We made it to the End

This years One Lap of America event is over and we successfully made it to the end. We completed and got points in every event and made it back to South Bend and from there back to Lancaster County. The mileage added up to 4861 in total and 3669 during the official event including transit distances and on track mileage.

We were able to place 15Th place overall and 9Th place in class, which we consider a very respectable finish. Obviously we would have liked to finish in 1st place, but with the level of talent and equipment we competed against we consider our finish a success.

Our last event was on Saturday and was the Dry Skid pad competition at the Tire Rack facility in South Bend, In. It was a very threatening sky and a brisk wind and it was trying to rain. The temperature on the car thermometer was 49 and it felt like less than 30 and you could see your breath. Scott was able to get a .902 g's and placed 27Th and then it was all over except for the group picture and the banquet.

We met a lot of nice people and had a very enjoyable if tiring week and my mind is already working on the consideration of doing it again in the future, maybe even next year. I had a great time and the title of this blog was correct as it was a real adventure.

The pictures above are the 1st place overall Nissan GT-R (orange/silver) and the black Porsche GT2, 2nd place overall. I also included another picture of our entry, just to remind everyone of the number 22 car.

That's all for today but check back, I will probably have some more musings to share.

Jim

Beaver Run Motorsports Park

Today was our last track day, after this it's down to the dry skid pad event in South Bend. Beaver Run is a 1.3 mile road course with some neat elevation changes in western Pennsylvania near Beaver Falls. Scott ran in the morning and was able to post a very good 9th place finish. While we were having lunch I felt a couple rain drops and was afraid I would get another wet run in the afternoon. Just a few drops and those rain clouds moved on and a little sun poked out and the rain held off. I went out and was able to get a 16th place finish, not quite what I was looking for but respectable. Now again pack up quickly and head off to a 6 hour run to South Bend, Indiana.

The picture above is the number 2 Nissan GT R which had engine problems and was unable to continue. The last event shows 10 vehicles that din't get points on that event which is a good indicator that they have had problems and were broke at least for the day or maybe even out of the event.

After the Dry Skid Pad event there will be an awards banquet and we will be on our way home. It might take a couple days to get a final update posted but keep checking back.

Jim

Great Scott-BMW Performance Center

Scott did an awesome job at the BMW Performance Center, finishing in 8th place overall. He actually caught the car in front of him and it was a drag race to the finish line. They space the cars out so that doesn't happen but this time it did. I think if Scott didn't have that car to deal with he might have been a bit faster and would have likely placed a few places higher. The course was like a road course and autocross combined and Scott really showed his autocross skills. This great run helped us move up in the points.

After his run was finished we quickly left for Beaver Falls, Pa. some 562 miles away. This would be one of our biggest trips and even with all the hustle we still didn't get there till 1:30 in the morming. As you can see, stamina and endurance of both participants and vehicle are very important.

Stay tuned for more.
Jim

Carolina Motorsports Park

I had a good run at Carolina Motorsports Park today. Unfortunately it rained this morning for Scott's run, but then it cleared up by my afternoon run. There were a couple of big spins and slides in the morning and that added some excitement to the viewing (also to the drivers who were in those cars). I was able to get some pointers from a fellow that I had as a student at VIR 2 years ago. He was there to watch the One Lap group since it is his home track. His advise was well appreciated. I ended up with a 15th place run which was very respectable. After my run was over we loaded the car quickly and headed about 140 miles to the BMW Performance Center

Running the High Banks at Daytona

What a blast running on the high banks at Daytona. Today was quite a bit different from a normal track. We ran the Rolex 24 hour layout with the one mile International infield added to the high bank portion. This makes a 3.56 mile course which is very challenging which also includes the "Bus Stop" near the end of the back straight. You have to look out the top corner of your windshield to see any distance ahead of you when you are in turns 1 & 2 and especially in 3 & 4. There was a lot more speed to be had, but it would take a few more than 4 laps to build a comfort level at these speeds. It is amazing to realize the driving skills needed to handle a Nascar on the track with 43 other cars traveling as a pack.

The one picture is Scott coming down the front stretch and the other is him making a pass on the back straight. Scott was able to get a 15 place in evert #1 and I got a 27th place finish in the second event. At this point we are in 10th place in class and 19 place overall.

Jim

Good Day at Sebring

Sebring went pretty good today, Scott got a 17th place finish in the morning event and I was able to get a 17 place finish in the afternoon. This moved us up a little bit in the standings. It was good to do an event in the dry. The top picture is me running down the front straight at Sebring and the one on the bottom is Scott in his run for low ET.

