I forgot to post here but thought you may find my crash fun and interesting. I also have a video of the Saturday Viper Cup Race. Both videos can be found here: YouTube - ViperFergy's Channel.
Fergy's crash at Hallett and Viper Cup Race videos
- Thread starter fergy
- Start date
eucharistos
Enthusiast
wow!!
congrats on getting back in the saddle
sorry for the fri the 13th double strike
i'm avoiding the obligatory: "that 'll buff out"
really enjoyed watching you drive, esp the 2 camera angles
congrats on getting back in the saddle
sorry for the fri the 13th double strike
i'm avoiding the obligatory: "that 'll buff out"
really enjoyed watching you drive, esp the 2 camera angles
Da " *****" bites another. Thanks alot for sharing , but about everyone who has run Hallett has had a problem with the infamous " ***** " corner at one time or another. Seem to remember even Bobby Archer having an off here years ago.
Great video and good laps till the event, and sad to see you didn't make the race -- keep us posted on your runs. Fun for us track junkies to watch video with a Viper perspective .
Hope it is all ready for the next race or at least for Salt Lake City?!
Best Regards,
Bill Pemberton
Great video and good laps till the event, and sad to see you didn't make the race -- keep us posted on your runs. Fun for us track junkies to watch video with a Viper perspective .
Hope it is all ready for the next race or at least for Salt Lake City?!
Best Regards,
Bill Pemberton
Kevan
Enthusiast
Great driving, Fergy!
5th and 6th seemed so lonely.
I really enjoyed the RaceKeeper stuff.
Very slick.
5th and 6th seemed so lonely.
I really enjoyed the RaceKeeper stuff.
Very slick.
MTGTS
Enthusiast
Time for Lexan, glad your ok
After a few times thru the vid, my thoughts:
Looks like you were pretty consistent with the brake and throttle (as compared to previous times thru that corner) but this time your tires need more grip, though you braked the same you went back to an even throttle (as you were doing previously) when you need a little more power as your tires were getting greasy and when you went for the turn in your rear tires (on even throttle) were too light to help you...
Also, if you had braked harder (since countersteering was not helping as the rear was eager to come around) or any brake (since it appears you stayed even on the throttle during the countersteer) you probably would have stayed more on the track...
-J
p.s. bottom line, your equipment was changing (per the rear getting very loose coming out of the previous corner) but you stayed on the same line, braking and turn in for the next corner and rear wasn't getting any tighter..it was getting looser/greasier...)
Looks like you were pretty consistent with the brake and throttle (as compared to previous times thru that corner) but this time your tires need more grip, though you braked the same you went back to an even throttle (as you were doing previously) when you need a little more power as your tires were getting greasy and when you went for the turn in your rear tires (on even throttle) were too light to help you...
Also, if you had braked harder (since countersteering was not helping as the rear was eager to come around) or any brake (since it appears you stayed even on the throttle during the countersteer) you probably would have stayed more on the track...
-J
p.s. bottom line, your equipment was changing (per the rear getting very loose coming out of the previous corner) but you stayed on the same line, braking and turn in for the next corner and rear wasn't getting any tighter..it was getting looser/greasier...)
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ViperGeorge
Enthusiast
Looked like after the first incident the Viper held up reasonably well given it hit the tires. Didn't look like much damage. Too bad about the hood, now that caused a bunch of damage.
Wow. Lots of replies. I'm not used to that. Thanks for the nice comments. I was expecting "********" or something like that.
Anyway, the car went into the shop a week ago on Monday. I've purchased a new hood, front bumper cover, right rocker panel, and rear bumper cover. The right rear quarter panel is being repaired so I didn't have to buy that. I'm replacing the glass with lexan. I was going to do that anyway so this seemed a good time to go ahead and make the change. I will also need a new wrap which I'm working on with the artist folks now. All in all, it's only money, right? Well, I figure it will be about $10K-$15K by the time I've got it done. I have a race at the end of September so I hope it gets one on time.
As far as how it happened? Well, there are a number of opinions I've heard. I've run the track many times. Hallett is one of my favorite tracks. However, I believe my rear got a little happy because I took a little more curbing than previous laps which caused the front to vibrate a lot more than normal and prevented my counter steer maneuver. Plus, my turn in was a bit sooner than previous laps. I was actually using my rear end slide to point the car so a little sliding was expected and wanted. This time, however, it got the best of me. Next time I'll not run over as much curbing and I won't be trying to get into the 1:19s on my first session of the weekend on old tires.
Well, I can't say I had fun racing since I was out of it all by Friday morning, but I can say the most fun I had at the event was making and exploding dry ice bombs. A 20 oz bottle of water filled with dry ice makes for a fun time.
