Even though many people double dip, this was my first foray into two races in a single day. This meant two warm ups, two qualifying sessions and then two races. My regular group – Spec Miata – was now familiar. But, for the second race, I would have to compete in the Performance Touring category, and with a Miata, I would be in PTE (E being the appropriate weight-to-hp classification for my car). But, PTE isn’t a big enough group to get the track all to themselves. So, they run as a group with every thing from PTF (slower than PTE) to Super Unlimited (almost a Formula race car) - like these...
Was I actually ready to do that? Well, I guess I’d find out.
Spec Miata (Group A) warm up first. Nothing unexpected. Then, comes the Group C (PTE and everything else) warm up. What a difference in speed! And, driving skill. I guess when you race a car like that, you had better be good. On the downside, we also have the Legends cars – little tiny cars that are powered by 1100cc motorcycle engines. Quoting a friend, “I wish we knew what they were going to do, because that would be one of us!”
and Thunder Roadsters...
In some ways, it was crazier, but on the flip side, I didn’t have to run with the E30 drivers, who are insanely aggressive. But, despite the wide range of car performance, and the feeling that things were less in control, everything went fine.
Both qualifying sessions and both race sessions went fine as well, and I finished Saturday with two more races under my belt. Six down, two to go.
Sunday turned out to be equally uneventful, for all six sessions, so I emerged from the weekend with full racing status (i.e., non-rookie).
YIPPPEEEEE!!!
It turns out, I didn’t need to go down to Buttonwillow to finish after all. But, a track beckoned.