Scott did the duties at the drag strip in Gainesville, Fl. and was able to get a 12.571 in the ET challenge which was good for 10th place overall Unfortunately Scott was eliminated in the 1st round in the Bracket Drags but we don't know the points yet since they are not posted yet.

Tomorrow we get to run the Daytona 3.56 mile course that the 24 Hours of Rolex uses. This layout uses the high banks as well as the international infield that is just over a mile long. They use the Bus Stop near the end of the back straight that causes you to manuver into the "Bus Stop" to help keep speeds down when entering Nascar 3.

Check back for more updates.

Jim

Monday May 4th Talladega, Al.

We had a little rain in Talladega today (actually yesterday since I am writing this after midnight), then we had a 600 mile drive after finishing the event in the wet. The picture on the left is Scott holding an umbrella for a friend to check out a brake problem in the rain. The other picture is just to give you an idea of how much rain we had. It wasn't as bad as it might have been. The track was wet but the tremendous downpour had stopped while we were on track.

Not quite the results we were hoping for today. Scott had a 21 place finish in the first event and I had a 42 place overall in the afternoon event. We certainly create a disadvantage for ourselves by us both running the same day. Most teams will use the same driver for both events therefor getting "practice" in the first event to do better in the second event. We wanted to both experience all the tracks, but our competitiveness is suffering by seeing us slip in the points. If I would have had that same time in the first event I would have improved by about 12 positions, but most everyone got better on their second event. I guess I'm feeling a little frustrated not handling Scott's car the way I handle my own and the wet tracks certinly doesn't help. I am hoping for a dry day at Sebring tomorrow and maybe we can gain a few positions.

We have about 2400 miles on the car since we left home and expect to get near 5000 miles by the time we get home.

Jim

Florence Ky. Sunday May 3rd.

Things are looking up. Scott did an great job on the autocross and finished 11th overall and 6th in class. We are now in 24th place in the accumulative standings and 7th in class out of 17 in our class. We put in about 550 miles to day first going to Highland Rim asphalt oval track then on to Talladega, Al. Unfortunately it rained at Highland Rim and they would not let us run in the rain. Too much chance of hitting the walls in the wet. Also unfortunately for me that was my event to do for the day so all I did today was a fun run on the autocross course which didn't count but I did get a respectable run of 45.345.

While we were waiting for things to happen at Highland Rim, I was dozing in the drivers seat and one of the Motor Trend photographers snuck up to the window and snapped my picture. I hope that picture doesn't end up in a national magazine or on their web site.

Tomorrow we run at Talladega Grand Prix roadrace course. We are splitting the duties, Scott will run the first event and I will run the second. As soon as we are finished we pack up quickly and head for Sebring, Fl. which in about 620 miles away. Hopefully we get there in time to get a motel room. Because of how late we will probably get to Sebring I don't know if I will do a post tomorrow, but you can check resuts on the On Lap web site at http:/onelapofamerica.com/home.shtm.

Mixed Bag Day

Today was a mixed bag day. I did kind of lousy on the Wet Skid Pad competition and Scott did great on the Time Trial at Autobahn Country Club Raceway. Another part of the mixed bag is that I did not contribute many points and that leaves us in 35 place overall so far. The second part is Scott did terrific and ended up in 15th place in the Time Trial and that puts us in the early groupings in each event so we can finish early and be on the road for the next event.

Tomorrow will be a long day, we will start at Florence Ky. with an large autocross then 250 miles to a asphalt oval in Tennesse, then over 250 more miles to Talledaga, Al. The reason for this is the track at Bluegrass Raceway in Sparta, Ky. was being paved and is not finished in time for our event so an alternate plan was created.

Don't forget we are still trying to raise funds for Spina Bifida Resources. If you want to send a check send it to Jim Roberts 14 W. Main St. Mount Joy, Pa. 17552 and make it payable to SBR/One Lap. Or if you want to make a pledge just send me an email to that effect.

Pleas check back, I will try to post daily.

We made it to South Bend

Hi Everyone,

Well we made it to South Bend and are at Tire Rack. We got the rest of the decals for the national sponsors and the One Lap of America door shield. They had a drivers meeting and we got the Route Book and last minute changes and corrections. After the dinner/meeting we headed for the hotel to study our Route book and make our final plans. Tomorrow morning we start with the competition. I will be competing in the wet skid pad event, which will be two laps around clockwise then two laps counter clockwise from which they will calculate your g force. We will be awarded points based on the g force we are able to maintain. After the skid pad we are off to Joilett, Il. where Scott will compete in the road course event which will set the seeding order for the rest of the week. The higher up we finish tomorrow the sooner we will finish each day and be on our way to the next track.

