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trouble and at least finish my race. It would be the first time I'd gone for an hour in any race, and my first pit stop as well.
Pete's SLR McLaren parked in our paddock space
As we went around for the pace laps behind Brian Redman in Peter Gulick's beautiful Silver Mercedes McLaren SLR pace car, I fooled around with my foot position trying to find something that worked. At the green flag the field streamed down towards turn one ahead of me while I paid attention to the downshifting and braking. I basically struggled through the first 40 minutes experimenting with the car and trying not to chop anyone off. I wish I could say that it was exhilarating, but grinding gears and missing shifts for the better part of an hour was pretty discouraging.
About this time I realized that perhaps it might be a good idea to look for my pit board, and sure enough, the guys were signaling for me to come in. I pulled into the pits, shut the car down and climbed out. It was at this point I noticed that I was completely soaked in perspiration. My only thought was to pull off my helmet and pour cold water over my head, but I had to stand with the fire bottle while Crew Chief Thatcher Goddard put fuel in the car. It seemed like a century passed before we were done with the gassing up, and I could take my helmet off. Lee Chapman had a few words of advice and encouragement for me as I gulped down some water, and then it was time to go back out.
The stop had allowed me to take a breath and that made a huge difference. I actually had the thought that the crowd must be thinking that the "new" driver was much better than the first one! I had a pretty good time for the last laps, and pulled back into our paddock area feeling satisfied to have survived. Better yet, I had an idea about how to fix my pedal problems. It seemed that my leg was jammed against the bottom of the wheel when I went to use the brake, which forced me to angle my foot in an unnatural position. If I could get some space, I could reach the brake without contortions.
Sunday's Race
John Wyer Cup Part Two
After some discussion with Thatcher, we decided to adjust the pedals and I made
Pete Gulick promises to let me use his F2 wheel
Brian Redman launched the SLR pace car onto the course in a cloud of tire smoke and we followed out behind. I was ahead of a couple of Porsches, but almost out of sight of the leaders by the time we took the green flag. To my delight, braking and downshifting for turn one was no longer an exercise in frustration, so I set about the task of getting around the track with renewed enthusiasm. I trailed the Corvette for a number of laps as I got used to the feel of the car. Without the worry, it was almost as if I was experiencing the Chevron for the first time.
Before I had gone out, Thatcher had given me some advice that I was taking to heart. He said not to think about the mechanics of what I was doing so much, and just drive the car. His words were repeating in my head like a sampled drum loop and it was working. I realized that the Corvette was holding me back in a big way so I pulled out at the end of the straight and out-braked it by about 30 yards and simply motored away. Each lap was more and more fun and I was starting to really enjoy myself. As my confidence rose, the speed increased and the braking got later. I was able to get the car into fifth sooner and sooner on the straightaway as I carried more speed out of the last turn.
Somewhere about a quarter of the way through the race, with the wind blowing the car around a bit, I managed to put the left wheels off the edge of the main straight while in top gear. I imagine that this would have been at something north of 140 mph. I calmly kept my foot in the throttle and slowly edged back and continued on. It was only later, as I drove home that I recognized the seriousness of the situation, but at the time it didn't seem like a big deal. The Chevron is so stable it inspires a lot of confidence.
I was catching and passing the smaller classes of cars like Porsche 911s and staying about even with some of the others in my class. I wanted to catch Bob Kullas in his B16 coupe so we could dice a little, but his lap times were about the same as mine so I never got close after the start. The quickest of the prototypes, including Pete Gulick, Joe Buzzetta and Paul Flowers, were still lapping me, but as the differential in speed was not as great as the day before, so I could mimic their lines and brake points. This was a great learning technique and I exploited it as much as possible.
Jol goes to school
At one point a curious thing happened. I was about to get around a pair of Porsches as we went through the carousel, and I watched them sliding and slipping through the turn a few feet in front of me. They looked like fish squirming in slow motion, and I though... "Why are they sliding around so much?" I then realized that they were at their limit and were sawing at the steering, while I was still so far below the threshold for the Chevron that it felt like a Sunday drive—unreal!
My pit board appeared at about 45 minutes and I brought the car in for the refueling and a cool drink before going out to finish up. The mood in the pits was decidedly better than the previous day and I was anxious to get back out and have some more fun. The race wound down, and I vowed to keep it on the asphalt, which I did until the checkered flag signaled the end of a fabulous experience. Surprisingly, with attrition, my conservative "be there at the end" effort netted me 13th overall and 4th in class!
The Chevron had performed flawlessly, and I had managed to keep the revs in an area that was kind to the motor. After all, I wanted to make sure I'd be ready for the next race without a trip to the engine builder.
It was a good day for Lee Chapman Racing, as Pete had won overall, with Paul Flowers coming home second. Although I wasn't in the same league as the other guys this time, I felt good about making progress and bringing the car back in one piece.
As I drove home I thought about the great people I had met and replayed the best moments in my mind. The racers and crew at Lee Chapman Racing were fabulous and Brian Redman's group put on a great event. You can be sure I’m looking forward to more.
Dantzig Racing