Spa 21/3/16

Strictly for tarmac whores
pete
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by pete » Sat Mar 19, 2016 10:09 am

campbell wrote:
mckeann wrote:Gutted i'm stuck in shetland just now. Would have loved a boys trip to Spa. Home on wednesday just slightly too late
You might still get there before them!!
Can you could keep the Evora warmed up as a backup car?

I'll call you if I need it...


:D :D :D
'99 - '03 Titanium S1 111S.
'03 - '10 Starlight Black S2 111S
'11 - '17 S2 135R
'17 - '19 S2 Exige S+
'23 - ?? Evora

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campbell
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by campbell » Sat Mar 19, 2016 10:29 am

pete wrote:
Can you could keep the Evora warmed up as a backup car?

I'll call you if I need it...


:D :D :D
Unfair. I realised recently how brilliant the Evora would be for such a trip. But if I can't do it (work calendar immovable), no one else gets to. Right?

Have a blast all the same :-)
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pete
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by pete » Wed Mar 23, 2016 9:24 pm

My first wet trackday... (I have been very lucky, I've been at a couple where it has started damp and dried out but this was properly wet).

Errm. It's the most scared I've been on a holiday since an incident in the wave pool in Rhyl Sun centre in 1978. Scared in a good way, (unlike the Rhyl incident) but ye gods feeling it twitch time and time again as I went up Eau Rouge was borderline terrifying - I was often going in excess of 25 mph if you can imagine that...

I don't think there was a corner I didn't overcook, or underbrake for, I span once but it was generally somewhat excellent... Robin and Donald tried to break me in the bar on day one and damn near succeeded though...

We were filmed and interviewed for French TV, understandable really the combination of my dashing good looks, astonishing driving skills and exquisitely prepared car. I'm quietly confident of getting a call from French Top Gear any day now...
Last edited by pete on Wed Mar 23, 2016 10:45 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Reason: Typos and grammar...
'99 - '03 Titanium S1 111S.
'03 - '10 Starlight Black S2 111S
'11 - '17 S2 135R
'17 - '19 S2 Exige S+
'23 - ?? Evora

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Stu160
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by Stu160 » Wed Mar 23, 2016 9:50 pm

Noce one Pete, I love Spa in the wet, and in the dry...usually on the same day, its just always great.
so were you interviewed as a future F1 star ?

Stu
S1 S160
Caterham 310R

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campbell
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by campbell » Thu Mar 24, 2016 2:02 am

Just glad you're all back, frankly.
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pete
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by pete » Thu Mar 24, 2016 8:04 am

campbell wrote:Just glad you're all back, frankly.
:D :D :D
'99 - '03 Titanium S1 111S.
'03 - '10 Starlight Black S2 111S
'11 - '17 S2 135R
'17 - '19 S2 Exige S+
'23 - ?? Evora

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robin
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by robin » Thu Mar 24, 2016 8:40 am

The difference in grip levels at Spa when it's greasy wet vs dry is hard to believe. It's common for the "wet line" to avoid all the apexes, braking zones, etc., but at Spa that is really true - you could go substantially faster off line - but every so often you end up on the dry line (traffic, letting people pass, whatever) and then you're slip sliding your way around the corner :-)

Towards the very end of the day a dry line appeared ... just for half an hour or so .. but it was great while it lasted. Unfortunately I suffered a sensor failure (the neutral detection mechanism) which meant that I only had 5,500 RPM to play with ... which was interesting when it kicked in mid corner!

