Willow Springs Time Trial, In-car Video

[Erik K]

Wow! What an awesome weekend out on the big track. Weather was nice, just a little Breezy. Thank you to everyone who makes these events run smoothly.

This was a very cool event for me, the first time I had ever been to Willow Big track, I was about 6 years Old, and Dad I went to watch the (1994) 2nd running of the POC 4 hour Tribute to Lemans race (Now in its 22nd year). I was blown away, I was hooked from the get go, big time. During that Tribute race local Pro/Am driver Rick Ramist was racing his Blue 73' 911, built to RSR spec's. His co-driver in the event was Very Fast driver at the beginning of his Career, Bill Auberlen. Here are some Pic's of the car (from the Ensenada Grand Prix days).





The Car changed hand's a Few times, and is now Owned by Roland Schmidt. For those who don't know the car, this is the current configuration, after numerous modifications by the previous Owner to Roland.


Saturday's Last session of the day was my first time in the Blue car at Big Willow, it was quite a step up from anything I have ever driven. Sunday proved prosperous with more seat time, and getting used to the extreme grip levels this car could achieve in the corners. The car now runs a 3.8L motor, but at Big willow It is very much a Momentum car. Sunday timed runs went about a good as I could have hoped for, wind was up a little bit, but I turned my personal best Laps. Here is the Video of Timed Runs. Thank you to Roland and My Dad for making this Possible, and as always, nice seeing everyone out at the track Enjoy.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q4-EjnSj4os

Erik K,

[Racer X]

Thanks for sharing!

Awesome driving skills!

Roland is a cool cat letting you drive that nice ride--great history.

Great event, great group and wonderful memories!

A cool shout to RSR's Ryan and Sam, for getting me back on the track after losing first and fith gears, getting my brakes on fire, losing my alternator.... and still was able to finish the two days!!

Now, need to get all of that fix....!!


Felix

[Gunter]

That's a really great lap time! WOW! Just wish you would come and race more

[ttweed]

Great lap, Erik!

I remember seeing the blue RSR at the stadium in a TT a few years after that, in 1997 or so, when I first joined the club and was trying to figure out what this Porsche driving thang was all about. I was pretty amazed to find that one of the drivers was the guy who had been glassing my surfboards for many years, Harlan Patterson. He and Chris were testing it getting ready for the upcoming Tribute enduro. He told me all about it and said I should check it out. I made my first trip to WSIR to see the races and drove my 911 on the track there for the first time in parade laps at lunch time, starting me on the slippery slope of performance driving. I still have a couple pics in my archives of the pits that day:





I'm pretty sure that was the first time I ever saw a slide valve induction system. I thought that car was about the bitchinest thing I had ever seen.

TT

[Greg Phillips]

Here is some more video from the weekend

Steve's timed runs:
https://youtu.be/pkef-JRES3w

My timed runs:
https://youtu.be/B8essqQs1to

Scaring Bill Behun off of turn 8
https://youtu.be/383AVycAdq8

Greg

[Gary Burch]

Scaring Bill Behun off of turn 8
https://youtu.be/383AVycAdq8

Greg

I hope bill and his car are ok...

[Erik K]

Thanks Tom!, I knew Harland well also, great guy, and Yes that car had one of the coolest Motors, with the Slide Valve MFI, 2.8L I believe. That car definitely has some cool History. Thanks for sharing those great Photos, we were there at that event as well.

Erik K

[Mike]

The (POC racer) Roland bought the 911 from said in 2 laps he could run 1.22 on new radial slicks.
With stiff, 2000lb springs.

Erik you look extra smooth from T6 to T2.
Really impressive around T8 and T9.
I need to be like Erik in T8 and T9, thanks.

a 125.8 with a 1.22 car.
https://youtu.be/R8v739aKYU4?t=5m1s

[Greg Phillips]

Scaring Bill Behun off of turn 8
https://youtu.be/383AVycAdq8

Greg

I hope bill and his car are ok...

They were fine, just a little more brown

Greg

[John Straub]

I remember when Rick first started driving with his black 911S, then got hooked big time!

John

[Jad]

Here is my in-car video. I felt I drove it well, but the time was much slower than usual and I can't figure out exactly why?

https://youtu.be/O_xTsD0yrhw

[mrondeau]

Here is my in-car video. I felt I drove it well, but the time was much slower than usual and I can't figure out exactly why?

https://youtu.be/O_xTsD0yrhw

The voodoo doll worked again.

[rshon]

Pull out your past data and compare it. Less grip, less acceleration, slower entry or exit speeds? The only thing the data doesn't show directly is the environment (temps, wind, etc.) It's got to be at least one of those things...

[Tim Comeau]

Big flood of memories... That blue car was built up by Rick Raimist. He started driving at the stadium parking lot like the rest of us... I first raced at the Vegas (small outside course) PCA club race in 94 and Steve Velasquez was driving it. IIRC, he sold it to Harlan Patterson. Harlan had rolled his own yellow 914 at the Ensenada Grand Prix. Chris Burns was driving the purple and yellow 914 in the pictures with Denny Stone (?), which had a matching colored twin 911 from San Diego Motorsports, driven by Randy Hinton. Rick tried for a while to get sponsorship for Randy, but nothing came of it. Randy dropped out of the scene and the car was sold to Jeff Sadinsky of the POC. Chris Burns bought Denny's share of the 914 and raced that for a while with the POC. He later sold his 914's engine ( the chassis later went to Europe) to Dave Bouzaglou, having moved over to the blue 911, buying Denny out, then buying Harlan out. I helped Chris race the blue 911 in the POC for several years. We co-drove it at an enduro at the Vegas big track. During that time it got the Getty Design "clam shell" body kit, and bigger tires/wheels, suspension from Cary Eisenlohr and Urs Gretner, and bigger engine, then finally the graphics from Mark Banucci of Final Touch Graphics, which he and Chris Burns co-owned. The other blue and turquoise striped 911 was owned/driven by Steve Dente and Jim Sparks. Dente was one of the drivers in Rick Raimist's line up of renters in his #78 1994 factory RSR at the 1996 24 hrs of Daytona. (finished 2nd in the GT2 class, 6th overall!) The common denominator in all this is the guy who built the engines for these cars, Mark Kinninger. He and Randy Hinton started R & M Motorsports, which was to become San Diego Motorsports, where I was employed for a number of years. ...but that's all I remember!