Just got back from racing The Ridge Motorsports Park

Today was the opening event at the new Ridge Motorsports Park in Shelton. WOW!!! what a track.

It was a 7/10ths driving charity event -- meaning it was designed to allow people to have a preview experience. There was a $500 penalty (to go to charity) for going off the track, but that didn't stop us from going fast.

I took the 328 GTS. The second lap into my second lapping session, my gear selector got wonky and I couldn't get third at all and the fourth selection didn't actually get 4th gear. I parked it as to ensure no serious damage, but all gears now work fine. I must have the linkage adjustment just off enough so that under heavy side load, the selector is missing. Otherwise the car ran great. Trevor C. was there in his new 360 Challenge and it was simply flying!

What can I say about the track other than it is spectacular! It is easy and extremely fun to drive from the moment you get out there (comfortable -- not scary!), but it will take you a lifetime to extract every second out of it. It's very wide with tons of elevation changes, which means there are so many different possible lines...a few blind lifts (aim for the second tree...or the third tree top?) and then THE RIDGE COMPLEX, which is a heck of lot steeper from inside the car than from outside! There really is something for everyone -- fast sections (taking it carefully out of the Ridge Complex into the straight and braking way early, I was hitting 120mph), tight technical sections, long carousel, places to row the gearbox...places to take people in braking and with sheer grunt.

People are still out there, but I was exhausted, and worried about the 328 tranny I decided to pack it in early.

But when the driving events start hitting full-tilt in April -- get out there and race. Everyone there today was grinning ear-to-ear!

Cheers to Rod, Karen and Joe for making a heck of a track that generations of car crazy people will enjoy!
Sam

 

Here is the in-car video. The first 10 minutes are mostly in the hot pits and the two slow pace laps (which is good to get a feeling for every turn.) Segment 2 of the video starts with the faster run down the straight and a faster lap. I do spend a lot of time waiving faster cars by in the passing zones. By the way, sorry for all the squeaking in the video-- that's my new helmet rubbing against the targa top. I'm way too tall for a 328 GTS with a helmet on!!!

http://www.streetfire.net/video/first-laps-in-first-group-around-new-ridge-motorsports-park_2345996.htm

 

No, not at all! The curbs start going in next week, then they start on paving the drag strip. They'll have three warehouse garages going up, and there's already a waiting list for renters, which means they'll probably have to put up additional buildings. Of course, there also are the bathrooms/showers, classrooom, corner worker stations, timing towers, runoff landscaping, protective fences and barriers. Luckily Rod sleeps one hour once every six to eight weeks .

I should point out that one of the best things yesterday was seeing Rod, Karen and Joe all smiling. They were reflecting the happiness (read "ear-to-ear grins") that all of us car people were showing. This is giving them the energy to get everything done for a full 2012 schedule starting in Spring.

 

Funny you should mention that, because I was down at my friend's shop last week and they were looking under the hood of a Saturn parked outside that a woman had brought in with a wavering idle problem. When my friend Jack pointed his flashlight into the engine bay he said "WOAH", and the next thing I saw was a huge rat jump down and scurry under the car parked next to it and maybe under my car on the other side of that car (not my F-car, my Toyota)...then disappear. We thought he might have jumped up into the engine bay of my car or the other car. Funny thing was the Saturn ran fine after the rat bailed. (I think he was getting a little shock treatment.) Plus, I've been battling moles in my yard for two weeks. I'm sick of furry creatures!

 

I definitely wished I could get more runs in to get more comfortable. I was just trying to get a feel for the corners, the camber/off-camber areas, undulations...and it was so wet on all laps I took in the morning that I was nervous about putting the power down too early for fear that my rear would step out and I'd be in the mud backwards -- not to mention I was most likely the lowest HP car in the A group, so I was backing off in all the passing zones to allow people to pass.

Driving a wet track one has never seen before in a car in which one doesn't necessarily have confidence won't blow up in a grid with a bunch of racers with way more door-to-door track experience...all with a $500 penalty for putting four wheels off combined to make me WAY more reserved than I'd normally be. (Seeing that I was the journalist most cursed at by manufacturers for beating too hard on vehicles during the old NWAPA Mudfest SUV testing!)

I'd love to go up in my Corvette, which I'm comfortable beating on and powering through corners tail-wagging all the way. Unfortunately, it's a convertible, so I couldn't use it yesterday.

 

Did anyone get any good pictures from the day? I haven't found any online. (I was hoping someone got a photo of my car on the track, but I'd like to see some good pix of the different cars on the track.)