New F1000 Championship

[Gary Slahor]

Been eagerly awaiting more info on the tire test of the Am Racing tires...... and what tire rules will be in place for the series.

- How did the tires perform at Rd Atlanta ?
- What was the best lap time achieved with the new tires ?
- Are there different compounds available in this tire ?
- Are there specific rules concerning tires for the series ? 6 tire rule ?
- Besides being disqualified from contingency prizes are there any other penalties for NOT running the Am Racing tires in the series ?

I've been checking the website, but it's surprisingly silent on the topic of tires.

Thanks for any info you can provide.

[Blair Robertshaw]

Can someone please explain what is different from these tires to Hoosiers or Avons? I know lower price but Thomas commented that these tires are designed specifically for F1000. Seems a pretty small market for such an undertaking. Any clarification is appreciated. Thanks all.

[J Leonard]

Hoosier 20.5x7.0 roll out 67 1/4, A.R. 20.5x7.0 65 1/2. A.R. JA5F2. I don't know what the series is running for true size. These are factory markings for the ones in the shop. Sidewall; Avon- soft, Hoosier- medium, American Racer- harder?

[Thomas Copeland]

The track was fairly cold today. It got a little grippy during the mid-afternoon session but went cold again for the last session.

The American Racer tires we have this weekend are somewhere between the Hoosier 25 and 35. This won't always be the case as softer compounds are coming. The fast times today between the American Racer and Hoosier were pretty comparable, this even with the Hoosier being a little softer compound.

Want to thank Micheal Crowe for working so hard to fit me in his car today. Taking the hacksaw to his custom shifter system so I could get in his car went above and beyond the call of duty. My body aches in places it hasn't ached in a long time (memories!!). Knocking the rust off after 5 years out of the car will take some time. I've had no track running until today. Car I've never seen before, shifter I never used before, and a track I've never driven before. But I'm committed to seeing the championship succeed.

[Richard Dziak]

SCCA Majors Road Atlanta 3/11/2017

Class FB........

Q1

1) Mayer.........1:24:32

2) Cooper.......1:25:36

3) Gerardo......1:26:54

4) Livingston...1:27:16

5) Haas...........1:27:56

6) Pierce.........1:31:05

7) Gibbs..........1:34:44

8) Copeland.....1:54:26

Race #1 Road Atlanta

1) Glenn Cooper
2) Joel Haas
3) Tim Pierce
4) Jose Gerardo
5) Alex Mayer
6) Thomas Copeland

7) Charles Livingston....DNS
8) Zane Gibbs..........DNS

All Q1 times and Race final as per Race-Monitor

[Thomas Copeland]

Says I did 8 laps in qualify. But mustva counted 7 when I crossed the start finish in the pits. Think I really did 1/2 a lap.

Anyway, it was sprinkling rain as we went out. Most of race was under double yellow.

Coop won. Mayer retired while leading.

Championship wise it was:

1. Tim Pierce
2. Jose Garado
3. Alex Mayer

[Blair Robertshaw]

Was everyone on the new tire? if so, drivers comments please. thanks

[Thomas Copeland]

Cooper, Haas on Hoosier

Everyone else part of the Championship on American Tire.

Mayer had engine triubles Gerardo had battery, neither wererunning atfinish. Livingston and Gibbs had mechanical and DNS. Copeland self retired on lap 2.

Championship giving away over $1500 in cash and prizes this week. Every driver in the championship got a check last night. Think Tim Pierce got $500. $300 for win, $200 giveaway from Taylor. Plus a real expensive looking trophy from Brad Baytos at Primus. and this is just the first race. Working on securing more sponsors.

[Thomas Copeland]

Race starting in 1 hour. So cold I can see my breath.