Thanks for the nice comments. I was expecting "********" or something like that. Anyway, the car went into the shop a week ago on Monday. I've purchased a new hood, front bumper cover, right rocker panel, and rear bumper cover. The right rear quarter panel is being repaired so I didn't have to buy that. I'm replacing the glass with lexan. I was going to do that anyway so this seemed a good time to go ahead and make the change.
I will also need a new wrap which I'm working on with the artist folks now. All in all, it's only money, right? Well, I figure it will be about $10K-$15K by the time I've got it done. I have a race at the end of September so I hope it gets one on time.As far as how it happened? Well, there are a number of opinions I've heard. I've run the track many times. Hallett is one of my favorite tracks. However, I believe my rear got a little happy because I took a little more curbing than previous laps which caused the front to vibrate a lot more than normal and prevented my counter steer maneuver. Plus, my turn in was a bit sooner than previous laps. I was actually using my rear end slide to point the car so a little sliding was expected and wanted. This time, however, it got the best of me. Next time I'll not run over as much curbing and I won't be trying to get into the 1:19s on my first session of the weekend on old tires.
Well, I can't say I had fun racing since I was out of it all by Friday morning, but I can say the most fun I had at the event was making and exploding dry ice bombs. A 20 oz bottle of water filled with dry ice makes for a fun time.
Then Crash like thunder
I was happy that I found that song. I hope I don't have to use it again, but at least it fit the moment.
Boxer12
Enthusiast
Do you run 18" rears? It looks like VRL Hoosiers on the car. The ACR(-X) likes the rake according to SRT guys. Might be one reason it got loose. Food for thought, as the shunts on 18" rears are happening with some regularity. I don't run them, so I can't comment on personal experience.
I think 18s are the preferred wheel size on the car. I think going 19 on the rear for the X was a mistake but what do I know.
Too much rake causes the rear end to come around. I'm running about 1/8" to 1/4" rake. Almost flat. If I go more, the back end gets happy. The X cars in the cup series are running the Michelin tires which have a lot more grip than hoosiers which probably means they can get away with more rake. Besides, the X tends to push on those narrow fronts so the extra rake probably balances it out. Anyway, 18s are the way to go IMNSHO. 3SRTsandGTS
Enthusiast
Fergy,
Glad your OK!
Dave
Glad your OK!
Dave
Hey there, Dave. Well, you know, I was never in fear of my safety. I remember clearly while I was sliding toward the wall yelling profanities saying to myself, "Damn! This is going to be expensive!" and I was right.
BTW, missed you at Hallett. I assume we'll see you at Spring Mountain?
AFL in NJ
Enthusiast
More than those who just talk, you backup your driving skill in this series and on video; kudos to you! Glad you're okay and your car will be again soon too. I wish you all best in the remaining races.
Regards,
Aaron
Regards,
Aaron
big-n-italian
Enthusiast
looks like fun!
(ALL EXCEPT THE CRASHING PART OF COURSE)
(ALL EXCEPT THE CRASHING PART OF COURSE)
David Pintaric
Viper Owner
I remember clearly while I was sliding toward the wall yelling profanities saying to myself, "Damn! This is going to be expensive!" and I was right.
We must be related...
YouTube - Nelson Ledges Crash 24May08
Ouch! Maybe, but I didn't do the roll maneuver and back onto my wheels. Great trick. Can you do it again?
Well, you seemed to be alright. What about the car?David Pintaric
Viper Owner
Ouch! Maybe, but I didn't do the roll maneuver and back onto my wheels. Great trick. Can you do it again?
All four fenders, both rockers
, and both front and rear bumber covers were damaged. The frame was straight, beleive it or not. A few A-arms needed to be replaced, though.It took a month to get the car fixed, then my first race after this incident was at Watkins Glen (my favorite track) in the worse downpour I have ever experienced. I have a picture of my car entering Turn 1 and you can see little explosions in the water from rain drops. I spun twice, never hitting anything (I said my prayers!) and got out of there with a second place.
All four fenders, both rockers
It took a month to get the car fixed, then my first race after this incident was at Watkins Glen (my favorite track) in the worse downpour I have ever experienced. I have a picture of my car entering Turn 1 and you can see little explosions in the water from rain drops. I spun twice, never hitting anything (I said my prayers!) and got out of there with a second place.
So, what car do you have? I assume it must have a roll cage? Do you have links to pictures you mentioned. Sounds interesting.
I think 18s are the preferred wheel size on the car. I think going 19 on the rear for the X was a mistake but what do I know.
I have not tried 19's yet, went straight to the 18's. Hoosier R 345 in back and now 295's in front. The car has a little understeer but it feels really good. I also have the car balanced front to rear pretty even. With front/rear aero the car feels great at all speeds.
What size fronts you run? Where can we read more about the details of your setup?
Race the car enough, and accidents happen. The nature of this sport. Thanks for sharing, glad you're ok. That track looks like a handful!
