Conference oass::racers

    
    I'm game!  Let's do it!
    
    Turn Five Bob 
    

    I'm in,  for August 28th, but if anyone is interested on going
    Wednesday th 15th during Lunch, let me know.  I'm organizing a bunch
    from my facility for that day.  If more people want to come they are
    welcome.  The more we get the lower the price per Lap.  (But I have
    to by all of them at once.) Send me mail if your interested in a
    Lunch time excursion.  We plan on starting at 11:30 and going until we
    run out of laps.  What we are doing is having everyone chip in $15 and
    I'm going to see how many laps I can get.  (I expect 10 laps/$15)  If
    anyone else wants to run on Wednesday send me mail, otherwise I will
    see you on Tuesday the 28th.

    Yup, Tuesday, the 28th will be perfect for me.
    
    Re. .32
    
    >Turn Five Bob
    
    You have surely earned that name.  :-)
    
    -=Chong=-

    Right you are Chong. Bob sure has earned the "Turn Five Bob" name.
    The results are in my driveway....and it sure is squashed. You guys
    be careful of flying objects......like Bob and his cart...:-)
    
    The Mad Weldor....Jim

    re: Crosby Drive to Rt. 38
    
    ...turning right at the end of Middlesex takes you into Billerica
    center, Rt. 3A. Turning right after the "99" also takes you to 3A.
    
    From Bedford, you can take 62 east to 38, then turn left (north) and
    go about 2 or 3 miles (?) to NEGP.
    
    There's also some "backroads" that will get you there, but I haven't
    worked in that area in several years, and forget the street names.
    
    Steve_who_used_to_work_in_Billerica_and_later_Burlington

I can make it.  I'll see if I can scrape up any other rally scum.

Carl

.31>  How about a RACERS night at NEGP sometime during the week of Aug 28-31?
    
    I'll be otherwise occupied that week (see note 782).  
    sorry I'll miss the outing, but I can't say I'd prefer it to my
    existing commitment!
    
    enjoy!  and good luck to all...

    re: a RACERS night at NEGP
    
    the week of Aug 28-31 sounds good to me...
    
    Steve

    Dave,
    
    So why did you pick it the days I won't be around.... I'm the closest.
    
    jim e
    

    I stopped by NEGP last night to drop off some more NER SCCA flyers
    and here's the scoop.
    
    The specialty is during the week, Monday through Friday from 11am
    to 4pm, for 10 or more people, it's $250 for 200 tickets. That's
    the only real break you get.
    
    I didn't check the other prices but it's probably $2 per lap otherwise.
    
    Have fun.
    
    jim e
    

    I think they want you to start using them by 4, but naturally you
    don't have to use them all up at once. They accepted mine from last
    year...
    
    jim e
    

I just finished running an event over an the NEGP.  We had a Blast.  I of course
had the best time. Boy did my Ego like that.  But as for ticket prices here's 
the scoop.  The highest price you will pay is $2.00 a lap and you have to buy 
a min of 2 laps.  As you buy more laps you get a larger discount up to $250 for
200 laps.  Here is the pricing as I know it.

	2 laps = $4.00		2.00/lap
	5 laps = $8.50		1.70/lap
       10 Laps = $16.50 approx	1.65/lap
       25 laps = $40.00		1.60/lap
       50 Laps = $75.00		1.50/lap
      200 Laps = $250.00	1.25/lap

Now I may be missing a few pricing levels but this gives you the basic idea.
We ended up buying 100 laps a 1.50/lap.  And we only had 7 people show that
day, and three other people just got tickets.

    
    	Sorry to ask a stupid question but what is NEGP? Is this "go-kart"
    	racing?
    
    	Marty

    So, when are you all going to be there?  I think we need a time when we
    stop waiting and collecting money and pick up the tickets.
    
    -=Chong=-

Today's the day, and conditions look perfect!  The hot day will make for
sticky tires and fast lap times!

Re: time to meet

Is anyone coming from more than 1/2 hour away, or who doesn't think they can
get off right at 5?  How about we aim to meet there at 5:30, and make the
ticket purchases with whoever's there at 6.  Sound good?

Carl_who_forgot_to_bring_sunglasses

    Okay, I'll be there.  5:30 sounds good.  Please make yourself look like
    a DECie, so I will recongnize you.  I'll be in Jeans, a button down
    shirt and sunglasses.

Re: .53

> Please make yourself look like a DECcie...

