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Lucky
04-30-2005, 11:13 PM
Two great days so far with one more to go! The weather hasn't been ideal, but it has worked out fine. Everyone is driving very well, and keeping the shiny side up... although there have been a couple of incidents

I had a hairy spin in T1 that came very close to collecting the car I had just passed in the front straight. Ooops.

And Eli's engine is making a noise... he's retiring early just to be sure he gets home without issue.

Anyway... I'm too tired to write much so here are some pics.

~~~~~

Eric S
05-01-2005, 10:42 AM
John,

Thanks for the mid-event report and photos! For all of us that couldn't attend due to work commitments or disassembled engines (or both), the report and photos are the next best thing to being there!

Man, I can't wait to be back at the track!

Eric

racer
05-01-2005, 03:54 PM
Neat Pics. I like the Highway one.. mmm a row of porsches!

Rich, the "SC"/Carrera looks nice all lowered 8) .

BW911
05-01-2005, 07:33 PM
Looks like fun. Wish I was there too.

Bill W.

Rick Lee
05-01-2005, 09:16 PM
All I can say is....WOW. This weekend was the culmination of all the repairs, mods and lessons with me and my SC. I could not be happier with my car's performance. Fresh engine, new suspension, rebuilt calipers and plenty of other stuff made this a very pleasureable time. I got promoted to blue after getting a PhD in green. Spun in the last session on Fri., but not too bad. I had two sessions in a row today (green and then check out for blue) and that was quite a workout. Drove about 1100 miles this weekend, 150 of which were on the track and I used less than 1 qt. of oil. Thanks Charlie. Made it back in under 6 hrs. today. More to follow.

VaSteve
05-01-2005, 10:27 PM
Cool photos! Good report. Congrats Rick.

Doug E
05-01-2005, 10:37 PM
Looks and sounds like you all had a great time.

Congrats on the promo RL 8)

Jazzbass
05-02-2005, 12:05 AM
What a blast. Everyone had a good time with a few minor incidents (leaky brake resivoir, small electrical fire, corded tires, off track excursions, and sadly, possibly some bent valves). My weekend started out all wrong when I got an instructor who got annoyed when I wasn't driving like I was in blue (I've been to exactly ONE DE before this). He was a good driver, but had no patience for a n00b like me. I had a talk with Alan Herod and that problem was taken care of (thanks again, Alan), and for the next two days I had two great instructors and learned a ton about my car and the track.

Mid Ohio is an amazing track. It is fun as hell, very technical, but I found it to be a lot easier on the car than Summit. Maybe because I drive like crap, but I drive like crap at Summit and its a lot harder on the car. There are no places at MO I found that I had to redline the car until I could get it to a place to shift (a la turn 1/2 at SP). Third/Fourth around the whole track, sometimes into 5th on the back straight.

Of the 9 of us that went to MO, 6 got promoted:

Todd: Green to Blue
Matthew: Green to Blue
Richard: Green to Blue
Charlie: Blue to White
Dave: Blue to White
Tuffy: Blue to White

Good job, guys. Its getting lonesome here in green. Jim needs to get his engine back together so I'll have someone to run with after Pari gets promoted to black at the May event.

John Barreto
05-02-2005, 12:28 AM
Thanks for the pictures- a real treat for those of us stranded at home! Let's see, I've been to Summit Point and one weekend at the new Shenandoah - someday I'll venture out that far. After seeing the pictures, I gotta go!
8)

Eli
05-02-2005, 12:30 AM
Great time...even with the busted engine I managed to limp home :)

Here's a good one!
To an untrained eye it looks like I've just passed Todd, but in reallity I'm just trying to get out the way.... :lol:

Parenn911
05-02-2005, 01:20 AM
All I can say is: I have a new favorite track!! I also realized that there are a couple good reasons to live in Ohio :lol: . A great time was had by all (well maybe everyone except Chris on the first day), and the Dorki crew set the record for the longest fun run ever! Thanks to Pete Kaufmann, I was able to perform well on a track that I had never been on before. He is another great Instructor I would recommend, and thanks Alan for pairing me up with him. The other highlight of my weekend was playing with Charlie and Dave in the Blue/Green run. It was a beautiful thing being on that track. Not to rub it in, hehe, but the Dorki's that have never done Mid Ohio are really missing out :!: It is a very technical track that can teach you many new driving techniques. I have made it my goal to do the Mid Ohio DE annually :D .
