Ok, so as was mentioned,
I took Brandi out for some shake-down runs, and here is a synopsis and the time sheets... No DA correction, and no excuses or complaints... All faults in any of the runs were strictly on me... and damn was it hot...
Believe me there are no record setting times, just steady improvement and lessons learned...
Run 1... attempt... aborted due to technical difficulties... Fixed and back at it...
Run 1... actual... Wow, these tires are sticky... really sticky, and this new clutch does not slip noticibly... maybe a better driver with a lighter touch could slip it, but my noob self... not so much....
Staged, lights came down, whuuhhhh,(2500 rpm) lights change, clutch comes out, and (insert silence)<<< , as I almost killed the engine... sticky tires and a great clutch almost had me turning the key to start the car, (I was reaching for it) and realized the car was running, stabbed the gas and came off the clutch again and OMG... 3.74 60 foot...
and went 13.51 at 128...
Run 2... Staged, pretty good burnout, launched at higher RPM's, 3800-4000 guestimate... and she still stumbled off the line... Again, driver fault... but better times...with a 12.1 at 128.39. Again the 60 foot was brutal, with a 2.47... I'm still not discouraged... just gotta figure it out...
Run 3... Good burnout, staged, waited for middle yellow light and ramped up on the gas pedal, and came off the clutch, just a hint of stumble, and no noticable tire spin... and wow.. that was fun... 11.0065 at 125.25... 1.6474 60 foot... Things are getting better... The funniest part of this, was getting to the ticket window and the lady leaning into the car asking if I had a cage... uhm, yes, why... OHHHH, got it....
Yes..... It dawned on me that I had actually needed a cage for my time...
. This run was against a good friend and great guy... He frequents Coreys shop and I enjoy seeing him whenever he is around... Technical difficuities prevented him from giving me all I could handle on that pass, and I look forward to doing it again....
Run 4... The last run for the night...
Staged, said to myself, self... get the boat off the line... so, middle amber, nailed it, and held on... Finally, whether due to finally getting it right, or too much gas, or the track going away a little bit, I don't know, but... I spun most of first, with her butt hanging out as she slipped a little bit across the lane, and I never lifted... just stayed with it, and jammed second... and third, and broke into the tens on my first night at the track in a new car with a new trans, new tires and wheels etc.... 10.92 at 129.76 with a 1.7637 60 foot.... I was tickled at getting kudos for not backing out of it as she sached her way a bit across the lane... This car is so stable heading down the track. Steering her down track is a breeze... and very enjoyable... Now If I can learn to consistently launch her and find a happy median between killing her and smoking the tires through first gear...
Overall, I'm ecstatic... This car has tons of potential, and for the time being is faster than the driver...
I couldn't be more pleased that I stayed with the manual Trans... and RSG, Rockland Standard Gear, George, You are the bomb... No miss shifts, no grinding, no hesitation going from gear to gear... Man, what a trans...
Street Slayer Triple Carbon clutches... Wow, Thomas of Hendrix Engineering, this thing is simply amazing... 4200 lbs of car, over 800 ft/lbs of torque, and I damn near killed the motor twice.... The clutch is extremely friendly on the street and a simple beast on the track...
I didn't break into any fast list, but I'm not complaining... I am tickled beyond belief... I believe in this car and the guys that built it...
Corey Henderson, Narcisso Gomez, and all the other folks at Henderson Performance Technology....
Now I will continue working on the driver mod... after I get back from four weeks in lovely Mexico on an oil rig... Then I'll see all of you that are going in Indianapolis...
I do want to hand out a heart felt Thanks for the support from so many friends that were in attendance to see Brandi run... The list is long...
Here are the time slips from tonight... I'm in the left lane, car # 32 for all four runs...
And Mike said there would be 5 paragraphs, but there are a few more... lol... They are mostly short paragraphs... so get over it...