Well, I'll try, but in case I don't quite succeed, I'll be wearing khaki
shorts and a maroon shirt.  I've got short brown hair and a beard.  I'll
also be bringing a friend, he looks like he just got out on parole... :-)

Carl

	I decided to go and see NEGP for myself and I was really impressed.

	It was great fun and I enjoyed trying to beat my best lap times. I
	was well off the pace but will definitely be going back to try and
	improve.

	Do any of you racers who have tried this have any tips for a beginner?
	I got the impression that smoother driving led to faster times and
	all my screeching of tyres was in vain. 

	Any chance of a group getting together and hiring the track for a few
	hours? Just wishful thinking I suppose.

	Marty

	p.s. Anybody going to admit their lap times?

    Hi Marty,
    
    	I don't know if this is a good tip or not, but it seemed to me that
    the track is really a 3 corner track.  The first important corner is
    the one with the slow sign.  It is important to come out of that corner
    as fast as you can.  My current theory on that is, make the apex as
    early as you can, so you can be on the throttle as early as you can. 
    From there, you can stay full throttle, until you get to the left
    hander way back in the corner.
    	This is the Second Important corner.  You don't want to push
    through this corner, cause you'll scub off to much speed for the next
    and longest full throttle section of the track.  So don't let your self
    go in to hot, and then put down the fast button as soon as you can.
    	The third corner is the right handed hair pin, directly behind the
    timing board.  This one, I haven't figured out yet.  The really fast
    people, come out of that corner, very tight to the corner it's self.
    This way they are set up for the next corner, which is kinda tight it's
    self.
    	The last peice of advice, I can give you is, forget everything I
    just told you (Cause my best is only an Okay time).  And practice the
    course a lot.  Watch other people, and see which car is the hot one. 
    The warmer the tires, the faster the car.
    
    Good Luck,
    Jesse

    re.  .57
    
    They finally moved from the Fairgrounds (South of Atlanta)?
    
    Keep your eyes open, and tongue in your mouth, for the guy who runs a Z
    and has an all female pit-crew from Cheetah-3.
    
    Give the gang regards.
    
    	-Barry_who_ran_the_Elan_for_a_year_or_two-
    

> Semi-seriously - What class would the SCCA put a BMW Isetta in for 
> autocrossing??

Gee, do they have an "unprepared" class? :-)

> You can bet, once mine is one the road, it will find its' way to an autocross 
> soon....

Dave, don't those cars have only three wheels, or two wheels so close together
that they might almost as well be one?  Between that, the Isetta's round shape
and high center of gravity, I'd expect it to roll over on the first hairpin,
and keep rolling, right on out of the parking lot.

Do you really think one would make a viable autocrosser, or are you just
winding our cranks?

Carl

> they do tend 
> to lean a bit, but car control is car control right?

Yeah, but you can only control a car when its wheels are on the ground, Dave!
(I can personally attest to this fact! :-)

> They have a whole bunch of Stock classes, down to H Stock I think.  Maybe 
> I'll get to battle it out against the Gremlins or something.

I think a Gremlin would blow the door off an Isetta!  To find a suitable
class to run in, I think you'd have to go to golf cart racing... :-)

Carl

    Yeah, odd as they are, don't mess too much with the Gremlins.  They're
    pretty funky looking, but I'd also doubt that you'd find many in the
    stock classes.  Most, of any running SCCA, are probably WELL prepared.

    Actually, the Isetta may just fall out of the classes that SCCA uses.
    Not likely, but possible.  I know that most sanctioning bodies require
    that certain wheelbase and track standards be met for one-offs and
    home-brews.  I'd think that a production car that didn't meet those
    requirements would invalidate those rules.

    Of course, IMO...

Bob

    	Back in the olden days when I was first starting to race and
    autocross there were a couple of BMW somethings that usta run at Orange
    Airport.  They had two cylinder opposed motorcyle engines in the rear. 
    They were essentially a four wheel version of the motorcycle.  I don't
    believe that they were particularly similar to the Isetta, but there
    was some class that they would let them run.
    						John
    

    Dave
    
    Why don't you go back to hillclimbing?? Surely there must be something
    around near you which whilst not coming up to Mt Washington standard,
    could give you a lot of fun. We hillclimbers will allow anything to
    run, including the Stud, as long as it has two throttle return springs!
    
    Mike
    

    Dave
    
    I suspect that it might prove very interesting. Apart from the initial
    sniggers, that is one light car and I suspect it would get some
    favourable press, especially if you hinted, anonomously of course, that
    some idiot was bringing an Isetta out....... (I've seen the same tactic
    work over here when someone brought a kart out just to prove a
    point...and he did).
    
    Mike