[Richard Dziak]

Sunday Race - Class FB Road Atlanta SCCA Majors

Sunday Race Results

#1) Jose Gerardo

#2) Tim Pierce

#3) Zane Gibbs

#4) Charles Livingston

#5) Thomas Copeland

#6) Alex Mayer...no time

#7) Glenn Cooper...no time

Results posted as per Race-Monitor

[Thomas Copeland]

Coop crashed on warm up lap.

Mayer actually started I think but DNF on the back straight with motor.


High point of weekend for me was getting the signatures I needed to get off my 10 year SCCA probation. Yeah, I've been on probation with the SCCA since 2007. TEN YEARS!!! Must be some kind of record. And I won $200 Taylor Award and a free American Racer Tire. . Sweet!

.

[ghickman]

Thomas just curious what got you on a 10 year probation?

Congrats to Coop and Jose. Sounds like it was an interesting weekend.

Nice job putting this event together guys.

[RussMcB]

Thomas just curious what got you on a 10 year probation?

Congrats to Coop and Jose. Sounds like it was an interesting weekend.

Nice job putting this event together guys.

I was wondering that, too. :-)

Gary, congratulations on your successful FB race weekend, too.

[Thomas Copeland]

It had to do with an Ambulance and some dude in a lounge chair.

Buttonwillow 2007. I get black flagged half way through the race because they said I was late to the grid -i was actually one of the first. They ruin my race needlessly over some petty offence. Not the first time I've seen that happen at a Cal Club event. So I go back out and do one lap and decide race ruined. Just retire.

I come in and exit the track same place I did test day the day before. Its the first opening in the pit wall leading to the paddock. Only to find and ambulance and some guy in a lounge chair I nearly hit. No cones, nothing between them and the hot pits. Real dumb and a major safety violation. They tried to make some assumption about my state of mind after being black flagged. BS. Anyway, got 3 race probation. Did first race next day. Then sold car. Didn't race again until Laguna 2012. DNF and couldn't get sign off last 2. Flash forward 2017. Next race this weekend.

Anyway, my probation license is 4 pages long - every license I gotten since 2007. So be nice to finally get rid of all those yellow pages!

[Zcurves]

I was really impressed by the generosity and solicitation of feedback of American Racer. Their tires have a lot of potential and they are committed to giving us a tire that will be even better than the Hoosiers. It was hard to get a bead on the relative performance due to the cold track. Everyone was off, regardless of tire choice. VIR in warmer weather will give us more information.

[Gary Slahor]

Sorry we missed the opening weekend of the new series. Looks like you had an interesting weekend. I was taking a look at the relative performance of the classes in our run group to see how the FB times compared (relatively) to the other classes in our run group. Lap records are from the Atlanta region site and best weekend time are from Speedhive (myLpas).

Class - Lap record - Best time of the weekend - Diff

FA 1:17.904 1:19.929 2.025
FB 1:19.666 1:24.322 4.662
P1 1:19.494 1:20.118 .624
P2 1:25.036 1:24.421 (.615)
FC 1:25.568 1:24.867 (.701)
FE 1:25.211 1:28.737 3.526

Not bad for a first showing for the new tires..... especially if they were a harder compound than the R25's that would normally be preferred.
There could be many reasons for the differences, but it seems the FB times were further off the pace than any other class........ in fact, the cold weather didn't seem to hurt the P2 or FC classes at all. Do you think the tires are at least partly responsible ?
Looking forward to VIR...................

[Nick77]

Sorry we missed the opening weekend of the new series. Looks like you had an interesting weekend. I was taking a look at the relative performance of the classes in our run group to see how the FB times compared (relatively) to the other classes in our run group. Lap records are from the Atlanta region site and best weekend time are from Speedhive (myLpas).

