savage217 (6/9/2010)

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I want to thank everyone for putting this together successfully. I especially want to thanks Miguel and Nick Pavloski and the rest of Veloz media and ACE Performance. My car overheated badly and I had to bring it into the pits. We needed to figure out what was wrong with it and Nick and Miguel jumped right in to help. Mig even had a spare water pump, water wetter, and distilled water hahahaha. That ended up not being the problem however they lended me all of the tools and their help in order to get the car running in time before the gates closed the first day. It actually got pretty close to closing time too! I also want to thank Simon Cooper for having a spare radiator cap (Miguel can't have every part ) Without the radiator cap (which ended up being the whole issue, I think) I may have not been able to run the car without it overheating again. Almost forgot to mention Derek from HMS was a great help with diagnosing what the issue may be and what his thoughts were of whether or not I should run the second day, etc. I ended up running the car the second day and drove it home without any problems. Had this been with another car club, the generosity may not have been the same. I can't thank you guys enough.

I had a great time overall at Monticello and really enjoyed the track despite all of the car problems the first day. I can't wait to get back there. I also want to note, it was great to see no cars were damaged or people were injured throughout the two day event (to my knowledge). That is a first I've seen for a 2 day HPDE in my experience.

Everybody was nice and helpful, thank you for going to MMC, I guess everyone wasn't fan of the track but I love that place!

Dan don't forget Mig give your phone number to amanda she will be calling you!

One Man One Engine
2002 CLK 55 AMG Coupe
Brilliant Silver/Charcoal Exclusive Nappa Leather

Also remember that this was a first time at a new track for most people there - even with combined run groups there was no issues.  Great event, I'll be there next year too!

http://cid-a60e0f70ac46a78a.photos.live.com/browse.aspx/Monticello%20June%202010

Of course I had to include my Dinan 335xi

Thanks for all the help from everyone, and especially to Dave George who got me to solo at my second event.  Can't wait for the next one!

2009 335i xDrive - 6MT - LeMans Blue

The track was really fun for me.  I think it's my new favorite. 

Here are some comments:

1) I wasn't in rungroups 1 & 2, but it seemed a bit congested when MMC members ran too.

2) Combining 3&4 tended to cause some congestion, especially given there seemed to be a bigger difference between the faster and slower drivers.  Some were forever finding themselves in "trains" going into the carousel and double apex.  However, I know I appreciated the extra track time.  It's a tough tradeoff

3) I enjoyed the social and met a few folks I probably wouldn't have otherwise.

4) The walkthrough was very interesting.  Subtle elevation changes were so much more noticeable.

5) Joe's presentation was helpful.  As with any presentation, everyone picks out a few different nuggets of knowledge when presented by a different person at a different time.  That's not a ding against Fred.  Both Joe and Fred are good, there are just different.

6) I thought it was fine to share the track with the club members ... except it got REAL dangerous when they didn't follow the rules.  I was the third car of a five car train going into the long straight.  I was just getting my point by (car two was nearly past car one) when the 2-eleven Lotus and Red Porsche decided to go by everyone without a point by.  If I wasn't paying attention, I'm not sure what might have happened but it wouldn't have been good.  My instructor, Dave George, reported it after the session.  It may be that we don't want to expose the 4th rungroup to them in the future.  The 1st car in the rungroup was a slower car from group 4, and I wouldn't be surprised if it was causing some angst/concern for him/her too.

7) Love the track as it really has just about every type of turn/straight one could want.  The downhill left just prior to the uphill hairpin (shared with the pit-in) is downright scary.

Finally, all of the members that run the events really do a great job.  This was only my second event, but you guys really do keep on top of things and keep things moving. A special thanks to Barry, Simon, Peter, Dan, and Dave for making my son Michael feel so welcomed.  He really enjoyed it.

Tom

2009 335i xDrive - 6MT - LeMans Blue

I didnt have any trouble with trains in the 1/2 run sessions.  However, there were several slower drivers who were reluctant to use the shorter passing zones.  As a result, i ended up having to wait much longer then necessary to pass one or two cars.  Personally, i feel that anyone in the 1/2 group should be capable and willing to allow people to pass in the shorter zones.  There is nothing wrong with driving slower in a fast car (frequent), or driving a slower car (not as often), but you must be willing to let people by.

Another thing- I wound up late to the meeting by a few minutes the 2nd day, and just about missed the passing talk.  I was helping a friend with his car, and needed a reminder to look at my watch.  This probably happened to a few other people at the event.  Plus, during the passing zone talk, those strolling in late (me) probably distracted the rest of the group.  I would reccomend that the most important parts, like the passing zone talk, be done mid-way through the meeting, especially since there is no PA system. 

This was my 2nd event, the first being NHMS on 5/24.  This was a fun track but it was  a little harder to learn than I expected.  I was "comfortable" with NHMS by my 3rd run whereas I was still a little lost after the 1st day at Monticello.  Not getting a good nights sleep (thanks to a faulty fire alarm) didn't help either!  Someone in the afternoon classroom mentioned that we should have the first lap run under a yellow flag to help learn the track and I thought this was a good idea.  It's much easier to drive without having to worry about passing or being passed for us newbs. 

I was intially nervous about combining groups 3 & 4 on the second day but in the end, it was a good experience.  Getting more track time didn't hurt either!  I didn't experience any long trains (and no, I wasn't causing the trains either ).  In my opinion, the driver point by's were pretty good. 

I enjoyed Joe's classroom presentation - informative and entertaining. 

Sharing the track with the instructors was a little different.  Not used to seeing car so close to me going around some of the corners. 

Anyways, thanks to everyone who organized the event and big thanks to my instructor Don!  I had a great time and can't wait to get back on the track.