Big Tex at USGP in 2018?

Well, this is certainly my "Come back " year with COTA.

I will probably be a LITTLE more low key, stay put for the work hours, and try so hard to get a Gold Star.

After that, The Landing Strip topless bar beckons!
Or Club Expose on South Congress, closer to home.

Of course with a date, not so much!!!
We will see.....

For years I would go by, and get some Landing Strip VIP Cards, from the counter.
If anyone REALLY had a problem I could not fix I would say: "Fuggetaboutit....." and hand them a Pass.
It usually finally got them back to Earth.

It's actually deep East Side, and a little rough.......

 

I found Lot Q which is COTA land, cash at $40 a day...
East on FM812, 2.5 miles past Wolf Road...

 

Rain will stop.....
Rain will stop......
Rain will stop.....

 

Hamilton will crash........
Hamilton will crash........
Hamilton will crash........

 

I hope so. This weather has me so behind it is not funny anymore.

Enjoy the race guys wish I could make it but it is not in the cards this year

 

You know,.. I tell the smug Mercedes chaps..."wheels fall off, you know".......

 

Partly Sunny .....73...that's My Call and I am sticking to IT!!!

OTOH I took it from my iPhone....LOL!
Zip Code 77008 Houston, Texas

But, still.......

 

Allen wish I could hang with you this weekend at COTA, too much going on though. Family in town Sunday for a dual birthday party - mine and my daughter’s! We are each 10/22 but big gathering here Sunday 10/21 in the afternoon. EXACTLY during race time.

Oh well, didn’t really want to see Hamilton clinch anyway..!!

Enjoy and we’ll catch up later
Greg


Sent from my iPod touch using FerrariChat.com mobile app

 

Sneak in and cross thread all of the wheel hubs man, those on both cars (or they’ll just cancel Bottas race) and in the spare parts bins, but overnight between qualy and the race....... get some liquid fibre glass and fill the moveable holes in on the wheels too!

 

Let's hope…...

 

IF it only happened to Verstapen too...…………

 

OK guys I am here, inside the Track, got a Parking Pass for the RV Lot Tow Vehicle, but Dry Camping is a total misnomer, the ROADS are ankle deep!

Anyway, I work AM tomorrow then free..
Anyone needing carpool in AM out, or anything else.....832 801-0670 cell.

Might get out tonight by 7AM Check In comes "OMG Early" to quote Robin Williams.....

Oh man, my hosts are fighting... where's the &^%*^&&^& tent???
:/

 

BigTex . . . or Big Foot? Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Good to see you again Tex! Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Happy Birthday !!!!!

Well you MISSED IT!! LOL!
What a &^%^&*%*^%* RACE!!!!

I had to leave Austin in a hurry, INterview Monday 9AM in Houston but BOY would I have been obnoxious downtown!
Antone's was rocking as I dropped off some passengers, and Alan Haynes was tuning up at Maggie Mays!!

 

LOL!

That is a GREAT screen grab!!
That was certainly the case at the end of the Day Friday!

I went to MSG, watched them put Full Wets on the car to "scrub in", and said to myself:

"This is &^&*%%ing stupid!!"

So, feet wet, soaked because I gave my poncho to a guest, I headed back to South Congress for a LONG hot shower!!
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

But, let's begin at the beginning, because..you know..that's where the story starts!

Thursday morning, I had noticed a tire vibration, sure enough, the RF Goodyear was trash, victim of a Houston pothole impact.
Cords broken, wires sticking out of the sidewall...good thing I had a slightly used one in my garage, I was going to put on the spare!

It would not have made it, past Katy!!
I would meet Katie, later on in the weekend, but we will get to that soon enough!
Off on the road, poor weather conditions.

But fortified by the hot food from the Food Truck in the parking lot of the Mexican Used Tire Store, at West 34th and Ella, 770018
These were excellent, reminded me of my housekeeper from El Salvador, RIP Ms. Fuentes.

BigTex drives on!

I have like 300 pictures and nothing else to do, today...here we go!!!

 

This is where Katie comes in!
You too my brother!

What a Party!
Andy Fish, now that is a Ferrari Guy!!!
246 Dino.....
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

..a quick stop at Peters BBQ in Ellinger..

Never pass that!

I stopped at COTA for Recon, as they had us in a new lot on McAngus Road, never had used it before.
Looked sketchy with the rain, but okay.

I went on into the Track , to plan my first loophole thru the Rules.
Pulling into Lot M, Dry Camping, RVs and Track Marshalls, I found the words Dry Camping, to be inaccurate!!

 

So the Loophole: Every RV is issued a spot, and two passes, so a 5th Wheel could block up and truck could go "in and Out",
A Prevost or self contained RV would only need to use one.....

So without getting out of the car, I pull over and meet some folks, turned out to be Yankees.

"Hey! Everything OK? Just checking on you I am from COTA..."
"Man, you sure do have a TON of hats!!
*looking in my seat*
"Yea, they are $20 today, and $50 on Sunday!"
"well, I sure want a hat, we have cold beer!"

"OK, $20, cold beer and your extra Pass!"
*Hands out my COTA Staff hat*

"Deal!!"

My little CTS does not even have a trailer hitch.
My fresh paint job and detailing now looked like I had run Baja, but I had what I needed!!
Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Note those roads...someone got screwed.
COTA had ordered "something" to raise them all, but it was NOT limestone, it was NOT crushed concrete...

It was some crap that had SO much clay content that it probably packed down when rolled dry, but when wet became bottomless.....

I have worked for TX Dot.
Bobby Epstein got ^&%*%^ed.

I discussed it with another expert pater in the weekend.
The owner of Bubba's Wild Game!!

 

Off to the Broken Spoke, in full Ferrari gear.
Mercedes people were taunting me....:/

I took their wife, and went to dance with them....

The Derailers of course saluted me... old friends.
They gave me the new CD...
Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Get you some Derailers!
It played in my Cadillac for most of the weekend, becoming the soundtrack of the day, well until Miss Venezuela shows up, for Bruno Mars...

I left into the night, reminding all those Mercedes fans, "The race does last for two hours!"
Little did I know, that Qualifying and the Kimster, would prove me RIGHT!!!
Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

Friday dawned grey, light rain.
They condemned the Lot we were going to use (North McAngus) and as always with the Volunteers, Plan B sprung into action.

The shuttle bus I was one missed Turn 1 (counterclockwise on the Blue Route) and promptly LEFT the COTA property!
We were doomed....my first day at work was NOT getting off to good start!

Then as we checked in the rains came...about 2" in 30 minutes I would estimate.
We waited for it to slack off, and stomped on into the trial up to The Hill.
I was a Turn 1 Wayfinder once again!
They did have breakfast for us, but my Crew Chief was a *****...

Not just female, a *****....LOL!
They took our Drivers Licenses away so we would not run....is that even LEGAL???

I was ready and gave her an old expired one.


15 minutes later, she came back and demanded my REAL one!
&%*&^%!! I looked good, in 1996!!!!

"its 135' elevation change, from the Main Straight, up to Turn 1"
One of our crew had a heart issue on his shift, and went out with a heart attack, that night..might be something for the Suggestion Box....

I will text him to see how he is....

Image Unavailable, Please Login

 

The actual sidewalk is a serpentine path.
Not many people are smiling when they reach the top of it!!!