Event Recap: Round 1 of Extreme Speed’s AWD Competition goes off without a hitch!

Posted on January 27, 2013 by AtT

Justin Bordonaro’s Modified Class KT Motoring Evo 8, shown above, was able to set the FTD for the the entire event, and took top honors in Modified Class with a winning run of 1:21.1 on SOW CCW. Holy SH!@! The car is sitting on Moton coil-overs on super sticky Hankook TD tires 265/35/18, and is powered by a built and stroked 2.3 litre variant Mitsu’s 4G63, fed by an FP green turbo. Talk about zero lag! The car currently puts out 350whp on 91 octane. Justin was running consistent 21’s on SOW CCW all day with the exception of session one, where he cranked out a 22 and some change. There is still more in the car, as Justin was still getting used to no ABS. Not quite like his 2000lb Miata with no ABS. You can see a in-car of the run here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiHZuyi0_k0&feature=youtu.be

Zhong Cheung was out in force defending his 2012 Mod Class overall title win, but was not on R-Comps for this round. Suprisingly he was on his DD tires which are Hankook Z12 rated at 280 treadwear. Zhong was able to hash out a 1:26.1 New comer to the series, Aldric Sohn in his super clean Rally Red Evo 8 rounded out the third spot for Modified class with a 1:28.39.

Here is Rob Cambell in his freshly wrapped brush finish Modified Class STI.

Although Street Class was a little light in attendance for the 2013 season opener, Mark Jager in his Giro Disk STI was able to set a new personal best on his new RCE coil-overs, and get the win for Street Class with a very respectable 1:24.5 lap time. Mark’s car is actually the first Subaru to ever win Street Class in the history of AWD. Second place honors was handled by Cody Kishel in his KT Motoring affiliated Evo X. The car was sporting monstrous 285 Hankook RS-3 on Ohlins Road and Track coil-overs amongst other things. David He in his super clean LEGACY rounded out the third place with a 1:33.1 In regards to the light street attendance, I think it can contributed to two things. The newly formed Enthusiast Class, and the fact that a lot of the top guys from last year were not in attendance, namely: John Carson, Ben Siu, Gevorg Kalantaryan, and Ken Kasistz. If your wondering where they went, here goes: Ben Siu’s car has to be completely refreshed from a maintenance stand point, and to add insult to injury, he actually crashed his car, air bag’s deploying and everything. Time will tell what Ben decides to do, whether fixing his Rally Red Evo IX, or sourcing another Evo altogether. Gevorg Kalantaryan is in the process of building a new Evo, possibly for Modified class. John Carson’s car wasn’t ready, as his car was getting some new additions for Redline Time Attack. And Ken Kasitz shocks were still at KW Suspensions getting rebuilt after his little off-road slash rally cross adventure last month. Jumps don’t work unless you got re-inforced camber plates and a stitch welded chassis to name a few.

Here is Mark “Jagermeister” Jager in his STI:

Round 1 of 2013 marked the first event for the newly launched Enthusiast Class. Craig Peyron took top honors in his KW V3 equiped WRX STI with a very respectable 1:26.488. Rick Ravenell in his WRX took 2nd place with a 1:31.3, and the one and only Lyle Excalabur took the third place spot in his Evo X MR with a 1:32.14.

Here is Craig Peyron’s enthusiast class winning STI.

Here is a shot of Cody Kishel in his beastly Evo X:

Here is James Singer, RRE poster child, in his Modified Class Evo VIII. The car is sporting a fresh new 2.3 stroker built by Road Race Engineering, and Robispec KW Clubsports set up by Robert Fuller of Robispec. You can check out James’ blog here: http://roadraceengineering.com/blog/?p=4460

Results taken from Extreme Speed’s FB page:

Race Results: Final Round of the 2012 eXtreme Speed AWD Competition Series

Posted on January 19, 2013 by AtT

Here are the Final Round results for the 2012 AWD Comeptiton Series.

John Carson took first place honors in Street Class, followed by Ken Kasitz and Ben Siu. Ramon Ornelas took first in Modified, while Zhong Cheung took 2nd. For this event, Zhong was on a 280 tread wear Hankook V12, compared to the normal NT01 r-comp that he usually runs.

Here are the final standing for the 2012 AWD Competition Series:

Round 1 will take place Streets of Willow Springs on January 20th, 2013.

