GT400: 12 Hours of Sebring

[fndrbndr]

(I've decided that, since we're supposedly airing this on Speed, I should write up a short pre-game show.  I'll probably do an after-race wrap up as well, and possibly interviews.  Here goes...)

It's been a while since these teams were on the track, and even longer since some of them were on U.S. soil.  Today, Forza-tuning.net opens a new chapter, turning to production-class endurance racing.  We start with the grandaddy of 'em all, the 12 Hours of Sebring, next on Speed...

(cut to booth)

CF:  Hi, I'm Calvin Fish, here with Dorsey Schroeder.  Welcome to the 12 Hours of Sebring.  We're really not sure what to expect today.  Isn't that right, Dorsey?

DS:  That's right, Cal.  Two of the favorites have dropped out.  Spiny's Slow Tunes, winner of last year's Clio Cup, won't be attending this week, though he points out that this guarantees that he can improve his finishes as the season goes on.  Similarly, well-known hot shoe Snyder and the V12 Iridium Racing car will be notably absent today. 

CF:  That really should open up the field.  As I understand it, the smart money had both of them on the podium.

DS:  Well, as you know, it's endurance racing, and anything can happen.

CF:  That's right.  One of the questions for the teams going into this season was how to balance speed and consistency.  Brian Till has an explanation in the pits.  Brian?

BT:  That's right, Calvin.  Several teams have decided to forego the fastest hotlap setups in favor of more manageable, race-friendly designs.  That's partly because teams are choosing their tires very carefully, making sure they'll last.  I'll try to have a few interviews before the race, if I can pry any of these teams away from their last-minute preparations.

CF:  Thanks, Brian.  It's about an hour til the qualifying run, so we'll pause right now for a commercial break.

[Open2nd]

CF: And we're back here live from Sebring for the GT400 12 Hours of Sebring presented to you by Forza-Tuning.net!  Just roughly 20 minutes out from the start of the 2009 Season, and the track is a buzz with activities as the racing teams prepare for quite possibly the most grueling race of the year, right Dorcey?

DS: Absolutely Calvin, and we're going to head down to the pits to catch up with Brian to see if he has any word from the teams.

BT: Thanks guys, I've managed to catch up with Open2nd, team owner and driver of the Rain-X Mazderspeed RX-8.  Open, it hasn't exactly been a secret that you were also developing a Toyotar MR-2 for this season, yet you've shown up with the Mazder.  Any real reasons why?

O2: Well Brian, we got the Toyota late in the off season, and while it did have impressive speed, we thought the MazdA was far more consistent in the longer runs.  That was enough for me, and the decision was absolute.  I just hope it doesn't come back to bite us later down the road.

BT: Have you heard yet that Spiny Anteater and v12 Iridium have both dropped out of today's race?  What does that mean for your team?

O2: I have indeed.  Its disappointing and at the same time I'm a little relieved about it.  Both of those guys are wickedly fast here, and we were struggling to keep pace with Spiny while Snyder drove off into the sunset at practice.  Still, I'd much rather have the competition, it tends to push you farther as a driver.  That said, there are still some phenomenal teams lined up for the day, and I'm positive the action will be intense.  If you'll excuse me now, I've got to get back to the car for last minute prep.  Thanks!

BT: Thanks Mr. 2nd.  Best of luck to you today out there.  Back to you Calvin.

CF: All right, there you have it folks.  We'll be back in just a moment.

[fndrbndr]

DS:  And we're back.  Tiny Terror Racing had some mixed results last season.  Brian is with driver Fndrbndr in the pits.

BT:  Thanks, guys.  I'm with Fndrbndr, driver for Tiny Terror Racing.  You had a bit of a roller coaster season last year.  Your thoughts?

Fndr:  Yeah, that's part of why I'm so excited to do endurance racing.  Last year, we were quick whenever we stayed out of trouble.  Our thinking is that the longer courses and higher lap counts will give us more time to work.  Also, spec racing can be rough that way, so the switch to production racing might be good for the garage.

BT:  You mentioned the switch to production racing from spec cars.  Didn't the costs go up with that?

Fndr:  Yeah.  We run a side business customizing street cars and track cars.  We're located between two major universities, so business is decent, and a lot of people like knowing they're getting the real deal.  But yeah, the testing was expensive, because the rulebook is open to virtually anything.  We were lucky because of our connections with Mazdaspeed.  They have a lot of great stuff, and their contingency deals are better than anyone in the business.  They say if you wanna build the best race car, you start with the best road car.  Well, the guys over at Mazdaspeed make it even easier; It's cheaper to build the best race car.

BT:  Sponsorship dollars well spent.  Back to you, guys.

