Day 4 - Daytona International Speedway

After an abbreviated night, we woke to awesome weather for One Lap's visit to Daytona!   The enormity of that place was astonishing and the high banks were a bit intimidating... here are some pictures, but trust me they don't do the place justice.   

 

 

Good news - we got a garage today!

Can you believe we are here?? 

Team picture:

 

We were advised to add 3 PSI to tires on the passenger side in order to prepare them for the increased load under cornering. I also proceeded to check that I had enough brake pad material remaining... stopping ability is important if turning is desired!

I had never driven on a track with banking at this level so I sought out advice from those that had previous experience. Bottom line - keep your foot planted and you'll be fine. The faster the better. I did just that and soon found that I had achieved the car's top speed of 140-145mph. It was a very strange feeling to be sucked down into your seat as the G loads increased. I loved it but it sure gets your heart pounding! KC did great.

Amanda got to ride in the parade lap at lunch with our friend Luke. Unfortunately, I couldn't take her out because it's an unfair advantage for people driving the second session. But it was fun for her nonetheless to be able to see the full course and take the banks going 90-100mph! Thanks Luke!

 

Several cars had offs today - a Viper kissed a wall with little damage and a Porsche backed into a tire wall at the "bus stop" (a kink in the oval designed to slow the pace a bit).

In my second run, Brock was getting annoyed with all of the spins taking place at the "bus stop" and made sure to pass that info through the raised visor of my helmet. "Be careful!" Nonetheless, I learned a lot from the first session and was able to improve markedly in the afternoon.

After departing from Daytona, we needed to make a passage control stop at Grassroots Motorsports' offices (a magazine that sponsors the event). They provided water, snacks, and some free magazines. We didn't waste time and departed soon thereafter.

Luckily Amanda was able to take a significant nap at the track to ready herself for the driving tonight (as I write this). I was not as successful at this tactic so I'm looking forward to a horizontal surface in another 110 miles.

We are transiting tonight with Luke and Victor in the diesel powered VW Jetta. It's nice to have a road buddy - especially when you can follow something with cruise control. :)

Dinner was an Arby's market fresh sandwich as the nice lady told me she would have to cook the chicken strips and it would take 5 minutes.  Too long.

Tomorrow we have two events - one at Carolina Motorsports Park (CMP) and another at BMW's Performance Driving Center in Spartanburg. Stay tuned!!

Starting to not enjoy the 5 point harnesses for the street...