Run to the Hills- Derek and I Make an Impression...
Scott Parkhurst said
Sep 21, 2010
Derek and I headed down to the "Run to the Hills VI" last weekend in Pigeon Forge, TN. Since his O/D was shot, he had to trailer. I got my new engine installed and got to drive the car for all of 15 miles to road test it before we hit the road and drove it 1,010 miles. LOL!
We got there at 11:00 AM on friday and left at noon for a trip up the infamous "Tail of the Dragon" road that slithers through the Smoky Mountains. It's a really twisty, turny road that's a blast to drive. We had our families on board and were in a group of 70 cars, so it was far from a 'max effort' drive, but still fun!
The next morning was the autocross- it was a challenging course in a parking lot, and was set up 'wide' to accommodate bigger cars. Great fun- and Derek did really well! He finished 11th overall, and missed the top 10 (and another crack at a shootout among the 10 fastest cars) by just a sliver. He nicked a cone on his fastest run, and except for that, he'd have made it in. Considering the level of cars/drivers at this event (some of the best in the country showed up), it was super impressive and he got the attention of many of the big players in the world of Pro Touring with his outstanding talent on-track.
I didn't do as well, finishing ten seconds slower than he did and getting frustrated at my own driving mistakes. But, that's how it goes. I will practice more and gain some confidence. I was just trying to get through the course without missing any gates or hitting any cones, and Derek is skilled enough to focus on the driving line and when to accelerate/brake. It was still a lot of fun, though...
The last day was a mix of 1/8-mile drags and a speed/stop challenge. I did pretty good here, finishing second overall in a field of big dollar/high horsepower cars that aren't 4-door wagons. The winning car was a '66 Mustang with a tube chassis, fat tires, and Chevy LS power. He beat me by .07-second. Not bad.
The speed/stop deal was cool. They placed cones at the finish line, creating a 40 ft. box after the lights. The challenge is to get the lowest ET while stopping inside of the box. So, you take off and accelerate like a normal dragstrip pass, but then you have to slow down enough to stop inside that box. It really tests a car's ability to accelerate and stop. The entire car had to be inside the box- if any part of the car broke the plane of the box (even just a bumper), the run was DNQ'd. You got 3 chances- so it paid to be careful (conservative) to ensure you ended up in the box so at least one run counted.
I crept up on this and kept getting better. For my last run, I really went for it and my bumper ended up within an inch of the back of the box, but it was legal! The wagon ended up 7th overall in this deal, which really made me happy considering the F-bodies, Mustangs, and Vettes that were also competing- Some of them with ABS.
Derek did good at the drags and speed/stop too, but he just didn't have the horsepower to be super-competitive. His transmission was also acting up. He's REALLY fired up to get the new LS/6-speed combo in there now! With more power and a manual box, he's sure to be in contention to place highly or even win this event (or others like it) next year.
We haven't seen the overall finishing order yet, but since we both finished so highly in some different elements of the competition, we both should be near the top of the overall order. Considering there were 70 cars there, we were both pretty pleased, and both of us should be in the top 20, if not higher.
I also grabbed the Long Distance award for driving the furthest to get there, which was really cool.
Scott Parkhurst said
Sep 21, 2010
Some pics of us:
I fixed the IMG tags for you..Tony
-- Edited by Tony Hoffer on Tuesday 21st of September 2010 04:35:47 PM
Enganeer said
Sep 21, 2010
Congrats!!!
Derek69SS said
Sep 21, 2010
That was a fun trip!
30-hours of driving round-trip so we could autocross for 4 minutes... worth it though for the great people you get to meet. (seriously, you guys need to get out to some of these big events!!! Whether its stuff like this, or ACES shows, they are a LOT of fun)
I'm still mad at myself for hitting that apex cone. A tire pressure adjustment made it turn better than previous runs, so I got tighter than I expected. I knew I was too close but I didn't want to release the wheel enough to unload the suspension... thought I released it just enough to miss it, but I got it with the back wheel. That run was a 1:10.4. A 1:10.5 was "Top-8 Run-Off" material.
Scott's new engine is sure working well! Awesome performance from a car that knocks down 20mpg and is comfortable enough for 2000+ mile round-trips!!! What more could you ask for?
-- Edited by Derek69SS on Tuesday 21st of September 2010 04:20:42 PM
Tony Hoffer said
Sep 21, 2010
Whats going to happen to Keifer in the slalom when he gets all that power... seems hes about kickin ass right now.
Scott Parkhurst said
Sep 21, 2010
Tony Hoffer wrote:
Whats going to happen to Keifer in the slalom when he gets all that power... seems hes about kickin ass right now.
The guys who finished 1-2-3 were a couple seconds faster than Derek.
When he gets more power, he'll catch 'em...
Derek69SS said
Sep 21, 2010
Tony Hoffer wrote:
Whats going to happen to Keifer in the slalom when he gets all that power... seems hes about kickin ass right now.
I can't wait to find out.
Dan Williams said
Sep 21, 2010
Derek69SS wrote:
That was a fun trip!
30-hours of driving round-trip so we could autocross for 4 minutes... worth it though for the great people you get to meet. (seriously, you guys need to get out to some of these big events!!! Whether its stuff like this, or ACES shows, they are a LOT of fun)
-- Edited by Derek69SS on Tuesday 21st of September 2010 04:20:42 PM
Heading out for Springfield Il, Thursday for the Mothers Route 66 show.(Derek and Jenna made this one last year) It is about the same size as Car Craft (run by the same people) and our hotel is right on the street as the show so I can get up about 9, grab a cup of coffee or a beer if the mood takes me and wander out to the street and look at thousand of cars. Actualy drive the car on this one, bout 850 round trip. I trailered to the Cleveland ACES show also with Derek and now this one, but have done hardly anything else this summer. Tried to get up to Hastings or Anoka, but just couldn't squeeze one in. Sounds like Pidgeon Forge is a great time, I need another project and try autocrossing.