Class - Lap record - Best time of the weekend - Diff

FA 1:17.904 1:19.929 2.025
FB 1:19.666 1:24.322 4.662
P1 1:19.494 1:20.118 .624
P2 1:25.036 1:24.421 (.615)
FC 1:25.568 1:24.867 (.701)
FE 1:25.211 1:28.737 3.526

Not bad for a first showing for the new tires..... especially if they were a harder compound than the R25's that would normally be preferred.
There could be many reasons for the differences, but it seems the FB times were further off the pace than any other class........ in fact, the cold weather didn't seem to hurt the P2 or FC classes at all. Do you think the tires are at least partly responsible ?
Looking forward to VIR...................

Hi Gary
Looking forward to seeing you guys at VIR
Gary as you're aware there's many variables in fast lap times for examples the FB track record that you listed was from a single run group and much more conducive weather conditions as opposed to this past weekend with mixed run groups extreme cold and damp conditions
A better comparison might be the other two drivers using 25 Hoosiers ( Joel Haas and Glenn Cooper) both very formidable competitor's running in the same race at the same time where the American racer prove to be one second faster .
But Gary with that being said the American Racer first attempt in building a tire specifically for F 1000 they did one hell of a job and this is still a work in progress
And what's even better than that is we gave away over $2500 in cash and prizes to all the drivers

[Gary Slahor]

Thanks for your thoughts Nick
I'm glad to see you're enthused about the new tire.
VIR should shed some additional light on the performance and hopefully the weather will be better.

[jchracer]

I would not look at my times for comparison. Engine issues caused the car to be WAY down on power (over 20 MPH slower top speed than last year). I think the Coop had some major issues as well.

[Zcurves]

As long as everyone is running the same tire, who cares? I'm impressed as hell that we got paid. Real money this time; checks in hand! I'll race on rubber bands if it'll offset the costs. The guys have done a great job putting this series together and I'm sure there is more we can do. Glad everyone came out and look forward to seeing the guys that didn't at VIR.

[Thomas Copeland]

As far as I was aware every FB driver had issues this weekend. Coop told me his balance was off, Alex had mechanical issues as did Jose, Zane and Charles. My car had to be cut on before I could even fit in it. Then I had to figure out what gear I was in by engine sound alone. No gear indicator. Came out of many corners in way too high a gear. But first I had to figure out what gear I needed to be in.

I was disappointed when I saw Coop in the wall on warm-up lap Sunday. I was hoping to see him and Alex make a race of it as we didn't have the opportunity to see that on Saturday.

The track was so cold I was expecting someone would go off on the first lap. I saw at least two spin off before the race even started. I was just happy to get finally get some clear laps in without having to move over for uber aggressive FA's and other faster cars. I think I got in 25 laps tops Friday and Saturday combined before Sunday's race. 25 laps in last 5 years is not enough to do anything except maybe remembering how to hold on.

Objectively, The American Tire performed quite well considering how harder it was to the Hoosier. I ran both the Hoosier 25 (on Friday) and the American Racer Tire on Saturday and Sunday. For me it took about 3 laps before I started feeling the American Racer tires get grippy. But once they started to grip I would say they were good. I felt confident driving on them, and I've been out of the car for 5 years. The Hoosiers had just a little more grip. If I were to put a percentage on it maybe 10%-15% more. But not so demonstrably better it made me worried about losing grip. This was a good start for American Racer. Looking forward to VIR and the softer American Racer Tire and hopefully warmer weather there.

[pepperbowe]

https://goo.gl/photos/Jvrwj1hrKM5EDR778

[ghickman]

Wow those are some choice looking trophies....nice addition to any man cave. Way better than the crap SCCA gives out.

I suspect that the American Racer tires will improve, a softer compound and some setup changes will likely yield closer to "H" brand results. If everyone else is running the same tire it really is kind of a moot point....it's easy to get spoiled by really grippy tires.''

Awesome pics by pepperbowe

[glenn cooper]

Says I did 8 laps in qualify. But mustva counted 7 when I crossed the start finish in the pits. Think I really did 1/2 a lap.

Anyway, it was sprinkling rain as we went out. Most of race was under double yellow.

Coop won. Mayer retired while leading.

