Sebring

[widgeon13]

Next gathering should be very interesting

[Gene Wilkes]

I suspect the Fiat guy will KNOW the Porsche is there! Hope no one gets hurt!!

[Komenda Fan]

I don't know, the Porsche really left the door open on the last corner, and I think the contact, while unfortunate, was pretty minor. Certainly the most exciting racing I have seen for a long time (but then again, I'm an F1 fan, so it would be, wouldn't it?)

One other thought, and maybe this is no excuse, but the F430 had double stinted those tires, which I think is the only reason the Flying Lizard car took the lead on the last lap, and quite possibly the reason the Risi car slid into it going through the last corner.

They are certainly two great and very professional teams, so I wouldn't slag either as cheaters.

[Scooter]

Originally posted by Komenda Fan
I don't know, the Porsche really left the door open on the last corner, and I think the contact, while unfortunate, was pretty minor.

Did you see the Ferrari punt Jorg, sending him sideways and requiring him to lift rather than hitting the wall? Then come back and side swipe him, adding insult to injury? That was not minor, nor was it good racing. Minor would have allowed Jorg to stay on full throttle and win the race.

[sammyg2]

Lemme see if I got this right:
20 second penaties for everything they could dream of in the name of safety including shoes untied, visors partially up, loosening seat belts in the pit lane before the car came to a complete stop, removing the tear-offs from the headlights during fueling, but it's OK to run another car off the road to keep him from passing?
ALMS=ANSO (another nascar sellout). Taking a page from Grand am, anything for ratings and no respect for pure racing.
If I wanted to see that crap I'd watch nascar. Rad racing is supposed to be pure, sophisticated, not dummied down to apeal to the most unsophisticated viewer's primal instincts.
Unfortunately I saw this coming when they started recruiting every name they could get from the redneck racing circuit in order to increase their viewer base (and make more money). At least we didn't have to watch Dale junior overcook a simple turn, spin out and burn up this year.
If I were the meister I'd put that Ferrari upside down in the first turn of the next race but he won't, too much class for that. That's why he's a pro and I'm not.

PS, Komenda Fan are you sure you were watching the 12 hours of sebring? I was and didn't see the same thing you did.
That "driving technique" would be more at home at taledega with 200,000 drunk rednecks cheering but it doesn't belong in a sports car race.

[lonewolf]

Being a racer not sure which way to lean right now .
I remember a few years ago David Murray winning the championship,last turn of the race he cut the corner so tight and hit the cement and launched himself right into the GTO,s door ,that was pretty hairey and lots said deliberate but he still won.GTO protested and lost
At the track all the drivers know who will punt you off or ride on your bumper to use up your brakes etc especially on the last lap and in a situation like last night.If Jorge was one of those guys he had two opprtunities to punt off the Fcar very easily and it wouldn't even have looked deliberate because the F car made the first error but Jorge is not that type of driver . but also agree with sammy. they were handing out penalties for everything and to let that slide doesn't show consistancy about infractions in the name of safety. If jorge had crashed and been hurt then it would be different i'm sure.The first hit ok but the second hit only the Fcar driver knows for sure if he did it on purpose,but with two stints on the tires and three stints on the driver ,heart rate at 160 there is a lot going on in those last few seconds and both were certainly giving it their all. it's easier to chase someone down than it is to be chased down but passing is a different story.
Believe me I know first hand what it's like to be purposly punted off the track at high speed into a cement wall. It's a tough pill to swallow,
Anyhow I
watched the whole race . last ten minutes some of the most exciting racing i've seen in a long time.

[Super_Dave_D]

Originally posted by sammyg2

PS, Komenda Fan are you sure you were watching the 12 hours of sebring? I was and didn't see the same thing you did.
That "driving technique" would be more at home at taledega with 200,000 drunk rednecks cheering but it doesn't belong in a sports car race.

I went to Sebring for my first time yesterday and I really though I would see a different type of race and people there, as opposed to Nascar. Here was my observations:

Nascar Parking: heavy traffic but people directing you all the way to your spot.
Sebring: Heavy traffic and people driecting you into the trackBUT after that your on your own. You basically drive aimlessly around until you find somewhere to squeeze in. It rained the night before so it mud was everywhere - Sucks!