More to come tomorrow (yawn) .......... photos.......and other reports!

Cliff Claven
05-02-2005, 01:23 AM
Mid-Ohio was a blast!

And before you go to bed, be sure to sign up for the Glen!

TD in DC
05-02-2005, 08:05 AM
Mid Ohio was a blast!!! Not only was the track great, I really enjoyed getting to spend some time with my fellow Dorki. I will be posting some video soon. If you guys are interested, we could get together at my house to check out more of the video so that my fellow green/blues can see yourself. We could do the pizza/beer thing again.

I flew home after leaving John and Tuffy, and had to fight off multiple challenges from corvettes and mustangs (I kid you not). I guess ignoring people is not enough of a hint that you are not interested in racing them, speed alone in our cars is a provocation :roll: Oh well, at least I didn't get a ticket and I made it home in time to put Sofia to bed. :lol:

Eli, you don't have to be modest, we know that you had just blown my doors off :wink:

I also plan to have a pre track video party for Watkins Glenn . . .

VaSteve
05-02-2005, 08:48 AM
Good job, guys. Its getting lonesome here in green. Jim needs to get his engine back together so I'll have someone to run with after Pari gets promoted to black at the May event.

Don't worry Chris. I have to bail on the May event and the June event I can't make either :( so you'll allways have my slow ass to pass. :) I'm going to see if I can sneak in with another chapter to get some remedial track time.

VaSteve
05-02-2005, 08:50 AM
Great time...even with the busted engine I managed to limp home :)

Here's a good one!
To an untrained eye it looks like I've just passed Todd, but in reallity I'm just trying to get out the way.... :lol:

Eli,
No instructor? Or did you photoshop him/her out? :)

APKhaos
05-02-2005, 10:46 AM
Outstanding! Sounds like a great event, and also sounds like Mid Ohio has some new believers! I'd forgotten about the wildflowers that carpet the infield in spring. A couple of the pics above reminded me of the pic below, taken the last time I had the 911 at MO. Still one of my faves.

http://www.dorkiphus.com/porsche/modules/albums/album37/MidOhioMay2002.sized.jpg

Congratulations to the freshly promoted Dorki - nice work.
Judging from the pics, the track looked cold but mainly dry, which means HORSEPOWER WEATHER. Yum Yum!

Great to hear that everyone enjoyed the track - its one of the best :twisted:

Jazzbass
05-02-2005, 11:12 AM
BTW, old MO veterans that missed this weekend - the track was in great shape. A lot of the nasty little areas we talked about before were gone and the concrete was is good shape. This track is worth the 6.5 hour drive!

}{arlequin
05-02-2005, 12:13 PM
I never met a track I didn't like....

but this one was definitely a fun ride. Bus stop/chicane, the left kink at the end of Thunder valley, Madness and beyond, were all fun... actually the straights were the only boring parts. Never really got excited about the Keyhole or Caroussel... guess I don't like those "patience" corners

Dorkis had a great last session.... with all the groups combined, we managed to pitout w/ Pari leading, jazzbass following, Charlie behind filming jazzbass, and me filming Charlie filming jazzbass... few laps later the cameramen get by and follow Pari, then continue on until the end of session w/ a little tankslapper thrown in... ;) (it's on tape!)

TD in DC
05-02-2005, 01:18 PM
Dave,

Are you going to post the video of your new and improved shortcut right after madness? :lol: Putting action to the "straighten out the track" advice. :lol:

It was great meeting Sue, and I now see that you are a core member of the underserving husband/boyfriend club. :lol:

TD

Alan Herod
05-02-2005, 02:06 PM
He was a good driver, but

I think what you meant to say was, ... but he just wasn't the instructor for me. I do appreciate all the feedback, it helps me make better decisions in the future. Everyone of us that volunteers to ride in the right seat, makes space for someone on the wait list and we are generally waiting for instructors to sign up.

