Boxing Day GP in Belgium

I had high hopes for Spa. I had chosen to do the race in a Honda to avoid blowing up my Eagle engine. The Honda is also very forgiving, so it seemed like a good car for 28 laps at Spa. I got a new car fresh from the factory. Even had stickes on the pedals. I didn't push it very hard in practise but it felt really good and solid. Had the ride height raised a bit to conpensate for the fuel load. I started in about 14th place on the grid with Eldred to my rear left. A nice safe spot. At the drop of the flag we were off keeping a good and safe distance to each other. No danger of silly crashes due to aggressive moves. I might have been able to make up a place at the start as I had a speed advantage on the guy in front but elected not to - long race ahead. Nothing seemed out of place until Malmedy where a Cooper and an Eagle were parked at jaunty angles. I could hear Jan yelling over the sound of my V12. He sounded a bit upset. Psyched myself out of a clean Masta by staying too far left as a car or two were on the right. Silly mistake and the hedge really killed my speed. Eldree thundered past, smiling from ear to ear. No matter - long race ahead. A few berry stains on the windshield were the only damage. And then my clutch blew in Stavelot! The clutch!? Probably a 50 yen piece of metal ended my race for good. I pulled onto the grass on the right and drove through a family of four enjoying their picknick in a safe spot - just to spite Eldred! Ha! A long walk back to the pits. My head mechanic looked embarrassed. "Sorry, we forgot this," he said twirling a bolt in his hand. "No problem," I replied. "We'll always have Zandvoort." /Jens -- "Usenet is like a herd of performing elephants with diarrhea -- massive, difficult to redirect, awe-inspiring, entertaining, and a source of mind-boggling amounts of excrement when you least expect it." --spaf (1992)

I had managed to move from last on the grid, to something like 10th or 11th by the 3rd lap. Too bad about the people dropping out. (Someone, at the start, seemed to head directly into the pits to retire -- perhaps they were just giving the usual T1 carnage a chance to proceed without them. But they wasted their time, as the first corners were clean.) I was involved in a dice with Eldred (I think) and someone in a Lotus or Brabham, when there was a sudden loss of power and I found myself coasting along. Of all the times for the random mechanical failure code to cut in!! I think I have only had one other engine failure in the Ferrari in over a year of racing... And no Shift-R to save me. <expletive deleted> At least your mechanics stuck around, Jens. Mine were down at the local pub, having a quick pint before catching their plane. (And my wife out seeking bargains at the malls' Boxing Day sales.) Have fun at The 'Ring!! -- Darryl Jens H. Kruuse wrote in news:oPpW7.5287$[email hidden]: > I had high hopes for Spa. I had chosen to do the race in a Honda to > avoid blowing up my Eagle engine. The Honda is also very forgiving, > so it seemed like a good car for 28 laps at Spa. I got a new car > fresh from the factory. Even had stickes on the pedals. I didn't > push it very hard in practise but it felt really good and solid. > Had the ride height raised a bit to conpensate for the fuel load. > > I started in about 14th place on the grid with Eldred to my rear > left. A nice safe spot. At the drop of the flag we were off keeping > a good and safe distance to each other. No danger of silly crashes > due to aggressive moves. I might have been able to make up a place > at the start as I had a speed advantage on the guy in front but > elected not to - long race ahead. > > Nothing seemed out of place until Malmedy where a Cooper and an > Eagle were parked at jaunty angles. I could hear Jan yelling over > the sound of my V12. He sounded a bit upset. Psyched myself out of > a clean Masta by staying too far left as a car or two were on the > right. Silly mistake and the hedge really killed my speed. Eldree > thundered past, smiling from ear to ear. No matter - long race > ahead. A few berry stains on the windshield were the only damage. > > And then my clutch blew in Stavelot! The clutch!? Probably a 50 yen > piece of metal ended my race for good. I pulled onto the grass on > the right and drove through a family of four enjoying their > picknick in a safe spot - just to spite Eldred! Ha! A long walk > back to the pits. My head mechanic looked embarrassed. "Sorry, we > forgot this," he said twirling a bolt in his hand. "No problem," I > replied. "We'll always have Zandvoort." > > /Jens > > -- > "Usenet is like a herd of performing elephants with diarrhea -- > massive, difficult to redirect, awe-inspiring, entertaining, and a > source of mind-boggling amounts of excrement when you least expect > it." --spaf (1992) > > >