Nascar Fans: Bunch or drunken rednecks - plenty of uglies but a lot of hot chicks as well.
Sebring: Bunch of drunken rednecks and the women were SOOO bad!!!
This by far was my biggest shock - there were just as many drunks and rebel flags than any Nascar race. No difference at all. The infield was completely trashed with nothing but beer cans and trash. I told my friend that it looked like a riot must have occured the night before! My fiends that had been there before said wait until tonight!!

Nascar Race: Left Left Left BUT you can watch them do it. Big screen TV's, Leaderboads that show 20 cars and PA seakers where you can hear MRN during cautions.

Sebring: Really close to the track and the cars sound wonderful! But all I could see was a couple hundred yards coming towards me and through the corner then they are gone. No loudspeaker broadcast no TV's. I did have a leaderboard that I could see so I knew who was leading but only 5 positions. It really sucked to watch a car and then...it would stop coming around and you never knew what happened. I guess it would be better on TV but no where near as nice to watch than Nascar.

Maybe I will try the Daytona 24 next year - that should be way better than Sebring. The only way I would go back to Sebring would be if I had Porsche parking passes.

[h20cooled7]

1st trip to sebring ,nice track but pissed with the poor porsche p2 cars .clearly acura kicked their ass,penske better retool.

[Drew001]

Finally got it up online.

Here's the final lap if you missed it.
What a fantastic finish.

[kang]

Originally posted by h20cooled7
1st trip to sebring ,nice track but pissed with the poor porsche p2 cars .clearly acura kicked their ass,penske better retool.

Yep, and it was the Acura's first race out of the box. Bad news for Porsche/Penske, who have had more than a year to get the car right. I was hoping for a good P2 season, but it's looking like it's going to be sad for P-car fans.

[strupgolf]

Thats too bad about your Sebring experience. I haven't been there in 40 years (I"m old). I told the wife I've got a 0 for 40 ratio for attending (1967). I did'nt see much on TV about the fans etc., they looked like they were having fun and watching the race. Right about the NASCAR drivers running the Daytona race, if they were not there, what would it be? Penske REALLY needs to get their act together or this will be a long year. After one year of the Porsche, they should know better. But then, Accura is good right out of the box. Give me vintage racing and I'll be fine. The way the cars used to be. Maybe I'm stuck in the OLD form of racing. where cars were junk and drivers were friendly.

[widgeon13]

Bumping is not racing, it's intimidation. If that style of driving is not condoned during the other 11 hours and 59 minutes why is it allowed on the final lap/final turn??

[ckissick]

I just got off the phone with my brother-in-law, Craig Watkins, the Flying Lizard chief engineer. Here's the team's take on the finish: (He gave me the OK to write this.)

First, they went to the organizers to protest, but they said it was contact in the heat of a very exciting moment. Had it been earlier in the race, he probably would have been penalized 20 seconds. But they just couldn't bring themselves to strip Melo of first in those circumstances. Flying Lizard accepts this. As Craig said, it was just wild and crazy at the finish. Craig just worked 158 hours in 10 days, and he still sounds energized. It was his most exciting racing moment ever, and he's still thrilled. Too bad the outcome couldn't be better.

Anyway, Jorg was absolutely livid. He was mainly mad about the second bump. He thought the first bump was just racing, and that they should have just had a fair sprint to the finish. (The first bump is what made him take the turn too far outside.) Instead, Melo bumped him again. Jorg was running around vowing to take out Melo at the next race. But his teammates told him, "No way." He'll cool down.

Craig said Flying Lizard has always played by the rules and always will. They don't want tit-for-tat racing. As Craig said himself, what they really don't want is for ALMS to become NASCAR. ALMS may get ugly sometimes, but at least they're trying hard to run it with class.

[h20cooled7]

It should be a race not smash up derby , leave that crap to the county fairs or NASCAR.