}{arlequin
05-02-2005, 03:03 PM
Todd,

I usually don't bother taping until I feel familiar/comfortable w/ the track. (No use having a string of blunders on tape). Since I went lawnmowing on my 5th lap (of the weekend) there's no vid of the off.... just the pictures....

undeserving? I think I struggle for my track time ;)


Alan,
It was great meeting you after bothering you about availability of instructors. Dean was great. He gave me all the instruction that I needed and didn't mind me trying out "different lines". Thanks.

rs911t
05-02-2005, 03:40 PM
This track is worth the 6.5 hour drive!
Absolutely! Liked it, eh? :D

Lucky
05-02-2005, 04:01 PM
Did any of you Dorkis that stayed late on Sunday find a pair of LL Bean hiking boots in the Ghetto? I think I left without them (or they are buried under the 1000 pounds of stuff I still need to unload from my car).

PM me if you got 'em... Thanks!

Rick Lee
05-02-2005, 04:05 PM
Maybe your boots are hiding with my elect. toothbrush charger. Going to Wal Mart tonight.

Parenn911
05-02-2005, 04:07 PM
Did any of you Dorkis that stayed late on Sunday find a pair of LL Bean hiking boots in the Ghetto? I think I left without them (or they are buried under the 1000 pounds of stuff I still need to unload from my car).

PM me if you got 'em... Thanks!
Lucky, JazzyChris has them. You left half of the stuff in your car at the track, btw now I have two tire pressure guages :lol: .

Charlie Stylianos
05-02-2005, 04:13 PM
Great event, great track and great company made for a great weekend.

Thanks to Bob Novas for the excellent instruction!

A few highlights.

Pucker moment of the weekend: First session in white coming out of the keyhole the backend steps way out, over correct, steps out the other way all the while Lucky is on my bumper....sorry Lucky. Finally get it sorted and give the point by. Finished the session w/o incident thank goodness because the left rear tire was corded all the way around the outside edge.....back to the street tires for the day.

Most humbling experience: White, black and red groups were combined Sunday afternoon, so out I go out with my newly acquired white shoes only to be the very slow moving chicane. After 6-7 laps I come in as I felt I was holding up everyone through the back section and my left arm was getting tired. Pulling back into the paddock 15 minutes later Chris asks, 'why is you ass in the passenger seat, did someone hand it to you?'.....exactly. Go talk to Tom Trew and he gives me the ok to go back out in the combined green-blue session....much better.

Smile of the weekend: Seeing Pari tare it up last session on Sunday. He was hitting his marks and driving hard. Testament of very good instruction and absorption!

Funs Sessions of the weekend: Dave and I had a couple sessions where we were glued to eachothers tails and would trade off passing signals to watch eachothers lines. Its fun and educational to watch someone elses line to see where they are gaining and what they did to accomplish it. BTW: I still need some help through the chicane :oops: Lots of fun nonetheless.

Jazzbass
05-02-2005, 04:39 PM
Did any of you Dorkis that stayed late on Sunday find a pair of LL Bean hiking boots in the Ghetto? I think I left without them (or they are buried under the 1000 pounds of stuff I still need to unload from my car).

PM me if you got 'em... Thanks!
I have them, along with your tire press gauge. Had to get to that before Pari could sneak away with it.

TD in DC
05-02-2005, 05:01 PM
Smile of the weekend: Seeing Pari tare it up last session on Sunday. He was hitting his marks and driving hard. Testament of very good instruction and absorption!

Afterwards was he singing "Envy me, I'm the track's MVP, ain't goin' nowhere so you can get to know me"?

I am glad to hear that the last run group was so much fun, and very sad that I wasn't there for it. At least I made it home in time to put Sofia to bed.

Apart from getting promoted :D , the highlight of the weekend was getting a point by from a 996 Turbo, yyyyeeeaaahhh baby. I must confess that I tired of having people coming up to me after run groups talking about "how nice it must be to have an extra 100 or so horses."

The most humbling experience was getting passed so much during my evaulation for blue. Pete Kaufmann was my evaulator (he doesn't say much during the evaluation run), and I was a little nervous at first. I was trying to drive slowly so that I would be extra smooth. Funny thing is that I started to forget about that as the run group went on and I think I drove better when I wasn't worried about what he would think.

