Those were the days...a field of 50 cars, going at it with hammer and tongs around the beautiful kettle moraine countryside. Plus a grid with David Hobbs, Paul Newman, and who could forget Willy T. Ribbs. Enjoy!
Showing posts with label Trans-Am. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Trans-Am. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 19, 2010
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Mike Skeen - Trans Am - Mosport
Mike Skeen is a driver that Scuderia Asino Grigio has great respect for. Not only is he a great driver who has proven that he has the ability to run at the front of the pack, regardless of the car or class, but he is a consummate professional that handles tough luck and tough situations well.
We hope to hear more and better news from Mike in the next series he competes in. Video and Words below courtesy of Mike Skeen. Enjoy!
Racing North of the Border
Round 3 of the 2009 Muscle Milk Trans-Am series was headed north of the border to the infamous Mosport International Raceway and thousands of enthusiastic Canadian race fans. This was the first time any of us at Atlantic Autosport had been to the facility, but we were excited about the opportunity to share a race weekend with the SCCA Pro Racing World Challenge series and some of Canada’s finest touring car drivers.
Arriving at the track midday Thursday, we were able to get the rig parked and set up in the paddock without any major trouble. We made final preparations to the car so that it would be ready for the promoter test day on Friday—my first opportunity to get on the track and forecasted to be the best weather all weekend.
Friday morning’s first session went very well as we got up to speed quickly with a baseline setup from Scott Murphy that was very good. We were already very close to the pace and had a good idea where we could pick up more time. However, the second session changed our weekend outlook.
After just a couple laps, I noticed the car start to sound a bit off-song, so I brought it to pit road where we could hear a significant valve tick. We ended the session early and took the car back to the paddock to find the adjuster bolt on the number four intake rocker arm stripped and loose.
We hunted the paddock for spares with generous help from our competitors, but none were a match for ours. Many locals pointed us to various shops and engine builders, but we still came up empty handed until we found Dan Boudreau, a local GM toolmaker of many years that happened to have a machine shop in his backyard. Within minutes, he had installed a screw thread insert in our rocker arm and we were ready to get the car back on the track. Unfortunately, we had already wasted the afternoon searching for a solution and missed all of the remaining Friday test sessions.
The weather forecast showed sporadic rain all day Saturday, but dry and cool weather all through race day. Rather than put extra time on the car for wet-weather practice, we left the car parked on Saturday and saved as much as we could for qualifying and the race on Sunday.
With very few laps on a new track and a car of unknown reliability, our goal for qualifying was to go out and set some baseline laps that would keep us in the top half of the field for the race start. After a couple laps, I had put in some decent times but I found myself in traffic and decided to pit for a basic check of the car. As soon as I stopped in the pit box we could hear a valve tick starting to develop again, so we parked the car early to avoid any unnecessary damage.
Back in the paddock we found that the push rod under our repaired rocker arm had been fractured on the tip and shortened to the point that the valve was out of adjustment. With a new push rod from our Canadian competitor, Blaise Csida, we were up and running again in time for the race.
We were optimistic with our fourth position on the grid, knowing we had a better pace than we showed in qualifying. With a clean start, I followed Trans-Am veterans Jorge Diaz, Tony Ave, and Tommy Drissi as we straightened out after the first turn. The car was handling quite well and the power felt respectable considering the abuse the engine had taken all weekend, but after a few laps I could feel and hear problems. It was tough to watch the leaders pull away when I pitted on lap four, but it was clear that the car had lost power and we were risking a catastrophic failure that could have oiled the track if I continued circulating. Rather than do that, we took the car back to the paddock and began to load up for the long haul home.
It is certainly frustrating to give up what could have been a great result, but as they say, “that is why we run the races.” To go to a new track with an under-developed GT-1 car and run competitively among an experienced Trans-Am field is quite an accomplishment for the Atlantic Autosport team. I am proud of what we have done with our second place at the series-opener and two strong runs to follow that up, but I am afraid we will not be at Round Four.
We accomplished our goal of getting on the track and acquiring some valuable experience. Now is the time to step back and develop our program to take advantage of the strong potential it has shown. Keep watching for us as we prepare for the future!
Round 3 of the 2009 Muscle Milk Trans-Am series was headed north of the border to the infamous Mosport International Raceway and thousands of enthusiastic Canadian race fans. This was the first time any of us at Atlantic Autosport had been to the facility, but we were excited about the opportunity to share a race weekend with the SCCA Pro Racing World Challenge series and some of Canada’s finest touring car drivers.
