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2016 SCCA Runoffs T-1 NSX

glad to see him back in action after a big shunt...
 
Uh-oh...........

Glad to see Kip back at it and doing well.

Well, if we sit back, have a brewski and philosophize, we can say he's doing well just because he's at the track and not working. But missing 2 Q sessions does not sound good. It's been a long road back and Shad has busted his butt getting it back in competitive shape.

They hoped to be the dark horse and surprise the field. Kip qualified for the Run-offs in the S2000, not wanting to tip their hand with the NSX. But lack of track time in it may be the bugger at this point. I'm just talking out of school, now, so pay no attention to me. I'll text him and tell him to check in here...........:rolleyes: haha, like he would. :wink:
 
Dark Horse he is for sure

Kip called to fill in the details which are as we would expect........good, bad and ugly.

The bad: in the first practice session the crank broke on the back straight at 140 mph and 7000 RPM. No warning.

Shad got on the phone to get someone to drop the engine out of Igor's car, box it up and air freight it. They got it on Tuesday.

They missed 6 practice sessions and 2 Q's. Also, 5th gear won't stay engaged. Pops out every time, so there went at least 10 mph on top end.

The good; He's as quick as anyone out there in Sector 1 and driving around at 6/10's in sector 2 'cause that's all the car will give right now. Need more front end grip in the twisty bits.

He says they have some issues to settle with the rules; like restrictor plate size. He asked (or allowed?) SCCA to put a data box in the car to show how handicapped he is compared to things like 8 L Vipers.

The ugly: He's mired in 8th but hoping P-1 and 2 are gonna fight like Donald and Hillary and take each other out. And he's expecting (hoping) that P3 thru P7 will not be able to go at their Q time all race long. He should be mentally much fresher toward the end and should be able to pick his spot and snooker them.

The race is at 250 PM (pace lap central time) on Sunday.

Live timing and video link: http://www.scca.com/events/1980938-2016-scca-runoffs-presented-by-garmin-virb/event_sessions/latest

Say a little prayer for the boy. :wink:
 
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4th never looked so good

Kip was happy with 4th place and in his usual boyish beaming way he told me, "I had a blast. Pratt was flawless making absolutely no mistakes. I made one, leaving the door open in the key hole, but I got the position back. Again, with no 5th gear and 10 mph off my top end, they could hand me my ass on the straights so I had to show 'em what I had in the corners. It was an honor and a lot of fun to race hard even if I finished behind 4 former National Champs. With a healthy car, I can definitely run at the front."

This ranked up there with his World Challenge debut several years ago when he Q'd 7th behind Randy Pobst. Pretty sure he'll be in the mix next year with a well sorted tranny and a lot more seat time.

I'll stop by and get Shad's side of the story later this week which could probably be a short novel. :rolleyes:
 
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Kip was happy with 4th place and in his usual boyish beaming way he told me, "I had a blast. Pratt was flawless making absolutely no mistakes. I made one, leaving the door open in the key hole, but I got the position back. Again, with no 5th gear and 10 mph off my top end, they could hand me my ass on the straights so I had to show 'em what I had in the corners. It was an honor and a lot of fun to race hard even if I finished behind 4 former National Champs. With a healthy car, I can definitely run at the front."

This ranked up there with his World Challenge debut several years ago when he Q'd 7th behind Randy Pobst. Pretty sure he'll be in the mix next year with a well sorted tranny and a lot more seat time.

I'll stop by and get Shad's side of the story later this week which could probably be a short novel. :rolleyes:
Pretty amazing pace with no 5th gear and 10 mph off top end. The NSX top speed was 144.2.

http://www.scca.com/event_sessions/1986144-t1-race-3

Congrats again. It was fun to watch.
 
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the guy behind the cage

A very belated tip of the hat to Mike Tolle Fabrication in Gold River CA for his superb cage and other fabrication work. I just looked at the video and it dawned on me that Mike is the unsung hero behind the curtain who keeps Shad on schedule (well as much as possible) and Kip in a safe seat. And just to clarify, Kip came out of the big shemozzle relatively unhurt over 5 years ago because of the cage Mike built. The guy's an artist.
 
The aftermath

...............

I'll stop by and get Shad's side of the story later this week which could probably be a short novel. :rolleyes:

Well I did drop by the shop today and found Shad busily putting the motor back in Igor's car so he could go racing this weekend at Laguna. The short novel was 'I can't believe I didn't take a spare motor and gear box and many thanks to the NSX President (Brian Urlage) for use of his shop a mere 2+ hours away. And yeah, more seat time before hand would've exposed that weakened crank. Oh and I forgot to remind Kip on the re-start to watch out for crafty old Pratt."

Anywho, I asked how this little drama compared with say, pulling all -niters rebuilding Dario Franchitti's KOOL CART car back in the late 90's, figuring that would dredge up some horrible memories and unlock some "no shit, there we were, thought we were gonna die" stories. But Shad shrugged it all off, like no big deal, as if to say "don't need no pressure relief valve; it's just racing, we're not negotiating world peace." He then proceeded to give me the cook's tour of the blown motor, pointing out where major components got blown off the block !!!! Then the Kipster comes strolling out saying how much he hates work and just wants to go racing. Unbridled enthusiasm rarely seen.

Bottom line; looks like there's more momentum for next year than any sane person would reasonably expect. But that's why they call it Driving Ambition. :rolleyes:
 
I am Aston Bell. It's not my real name but I use it to hide the fact that I am an asshole spammer. I try to hijack threads because I am a loser and need the attention. I also pee sitting down.
 
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^^^^ :biggrin:
Make sure you wipe after peeing sitting down.
 
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