[bimmerlovere39]

DS: Looks like Brian's down in the paddock with another one of the teams.  Down to you, Brian.

BT: Thanks Dorsey.  The guys down here at JEi have been so busy prepping their racecar for the race that they are putting the finishing touches on its livery as we speak!  I'm here with Bimmer, owner of JEi Track Cars and driver of the #97 BMW M3.  Now, as you might have noticed, this car is unique in this field, as it is the only car here not running with any special aerodynamic devices.  Why'd you go that route, Bimmer?

Bimmer: We considered running a full BMW Motorsport M3-GTR aerokit, but after testing, the aerokits didn't cut our lap times down noticeably, and due to the series's restriction on repairing body damage in the pits, we decided it was the safer choice to develop the car purely on mechanical grip.

BT: Certainly a unique choice at this level of racing.  How do you feel about the race today?

Bimmer: I think we've got a strong chance, Brian.  Last year, we were a late entry into the Clio Cup, which did a lot of damage to any championship aspirations.  Despite that late entry, however, we had podium speed, and ended up finishing surprisingly well in the championship.  I think that our M3 is far better prepped than the Clio ever was, and I think we've got the speed and consistency to keep up with the #79 and the #170 rotary cars.  Keeping up with Spiny and Snyder, however, is a much more difficult task.  With them sadly out of the race, I think we may have a shot at a podium today.  The car is really well adjusted to this track - the Dinan motor is really giving us a good pull at the end of the straights.

BT: Any secret strategy tips you can let us in on?

Bimmer: Run hard, run fast, and don't hit anything.

BT: Fair enough.  Looks like the cars are going onto the gird.  I'll let you go.  Thanks.  Back to you in the booth.

[Open2nd]

Good race guys.

[fndrbndr]

(This really is the play-by-play that would have occurred on the last two turns, and it's pretty much the commentary Bimmer and I provided as we dueled for second)

DS:  They're coming onto the back stretch, and it looks like a win for Ferarri.  Second place will be....wait, looks like the Mazdaspeed RX7 has a run on the JEi car....and he's by going into the last turn!  The Silk Cut Ferarri will take first, and the Mazdaspeed car comes wide out of the last turn!  The JEi car dives underneath!  He's by, but the RX7 has a run on him....It's not enough! 

CF:  Looks like he missed a shift, or hit the limiter or something, but I'm not sure he'd have caught the JEi car anyway.  Times are coming in, and it looks like, over 50 laps, the entire podium is separated by four seconds!

DS:  That's right, Cal, and the #2 and #3 finishers had the same time to the second!  What a way to start the series!

CF:  You said it, Dorsey!  We have to take a commercial break, but we'll be back with driver interviews and commentary after this....

Finishing Order
BBQ Pete (Silk Cut GTO)
Bimmer (Heidi)
Fndrbndr (Mazdaspeed RX7)
Open2nd (Rain-X RX8)
DNF-DirtDriver (RX7)

[fndrbndr]

(Normally, I guess they'd interview the winner first, but since it's about 4AM in Britain, I'll go ahead and get the ball rolling.)

CF:  And we're back.  The Silk Cut Ferrari, driven by Barbecue Pete, took first.  Pete battled gamely through technical difficulties throughout the race to hold on for the win (translation: lag).  The winner is unavailable at the moment, but Brian has managed to track down one of the podium finishers in the pits.  Brian?

BT:  Thanks, Calvin.  I'm here with Fndrbndr, third place finisher.  It was a tough day for Tiny Terror Racing, but there are some positives.  Your thoughts on the race?

Fndr:  If you'd told me going in that I'd take the pole, lead about half the race, and have the fastest lap, I'd never guess I'd come in third.  But yeah, it was a great race, and it went right down to the wire.  My hat's off to Pete and Bimmer for a great race.  It's like you said, though, there were a lot of positives.  The Mazdaspeed car really put down the power.  The suspension was good.  The Stoptech brakes were really nice, too.  The car felt good, and I think I'd have given myself a better shot if I hadn't clipped the wall in turn 1 about halfway through.  Oh well, coulda shoulda woulda, right?

BT:  Indeed.  Back to you, Cal.

[BarbecuePete]

CF: Thanks Brian... Well what an exiting opening race to the season this race was. I'm sure the guys at Tiny Terror racing will be a little disapointed to have ended up third here after leading for so long but they sure look strong for the rest of the season and i'm sure Fndr will be taking some wins don't you think Dorsey?

DS:  Sure thing Brian, In pre season the all the talk was on the Silk Cut Ferrari of BarbecuePete going to romp away here but it was touch an go for a while with only managing 3rd in qualifying and finding that Tiny Terror RX7 was no easy car to pass. It sure looks like were set for a thrilling season... and wait, I'm just hearing now that Brian is with the race winner, BarbecuePete, Brian...