Formula Pacific Car

Posted on January 10, 2013 by AtT

Here is a cool “little” car. It’s basically an oversized Go-Kart powered by a Yamaha R6 engine. The car is claimed to have done a 1:14 lap time on the Streets of Willow Road Course. The cost of a rolling chassis is around $12,500, and R6 engines can be found for around $1000 to $3000 dollars. Not a bad performance to dollar ratio at all!

Race Results: Extreme Speed Track Events releases their XS-2000 competition

Posted on January 9, 2013 by AtT

This looks to be a promising and fun grass roots series to help drivers improve their skills and have some fun doing it. S2000, go go go!!!

Driver Experience: John Carson at Redline Time Attack

Posted on January 9, 2013 by AtT

Photo Courtesy of: www.redlinetimeattack.com

First off, I want to thank Attack the Track for letting me come on here and share my experience at Redline Time Attack.

Back in November, they held an exhibition event at Buttonwillow Raceway Park on the notorious 13CW configuration. The birthplace of U.S. Time Attack. The idea of this event was to kick off the return of Redline Time Attack, and get people pumped about the 2013 season. This was really something special for history. Although I never participated in Redline in previous years, I was told by Old School Time Attackers, that it had that old Redline feel to it. I ended up taking home First in Street AWD, and also took home the Street Class Champ award, as I set fastest time in Street AWD, FWD, and RWD. The overall turnout was great, with a majority of the cars making out the Street, Enthusiasts, and Modified Classes. Hopefully more unlimited cars will come out for the 2013 season.

My winning lap was a 1:59.407. Funny enough, this actually would of been good enough for 2^nd in AWD Street at this year’s Super Bowl of Time Attack – Super Lap Battle. I still have a stock turbo, stock aero, cams, bottom end, intake manifold, throttle body, etc. If you need a driver for your Time Attack car, I am available!

This was my first time cracking two minutes on BW CW13. It has taken me six visits over the span of a year and a half, through rain and extreme heat, to finally crack the two minute mark! My two previous visits were a 2:02 flat and a 2:02.7 in the less than stellar and extreme summer conditions. Buttonwillow in June and August is HOT! Both of these days had an ambient temp over 90 degrees. One word: greasy. The cooler weather for this event really helped over my previous efforts; however, the track conditions weren’t perfect either, considering it rained up until the day of event, washing away any type of grip that was laid down previously. The Robispec suspension set-up, with it’s oversteer characteristics, proved this in Riverside, Buttonhook, and several other areas on the track. This was especially true in the early morning practice session without any sort of heat in the pavement. It did make for good fun though!

Here is a very basic run down on the car:

2006 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution IX GSR SE (Evo), 3376lbs w/driver, 330whp on KT Motoring’s Dyno Dynamics, Robispec KW V3 Street Tire set up, Hankook RS-3 -255/40/17

On my 1:59.4 lap, I actually got locked out shifting to fifth gear on the back straight coming out Phil Hill. I probably could have went high 58 just from that alone. The lockout issue I experienced turns out to be a common occurrence on aftermarket Street Clutch Disc’s as they start to wear. The wear creates a sort of dead zone in the clutch engagement which affects 5^th gear speed-shifting. When I came into the pits, and popped my head out of my car, I heard the announcer call my name over the PA, “ John Carson currently sits in first with a 1:59.407”. It was a great feeling to hear that! I then heard them call out 2^nd place, “Ben Siu, currently in 2^nd place with a 1:59.65X”. He actually pulled in right after this, and I delivered the news to him personally since he didn’t hear it. His emotions were mixed. On one hand he set a personal best for himself, and on the other hand, he was in 2^nd place behind me!

Here is Ben Siu in his Evo. He actually ended up being 2nd fastest out all the street sub classes. Evo powah!!!

A friend of mine, Gilbert, helped me adjust the clutch engagement hoping to rectify the lockout going into the second TA session. I was going to go for a 58 lap in the second TA session now that I had tasted 59’s, but unfortunately, the rain started to come down on and off during the latter half of the day. I had parked close to Ben, and like I mentioned before, he was only behind me by 0.25 seconds! I was keeping an eye on him to see if he would go out again. He is notorious for coming back late in day and clenching a win. I’ve seen him do it multiple times this year! The rain kept coming and going. Ben had actually packed up, and then unpacked; only to pack up again thinking the rain was clearing, only to start raining again. Poor guy! You shouldn’t have left early buddy!

Looking into the sky, and the direction from which the rain clouds were coming, it did not look good. The clouds had a dark grey color composition to them. You could see the rain coming down in the distance as the sun shined through. It was quite beautiful, minus its adverse effect on trying to set a fast lap. Multiple people said the track was losing grip. I was only going to go out if he did.