Nando was my first instructor, and he was good at pushing me to go faster. Starla was my instructor for the rest of the weekend, and she was outstanding. I wasn't in a hurry to kick her out of the passenger seat by any stretch of the means.

After VIR, one of my catalytic converters failed, which sounds awful at idle and when cold. After Mid-Ohio, the other one failed. Back to the shop . . .

Dvb0415
05-02-2005, 05:03 PM
Just had my first chance to see the thread. I enjoyed the track and the group immensely. I appreciate all you young guys letting this old guy hang with you. What a competetive group of guys. Keeps us old guys young.

I think MO is probably the most fun of all three tracks I have driven. Will be back next year. Potomac does a great job putting the DE's on. I'm hooked.

The drive home was uneventful, except Todd kept giving us his "special" passing signs.

Enjoyed John's pics as well. Look forward to seeing the rest of them if he posts on the gallery.

Tuffy

Rick Lee
05-02-2005, 05:07 PM
Hey Todd, I got passed probably by every other car out there when I had my first solo run in blue on Sun. The grey GT3 lapped me. I don't mind letting people by, since it means I'll have the track to myself and can experiment with other lines, not get wrapped up in racing, etc. I learned the expensive way what happens when the adrenaline gets too hot and I push things beyond my ability. And I've also been reminded plenty of times (while riding with instructors) how skill can beat horsepower any day of the week.

TD in DC
05-02-2005, 05:22 PM
Tuffy,

Glad you like my communication skills :wink: Thanks so much for helping out on tire pressure advice. It made an enormous difference, and I plan to continue taking notes on tire pressures and learning more. Tom Trew's advice to put higher pressure in the front than the back is interesting. Congrats on the promo.

RL,

Your car looks great, and congrats on the promo. Yes, it is most definitely about the skill. Nonetheless, it does feel a lot better to pass than to be passed. I was talking with Chris about getting a 964 . . . . hmmmm. That could make the common Dorki run groups even more fun. Maybe a "spec" Dorki class so that our smack talk can be based purely on skill :wink: In any event, it was great finally meeting you.

TD

}{arlequin
05-02-2005, 05:24 PM
hey RL,
sorry if it was annoying to see the green in your mirrors. I was trying to keep some distance to prevent that... I was hanging back to get some video of you.... got about 3 laps I think...

after screening the rest of the tape I'm pretty sure Pari's "point by" was the middle finger... didn't notice at the time since I went by so quickly :twisted: :lol:

Eli
05-02-2005, 05:25 PM
My late congrats to all who got promoted on Sunday! 8).

}{arlequin
05-02-2005, 05:29 PM
Maybe a "spec" Dorki class
that sounds fun, my vote is for anything air-cooled and w/o forced induction..... and a handicap for those fast brown cars :wink:

Jazzbass
05-02-2005, 07:44 PM
I think what you meant to say was, ... but he just wasn't the instructor for me.
Exactly :wink:.

}{arlequin
05-02-2005, 07:58 PM
ok, here's my take on the trip....

first off, check out the smile on Pari... Chris, I'd worry

http://img94.echo.cx/img94/3162/dsc037998qd.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)


how many Dorkis does it take to find an electrical fire?

http://img94.echo.cx/img94/1663/dsc038016kl.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)

http://img204.echo.cx/img204/1039/dsc038031ae.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)


RL and Chris dukin' it out

http://img204.echo.cx/img204/71/dsc039135dh.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)


Eli, before the deadly kiss...

http://img204.echo.cx/img204/7629/dsc039198xa.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)


TD, drivin' and chillin' ;)

http://img167.echo.cx/img167/5683/dsc039235kz.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)


fast as $hit...

