2021-Rally Series - Targa Florio (Q3-2021)

Rules have been updated.

The Porsche is the 908-3 miss labeled 808 in the rules, plus there are 3 optional cars in the 2020 list missing.  I think Alejandro has the Nonno Abarth and Marty was considering building the other 2 cars.  I sure hope we run this race in person!

I'm good with the rules as they are now.  I do know that Alejandro purchased a Nonno Abarth that he was going to run in the last series we ran.  Maybe an exception for that car as well.  I'm easy.

NSR Porsche 908 Parts References (for spares)

Guide NSR4841, 4844 - stick with the rally keel/blade length so it does not stick in sharp corners.
Wheels - Front NSR5001 (16x8) Rear NSR5002 (16x8)
Tires - Front NSR5238 (18.5x10) Rear NSR5241 (21x11)
Pod - Hard Red NSR1270
OEM Motor - NSR3041 Shark 21.5 (21.9k)

Question and Comment about Testing on the Rally Track

The original idea behind the rally track was that it would not be open for members to use anytime they wanted to like the road course.  This was done so the track would be a new-ish experience for everyone that raced on it.  Having said that, there were scheduled practices so everyone knew when the track would be open for practice but it was fair because everyone had an opportunity to run.  I suggest running the same format for this upcoming series where there are scheduled practices that are open to everyone.  The track is kept covered all other times.  Thoughts?

Marty

Hmmm...the Targa was heavily recce'd, and the only rally out there that is seat-of-your-pants-read-the-pace-notes-for-the-first-time is SCCA (the rally drivers with REAL cojones).

A quote from Vic Elford about the Targa, "“By 1968, the track was etched into my memory; you could literally have blindfolded me and dropped me somewhere along the route by helicopter, and I could have told you where we were, what the next corner was, and which gear I’d be in."

So...in the spirit of the real Targa, any recce would be acceptable. However, opening up the rally track is a multi-person activity...so having scheduled sessions is certainly helpful...but as manager, I can't say I have any objection to running practice at any time there are 2 people around with an interest.

I agree with Eric - we should allow "free" practice, but preferred with at least one other person. 30 minutes after coming races may be helpful for people like John and Marc who have to commute.

I ~kinda~ get the "realism" aspect of restricting practice to a minimum - but come on, we are not ruled by the SCCA or IMSA et al. The rally tack is not only a challenge itself, but we added complicating factors as compared to most of our Road races:
-- Variable voltage - it takes several laps to see what power level works well with various motor and gear setups;
-- Small-can, long-can, various RPM and torque specs; what's best balance for speed and control?
-- What gear-ratios and tires provide both speed, some drift and reliable cornering;
-- Direction changes impact rhythm, throttle feathering and various other Muscle memory issues

Thus, I can see where we do not want to give an advantage to local members, vs. our remote Affiliates (John and Marc at least) - but trying to make the Rally a totally fresh challenge each time can be frustrating if someone is having trouble working out bugs with Setup, Voltage, Rhythm.

So - at the moment - I'm straddling the fence on the practice "rules".

NOTICE: July 31 Targa Florio will be run COUNTER-Clockwise on the Rally Circuit.

Looking forward to finally running on the rally track!  Thanks for the heads up.

STAB - lights on or off (night runs)? Snow or sand? will vino, cheeze and quiche be allowed?

Cheese and Chianti (but only bottles with raffa on the outside) are highly encouraged. I'm loath to require headlights since many of the cars cannot support them (at least, the NSR Porsches don't have light boxes or clear lenses and would have to mount something like a rally car on the front of their vehicles). Considering we don't have magnets, I don't think scattering a loose surface all over the track is a good idea, let alone needing to clean it up later. I do have some ideas for future events that will be announced if we can make them work. I am planning some discussions with our timing and scoring team...so stay tuned.

Found the article,  https://drivetribe.com/p/the-mid-week-long-read-the-unlikely-Krv8YRi7Rp-mOWzx1Tq2gQ?iid=PfKnS6odSY-HoLsQ0ZzszA.

The name of the engineer is Terry Pelton, who was also president of his fraternity at Ohio University in 1966-67, and sold my Dad his wooden Lyman runabout.

Targa Florio 4 will be run counter clockwise with the overhead lights on.  Since most of our cars do not have clear lenses, we will not run a dark night race this series.

Targa Florio #5 will be counterclockwise again.  Many thanks to Marty and Steve who devised a stopwatch cell phone method to time our runs and counted the laps.

What is the scoring method used to determine running order?  The slowest time from prior race, but what about the racers who have missed a race and don't have as many points as last races' slowest car?  What is the final class scoring?  Points from each race as usual?

After looking back at the previous series it will be the total time that determines positions.  No points are awarded it's just your total time.

Running order for any race is the leader in points goes first and the last place person goes last.

There will only be an "A" class for the individual and overall race results.

Be sure to check facebook for Marty's post of the race from my text, his improvements and the standings.  Also the pictures.

Targa five (5) is counter clockwise.  Senso antirario for Italy/Sicily.

Thanks for the update.  Looking forward to racing this coming Saturday.

Trivial but interesting.  We did not have a Mercedes 3 liter sports racer eligible in our 2021 race.  But one year the usual silver Mercedes was camouflaged in red paint like the Italian cars to not draw attention. Is that what David di to his Porsche?  Put a red body on his Porsche?