I thought of taking the white whale too, just to be different, but settled on the eagle, figuring it would last longer; and it made it through the whole race! The start was clean, with everyone going slowly. Anticipating an incident at malmedy, I slowed down early and sure enough there was one. That was the only wreck during the race. I had a few brushes with the barriers, first clipping the side-rail on the righthand side going into La Source; then on the left in the haybails; and finally trying to go 2 wide into Masta with Tim Frazier ate some hedge. Luckily none of these seemed to affect the suspension noticeably. There were many good laps in the middle chasing TF's ferrari, until he finally let me by, discoing a couple laps later. From then on it was a lonely trip to the end, with lapping Eldred the only relief from boredom :) This was my first GP at spa, so I'm very happy with a 2nd place finish. rms [email hidden]

Well, I have to say I really enjoyed my first full GP, even though I didn't make it to the end. There is a certain buzz about any online race, but a full GP, particularly hosted by the infamous Eldred, really gets the pulse racing. Even qualifying was exciting; I was surprised to see two people leave though after it but before the race. Strange. As Jens said the start was very well behaved and courteous; very unlike what I'm used to at Monza! I felt very lucky to have escaped being tangled up by a few crashes ahead on lap 1, and thought I could make it until the end, but being a full GP virgin I soon realised concentrating for 28 laps was going to be hard work! In the end I got too confident on lap 18 and ballsed it up at either Masta or Stavelot, ending up feeling the full weight of my Eagle on top of me :-( My mechanics? They just shook their heads in a sort of "we knew you'd screw up there" kind of way. Just like to say Eldred what a courteous driver you are. I reckon we were lapping fairly consistently (look forward to seeing the reply on your site?!), but you moved over politely when I came near you; thanks for that. Jonesy Remove 'ANTISPAM' when replying. "Movement is Tranquillity" - Stirling Moss GPLRank (F1): 19.75 Monster handicap: 571.8 "Darryl Johnson" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:WRqW7.12069$[email hidden]...

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> I had managed to move from last on the grid, to something like 10th or > 11th by the 3rd lap. Too bad about the people dropping out. (Someone, > at the start, seemed to head directly into the pits to retire -- > perhaps they were just giving the usual T1 carnage a chance to proceed > without them. But they wasted their time, as the first corners were > clean.) > > I was involved in a dice with Eldred (I think) and someone in a Lotus > or Brabham, when there was a sudden loss of power and I found myself > coasting along. Of all the times for the random mechanical failure code > to cut in!! I think I have only had one other engine failure in the > Ferrari in over a year of racing... And no Shift-R to save me. > <expletive deleted> > > At least your mechanics stuck around, Jens. Mine were down at the local > pub, having a quick pint before catching their plane. (And my wife out > seeking bargains at the malls' Boxing Day sales.) > > Have fun at The 'Ring!! > -- > Darryl > > > > Jens H. Kruuse wrote in > news:oPpW7.5287$[email hidden]: > > > I had high hopes for Spa. I had chosen to do the race in a Honda to > > avoid blowing up my Eagle engine. The Honda is also very forgiving, > > so it seemed like a good car for 28 laps at Spa. I got a new car > > fresh from the factory. Even had stickes on the pedals. I didn't > > push it very hard in practise but it felt really good and solid. > > Had the ride height raised a bit to conpensate for the fuel load. > > > > I started in about 14th place on the grid with Eldred to my rear > > left. A nice safe spot. At the drop of the flag we were off keeping > > a good and safe distance to each other. No danger of silly crashes > > due to aggressive moves. I might have been able to make up a place > > at the start as I had a speed advantage on the guy in front but > > elected not to - long race ahead. > > > > Nothing seemed out of place until Malmedy where a Cooper and an > > Eagle were parked at jaunty angles. I could hear Jan yelling over > > the sound of my V12. He sounded a bit upset. Psyched myself out of > > a clean Masta by staying too far left as a car or two were on the > > right. Silly mistake and the hedge really killed my speed. Eldree > > thundered past, smiling from ear to ear. No matter - long race > > ahead. A few berry stains on the windshield were the only damage. > > > > And then my clutch blew in Stavelot! The clutch!? Probably a 50 yen > > piece of metal ended my race for good. I pulled onto the grass on > > the right and drove through a family of four enjoying their > > picknick in a safe spot - just to spite Eldred! Ha! A long walk > > back to the pits. My head mechanic looked embarrassed. "Sorry, we > > forgot this," he said twirling a bolt in his hand. "No problem," I > > replied. "We'll always have Zandvoort." > > > > /Jens > > > > -- > > "Usenet is like a herd of performing elephants with diarrhea -- > > massive, difficult to redirect, awe-inspiring, entertaining, and a > > source of mind-boggling amounts of excrement when you least expect > > it." --spaf (1992) > > > > > > >

