Willow Springs

[240Z415]

Finally got the chance to take my car to a track day at big Willow. It lives up to it's reputation of being a "fast track" Fourth and fifth gear the whole session with one short downshift into third up into turn 3.

By pure luck, Phil Mendelovitz was there and was nice enough (and brave enough) to ride along with me one session providing me with some great instruction and the correct Z line. It would have taken me years to figure out what he showed me in 20 minutes!

[jmortensen]

So what kind of lap times were you turning? Looks like an FP autox car, but the whale tail should be illegal, right?

[240Z415]

Hey Jon,

Being my first day at this track my goal was to make it home in one piece and have the car running for an Auto-X event in San Diego the next day. No timing at the event, but per a stopwatch I was running right at 1:50, if I remember right.

Aren't you hot shoes in the mid-high 1:30s on this track? I would be interested to know.

Steve

[jmortensen]

I did a little checking and it looks like fast ITS guys are in the mid-high 1:30s as you said. Fast GT2 or CP guys are in the low 1:30s, John Coffey's now defunct ROD (Rusty Old Datsun) did a 1:28.

I never ran there. I ran at Streets of Willow a few times with the Porsche Owners Club, and I can't recall lap times but I want to say it was 1:16 or 1:18. It's been like 8 or 9 years, so memory is a bit fuzzy. I came in 11th out of 215 cars, so I was happy. You might try Streets, it's a lot tighter, almost like a really wide open autox. If you go up the hill you probably won't break 90, if you go down it you probably won't break 105 or so.

I did run Buttonwillow a few times, the only time I was racing for time I ran a 2:11 on CW13 when it was about 105 degrees out, I don't know if you've been out there to compare times. Apparently according to all the car mags my Z was pretty slow back then. It felt fast to me though, and it was my daily driver too! Should be a lot faster when I get done modding it (it's been down for 5 years now, probably another year to go at least before it is done- no stone left unturned).

Edited August 19, 2008 by jmortensen

[Chino 240Z]

Each turn is awesome in its own way. You learn the word respect real quick when at speed. Like 2ManyZ's keeps telling me, "the place looks like the lunar landscape"... not so pretty 10 months of the year, but it's hers and my favorite close by track. Glad to hear you enjoyed it!

oh yea, like your car!

Edited August 19, 2008 by Chino 240Z

[John Coffey]

John Coffey's now defunct ROD (Rusty Old Datsun) did a 1:28.

At the Z Nationals in 2004, with Erik Messley driving and Art Singer from Nissan Sport as passenger, Erik clicked off a couple low 1:27s in the ROD. He is from another planet when it comes to driving a car. We won't talk about my lap times when I drove the car... :cross-eye

EDIT: For almost 8 years Rich Maloney had the ITS lap record at WSIR with a 1:32.xxx. John Norris in a BMW 325 knocked that down to a high 1:30 a couple years ago, which Bryan Lampe almost matched in his ITS 240Z at a VARA event - the day he sold it.

A lot of people claim WSIR is a horsepower track but cars without much power (SRFs) are down in the low 1:31s because they don't touch the brakes from turn 5 through turn 1.

Edited August 19, 2008 by John Coffey

[John Coffey]

Some videos that give you idea why its important to respect turns 8 and 9 at WSIR:

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=M8ygjttKdF4

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=j3p35-Waqac

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=8PZ4Jl02HJc

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=pn3cV1usGoU

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=ofLkJqEwHDg

[240Z415]

Respect, yea, that's the reason for my slow lap times. After watching a P GT2 end up on it's top in the second session, my primary goal was to go home in one piece. Followed by a very distant second of running fast lap times :paranoid:

Steve

[D83zxt]

Nice looking Z! While attaining my license thru POC on the short track. I witness two nasty rollovers on the big track. It is a fun track tho.

Donna