There is some very serious equipment and some very talented dirvers that we will be competing with. At this point I am thinking I have my work cut out for me. I have enclosed a few pictures of a sampling of the cars.

Check back tomorrow and I will try to post an update and let you know how we did on our first day.

Counting Down the Hours

We're counting down the hours now. It wasn't that long ago that it was several weeks to go, now it's down to a couple of days. Here is a picture of the car with most of our sponsor decals on. When we arrive in South Bend on Friday they will give us the One Lap of America shield to go on the doors and the other national sponsors that go around the doors. We then need to put them on and head over to tech to get our final sign off. After all the final registration work is finished we have a kickoff dinner/gathering to get the last of the details before starting the competition at 8 am on Saturday morning.

Sorry the delay between updates, but I have been busy. Last week a group of us from the Lancaster County Corvette Club spent two days participating in a great track event on the Pocono North Course with the Cumberland Valley Corvette Club. Of course I call this practice for the One Lap. I was also draging my feet putting up a new post since it would push my last story with the appeal for sponsorships down the page and we are still anxious to keep getting the word out and raising more money for Spina Bifida Resources of Greater Pennsylvania. At this point we have raised a few hundred dollars but we are still hoping for more. Keep those checks and pledges coming in. We did get a few paragraphs in the Lancaster New Era on Thursday, April 23rd but the only part they mentioned was the competition itself and no mention of the charity part. If anyone has another contact with the Lancaster newspapers feel free to give them the address of the blog and encourage them to mention the Spina Bifida charity benefit. It may also be a little more newsworthy now that we have a picture of the car to show.

We are now adding a charity component to our Cannonball One Lap of America. We will be displaying a Spina Bifida Resources of Greater Pa. sticker on the One Lap car along with our sponsor stickers. We will also list them as our charity on our official entry and on the web site for the Cannonball One Lap of America. This will bring exposure to our local Spina Bifida Resources and Spina Bifida as a medical birth defect issue. To help them financially we will accept sponsorships from anyone who would like to sponsor us by the mile or for the entire trip or just as a donation to the charity. Think of this as a Drive A Thon. We will record our mileage when leaving home and at the end when we return home and expect to log about 5000 miles in total. For someone willing to donate a penny a mile that would be $50.00. You can do the math and make things work out to whatever you want to donate. The main goal is to leverage this amazing adventure of ours to greater community benefit.

Many of you may know that I have a wonderful granddaughter that was born May 19, 2006 with Spina Bifida. Through those difficult times in the weeks after Adaline was born, Michele was able to benefit from materials, direction and advice that she received from Pat Fulvio and the local Spina Bifida organization. Since the level of giving has certinly suffered for Spina Bifida Resources of Greater Pa. as well as many other charities in these difficult economic times, we felt we wanted to try to help their fundraising. If you would like to create a sponsor sheet and solicit contributions on our behalf for Spina Bifida Resources please let us know and thank you. Please make checks out to SBR-One Lap and mail to Jim Roberts 14 W. Main St. Mount Joy, Pa. 17552.

Only Two weeks to go.

Time is getting short, only two weeks to go until we start our One Lap of America adventure. The car count is up to 74 at this point. There are 18 showing in our class SSGT1Big Bore. It looks like a lot of very talented drivers participating.

On Saturday May 2nd we begin with a wet skid pad competition. Finishing positions in the Wet Skid Pad competition are awarded by measuring and averaging the maximum g's of cornering force for each vehicle while driving laps in both directions on the 200-foot diameter wet skid pad. After the skid pad we then head off to Autobahn Country Club (racetrack) in Joilett, Il. The competition here will set the run order for much of the rest of the events. The higher you finish here, the sooner you will do your Time Trial runs at each track, and the sooner you can then leave to head for the next track. The two longest legs of the event are from Talladega, Al. to Sebring, Fl. and from the BMW Performance center in Greer, SC. to Beaver Run Raceway in Beaver Falls, Pa. The cars that get moving sooner have a better opportunity to get some quality sleep in a motel instead of just in the right seat of the car, especially on these two longest legs.

There will be different strategies in play. Some teams will have a very good driver do all of the competition driving while the teammate operates only as a transit driver, sharing the driving between the tracks. Some teams will have one driver do all the driving at one track. For example if it is a two event track, the driver who drives in the morning would likely be better in the afternoon session since he had "practice" by running the early event. Scott and I will be sharing the driving duties, so that we each get to experience all the tracks possible. Not sharing the driving is kind of like going around the country to visit all the ball parks, and then waiting outside the park while your buddy goes in to see the game. We are hoping that we will be competitive and still have a good time experiencing all the tracks.