Championship wise it was:

1. Tim Pierce
2. Jose Garado
3. Alex Mayer

I finally had the car right for the race, as in the Q, all I could do was 2nd - the platform and scales had slid off a 2x4 shim and I was making adjustments for ride height and corners on a wonkly setup platform.
The car was just shy of scary to drive...
After the Sat morn Q we got the platform straightened out and I am embarrassed to say how far out of wack the chassis was.
Mayer came to grid on full wets, and it was only just barely spitting.
I got by Jose in 2nd after a lap or two, and then by a fading Mayer on the backstraight for the lead. I think he had a ternminal engine problem as the laps wound down.
It started raining a bit more and I backed off the pace, not wanting to hurt Jake's car by flying off a wet track. This allowed Jose to reel me in, and he got by as we came up on the tail end of the FE's - 2 of 'em on the way into T1.
Jose took over the lead, then we went FCY for another incident.
On the restart, Jose pulled into the inside/Pro paddock pit in road w/ some kind of electrical or charging system failure.
We finally went green with a lap or two to go and I took an unchallenged win.
At this point I was qualified for the Runoffs with the 2 Florida races in January and this making my 3rd Majors finish.
The weather heading in was even colder for Race 2 on Sunday, and what I SHOULD have done was to load up and head home on Saturday eve.
I really wanted a good race, as my Q times were way off what I know I can do with the chassis correct - we were about 4-5 seconds off the F1000 lap record, but that was done in MUCH warmer conditions, MUCH better track conditions as well - the track was really bad, perhaps due to the torrential rain on Thursday night.
The race on Sunday was STUPID COLD - I have a hoodie that Ana had lettered up which reads "Road racing is not a winter sport" - truer words have never been spoken...
I managed to find the wall on the back straight, at the T8 hill - trying too aggressively to get heat in the tires, and damaged the right front corner at about 20mph, glancing into the inner wall.
Game over.

[andyllc]

The race on Sunday was STUPID COLD - I have a hoodie that Ana had lettered up which reads "Road racing is not a winter sport" - truer words have never been spoken...
I managed to find the wall on the back straight, at the T8 hill - trying too aggressively to get heat in the tires, and damaged the right front corner at about 20mph, glancing into the inner wall.
Game over.

Don't feel too bad. I also spun for my race. Starting second in FF on Sunday I spun warming up the tires going up the hill out of 1 on the pace lap. Complete SMH moment.

[glenn cooper]

Although not as financially ruinous, I probably feel shippier about holding up the race for all my buddies for three laps while the crew got the car out of the way.
I directed the pickup and urged things along, although they were pretty on it - just needed help with the steel bar through the hoop...


If it happened at CoTA - it would have taken 18 laps for the crew to clear the car, so there's THAT...

[Nick77]

Although not as financially ruinous, I probably feel shippier about holding up the race for all my buddies for three laps while the crew got the car out of the way.
I directed the pickup and urged things along, although they were pretty on it - just needed help with the steel bar through the hoop...


If it happened at CoTA - it would have taken 18 laps for the crew to clear the car, so there's THAT...

Hey Coop no big deal it probably helped everybody get a little more heat in ther tires
anything we can help you with to get you back out on the track just let us know love to have you back

Nick

[Thomas Copeland]

Drivers Awards Saturday Night, Inaugural North American Formula 1000 Championship Race.

L to R : Jose Gerardo, Zane Gibbs, Tim Pierce, Thomas Copeland, Charles Livingston, Alex Mayer

[Nick77]

Drivers Awards Saturday Night, Inaugural North American Formula 1000 Championship Race.

L to R : Jose Gerardo, Zane Gibbs, Tim Pierce, Thomas Copeland, Charles Livingston, Alex Mayer

Getting PAID to race
I Love It

[jose gerardo]

I love getting paid to race, I was able to cover my airline ticket with the winnings and then some with the rilltech coupon for my new exhaust manifold !!!!