http://img167.echo.cx/img167/9199/dsc039259ch.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)


Wait 'till he gets those 9's :twisted:

http://img167.echo.cx/img167/5351/dsc039366ri.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)


Chris causing problems for the tt

http://img167.echo.cx/img167/6071/dsc039400zm.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)


There may be a few lines through Madness, but straddling the B.F.Curb all the way down *isn't* one of them :oops: (It was the shortest and straightest way through it though)

http://img124.echo.cx/img124/4092/dsc039459ng.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)

http://img124.echo.cx/img124/4476/dsc039473vl.jpg (http://www.imageshack.us)

Jazzbass
05-02-2005, 08:09 PM
Whereever someone is having car issues, Dave seems to be there to capture to whole embarrassing incident on film. :twisted:

BobNovas
05-02-2005, 08:58 PM
Make that -

Friends don't let friends drive without taking pictures of their embarassing moments.

Doug E
05-02-2005, 09:02 PM
Just saw all the other promotions ... congrats !

Jazzbass
05-02-2005, 09:57 PM
Some more pics from the drive up:

At a rest stop just across the PA line where we ran into Alan (4th 911 from the front).
http://www.dorkiphus.com/porsche/modules/albums/PCA-Potomac-Mid-Ohio-April-2005/IMG_3234.sized.jpg

Dorkis on the move.
http://www.dorkiphus.com/porsche/modules/albums/PCA-Potomac-Mid-Ohio-April-2005/Img_3237.sized.jpg

Everyone lined up on I79. L-R: RL, Charlie, Eli, Lucky, Pari, Dave, Tuffy, Todd.
http://www.dorkiphus.com/porsche/modules/albums/PCA-Potomac-Mid-Ohio-April-2005/Img_3240.sized.jpg

BTW, Todd, I know you don't like your license plate number posted on the internet, so I took care of it for you. No need to thank me. :wink:

TD in DC
05-03-2005, 08:58 AM
Whereever someone is having car issues, Dave seems to be there to capture to whole embarrassing incident on film. :twisted:

:lol: :lol: Yeaa, like posting a picture of me giving a point by. That must have been my run with blue. My arm is still sore :lol: :lol:

TD in DC
05-03-2005, 09:01 AM
BTW, Todd, I know you don't like your license plate number posted on the internet, so I took care of it for you. No need to thank me. :wink:

BWWAAAHHH! That is great! If I had a plate like that I might not have to cover it up :lol: :lol:

Mike W
05-03-2005, 10:15 AM
BTW, Todd, I know you don't like your license plate number posted on the internet, so I took care of it for you. No need to thank me. :wink:

That is a seriously good job :!: At first I thought it was the real deal. At some point, can you photoshop me into a car that is passing someone and not being passed :?: :shock: :D

Noah
05-03-2005, 10:40 AM
Great pics everyone! This'll be the last one I miss, I swear.

Congrats to the guys who got promoted.

What is it about Dorkis working on broken cars in the pouring rain at gas stations? :shock:

Rick Lee
05-05-2005, 12:25 PM
Any more photos, Lucky? I know you had more at the dinner on Sat.

Lucky
05-05-2005, 03:16 PM
RL,

Here are some more. They are also in the gallery.


Green group on grid...
http://www.dorkiphus.com/porsche/modules/albums/PCA-Potomac-Mid-Ohio-April-2005/DSCN1745.jpg

Approaching madness...
http://www.dorkiphus.com/porsche/modules/albums/PCA-Potomac-Mid-Ohio-April-2005/DSCN1771.jpg

Exiting madness...
http://www.dorkiphus.com/porsche/modules/albums/PCA-Potomac-Mid-Ohio-April-2005/DSCN1773.jpg

TD in madness...
http://www.dorkiphus.com/porsche/modules/albums/PCA-Potomac-Mid-Ohio-April-2005/DSCN1781.jpg

RL entering madness...
http://www.dorkiphus.com/porsche/modules/albums/PCA-Potomac-Mid-Ohio-April-2005/DSCN1795.jpg

Tuffy in T1...
http://www.dorkiphus.com/porsche/modules/albums/PCA-Potomac-Mid-Ohio-April-2005/DSCN2029.jpg

Sunday AM was COLD!
http://www.dorkiphus.com/porsche/modules/albums/PCA-Potomac-Mid-Ohio-April-2005/DSCN2038.jpg