Points are accumulated similar to the Nascar system with each position down the line getting fewer points. If there are 80 participants you multiply by 5 points so the maximum points for any one event will be 400. Therefor the 1st place gets 400, the 2nd gets 395, the 3rd gets 390 and so on. A DNF (did not finish) or DNS (did not start) gets 0 points. A DNS might happen for example if something was broken on the car and it was unable to run or if they had a breakdown between tracks and were still off getting their car repaired.

Our One Lap Car

I just wanted to add a picture of Scott's Z06 that we are using for our One Lap event. It is pretty much a stock 130,000 mile Z06, except for the normal bolt ons, ie: headers, exhaust, sway bars, shocks, wheels. This picture was taken at our Test Days at Beaver Run Motorsports Park near Beaver Falls, Pa. The car should look a bit different when we add the sponsor decals. Actually it will look a bit like a rolling billboard. Just what we need to attract the attention of as many law enforcement officers as possible. As you can see from the hoodie Sunday wasn't exactly a warm track day. I think the highest I saw was about 47 degrees but the few times that the sun poked out it made us feel warmer. Also want to thank Don Bell for his contribution to the cause. Time is getting shorter since we will gather out in South Bend Indiana on May 1st. just over a month away.

Test Days at Beaver Run

Our test day at Beaver Run was a very productive track day for us. The track is located north of Pittsburgh outside of Beaver Falls, Pa. Scott went out for Saturday and Sunday and I went for the Sunday session only. Our main goals were to test the tires to be sure they would perform as expected, and for me to get some track time in Scott's car. We needed the tires to perform well on the dry track but also needed to perform well on a wet track since some wet track days are a distinct probabability. The weather was perfect for our testing, since the day started with pouring rain then cleared up for much of the day and then ended with a lot of wind and some sleet. The tires worked out well, so I think we have that part of the deal nailed down. The 265 miles each way even gave us another practice session for the highway portion of the One Lap, although I don't think we have any distances that are that short.

The track days were sponsored by the One Lap people but it was run in conjunction with Beaver Run's Flat Out Days. There weren't too many of the One Lap participants there but the ones who were there were some very interesting people. Lots of stories told at the table we were at for the dinner. There was one story about a transmission failure then buying a clunker car, in a small town out west from a used car company named something like Wiz Bang Auto Sales, to use for a day or two while the transmission was being rebuilt. To round out that story, there was a side deal with the used car guy to have the repaired car delivered to a racetrack that was on the return leg of the One Lap schedule so they could complete the events with the original car. The way I read the rules I don't think that type of creativity would work anymore.

The cars that were there were as interesting as the people. One of the cars was the new 2009 (less than 1,000 miles) 556hp supercharged Cadillac CTS-V and it was very fast. Some of the other cars from the One Lap competitors that were at Beaver Run included a couple Porsche, a Honda Fit, a handfull of Corvettes, Mustangs, and a Charger to name a few. One of the Canadian teams was even there. Some of the teams try to get track time on many of the tracks that are included on the tour. Our budget and time constraints won't allow us that luxury.

We've got some Sponsors

Well, we've got some sponsors to help us in this endeavor. I just wanted to thank the sponsors who have signed on to help us with our Cannonball One Lap of America effort. At this point the list includes, Auto locator, Benji's Vinyl Signs, Brady's High Performance, Jim Roberts' West Main Auto, The Jones Family of Dealerships, Kam Racing, Krunch Kritters Auto Body and Spray Shop, Lancaster County Corvette Club, RTI Technologies, Inc., Papa Dino's, Pro Tune, and Rutt's Appliances. In addition to our sponsors we also have a few people who responded to our appeal for "donations, contributions and hand-outs", so thank you to Ron Stepanchick and Gary Musser. This is a costly event and we do appreciate all the financial help we can get. THANK YOU TO ALL.

To benefit the local sponsors we plan to fully decorate Scott's Z06 with sponsor names as well as the required large One Lap of America decal and decals of the event sponsors. As I mentioned before, we will use Scott's Z06 for the One Lap but we will also "clone" Jim's C5 by decorating it with the same decals to add sponsor value. We plan to leave the decals on through the summer and fall competition season so there should be a lot of local exposure with both cars showing up at autocrosses and track days. We will also work at getting some local media coverage in the local newspapers. Since Motor Trend is the media sponsor there is also a chance of us getting a picture of our car in a national magazine.