Arriving at the track midday Thursday, we were able to get the rig parked and set up in the paddock without any major trouble. We made final preparations to the car so that it would be ready for the promoter test day on Friday—my first opportunity to get on the track and forecasted to be the best weather all weekend.
Friday morning’s first session went very well as we got up to speed quickly with a baseline setup from Scott Murphy that was very good. We were already very close to the pace and had a good idea where we could pick up more time. However, the second session changed our weekend outlook.
After just a couple laps, I noticed the car start to sound a bit off-song, so I brought it to pit road where we could hear a significant valve tick. We ended the session early and took the car back to the paddock to find the adjuster bolt on the number four intake rocker arm stripped and loose.
We hunted the paddock for spares with generous help from our competitors, but none were a match for ours. Many locals pointed us to various shops and engine builders, but we still came up empty handed until we found Dan Boudreau, a local GM toolmaker of many years that happened to have a machine shop in his backyard. Within minutes, he had installed a screw thread insert in our rocker arm and we were ready to get the car back on the track. Unfortunately, we had already wasted the afternoon searching for a solution and missed all of the remaining Friday test sessions.
The weather forecast showed sporadic rain all day Saturday, but dry and cool weather all through race day. Rather than put extra time on the car for wet-weather practice, we left the car parked on Saturday and saved as much as we could for qualifying and the race on Sunday.
With very few laps on a new track and a car of unknown reliability, our goal for qualifying was to go out and set some baseline laps that would keep us in the top half of the field for the race start. After a couple laps, I had put in some decent times but I found myself in traffic and decided to pit for a basic check of the car. As soon as I stopped in the pit box we could hear a valve tick starting to develop again, so we parked the car early to avoid any unnecessary damage.
Back in the paddock we found that the push rod under our repaired rocker arm had been fractured on the tip and shortened to the point that the valve was out of adjustment. With a new push rod from our Canadian competitor, Blaise Csida, we were up and running again in time for the race.
We were optimistic with our fourth position on the grid, knowing we had a better pace than we showed in qualifying. With a clean start, I followed Trans-Am veterans Jorge Diaz, Tony Ave, and Tommy Drissi as we straightened out after the first turn. The car was handling quite well and the power felt respectable considering the abuse the engine had taken all weekend, but after a few laps I could feel and hear problems. It was tough to watch the leaders pull away when I pitted on lap four, but it was clear that the car had lost power and we were risking a catastrophic failure that could have oiled the track if I continued circulating. Rather than do that, we took the car back to the paddock and began to load up for the long haul home.
It is certainly frustrating to give up what could have been a great result, but as they say, “that is why we run the races.” To go to a new track with an under-developed GT-1 car and run competitively among an experienced Trans-Am field is quite an accomplishment for the Atlantic Autosport team. I am proud of what we have done with our second place at the series-opener and two strong runs to follow that up, but I am afraid we will not be at Round Four.
We accomplished our goal of getting on the track and acquiring some valuable experience. Now is the time to step back and develop our program to take advantage of the strong potential it has shown. Keep watching for us as we prepare for the future!
Tuesday, March 24, 2009
Mike Skeen - Trans Am Road Atlanta
A fantastic showing from talented racer and all-around good-guy Mike Skeen.
You may know Mike from his his winning record in Spec e30's or from his fantastic showing on the series Set-up. All I know is that he acted like a complete gentleman everytime Tommy Kendall pontificated about what it takes to be a great driver, (which seemed to go on and on, and don't even get me started about the co-host, Ms. DUI herself). Anyway congrats again to Mr. Skeen.
A write-up of the action and video of the event from Mike's car follows.
Driving the No. 6 Muscle Milk Jaguar XKR, Pickett started third behind polesitter Tony Ave’s No. 10 McMahon Group/Stumpf Ford Mustang and Tomy Drissi’s No. 5 X-Men Origins – Wolverine Jaguar XKR and fell back another position at the start to fourth-starting R.J. Lopez, of Bal Harbour, Fla.BRASELTON, Ga. (March 22, 2009) – Greg Pickett, of Benicia, Calif., captured his 17th-career Trans-Am win today at Road Atlanta, the season-opener for the Muscle Milk SCCA Trans-Am Series and the first Trans-Am race since 2006. Michael Skeen, of Charlotte, N.C., and Amy Ruman, of Kent, Ohio, completed the top three.