On the way back we won the music quiz against stiff opposition (there were 30 germans in one team of unfortunate children who were on a school exchange with a school in Motherwell - they are in for an eye opener I think!) - we were awarded the prize of a bottle of prosecco (sp?) - only after we had given it away did we realise we should have staged a podium event spraying prosecco over each other. Perhaps a bit homoerotic for the Geordie Express though :-)

Cheers,
Robin

P.S. We had a huge delay getting on the ferry coming back ... some unfortunate had hidden themselves under a lorry but was spotted by some undercover spotters and then the whole port was on shutdown while they pissed about a lot doing nothing much :-)
I is in your loomz nibblin ur wirez
#bemoretut

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campbell
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by campbell » Thu Mar 24, 2016 9:39 am

Lol. Another epic trip missed!!
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BigD
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by BigD » Thu Mar 24, 2016 3:47 pm

Great trip to Spa and minimal snow which was great. I've never been round Spa in the Elise so was really looking forward to it. I had also fitted Nitron street series suspension over the winter and not had a chance to test it on track.

As was mentioned Spa was very wet and slippy, was very cold too (which is probably why it was so slippy) with 3 degrees showing on the sign at the circuit in the morning. Spent the morning doing numerous laps and as had been suggested the last time I was there by McKean staying completely off the normal racing line which had far more grip. It was really funny watching other cars going slowly slipping and sliding on the racing line, no doubt wondering why I wasn't and why I was on the 'wrong' line. :damnfunny

Afternoon started to dry and my final session (with 30 minutes left) was absolutely fantastic. Very few cars on track and a completely dry line as long as you stuck to it. This is when I really felt the benefit of the new suspension, being able to carry much more corner speed without the car being unsettled. And the weight shift I used to get was completely gone, even in the esses. It was a huge difference and even when the AD08's started to go off (which the ZZR's don't do) it was all very predictable.

Just had the one 'over run', I won't call it an off as I merely used a bit of the run-off at Pouhon after trying to hold a nice big rear end slide. :lol:

That setup with ZZR's is almost unimaginable............... :shock:

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BigD
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by BigD » Thu Mar 24, 2016 3:48 pm

p.s. I managed to delete all of my video and even though I have recovered it, it doesn't work. :oops: :cry:

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mckeann
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by mckeann » Thu Mar 24, 2016 3:57 pm

Glad you liked the wet line. I love Spa.

Planning to head back with the bike again at some point this year for a rematch.

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Ferg
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by Ferg » Thu Mar 24, 2016 3:59 pm

Sounds like a great trip. Very jealous.

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C7Steve
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by C7Steve » Thu Mar 24, 2016 4:29 pm

BigD wrote: That setup with ZZR's is almost unimaginable............... :shock:
Sorry for my ignorance D, but what do you mean?

New suspension and sticky ZZRs would be good or wet/greasy track and ZZRs would be tricky? :oops:

One of the instructors at KH who used to race told me that sometimes it's better to stay off of the (dry) racing line in the wet as it usually becomes very slippy with the embedded rubber in the tarmac and the rain lying on top and you get more grip by coming off of the line slightly in wet conditions.

Pity about your video not working, as I was looking forward to seeing it.


Steve.

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BigD
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by BigD » Thu Mar 24, 2016 4:42 pm

C7Steve wrote:
BigD wrote: That setup with ZZR's is almost unimaginable............... :shock:
Sorry for my ignorance D, but what do you mean?

New suspension and sticky ZZRs would be good or wet/greasy track and ZZRs would be tricky? :oops:
Unimaginable as in really, really good.......... Having used the ZZR's on Frolic, they were the only thing that kept me close to Mike (scib) as he had the AD08's but better suspension and I could see them going off after a few laps whereas the ZZR's didn't. Having decent suspension and ZZR's on a dry track, I just can't imagine how good they would be. Hopefully get to try at Croft. :thumbsup
C7Steve wrote: Pity about your video not working, as I was looking forward to seeing it.
Steve.
Yes, the video was working perfectly, .......... until I deleted it. :roll: :cry:

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mckeann
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Re: Spa 21/3/16

Post by mckeann » Thu Mar 24, 2016 5:15 pm

Seeing as D has let everyone down with a lack of videos, here's one of mine <bg>


https://vimeo.com/138607983

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