And the spring extravaganza begins!

Rainy afternoon here in Braselton, but it should clear out in time for a dry track and two days of fun at Road Atlanta.

This hobby (if you want to call it that) is quite an interesting group of like-minded people. I see a lot of familiar faces and have made quite a few acquaintances along the way.

Just had the car fully serviced, and brought a fresh set of skins and brakes. The slight vibration issue should have been worked out, we’ll see. I see a Ferrari of Atlanta trailer here, it’ll be interesting to see what they’re packing.

From here it’s Watkins Glen for two events - FCA and Chin, then Pitt Race and Mid Ohio.

Like I said in the title - a spring extravaganza!

I should be at four new tracks this year (already did NCM) so far if all goes as planned.

 

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I don’t know at this point.

I can see how fun it can get, for now I have my hands full with the HPDE. Lots to learn.

 

Couple of pics from the FCA event, we had a very good turnout, a fantastic two track days and perfect weather!

Lots of Ferrari owners and their cars, and folks from Fchat too. @c4b4the04, @JAM1, a guy with the same car as me (458C) whose handle I forgot, and the organizer @Doc V.. @statsoff came up for a visit too.

The Empire State Region consistently hits it out of the park with these events! The venue speaks for itself!

Thanks to Chris and Bob Coates for organizing! Much obliged if you’d jump in the passenger seat for some hot laps next WGI event.

The Lambo STO made my heart sink. Unfortunate story and a reason why I may not track mine.

It happened prior to our event and was sitting in the Lot of Shame when I arrived.
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Thank you, Chris and Bob, for all your hard work in putting this event together.

The venue speaks for itself and needs no further superlative description. The organization, the instructors, the cooperation among drivers, the track supervision and the trackside support are second to none.

And the decision to go with two run groups was a great call! Seneca Lodge was a huge success Wednesday evening, the entire night was festive and the food fantastic.

See you soon!

 

Left Watkins Glen early this AM for the beautiful 4-1/2 hour drive through upstate NY to arrive at Pitt Race later in May with Chin.

Unfortunately the Chin event was filled with incidents, lots of mishaps into the blue bushes. At WGI they repair everything right away, so lots of track time lost.

Hired a pro instructor (Ethan Low) for a session and he drove the car. I’m kind of speechless as he really flogged the car around the track. Just incredible.

I’m at the point where I’d need to progress from smooth to aggressive to approach the lap times he did.

Excellent points on several turns, worth its weight in gold!

Pics of Lake Erie, wreck at the Glen, and Pitt Race complex.
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Pitt Race International today with Chin. Absolutely first rate facility and track! Weather was perfect, this track reminds me a lot of Barber, with some technical aspects of NCM thrown in for good measure.

Ferrari ran hard, I finally swapped out the spent Pirellis for a fresh set of Hankooks after putting 4 wheels off at one, destroying the front tire. Brakes may be next, Pitt is not terribly hard on them, however.

Happy hour was great, lots of traffic but folks were giving point-bys and the flow was good.

Someday I’ll provide a rating of all the tracks I’ve been on, with so many great ones, kinda hard to rate them all, but I certainly have a top five (could change as I do more)

Guy out here in his 488 slogging it pretty hates, great to see!

One more day here, then it’s on to Mid Ohio.

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And….,all things must pass. Today concluded my spring tour of Barber, NCM, VIR, Road Atlanta, Watkins Glen, Pitt Race and Mid Ohio (some I did several events). Not a bad run…….

I wrapped things up with two excellent track days at Mid Ohio, an older track and a facility in need of repair. The track itself has an older, not-so-grippy surface, with some decent elevation change and a back section (deservedly called China Beach, Madness, and Hurry Downs) that’s full of very fast, slippery, off camber turns. This afternoon was hot, and the surfaces greasy in spots. I wanted to turn Traction control completely off, but thought the better of it.

Happy Hour (as Chin calls it) was a fantastic time, I always set my best times when following someone really fast. I used the trackside services of 89x Motorsports, Mike Fitzpatrick is a super individual who will do anything to keep you on track. He ran a 1:33 in traffic with the 458 (I wanted him to set a baseline for my next visit here). Nuts!

The 458 Challenge held up really well, and has been a dream on track. I see the wisdom now of so many that have owned and run these cars, @gatorgreg, @windsock and and others. I get the pit in thing now after several laps……

Sorry, I was so engaged in the event, I forgot pics at Mid-Ohio.

Having been to so many excellent tracks (with many more to come), it’s gonna be tough selecting a top five!