Bill Pemberton
0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
This past Saturday ( Aug.13th ) saw two TMO members take 1st and 2nd in the Production D Class, and in fact they ended up with the 3rd and 4th fastest times of the event. Wanting to get some seat time at the newly paved Motorsport Park Hastings this event afforded me the first run in the Mach 1 since I completed the rear seat delete kit. Sure, it probably only saved me 20-25 lbs., but psychologically getting any weight off the heavy girl gave me a positive attitude. She came in at 3987 initial weight and that gave her first place in the " Heavyweight " Class, haha. On the 27-28 the Central Region of NASA ( drivenasacentral.com ) has their first HPDE/Time Trial / and Races at this newly paved track and since I will be Instructing at that event I wanted to save my Hoosier R7s for that full weekend, so I slapped on a set of 2021 Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2s for the SCCA Time Trials --- albeit they were brand new. Not having run Sport Cups for over 5 years I took a little advice from the Gator Guru ( Blacksheep 1 ) and started the tires a bit lower than I had run them on my Viper ACR. Starting at 27 lbs they felt pretty darn solid, but they came in hot at 36 lbs.. I remembered friends telling me they were best hot in the 32-34 pound range. Bingo, BS1 said cautiously to many of us listening on this Board that he often went way lower than folks often suggested, so what the heck, I decided to drop them to 25 lbs. This was where I start the R7s and even though the Michelins are a 180 TWR tire, I clicked off my next run at 135.5 - 1.5 seconds faster than the first session. I was able to replicate the time again, so I will give kudos to Blacksheep, as I think that was the only reason I was able to win over Al Hermans , a a super solid talent and the current leader in the Midiv Series Production D Class. You may be thinking that the little advice given by Mr. Super Beater was not that important, but to me it is indicative of how the small tidbits we all pick up here can be super valuable. Al runs a badass S197 Boss 302S clone and like me he hits both auto crosses and track events , always quick whatever he is competing in, but when the dust cleared in Hastings he ran a 1:35.669 to my 1:35.526. Insanely close competition and since I never contemplated running PS2s that low, I give that 1/10th of second win to advice from a Florida Swampboy.
The track, which was paved with a two seam system ( unlike the normal three seam job ) is extremely smooth and like 12coboss mentioned in a previous post, it is really, really quick! During the past races I ran there , along with the Mustang Roundup, the fastest time I ever ran was a 1:34.9, with times normally around 1:35-1:37 depending on track conditions. Yet, the first time out with the Mach 1 on the new surface of the 2.15 track, I equaled those times with a car 400 lbs heavier and with 40 less horsepower. I can see some drivers getting into the 1:31 -1:32 times with their beastly Mustangs at the Fast Fords and Mustang Roundup this year and I have a distinct feeling those with some extra seat time are going to carry in an advantage, since cornering and braking are positively affected. The Central Region of NASA event the 27-28 of August could be a great time for those wanting a bit more prep prior to the Roundup ( Sept. 15-18th).
Check out :
drivenasacentral.com
racemph.com ( for the Fast Ford and Mustang Roundup)
Kudos to Al Hermans, because he reminded me that I have not picked up my new TrackMustangsOnline decals, as he has TMO proudly emblazoned on his Black S197 Trackhorse. I need to make sure I get mine picked up prior to the NASA event! Lastly, running 3rd and 4th overall, Al and I were only beaten by a Radical and a race prepped Viper ACR, so we made folks aware Mustangs are fast. Though he was in a different Class, we were both faster than a Camaro ZL1 LE, so we represented the Blue Oval proudly.
The track, which was paved with a two seam system ( unlike the normal three seam job ) is extremely smooth and like 12coboss mentioned in a previous post, it is really, really quick! During the past races I ran there , along with the Mustang Roundup, the fastest time I ever ran was a 1:34.9, with times normally around 1:35-1:37 depending on track conditions. Yet, the first time out with the Mach 1 on the new surface of the 2.15 track, I equaled those times with a car 400 lbs heavier and with 40 less horsepower. I can see some drivers getting into the 1:31 -1:32 times with their beastly Mustangs at the Fast Fords and Mustang Roundup this year and I have a distinct feeling those with some extra seat time are going to carry in an advantage, since cornering and braking are positively affected. The Central Region of NASA event the 27-28 of August could be a great time for those wanting a bit more prep prior to the Roundup ( Sept. 15-18th).
Check out :
drivenasacentral.com
racemph.com ( for the Fast Ford and Mustang Roundup)
Kudos to Al Hermans, because he reminded me that I have not picked up my new TrackMustangsOnline decals, as he has TMO proudly emblazoned on his Black S197 Trackhorse. I need to make sure I get mine picked up prior to the NASA event! Lastly, running 3rd and 4th overall, Al and I were only beaten by a Radical and a race prepped Viper ACR, so we made folks aware Mustangs are fast. Though he was in a different Class, we were both faster than a Camaro ZL1 LE, so we represented the Blue Oval proudly.
Last edited:
