The March 9th BRM Group C race looked more like an endurance race with so many in the field experiencing mechanical issues. Who would be running at the end and what effect did all of those mechanicals have on the overall standings? Let’s find out.
There were seven races present for the third round of the six round BRM Group C series. The only racer missing was Brian and his IMSA Daurer Porsche 962. The rumor around the pit lane was that Brian was taking the Porsche to Sebring for some super-secret tuning at Brumos. We will see if the time away makes any difference in his performance at the next round of the series.
On paper this race looked to be a good one. Shawn’s Minolta Toyota 88c has been flying while Jim is as fast as ever and Marty looks to have the Jagermeister Porsche 962 back on form. Not only were the cars looking fast, the track and ambient temperatures were perfect for some fast times. The track and the racers were ready to go.
Heat 1 – The first heat of the day had Marty and his Jagermeister Porsche 962 in the yellow lane, Stephen in the rental IMSA Porsche 962 in Lowenbrau livery in the blue lane and Brett with his new Porsche 962 in Camel livery in the green lane with his newly installed wood guide.
The race was fast from the start with Stephen setting a fast time of 4.013 and then was topped by Marty with a 4.002. The race finished with Marty running 72 laps to Stephen’s 70 and Brett’s 59. The wood guide Brett installed didn’t seem to have the desired effect but there are two more heats for Brett to get the feel for the new guide.
This was a great opening heat with no real issues or problems just consistent and fast racing.
Heat 2 – Marty and Brett were joined by Jim and his Miller High Life IMSA Porsche 962 in the yellow lane. The race had a few big crashes but everyone was able to continue without too much damage. They say people come to the races for the crashes and if that is you then you should make sure you watch this heat on UStream.
Marty managed to lower his fast lap time to 3.985 while Jim ran a fast lap of 4.013 and Brett had a great fast lap with a time of 4.134. Marty ended up with a total of 74 laps to Jim’s 71 and Brett’s 62
Heat 3 – Marty and Jim were joined by Shawn and his superfast Toyota 88c in Minolta livery. On paper this should be one of the best races of the day. Everyone started off fast and no one let up. This was a great race with very few de-slots and tons of speed and great driving. At the end Shawn and Marty had an equal number of laps at 74 and Jim was not far behind with 72 laps. The fast lap was set by Shawn with a 3.952 and Marty was not far behind with a 3.959 and Jim had a 4.018. There was one crash in the middle of the heat where Shawn’s Toyota took a good hit and even lost a lens cover. Would the crash be something to worry about later? After all, this was Shawn’s first heat. Would the Toyota hold up for the remaining two heats running at those speeds?
Heat 4 – Jim and Shawn were joined by Ary and his Kenwood IMSA Porsche 962. This should be another great race with three of the clubs best racers going at it. Again the racers started off super quick. After a couple of fast laps Shawn’s Toyota lost its wing in the tunnel and it was struck by Ary’s Porsche but the race continued as the cars and drivers were able to drive through it. As the race continued the Minolta Toyota 88c began to make some noise and within two laps the Toyota came to a standstill with crown gear issues.
Jim and Ary continued and had a strong race with Jim, in the blue lane, really benefitting from not having another car alongside to battle with. He had a fast lap time of 3.976 with 72 laps to Ary’s fast lap of 4.052 and a lap count of 71.
Heat 5 – Heat 5 was Shawn and Ary being joined by Roy and his Taka Q Toyota 88c. Shawn was able to get a new crown gear installed using the time left from the last heat and the three minute gap between heats. Great work under pressure Shawn. With the new points structure every lap is important in case of a tie in the points totals.
This heat was highlighted by numerous de-slots and wrecks and those would more than likely play a role in what was to follow. It started with Shawn and his newly installed crown gear again having problems and then moved to Roy and the crown gear in his Toyota. Unfortunately it looks like both of the Toyota teams received some bad crown gears. So with two minutes to go it was Ary running all by himself in the green lane.
Ary finished with 66 laps and a fast lap of 4.082 to Roy’s 42 laps and fast lap of 4.072 to Shawn’s 25 laps and a fast lap of 4.010.
Heat 6 – Ary and Roy were joined by Stephen who raced to a strong result in the first heat of the day. Roy was feveriously working on replacing his crown gear and was barely able to get his car on the track and stickered by the time the green light flashed. Unfortunately his fast repair was a little too quick and his crown gear started to slip before the Toyota turned a wheel. I hope he saved the receipt for the work he had done. He took it back to the pits and began doing more work. With 3:27 left Roy rejoined the race with Ary and Stephen both running strong. It looked like Roy might have spilled some oil on his tires because his Toyota was loose in the turns and was a handful to control. He also was at the center of a couple of on track incidents with Ary and his Kenwood Porsche. The contact obviously caused an issue with the Kenwood Porsche because with a minute and five seconds left in the heat the throttle on the Porsche was stuck wide open. The Porsche impacted the outside wall in turn one and vaulted over the wall and onto the floor. The race was stopped and the driver was checked for any injury. Thankfully the driver was OK but the car was retired immediately. It’s never good to see a racers day end like that.
Stephen and Roy continued with Stephen running a total of 69 laps to Roy’s 46 and Ary’s 54. Stephen had the fast lap of the heat with a 4.033.
Heat 7 – The final heat of the day had Roy and Stephen joined by Brett. It what should have been a boring “who cares” heat this was one of the best heats to watch. The racing was very close and was for the most part clean. It was great to see Brett drive so well and stay on the same lap with Roy and not very far behind the heat winner – Stephen. Congratulations Brett!
The heat finished with Stephen running a total of 69 laps and the fast lap of the heat at 4.014 to Roy and Brett’s 67 lap total.
Final Results – Of the seven racers that started only four managed to have trouble free runs. Of the four cars that did not experience any issues Marty finished on top with 220 laps to Jim’s second place total of 215 and Stephen’s third place total of 208 laps. Ary was fourth with 191 laps and Brett was fifth with a total of 188 laps – Brett’s highest ever! Sixth was Roy and seventh was Shawn.
It was not the day to drive a Toyota but it was a day to watch some of the newer racers – Stephen and Brett. It was great to see these two guys do so well. Congratulations to both of them.
Post Script – This race is a great example of what can sometimes go wrong with these cars and why it’s so important to give them a good cleaning and parts check after each race. It will be interesting to see what happens in the next race after all the repairs are completed. I am sure both Toyota’s will be back on form and it was rumored that the Kenwood Porsche’s motor was going away and might get a new one. That would put Ary and the Kenwood right back in the thick of things. Can’t wait to see what happens!
The story for the 3rd round of the BRM Group C series is posted.
Marty