Derek69SS said
Sep 22, 2010
Scott Parkhurst wrote:
Tony Hoffer wrote:
Whats going to happen to Keifer in the slalom when he gets all that power... seems hes about kickin ass right now.
The guys who finished 1-2-3 were a couple seconds faster than Derek.
When he gets more power, he'll catch 'em...
Kyle Tucker is going to be tough to catch... he has a lighter car with way more tire, knows how to set it up, and is a great driver! Brian Finch is pretty speedy too.
67ss said
Sep 22, 2010
With the 6 speed I imagine it will be a little bit of a learning curve compared to having the automatic. Or do you mostly stay in one gear for the whole course?
Once I get the blower fixed on mine over the winter I gotta try this at one of of the local courses. I think I remember you saying this is some special tire requirements?
Derek69SS said
Sep 22, 2010
Most courses you stay in 2nd gear... I'll be re-learning to drive the car next year anyway with less weight, a lot more horsepower, 6-speed, and hydroboost. All of those things *should* make me faster.
No requirements for the tires at local events, but many of the "Pro Touring" events require a minimum of 200 treadwear.
Dave Seitz said
Sep 23, 2010
The best thing about Pigeon Forge is the Wind Tunnel and the great traffic that reminds you of being in Branson Missouri.
We got there at 11:00 AM on friday and left at noon for a trip up the infamous "Tail of the Dragon" road that slithers through the Smoky Mountains. It's a really twisty, turny road that's a blast to drive. We had our families on board and were in a group of 70 cars, so it was far from a 'max effort' drive, but still fun!
The next morning was the autocross- it was a challenging course in a parking lot, and was set up 'wide' to accommodate bigger cars. Great fun- and Derek did really well! He finished 11th overall, and missed the top 10 (and another crack at a shootout among the 10 fastest cars) by just a sliver. He nicked a cone on his fastest run, and except for that, he'd have made it in. Considering the level of cars/drivers at this event (some of the best in the country showed up), it was super impressive and he got the attention of many of the big players in the world of Pro Touring with his outstanding talent on-track.
I didn't do as well, finishing ten seconds slower than he did and getting frustrated at my own driving mistakes. But, that's how it goes. I will practice more and gain some confidence. I was just trying to get through the course without missing any gates or hitting any cones, and Derek is skilled enough to focus on the driving line and when to accelerate/brake. It was still a lot of fun, though...
The last day was a mix of 1/8-mile drags and a speed/stop challenge. I did pretty good here, finishing second overall in a field of big dollar/high horsepower cars that aren't 4-door wagons. The winning car was a '66 Mustang with a tube chassis, fat tires, and Chevy LS power. He beat me by .07-second. Not bad.
The speed/stop deal was cool. They placed cones at the finish line, creating a 40 ft. box after the lights. The challenge is to get the lowest ET while stopping inside of the box. So, you take off and accelerate like a normal dragstrip pass, but then you have to slow down enough to stop inside that box. It really tests a car's ability to accelerate and stop. The entire car had to be inside the box- if any part of the car broke the plane of the box (even just a bumper), the run was DNQ'd. You got 3 chances- so it paid to be careful (conservative) to ensure you ended up in the box so at least one run counted.
I crept up on this and kept getting better. For my last run, I really went for it and my bumper ended up within an inch of the back of the box, but it was legal! The wagon ended up 7th overall in this deal, which really made me happy considering the F-bodies, Mustangs, and Vettes that were also competing- Some of them with ABS.
Derek did good at the drags and speed/stop too, but he just didn't have the horsepower to be super-competitive. His transmission was also acting up. He's REALLY fired up to get the new LS/6-speed combo in there now! With more power and a manual box, he's sure to be in contention to place highly or even win this event (or others like it) next year.
We haven't seen the overall finishing order yet, but since we both finished so highly in some different elements of the competition, we both should be near the top of the overall order. Considering there were 70 cars there, we were both pretty pleased, and both of us should be in the top 20, if not higher.
I also grabbed the Long Distance award for driving the furthest to get there, which was really cool.
I fixed the IMG tags for you..Tony
-- Edited by Tony Hoffer on Tuesday 21st of September 2010 04:35:47 PM
30-hours of driving round-trip so we could autocross for 4 minutes... worth it though for the great people you get to meet. (seriously, you guys need to get out to some of these big events!!! Whether its stuff like this, or ACES shows, they are a LOT of fun)
I'm still mad at myself for hitting that apex cone. A tire pressure adjustment made it turn better than previous runs, so I got tighter than I expected. I knew I was too close but I didn't want to release the wheel enough to unload the suspension... thought I released it just enough to miss it, but I got it with the back wheel. That run was a 1:10.4. A 1:10.5 was "Top-8 Run-Off" material.
Scott's new engine is sure working well! Awesome performance from a car that knocks down 20mpg and is comfortable enough for 2000+ mile round-trips!!! What more could you ask for?
-- Edited by Derek69SS on Tuesday 21st of September 2010 04:20:42 PM
The guys who finished 1-2-3 were a couple seconds faster than Derek.
When he gets more power, he'll catch 'em...
I can't wait to find out.
Once I get the blower fixed on mine over the winter I gotta try this at one of of the local courses. I think I remember you saying this is some special tire requirements?
No requirements for the tires at local events, but many of the "Pro Touring" events require a minimum of 200 treadwear.