seats with a sanding disk. A couple of washers under the seat rails helped me with the adjusting problem, the upper rail dragged on the floor.

I hope to make it up for Monday if my car is out of the shop.

We are still without power in Mahwah, NJ, my office nearby was just fine. Lots of employees called in with issues though. Tom, glad your new house is OK. I had a flight out to San Francisco on Saturday morning. All the flights out were cancelled Friday night so we hopped in the car and drove to Pittsburgh to get west. Barely made it, but ended up in San Fran on schedule to vacation with the kids. Karl

We are still without power in Mahwah, NJ, my office nearby was just fine. Lots of employees called in with issues though. I had a flight out to San Francisco on Saturday morning. All the flights out were cancelled Friday night so we hopped in the car and drove to Pittsburgh to get west. Barely made it, but ended up in San Fran on schedule to vacation with the kids. Karl

So Croc, I think you need to start a thread on carbon fiber goodies! I can't wait to see the CSR with the Exige GT3 rear spoiler wing and front splitter from ReVerie!!!

Stellar idea Mike!

My off was not too bad. I went into a corner too quickly for my cold tires. I braked a little late (like i normally did with warm tires) the tires locked up and I could not turn. Thankfully, I kept some control of the car and stayed on the pavement. Otherwise Saturday was a great day. We got in five runs of 30 min each. Today was interment heavy thunderstorms. The track chairman thought I might be OK at Lime Rock. Several guys suggested some sort of a baffle, one even suggested a makeshift soda can with holes shoved in the exhaust! Karl

I apparently Lime Rock has locals monitoromg the noise from the side of the track. The instructors should let you know where they are so you can lift as you pass by them. I think Lime Rock would be a fitting place for Ron's maiden track day. Croc, just so you feel better I had four wheels off at Watkins Glen on my first lap of the weekend. Apparently cold slicks don't stick all that well.

That's a disappointment. I'll have to get out my meter.

I have not driven at Lime Rock yet so I don't know how they test for noise. I am on a wait list for a Metro NY PCA event in September so I guess I'll find out. I'll ask someone this weekend how strict they are. RTR (Philly) PCA has an event at Pocono that anyone is welcome to come to on September 16-18. The thing about PCA is they are strict about instructors untill you have been signed off by a PCA club.

I'm headed back up to Watking Glen after work today for round two! This time with Metro NY PCA.

Mike, What, are you running straight pipes now as part of the secret sauce? Or is the diffuser creating that much turbulence noise? I am planning on just keeping the revs under 8000 so I'll be compliant. Never tested my car for db though. Karl

You can get Pagid R14 Black pads from Caterham UK. Very fun on the track.

There is a advanced HPDE at Lime Rock on Saturday October 29th. It would be fun to have some Sevens there. It's a bit pricey for half a day, but they get in 4 sessions per run group. I'll be there! https://www.scda1.com/events/detail_by_id/875070082 There is also a Mohawk Hudson Region SCCA HPDE the week before at Lime Rock that I also plan to attend! http://www.motorsportreg.com/index.cfm/event/event.requirements/uidEvent/D564E30C-AB00-C64C-A1ECD0956B878604 Croc, can I borrow that diffuser?