I decided to save my tires and brakes for another day, and hold out to see if my time would hold. Later that day around five PM, it was discovered that my time was fast enough for the Street AWD win and the Street Class Champ award, as my time was faster than all the Street AWD, FWD, and RWD competitors.

Here I am with model Nicole Reckers. She is quite gentle on the eyes isn’t she?

I would like to give a big thanks to all my sponsors that support my endeavors. I am so lucky to have their support! This couldn’t have been possible without their superior products, advice, and fantastic service.

A big thanks to KT Motoring. They are one of the best Evo shops in Socal bar none! Thanks to KW Suspensions for the amazing V3 coil over suspension and advice on set up for the rain (even though it didn’t end up raining). ETS (Extreme Turbo Systems). Although no ETS parts were on my car at the time; they will only help me go faster at my future events! Fuel Injector Clinic for their awesome injectors that keep my engine running on that corn juice (E85)! And thanks to Swift Springs for the prize they gave me for the win!

This is the Trophy I got for being the fastest in Street Class out of all the sub-classes.

As a lot of you know, racing is not all glitz and glamour. I had an ARK multi function display installed at KT Motoring prior to the event to monitor Oil Pressure, Boost, and Water Temperature. I’ve been very lucky so far that I haven’t had any serious mishaps, a true testament to the 4G63’s reliability.

The adapter fitting that goes into the oil filter adapter for the Oil Pressure sensor decided to randomly snap in half going down the road. I didn’t even run over anything. It just snapped in half from the pressure. Upon further inspection, the metal appeared to be very soft and brittle as we tried to tap it out. The fitting not only snapped in half, it actually welded itself to the oil filter housing, as shown in the picture above. A BIG THANK YOU to everyone at KT Motoring for getting my car up and running on short notice!

Lesson learned: Cheap little parts like fittings with poor material composition can cost you big time! It could have been much worse, and I could have hurt my motor just days before the event!

Once again, thank you to KT Motoring, ETS (Extreme Turbo Systems), KW Suspensions, and Fuel Injector Clinic for the support!

Thanks to Redline Time Attack for hosting a great event. Based on the car counts for this event, Time Attack is still alive and well!

Cheers!

John Carson

Season Recap of eXtremeSpeed’s 2012 AWD Competiton Series

Posted on December 25, 2012 by AtT

The 2012 AWD Competition Series hosted by Extreme Speed Track Events proved to be an extremely competitive series this year. More than fifty drivers showed up in their Evos, STI’s, WRXs, GT-R’s, and RalliArts to test their driving ability and car against other turbo charged all-wheel drive vehicles. The series championship was a best six of nine events, and was held at Willow Springs International Raceway, Buttonwillow Raceway Park, and Streets of Willow Springs on various dates throughout 2012. The series was sponsored by Eibach Springs, Road Race Engineering, Infamous Performance & Tuning, as well as South Coast Subaru.

The series has two main classes, Modified Class and Street Class. Street Class vehicles must have less than 400 WHP verified by a dyno, and run a tire no softer than 140 tread wear. Additionally, modifications cannot tally up to more than five points. Points are added for various modifications. For example, E85 tuning adds 1 point, and 2 way adjustable coil-over suspensions add two points (2013 will only be an adder of 1.5 points for two ways). Modified Class vehicles are restricted to 500 whp or less, and can run a tire no softer than 100 tread wear. Modified is allowed a modification total of up to 10 points. Dyno verification was done by Road Race Engineering in Sante Fe Springs, CA. This was a strict requirement for podium finishers in order for to be eligible for year-end championship prizes and points.

The rules brought on some very close battles. For example, Round 3 in June at Buttonwillow Raceway Park, Kevin Fairley narrowly defeated Zhong Cheung with a 1:58.70 vs. a 1:58.71 which made up first and second place in Modified. For Street, 2^nd place was a 2:03.66 by Gevorg Kalantaryan, and 3^rd place was a 2:03.67 by Ben Siu. John Carson managed to win street class that round with a 2:02.00 despite the sweltering 90 degree heat. This round had ten cars in street class, while seven cars rounded out modified.

For Round 2 at Streets of Willow in April, Ben Siu narrowly defeated Nate Graham in his Evo X MR in the last session of the day with a 1:26.06, to Nate’s 1:26.10 for first and second place in Street Class. At Round Six at Willow Springs International Raceway, Kevin Fairley barely clenched first place with a 1:29.86, to Zhong Cheung’s 1:29.87. Every single round had competitors going back and forth throughout the day, attempting to one up one another.

