HMSA Laguna Seca Raceway Invitational 2007


LSR 2007
Last week my family was invited , with the help of Mr. John Streets , to attend the Laguna Seca Raceway Charity event. This event was significant because it honored the life of Rodney Smith who was recently killed while riding his bicycle. Rodney was a huge racing fan with a very unique car collection. Last year at the Monterey Historic Rodney drove one of Charles Mc Cabe's Coopers. Rodney was also very involved in the host of improvements to the Laguna Seca facility, including all the new buildings and bathrooms. I must say that anyone visiting Laguna Seca has benefited from Rodney and Ned Spieker's work.

So what happened? We arrived Monday afternoon and teched the car. We had a few new items on the car, a track timer, an new fuel tank (original tank had seen better days - fatigued aluminum resulted in many leaks) and new softer brake shoes (Porterfield R4s lining) . I was very nervous the last time I was at Laguna Seca I backed my car into the outside of turn 9 due to a brake problem. This also will be my first time to drive one of these ground pounding teeth shattering race cars.


Tuesday
Tuesday Morning we get to the track a half hour later than we hoped, as a result not everything was ready. I missed grid and the first practice is three laps in before we start the car. I am off to the pit. I arrive on the grid and they want to see everything the tech sticker my wrist band, and my eyeballs. Damn, I stall the car, forgetting to pump the fuel pump. Now I am dead with no pushers. John Streets comes to my side, asking if I need a push, I tell him to wait since someone should be right behind. 3 minutes later help arrives. I get almost a lap in and the car seems to be missing so I pull it in. All the 500 guy's come over John and Jay Streets, Charles and Gail McCabe, all interested in what happend to us. Charles gives us some great advise as usual. We swap stories, Jay having the best one, telling us how to turn a 500 without the steering wheel. We go over the car to see if we can find anything including changing the fuel filter and check the plug, pulling the side cover off the mag etc... We decide to step up the jets to a 1500 to play it safe and that everything looks good.



The afternoon race was much better but with a twist. I was nervous, one lap on the track and now I am in a race : ) Jay, Charles and I agree we should grid at the rear. We are in a real mixed bag group of mostly fendered cars mainly Lotus elevens, the only other non-fendered car is Mike Gillies in a Bugatti GP car. We wait until all the cars are off and then we line up at the rear. I just decide to go for it from the start. and start to haul in a few cars, first an eleven, then 2 xk 120s, next a Elva sport racer and a Morgan. I try to watch my mirrors but I cannot see anything they are pointing 20 ft out to the side. I cannot turn my head (hans device) back to see where Charles and Jay are. I keep on expecting them both to pass me. I am hoping to see how to drive one of these things. I get my own rythym, feeling better in the car, brake early turn and dump the throttle seems to work best. Right when I start getting a grove, a wicked vibration starts in the car, the type that causes everything to depart from the car. Next coming up the hill out of turn 6 the car loses power, I do all I can to make it to the corkscrew and it dies completely , did I hole a piston? I coast into the pits one lap short. Again everyone comes by, and Brid Cavveney a vintage motorcycle joins us as well. I discuss what happened, Charles checks to see if the compression sounds good, no bent valves , we think it is ignition or something. Then we check the fuel tank and it is BONE dry ! We did not take into account the fuel cell foam or the bigger jet. While looking over the car we see another set of issues. The rear body mount has shed a nut. The engine has vibrated lose, and the fire bottle mount had fractured as well as two of the fire lines. Trevor my brother and I tightened everything in site and button things up. We end up in the 48¼ fog making repairs until about 8:00pm. We think every thing looks good.


Wednesday
Wednesday we have the luxury of running our practice session later, but wait a minute we still run our race at 1:30 so we also have less time between sessions. We also notice that our bigger jet has compromised our Alcohol consumption. I make a call to my wife to drop by the karting shop 3 minutes away from my house and ask her to bring another 5 gallons . We get everything ready for the morning and are waiting when super star 500 racer Bob Wenz drops by, I am now even more nervous, I am now driving the car in front of the original driver of the beast who used to strike fear in larger cars with this mkX. We have lots more guest as well John Morton, and few visitors from England, and Stan Peterson (still racing and I think he is 80). We chat it up checking everything double check the fuel and we go off for the practice. This session goes much better. I get much more comfortable and feel I know the car better, I take things easy making sure I save the car for the race. After the session everyone drops by again including Jimmy Domingos, Karol Andrews, the Streets, and Charles. They are all excited to have three cars out. We feel great to be here too. These are the nicest group of racers there are. Jay asks me what times I was turning? I don't know but Bob tells me I turned a 2.00.54 minute lap, Which I think is pretty good. Jay tells me he turned a 2.04. and he too is feeling better in the car.



We prepare for the race. Assisting Charles with our fresh 5 gallons of Methanol. My wife and kids are here now along with my brother's children. We prep the car quickly and get everyone fed. I am now ready mentally and mechanically for the race. I finally feel I know the car enough to drive it. We grid at the rear again of the 16 cars in the race. I am the last to go off to make sure I do not stall. I am very very excited. on the recon lap I feel that the front brakes may not be working well so I stab the brakes and get to watch the front brakes lock up perfectly (must have been the nerves). We turn out of 11 towards the start/finish line and since I know my car is HP challenged I get on it early. I think that Jay is moving over to the left so I go to the outside up the straight. I know that if I can get to the outside I can go right around a few cars at the outside of turn 2 when they pile up. But Jay goes right so I am squeezed off the track, so I back off and go to the left. Going into turn two I fish my way though two or three cars. It is very spooky trying to pass these bigger cars especially the Jaguar XK120s. They seem to get more brave in the corners when you are trying to pass them. Because of the other cars all my braking and turn in points are being adjusted.

On the first lap I pass 5 cars. The next lap 2 more. Soon I am really getting comfortable sliding the car through turn three, flat in turn 4, flat in turn 6, flat through 10 etc... I am having a blast! I am finally catching cars that are closer in speed. The Croseley special are more fun to pass, I have to think a lot more about what to do etc.. I am closing on the blue special now and it is like a tractor beam causing me to go faster and faster. I finally catch it and pass it but up the straight even trying to tuck my body I cannot stay ahead. Into turn 2 I dive bomb inside an pass but as I am exiting the corner I start getting revs but the car is not accelerating like it used to... The clutch is going. I limp it around waving everyone by and come in. I had a complete blast ! After the race everyone comes by again with big smiles and congratualtions all around three 500's made it. Jay and I finally got comfortable in our respective cars. Jay in his first time on the track and the car turned a 2.01 or 2.02 minute lap.

I actually kept Bob Wenz and honest man (he told Jay I turned a 1:58 in the morning) with a 1.58.05 lap. We were in 6th when the clutch went, fastest car in the group (a Ferrari) turned a 1.49 second lap which was out of site. We checked the clutch and it was fried (we later took the clutch apart to find out that one of the discs had lost a tab and all plates were completely oil soaked - in the future we will clean the clutch before each race). Charles and Gail McCabe, Jay, and John Streets, Brid Cavveney, Jimmy and Karol, HMSA, and my family all made this event extremely fun. I am addicted now and cannot wait to drive the Cooper F500 again.

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