>(Someone, at the start, seemed to head directly into the pits to retire -- >perhaps they were just giving the usual T1 carnage a chance to proceed >without them. Yea, D Johnson #10? that was me, thought I'd get out of the way of the "Hot Lappers". I wasn't even going to qualify, (but wanted to get the feel of the fuel load) and pull a N4 hang back weave through the wreaks unscathed points gathering start. LOL But alas; in Blanchimont, a Eagle (Eldred?) lost it on the outside of the turn and in coming back on to the track I could see (replay) that he thought to get off the racing line by turning left into the middle of the track. You went careening up on the berm to the left of him and at that time it looked like he was going to turn right. So I kept to the inside (hold ya line ya know) a center punched the Eagle in the gearbox loosing a wheel in the crash. I limped back to the pits on three wheels, hey at least I made 1 lap. LOL, I should of stayed in the pit at the start a little longer. :-( Spectated for quite a few laps more, but due to the internet connection lately was disconnected. Sooo no love lost. Just wanted to see if I could finish, been awhile since GPL 1.0 and a Full 99 lap GP Mosport race, (with a toned down J. Clark-AI). Jan 1st hung over Nurburgring?? LOL see ya there, he he. Now where is that old 2 part 99 lap Mosport Replay? -- 1907 - Daytona Beach Florida Glenn H. Curtiss rode a V8 powered motorcycle to a 136.30 mph record in the measured mile. The Chicago Daily News headline reads: "Fastest Mile On Earth, Bullets Are The Only Rivals Of Glenn Curtiss"

Well, I was fighting equipment problems. My steering pot has gone 'glitchy'. That made it difficult to maintain full control. My qual time of 3:27.7 put me 16th on the grid. Pretty upsetting, because I know I can run 23's with this setup. I basically took it easy for the first few corners, but we had a good start. My steering caught up with me in a lap or two at La Carriere - I spun on the berm, ended up in the middle of the track, and got hit by someone else(don't know who). Sorry about that - I hope you were able to continue. By some miracle I was still running, so I kept going. I spent the rest of the race just letting people by because of the bad steering. It seemed to be the worst at Les Combes, Malmedy, and La Carriere. I couldn't really hit my marks the way I wanted to, and I had to brake early for almost every turn. I ended up in 3rd, 1 lap down. I had one spin, and about 5-7 'offs'. I was cursing my own laziness - the replacement pot came in Saturday, but I just hadn't gotten around to installing it yet <argh!>. I really think I could have done well in this race had I replaced the faulty equipment... You guys think a full-length race is tough? Try doing it with flaky steering...<g> Eldred - off to talk to my mechanics... -- Dale Earnhardt, Sr. R.I.P. 1951-2001 Homepage - http://www.umich.edu/~epickett GPLRank - under construction... Never argue with an idiot. He brings you down to his level, then beats you with experience... Remove SPAM-OFF to reply.