Our set of practice tires are in and mounted, and we will be giving them a test at the end of March. The One Lap organization has a couple track days set up at Beaver Run Raceway in western Pa. north of Pittsburg, near Beaver Falls. We will use these track days to shake down the car and make sure the car is well prepared for the event, but also to make sure that our choice of tires is a good choice and that they perform as needed on the track. If they perform as expected we will order a fresh set to compete in the event.

The entry list is growing

I just checked the entry list and it is growing. There are now 57 vehicle entries showing and 14 of them are in our class. Our class is "SSGT1 Big Bore". At this point half of that class are Corvettes. The others is our class include a few Porsche, an Ultima GTR, a Viper ACR, a Nissan GT-R, and even a 2008 Mongoose GTP. Typically there will be about 90 vehicles participating in this event, so it will be interesting to watch the rest of the entries as they are posted.


Over the past 10 days I got a little practicing in for this event. On Saturday I participated in this years instructor clinic down at Summit Point, WV. I then stayed over for Sunday and trained with a group from the Northern Virginia Corvette Club that I instruct with. They had arranged with some excellent BMW club skid pad instructors to help us develop our skid pad skills and better equip us in teaching skid pad to our students. It was a great day and lots of seat time on the skid pad. The other "practice" I got was a drive to Nashville Tn. on my way to a Trade Show/Convention. I guess I was working on the endurance part of things, I put about 1500 miles on for that trip.


One interesting part of the trade show is that I got to meet 2005 Indianapolis 500 winner Dan Wheldon. When I told him of my upcoming One Lap effort and he told me "Good luck and travel safe". Another item at the trade show was a inter-active racing game that one of the vendors had set up, complete with racing seat, chassis etc. Since Nascar was at Las Vegas this week that was the featured track. I guess I don't play the racing games enough, I proceeded to rub the wall a few times, spin out and ended up upside down. BTW it wasn't all fun and games at the show, I did talk to a lot of vendors, visited many booths and learned quite a few new things for my business;^)

Jim

Corvette Team to Compete

Scott Breneman and Jim Roberts will compete in the 2009 Cannonball One Lap Of America to be held at the beginning of May. The Cannonball One Lap of America is an off shoot of the original Cannonball Sea to Shining Sea Memorial Trophy Dash created by Brock Yates in the early 70's. In 1984 Brock Yates reworked the format to make it more acceptable to the general public and law enforcement, and continued to change the format until in 1992 it evolved into what it is today.

The event starts in out in South Bend Indiana on May 1st and wraps up back in South Bend May 9th after logging about 3400 miles traveling from track to track. During that time we will do a wet skid pad competition to start the event, visit 7 road race courses, one drag strip and finish with a dry skid pad competition. From our leaving Lancaster to returning to Lancaster and including two Time Trial events at each track we expect to travel a total of about 5000 miles.

Tracks include Autobahn Country Club racetrack in Joliet, Il., Bluegrass Motorsport Park in Sparta, Ky., Talladega Gran Prix Raceway in Talladega, Al., Sebring International Raceway in Sebring, Fl., Gainesville Raceway in Gainesville Fl., Daytona International Speedway in Daytona Beach, Fl., Carolina Motorsport Park in Kershaw, SC., BMW Performance Center in Greer, SC., and Beaver Run Motorsport Complex near Beaver Falls, Pa. We will also using the skid pad at Tire Rack in South Bend, In.

The rules only allow street type tires (no track compound) and one set must last the entire event. You may take spare tires along but may not use them unless you have a tire injury. The changing of the tire must be approved before you run the next event. Tires wearing out because of setting extreme camber or other suspension settings will not be considered reason to allow a tire replacement.

We are using Scott’s 2002 ZO6 and are actively soliciting sponsors to display logos on the car to help defer some of the costs involved. If anyone has a business they would like to promote in this manner please get in touch with Jim or Scott. Obviously space is limited so 1st come 1st served. For local promotional purposes we are also considering decorating Jim’s yellow C5 with the same decals. For those who would like to live vicariously through us, or to just help to support the cause, we will also gladly accept contributions/offerings/handouts to further the effort. A half tank of gas for example would be $20, a fast food dinner for two only $12. etc, etc, ;>) Any and all support would be appreciated.

The one piece of advice I have been told is that this is an exercise in sleep deprivation, and fast food overload, and personal hygiene may take a back seat on the days we don't arrive at the next track in time to get a motel for the night.

For those who are interested I will try to continue to share our progress with you.


Jim