The track is a lot of fun but there are some places that can bite you. Turn 8 is one of them.
Regarding tire sizes... The Archers have been doing this a long time. Tommy told me a year ago to stick with 335 rear and 305 front. I actually run 315 front but the diameter is the same. He said with all his testing and driving, which I assume is more than mine
, that he knows what he's talking about. So, that's the size I run. Plus, the setup on the car is a known quantity at this point. Not knowing what suspension you have I couldn't say why you have understeer. However, I'd consider going to 315s in the front, make sure your rake is good, and make sure you have shocks (e.g. Motons) which can be adjusted for compression and rebound at a minimum. Minor adjustments to compression and rebound make huge differences to handling.
I'm not sure what details you're looking for but here are some of them. If you have anything specific, let me know.
- I'm running Forgeline 18x11 front wheels with 315/30R18 Hoosier R6s and rear wheels are 18x13 with 335/30R18 R6s.
- I have Moton shocks with Eibach springs. 1200 front and 1400 rear.
- I'm currently running about 3/8" rake which is a little more than my normal setup but the car feels very balanced to me.
- The car is lowered about as much as I can go. Actually, I have about another 1/2" to go but severe bumps causes it to rub the wheel wells.
- I have air jacks installed which comes in handy at the track.
- My car is gutted, full roll cage, fire suppression, fuel cell, etc. I think it weighs in at 3211 lbs without my fat ass in it. It's about to get lighter when I got to lexan front/rear glass and I've already replaced the 36lb stock battery with an 18lb Braille battery.
Thanks for the info Fergy. Its great to see someone who tracks their car posting information here. I track mine almost every other weekend, mostly at Autobahn Country Club, Joliet IL, and Road America.
I have the motons going in the car in a week or so, with 700/1000 rates. I prefer a slight understeer setup vs completely neutral, so I think I'll be sticking with the 295's for a bit. I've been bitten before by oversteer, and with the current setup, I've never once had the rear feel shaky.
You wouldn't happen to know the weights of your wheels/tires?
I've put mine on a bathroom scale to get the following weights:
SSR 18x11 front w/275 Hoosier R: 41 (very used tires)
SSR 18x13 rear w/345 Hoosier R: 49.5 (very used tires)
OZ Racing 18x11 front w/295 Hoosier R: 47.5 (new tires)
OZ Racing 18x13 rear w/345 Hoosier R: 55.0 (new tires)
I have the motons going in the car in a week or so, with 700/1000 rates. I prefer a slight understeer setup vs completely neutral, so I think I'll be sticking with the 295's for a bit. I've been bitten before by oversteer, and with the current setup, I've never once had the rear feel shaky.
You wouldn't happen to know the weights of your wheels/tires?
I've put mine on a bathroom scale to get the following weights:
SSR 18x11 front w/275 Hoosier R: 41 (very used tires)
SSR 18x13 rear w/345 Hoosier R: 49.5 (very used tires)
OZ Racing 18x11 front w/295 Hoosier R: 47.5 (new tires)
OZ Racing 18x13 rear w/345 Hoosier R: 55.0 (new tires)
06 blue/white first edition.
Garages > Magnus's 2006 Dodge Viper - FQuick.com
It's partially up to date.
Garages > Magnus's 2006 Dodge Viper - FQuick.com
It's partially up to date.
I had an '06 coupe. Bob Woodhouse put on a wing/splitter. See here: http://www.woodhouseperformance.com/shoppingcart/shopdisplayproducts.asp?id=17&cat=Aero+Package. It made substantial improvements in handling and decreased my lap times by 4 or more seconds depending on the track.
Personally, I hate understeer. It kills time for no good reason. I prefer neutral or a little understeer. Throttle steering through turns is much more efficient than pushing through them and having to let off the throttle to keep from going into the trash. All of this can be handled by tires, compression/rebound settings, wing or combination of all of these.
Personally, I hate understeer. It kills time for no good reason.
I prefer neutral or a little understeer. Throttle steering through turns is much more efficient than pushing through them and having to let off the throttle to keep from going into the trash. All of this can be handled by tires, compression/rebound settings, wing or combination of all of these.Ya I wasn't really sure what rates to go with. As I mentioned earlier, info from people who actually track their vipers is few and far between.
I'll give it a try. I'm not opposed to putting different rates in after a few sessions.
I just paid to be a VCA member so hopefully I'll be posting more info in this forum. I know I've put tons and tons of data and info into the ls1 forums back in the day.
Thanks again.
I'll give it a try. I'm not opposed to putting different rates in after a few sessions.
I just paid to be a VCA member so hopefully I'll be posting more info in this forum. I know I've put tons and tons of data and info into the ls1 forums back in the day.
Thanks again.