Above is a shot of Jaime Gonzalez’s super sexy Evo IX that competed in Modified.

Here is Garry Mendez’s Street Class WRX. Look at those rotors!

Zhong Cheung took first place overall honors for Modified Class with four first place finishes and two second place finishes giving him a total of 170 championship points. Can you beleive this car is still daily driven?!? Now that is dedication to Attacking the Track!

Kevin Fairley took home second place overall in Modified Class with three first place finishes, and two second place finishes to give him 140 championship points. The car may look extreme, but it still has a stock bottom end putting out about 475 WHP on top of a very heavy 13 point roll cage.

Ramon Ornelas took third place overall in Modified with one first place finish, four third place finishes, and one sixth place finish totaling 124 championship points.

Ben Siu took first place overall in Street Class with three first place finishes, and three 2^nd place finishes for a championship points total of 165. Photo courtesy of: Timscribbles.com

Gevorg Kalantaryan took home second place in Street Class with two first place finishes, three second place finishes, and one third place finishes giving him a total of 155 championship points.

John Carson took 3^rd place overall in Street Class with three First Place finishes, and three Third Place finishes for a total of 150 championship points.

Here are some more images courtesy of timscribbles.com

Ken Kasitz is shown above, who notably had a 1st place finish in Modified. He was kicked up a class due to NT01 tires during the Twilight Round. He took advantage of Zhong’s mechanical issues, and ended up taking home the win in an otherwise Street Class car minus his NT01’s. He then later switched to Hankook RS-3’s and was able to finish 6^th overall in Street Class. He was one of the few subies this year that really proved their might against the fleet of dominating Evos. His car is a 2003 WRX with a JDM STI Spec C motor, with STI Brembo brakes amongst other things.

Here is a great shot of Mark “Jagermeister” Jager who ended up finishing 4^th overall in Street Class. He was able to pull some respectable lap times despite only being on Race Comp Engineering springs. He tells us next year he will be on a full coil-over suspension.

Here is Nathan Hall who finished 9^thoverall in Street Class. It looks like wagons can play too!

Here is Justin Lee and his very sexy Evo X. Justin ended up finishing 6^th overall in Modified Class.

All in all, the eXtremeSpeed AWD Competition series proved to be one of the most successful Grass Roots Competitions in Southern California for 2012. Thirty-three drivers competed in Street Class, while twenty-two drivers competed in Modified Class. This series demonstrated that it is a great platform for drivers to develop and hone their car control skills. Practically all the competitors showed drastic improvements in their lap times over the course of the year, even when factoring changing weather conditions. The competition really tested people’s resilience and fortitude. If you are looking to push your driving in a fun and friendly atmosphere, the AWD Competition is a great platform for driver development, and to have some fun while doing it. Word on the street is a lot of the top guys from this series will be competing in Redline Time Attack next year, opening the door for some new blood to come in and make a name for themselves. It will be interesting to see the event results for 2013. Rules and the Schedule for the 2013 AWD Competition schedule can be found here: http://www.extremespeedtrackevents.com/awd-competition-class

This Awesome Race Car Awesomely Misleads Track Newbies

Posted on October 23, 2012 by AtT

Speedhunters recently posted an awesome article about an awesome Audi race car and its super awesome turbo and drivetrain. Awesome.

The car also has a massive support team and financial backer (read: Audi aka VW A.G.). The message here for would be track molesters is start with the basics and work your way up. You don’t need forced induction and lots of cylinders to have fun at the track. It’s nice stuff to have, but it can also break down and requires more upkeep or track prep. Focus on car control, track position and lap times to improve the most important part of the car, the driver. Then strap a firework to your tailpipe. Don’t read into that awesome comment.

In Case You Missed It

Posted on October 11, 2012 by AtT

NASCAR is terrifying. In other news, pink cars continue to to escape destruction unscathed.

Miata Pinball? Really?

Posted on October 10, 2012 by AtT

Were you wondering the difference between HPDE and wheel-to-wheel racing? Here you go! I love the group oversteer at 30 seconds right before the pile up!

RTA is Back!

Posted on October 9, 2012 by AtT

Redline Time Attack is back and open for registration. Looks like this thing is still getting off the ground, but if it’s half as exciting as watching that Crawford STi go nuts on the track this should be a worthwhile event for us to attend or run. What do you think?

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