BT: Thanks Dorsey, So Barbecue, great way to start the season with a win, How you feeling now and how have your preperations been for the season?

BP: Thanks Brian, I'm thrilled to have taken the first race of the season, it sure was a tough race but pre season testing has been good and we're confident we have a good car for this season, especially here at Sebring. Its great too for all the guys in the garage that I could bring the car home in first, they really have been working flat out to get this car prepped and they've really given me a great car.

BT: Like you say your car has been strong all through pre season, so were you suprised when you only qualified 3rd?

BP: Not really Brian, our car has been set up for longer runs and so we do struggle slightly in qualifying. I was happy with third though it still left us in a good position for the race.

BT: So starting third you had a good start and made second but you had to trail Fndr for quite some time in the race, were you confident you'd get past him eventually?

BP: Well... I gotta say Fndr did have me worried for a while, I was able to follow him but he was driving really well and just I couldn't find a way around him on the track. I sure was glad when he made his second stop early and it allowed me a couple of laps in clean air to be able to get back out in front of him after my pitstop a couple of laps later.

BT: It sure was great to watch, Congratulations again on the win Pete, Back to you in the studio...


Promotional Material - Winners Photographs 

[Open2nd]

February 9, 2009
O2R Press Release:

I want to preface this by saying that I'm supremely grateful for the continued support from everyone.  I hope that everyone is as eager as we are about the rest of the seaon.  I'm sure you all know the results of the 12 Hours at Sebring event.  Due to our qualifying and finishing 4th out of 5 teams competing, Rain-X has decided that its sponsorship money could be better spent elsewhere.

That leaves us here at O2R in a tight spot for financing, with most of the practice and prep time having been paid for by the Rain-X sponsorship.

With that said, we're already on the search for a new main sponsor for the next race at Laguna Seca.  Myself, along with the rest of the team, are optimistic despite the news today.  We've had good results at Laguna in the off-season sessions, and we're looking forward to the race there this Sunday.  The car will be in a new livery, look for its unveiling later this week, after we've secured new sponsorship.

Thanks again for the support, we look forward to seeing you in California!

-Open2nd

[bimmerlovere39]

CF: I still can't get over how close that finish was, Dorsey.

DS: Me too, Cal.  That was some great racing.  Looks like Brian has managed to track down another podium finisher.  Down to you, Brian.

BT: Thanks guys.  I'm down here with Bimmer, driver of the #97 car.  It was a pretty good day here at JEi, talk us through the race as you saw it.

Bimmer: Wow... just wow.  That was a LOT of fun.  First off, I want to give a big thanks to the guys for giving me a great car today.  I drove a weak opening lap, and fell from third to the tail end of the field.  I drove the car as fast as I could.  I was able to catch up with Open, and had a good fight with him for several laps.  The Michelin tires really gave me great wear characteristics, and I was able to stay out for an extra lap after Open went in, which was just enough for me to edge out the position after I pitted. I spent the next 20 laps just trying to lap.  I was again able to push a longer stint thanks to the very efficient engine that Dinan built for us.  I really pushed in the third stint, and I finally managed to catch Fndr.  We fought through the finish... my hat's off to him for keeping that clean.

BT: How are you guys feeling for the rest of the season?

Bimmer: Honestly, I'm surprised how well we fared today.  We were far faster today than we were in practice.  I really can't thank the team enough.  The JEi guys got the suspension set up really, really well, the Pagid pads lasted all the race with no fade, we were able to keep up with anyone on the straights while also getting some of the best mileage in the field thanks to our Dinan motor.  You know, the Michelin tires were crucial for our victory - we were able to stay on pace all the way through out stint.  I think we've got a good car for the rest of the season.

BT: There you have it guys.  Bimmer in the winner's circle - and he's not even old enough to drink the champagne!


JEi Press Release due later today or tomorrow

[RenoWrench]

Great right up and sounds like it was a good race.  Sorry I missed it.    I ended up spending the day with the GF instead.  I'll be doing my best to make the rest of the races.  Preparer to be amazed at the mediocrity of the Lotus Esprit.

[Snyder005]

i don't know if i can make the next race either 

However i have done test laps at Mazda Laguna, good for 1:25.4xx in the INGS RX-7, probably can go faster.  Also ran a 1:22.8xx at Road Atlanta, which i know i will be able to attend.

[sk15kev]

What are the supposed dates for the next few races, qould like to get involved if I can?

[fndrbndr]

Every Sunday, 3pm Eastern.

[BarbecuePete]

Every Sunday, 3pm Eastern.

That'll be 8PM UK time...