In article <jkrW7.6593$[email hidden]>, "Jonesy" <[email hidden]> writes: >There is a certain buzz about any online race, but a full GP, particularly >hosted by the infamous Eldred, really gets the pulse racing. Even >qualifying was exciting; I was surprised to see two people leave though >after it but before the race. Strange. >Yeah, I was surprised, too. I thought Jure was going to race, anyway. I didn't know the other guy who left. >As Jens said the start was very well behaved and courteous; very unlike what >I'm used to at Monza! I felt very lucky to have escaped being tangled up by >a few crashes ahead on lap 1, and thought I could make it until the end, but >being a full GP virgin I soon realised concentrating for 28 laps was going >to be hard work! >Yep - that's part of the challenge...<g> >Just like to say Eldred what a courteous driver you are. I reckon we were >lapping fairly consistently (look forward to seeing the reply on your >site?!), but you moved over politely when I came near you; thanks for that. Thanks. I had steering problems all race, so I didn't want to get invoved in a fight that might take BOTH cars out. If I wrecked, I didn't want to involve anyone else... So, I let everyone go without a fight. Eldred -- Dale Earnhardt, Sr. R.I.P. 1951-2001 Homepage - http://www.umich.edu/~epickett GPLRank - under construction... Never argue with an idiot. He brings you down to his level, then beats you with experience... Remove SPAM-OFF to reply.

In article <tsuW7.287476$[email hidden]>, "REDLINE426" <[email hidden]> writes:

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>But alas; in Blanchimont, a Eagle (Eldred?) lost it on the outside of the >turn and in coming back on to the track I could see (replay) that he thought >to get off the racing line by turning left into the middle of the track. You >went careening up on the berm to the left of him and at that time it looked >like he was going to turn right. So I kept to the inside (hold ya line ya >know) a center punched the Eagle in the gearbox loosing a wheel in the >crash. I limped back to the pits on three wheels, hey at least I made 1 lap. >LOL, I should of stayed in the pit at the start a little longer. :-( >

Damn - yeah, that was me. I really WAS trying to get off the racing line. I figured if I stayed where I was, cars following would have NO time to react to me being dead in the water. I'm sorry about that, man... :( Eldred -- Dale Earnhardt, Sr. R.I.P. 1951-2001 Homepage - http://www.umich.edu/~epickett GPLRank - under construction... Never argue with an idiot. He brings you down to his level, then beats you with experience... Remove SPAM-OFF to reply.

Sorry to hear you had a very short race as well Jens. Honda is a good choice for GP lenght races if one babies the engine a little, but at Spa I just found it too slow. In testing I was, on average, 5 secs quicker in the Eagle at similar fuel loads than in the Honda. I too had hoped to do well at my home GP. But first lap butterflies on account of mr. Martinez<sp?> decided otherwise at Malmedy. A bitter disappointment. I hope everyone behind, like Roger and myself, saw it coming and weren't caught up in the wreck. I started leaning on the esc. key the moment I landed upside down but it seemed to take forever until the game let me retire. I also hope you'll excuse my language in reply to his "sry ;-(" message. I haven't seen a replay of the incident, but I don't see what I could have done to avoid the wreck. Even if somehow he could have taken that Cooper around seconds faster than I could/was willing to go, there is just no way I could have let him bye in that section. I'm adement he should have kept his distance, first lap of a GP race afterall. Anyway: nerves, red mist or just plain ignorance... race over and I'm gutted. Oh well, roll on Jan 1st and Nurburgring. Jan. =--- "Pay attention when I'm talking to you boy!" -Foghorn Leghorn. PS.: if any of you punt me off into Sudkehre or Nordkehre, you better run goddamnit!! ;-) "Jens H. Kruuse" wrote... > I had high hopes for Spa. <snip>

"Jan Verschueren" <[email hidden]> skrev i en meddelelse news:[email hidden]... <Snip!>"Pay attention when I'm talking to you boy!" -Foghorn Leghorn. > > PS.: if any of you punt me off into Sudkehre or Nordkehre, you betterrun > goddamnit!! ;-) >Damn! Plan A *and* B out the window. Plan C it is then: Fl�gplatz. /Jens