[h20cooled7]

If you have the weaker car get the hell out of the way!

[chapo]

Yeah, Siffert and Rodriguez, Parnelli, Follmer,Kendall, A.J. Hobbs, they never touched each other in a sports car race. Ever watch DTM? JPM won the Busch race on a fair pass, too.

[Scooter]

Originally posted by ckissick
I just got off the phone with my brother-in-law, Craig Watkins, the Flying Lizard chief engineer. Here's the team's take on the finish: (He gave me the OK to write this.)

First, they went to the organizers to protest, but they said it was contact in the heat of a very exciting moment. Had it been earlier in the race, he probably would have been penalized 20 seconds. But they just couldn't bring themselves to strip Melo of first in those circumstances. Flying Lizard accepts this. As Craig said, it was just wild and crazy at the finish. Craig just worked 158 hours in 10 days, and he still sounds energized. It was his most exciting racing moment ever, and he's still thrilled. Too bad the outcome couldn't be better.

Anyway, Jorg was absolutely livid. He was mainly mad about the second bump. He thought the first bump was just racing, and that they should have just had a fair sprint to the finish. (The first bump is what made him take the turn too far outside.) Instead, Melo bumped him again. Jorg was running around vowing to take out Melo at the next race. But his teammates told him, "No way." He'll cool down.

Craig said Flying Lizard has always played by the rules and always will. They don't want tit-for-tat racing. As Craig said himself, what they really don't want is for ALMS to become NASCAR. ALMS may get ugly sometimes, but at least they're trying hard to run it with class.

So, what you are saying is that as long as it makes great television, then they won't call blatant penalties.

[Tervuren]

Originally posted by Scooter
So, what you are saying is that as long as it makes great television, then they won't call blatant penalties.

That was racing eachother - and it was heated. That track surface there is very unpredictable, you may have the grip for the move, then your car hits a bump. When you are racing another car like that, you aren't in your familiar line, and might find a bigger bump than you expected. On a smoother surface, I do not think there would of been contact like that.

The Porsche did leave the door open for an aggressive move like that, and the Ferrari was aggressive enough to take it.

Now bumping like that earlier in a race - and I'd of had a problem, as the body work not being correct would mess up the aerodynamics for the entire race, affectively killing the team's chances, but last corner like that, in high heat...

I don't see people today ranting at Rene and Guiles for their little bash at the French GP. Same thing, two driver's in the heat of the last race, neither will back down. Although then - man.. you could see the furious French crowd shaking their fists in the air as the Ferrari repassed the Renault...

This is a Porsche forum, so same thing, I expect a lot of us to be biased, and we'd post how the Porsche got past the Ferrari if it had of been the other way around.

[ckissick]

Originally posted by Tervuren
That was racing eachother - and it was heated. That track surface there is very unpredictable, you may have the grip for the move, then your car hits a bump. When you are racing another car like that, you aren't in your familiar line, and might find a bigger bump than you expected. On a smoother surface, I do not think there would of been contact like that.

The Porsche did leave the door open for an aggressive move like that, and the Ferrari was aggressive enough to take it.

Now bumping like that earlier in a race - and I'd of had a problem, as the body work not being correct would mess up the aerodynamics for the entire race, affectively killing the team's chances, but last corner like that, in high heat...

I don't see people today ranting at Rene and Guiles for their little bash at the French GP. Same thing, two driver's in the heat of the last race, neither will back down. Although then - man.. you could see the furious French crowd shaking their fists in the air as the Ferrari repassed the Renault...

This is a Porsche forum, so same thing, I expect a lot of us to be biased, and we'd post how the Porsche got past the Ferrari if it had of been the other way around.

All correct. Craig did mention the bumpy track being a factor.

[h20cooled7]

One things for sure Sebring is pretty cool. Me and the wife are gonna try to hit it again next year. I really liked the 200,000 thousand drunk rednecks ,haaaaaa. It was like taking the Clampets and the Howles and putting them in the blender."Loovvvvey can you ask Jim Bob for another Nautral Light"? But it all works out, good stuff.