revered pocono int'l
at start/finish line @about 120
sense of speed inside straight
approx traffic in group
tom's new slicks
sense of cornering loads
at speed inside straight
3 layers of nomex @ 100 degrees
a day at pocono
at 6:30-7:00 a.m. i roll into the infield to take it all in. It reminds me, at that hour, of the feeling on a golf course before rounds; early. Here, though, the grandstands and signage remind me of the great wins and heartbreaks experienced by dedicated drivers over the years.
the only thing missing is the music that cbs plays at augusta! then, the smells and sounds of prep work. cars rolling in. getting ready for tech inspections. the feeling of wanting to do well; of wanting a safe day. wanting to learn and to experience the excitement of a
legendary track.
there's a smell to the place. the quiet, methodical, tense beginning of a roaring, all out, hell be damned day.
we had, by my measure, 87 degree air temps. so, the track was, at it's hottest, probably
only 100. Not bad.
I did four runs. 25 mins ea. I did 125 mis altogether. I also did 6 mpg!! and ultimately ran out of gas. But fortunately, the gas problem surface when i was getting tired and decided to pass on the last run group.
I improved with each run group. The slicks are simply amazing, as is the car. I feel at one with the car now. I feel i can
be good on a tight course, only limited by my own fear on the straights.
This is an unusual course for me. The banking, of course. I've never done that before. You enter it at (at least i did) about 150mph. And you wonder how fast to drop down to the apex. You want to go down. But speed requires that you stay up and make your way to the apex more leisurely. Full throttle if you can, and track out on the banking to a remarkable dead left 90 degree turn that is the entry to the infield. The infield is a blast. 5 turns, good speed, but before you know it, it's back the the main straight carrying as much speed as possible.
Another interesting element of this outing was the multi-marque aspect of the event. i was chased by vipers, porsches, and corvettes. I
could stay with (but not pass) a porsche (highly modified RS America- a race car really), but handling the Vipers and Corvettes
pretty easily!! We had some interesting conversations after each run.
At one point, very unfortunately, someone laid oil on the track throughout the infield. They put stuff down that soaks this up, but for 5 turns, it is hairy.
I had no "off tracks" at all. My friend did, unfortunately. Another friend had to bail out after the back straight in his 550 marenello (same car as my other ferrari) when he lost brakes and gear change at once! We pulled him off the track in a
van. And (too bad) his day was over.
I hope his event proves inexpensive.
My speed at the end of the main straight was about 150. This was the fastest i've ever driven. The car was capable of more, but i didn't have the xxxx to push it. I think it would do 160, changing the way the subsequent sections would 'play'. That's a lot of speed, 3 feet from a concrete wall, not knowing, really, how far to carry it before 'falling' into the banking.
i'm sure i've left much out but i hope i gave you a good sense of the experience. It was a good group. Very few
mishaps. An amazing Nascar track. Full circuit (2.5 mis).
125 mis later, and with a few new creaks in the car, a successful day. Next
event, three days at the Glen (watkins, that is),