Ave built a six-second lead in the opening seven laps over Lopez, Drissi and Pickett. On lap eight, Lopez began to separate his No. 06 WabashPower.com/Mobil 1/Goodyear Chevrolet Corvette from the pair of Jaguars and started to reel in Ave’s Mustang. Ten laps later, Lopez was all over Ave and took the lead on lap 20.
From there, Ave fell back into the clutches of the pair of Jaguars, eventually dropping from second to fourth on lap 24, with Pickett moving to second and Drissi remaining third.
All the while, Rookie Skeen, known to the road racing community from the 2008 television show Setup, was slicing through the field after starting last (19th) in his No. 70 Atlantic Autosport Chevrolet Corvette. Two laps later, he was clear of Ave with his sights set on the Jaguars of Drissi and Pickett.
In the meantime, Lopez drove away to a four second lead and looked to be in good shape to take a Trans-Am Series debut win. In traffic, Pickett was able to bring the gap down to the two second range, but on lap 32, it was back up to nearly three seconds. Eight corners later, it was all over, as the Corvette’s motor expired on the back straightaway without warning.
“It just went,” Lopez said. “I was 100 percent sure I had the win. I was starting to cruise, saw Pickett coming after the traffic and was able to pick the pace back up. Next time…”
At the same time Lopez’s motor was expiring, Ave tangled with another car and ended up in the Turn One gravel, ending a run that started with his first series pole earlier in the day. Both incidents brought out the full-course caution and when the field came around to be picked up by the pace car, Pickett was in front, with Drissi second and Skeen third.
As the cleanup ensued, it appeared that the final three would be locked in with the 36-lap, 91.44-mile contest ending under yellow, but on the final tour, Drissi’s Jaguar sputtered to a stop with a fuel pickup problem, promoting Skeen to second and Ruman’s No. 30 McNichols/Goodyear/Cenweld Corp Chevrolet Corvette to third.
“This is a little fairy tale, winning the first race in the series that Muscle Milk sponsors,” Pickett said. “I’m just tickled for the SCCA and our Muscle Milk brand. Trans-Am is back!
“It was a difficult race. I’ve done a lot of these races, and you can’t push too hard—it just won’t work over the course of a race. RJ [Lopez] was going faster than I wanted to go at that point. But he was gradually coming back to me. It was too bad for him, but look—we have two GT-1 cars on the podium. That’s fantastic. We need more people to bring their GT-1 cars out to race with us in Trans-Am!”
Skeen earned the Flowmaster Star of the Race Award and the Sunoco Hard Charger of the race for his drive from 19th to second. He set a new Trans-Am Series lap record during his run to the front of 1:22.650 (110.635 mph). Skeen was visibly exhausted after the race.
“This is our first race this long and I don’t have a cool suit,” Skeen said. “In fact, we’ve only had the car a month and weren’t really sure we were coming until last week. In qualifying, we had a wheel separate and didn’t turn a time. We knew we would have a good pace because we were good in practice and that was on old tires—we only had one set of sticker tires.
“From the start, we just went for all the marbles. I knew I was catching the Jaguars, and figured Tony [Ave] was running away. Toward the end, I was starting to get hot, but I was still keeping up. It’s great to finish second.”
Ruman started sixth and ran seventh for the first 20 laps before gradually moving up as other cars retired. When, Drissi stopped on course on the final lap, she wasn’t sure what to do and didn’t realize where she’d finished until after the checkered flag fell.
“This is just awesome,” Ruman, who equaled her father Bob Ruman’s best finish of third, said. “This McNichols team has worked so hard for so long. [Jeff] Emery and I were battling for a long time and when I got clear, I was about 14-15 seconds off the cars ahead of me and we were trying to close in and were beginning to. It really fell our way today in the end.”
Ruman’s accomplishment was particularly impressive as she was competing with a 310ci engine in a sea of larger-displacement powerplants.
John Schaller, of Fort Myers, Fla., moved from eighth on the grid to finish fourth in his No. 08 JRS Motorsport/Central Power Distribution Chevrolet Camaro, followed by Drissi, who was the first car one lap down.
Daniel Ramoutarsingh (Jaguar), Jon “Chevy” Leavy (Camaro), Bob Monette (Corvette), Glen Jung (Mazda RX-7) and Rob Foster (Corvette) completed the top 10.
After the race, Pickett revealed that he would donate his winnings to series programs that help GT-1 racers get to future Muscle Milk SCCA Trans-Am Series events.
The series next travels to VIRginia International Raceway April 17-19 as part of the North Carolina Region Double National weekend. For more information, please visit www.sccatrans-am.com.
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