UKGTP7 - UKGTP International (5th-7th May)

Here's Famine schooling everyone... look at this: Lap 2 of 5, Specialized is 2nd and Famine is 5th. At Monaco, with the "wonderful" Garaiyas. Also notice that on the same track is Vexd in 2nd place and EXelero in 4th place in what could probably be a Vanquish... a very big and very, very erratic Vanquish.



In the following lap, Famine is already 1st, Specialized is 2nd, and we can only assume the rest have retained more or less their place.

Here's Roo apparently shedding a tear after winning the first pick n' mix event. Also in the pic: Vexd's back and GtPlant.



Next up is a very blurry image of Race Idiot, in front of AMG, also in the pic are Touring Mars and Sarah




After a nice day spent racing, what better way to cool down than a nice game of bowling. Little did we know the cameras were going to have a field day and we'd all make such asses of ourselves.

Here's Famine making a "I'm going to have sexytime" face, next to him are Sarah and daan



AMG coaching Race Idiot on how to play bowling. Did he actually listen?



Here's Specialized showing us that the bowling version of training wheels sucks as much as an average horrible player can. Notice ball in the gutter... this was the first of six straight gutterballs. Go Spec!



Sureshot apparently doesn't like his picture taken. behind him are Race Idiot, EXelero, Roo, and then there's AMG and half a Vexd.



A nice pic of everyone.



Before clicking on this link. Be advised, the one on the right is TheCracker, and what could be more elemental than TheCracker standing next to some crack

here are daan and Specialized shooting some cows... don't ask



That's it for saturday.

I can but apologise, the batteries on my Richard Whiteley Punmaster ran out on Friday evening. Saying that, I don't blame them...

Nice pics, Diego 👍 daan looks pretty scary with that gun and red eyes!

I'm still to post my "write up" for this... so don't think I forgot about you. I've been laughing a lot at daan's user title too.

dustdriver

http://img385.imageshack.us/img385/8123/p1010039ed2.jpg
Who's the girl on the right?


And congratz to SareBear for beating me on the New York course

Click to expand...

Thanks for letting me win you mean!!! It was very exciting to come somewhere other than last (apart from when people dropped out!) and knowing that you were about to overtake me at any moment. Actually got me all excited and tingly all over (but don't tell Famine or he'll have me playing GT4 all the time!).

Touring Mars - I love the puns, keep 'em coming and love the avatar.

Also Diego it is good to know that you are a 'healthy' pervert, not the other kind!

Also didn't reply to this quote:

daan

Mine will be up later.

I'll upload my photos too....

Click to expand...

....for fear of being killed by Famine

Touring Mars

daan looks pretty scary!

Click to expand...

Fixed.

Nice shirt at the bowling, daan.

Edit: G.T reminds me of Fred Savage, from "The Wonder Years".

Sarebear

Thanks for letting me win you mean!!! It was very exciting to come somewhere other than last (apart from when people dropped out!) and knowing that you were about to overtake me at any moment. Actually got me all excited and tingly all over (but don't tell Famine or he'll have me playing GT4 all the time!).

Click to expand...

Actually, i didn't mean to let you win, i just couldn't keep up on the straights
I was really racing at maximum speed around the track.
I gave up after i crashed in the corner after the long straight, proving that i really was racing at (or above) the maximum of my possibilities, but you were just faster.

edit:

Roo

I just spent 2 hours constructing a post with all the photos I took in it, went to put the last picture in, navigated away from the page to check something, and lost the lot.
Damn.

Click to expand...

That's why i first put it in wordpad and save it when i'm making a long post.

First of all let me just say I attended this thanks to Specialized. I'd been wanting to be part of it for some time, but since I wasn't really "close" to anyone on GTP, I never bothered. With that said, I'd like to thank Ben for being such a great guy and actually convincing me of going and offering so much so I wouldn't have to worry about getting lost in pikkie land... I mean, er... Newark.

Getting there on friday was a great chance to start early at getting to know some of the people attending and actually realising many of the attendees are pretty different than what they are here on GTP. Also, got some alcohol intake and more than a few laughs with Spec, EXelero, Famine, Sarah and Vexd. EXelero and Vexd, you were great hosts, by the way 👍

The Rutland Arms is... an interesting experience to say the least. For a moment I was expecting Borat to walk by, and he actually did, although maybe it was his younger brother, who escaped the cage. The beds at the Rutland are odd, the shower was falling apart... but way better than the breakfast. Watching TheCracker, Spec, Roo and daan try to eat it was one of the funniest things I've seen ever before 9am. Deep fried turds and week old bacon is really not something you want hanging around in your stomach.

The GT4 playing was exhilarating. I actually thought I was much worse than I actually am... I even managed to win two races! One of them was a fairly easy win, since I can't remember about it... I do remember battling with someone for 1st place and later that someone going off course, leaving me 8 seconds ahead... Hopefuly the actual results will shed some light on this. Then I had an almost win in a Zonda 7.3 on Apricot Hill, against daan in a Ford GT. He won by .050, but it was an awesome race. The second race I won was in Fuji 2005, again, battling with daan throughout the whole race. He was in the Merc SLR and I was in the Audi R8 (not the race car, the concept)... awesome overtaking by both of us throughout the whole race.

The pick n' mix (previous to the supercar race) was very, very fun. Especially when you take into account that it was the start of the LAN and we were all a bit jumpy. The RUF RGT was a very awesome car, but winning or placing second made you go into the horrible Spyker C8... I cursed that car so much it wasn't even funny. After a few in-bwteeen cars there was teh Garaiya, What a nightmare! I was about to overtake Roo (who won the race, at Infineon) when out of nowhere came EXelero in a Spyker, completely out of control and into the path of my silly car... in teh end, no win, but loads of fun.

Many more races followed and to be honest, I don't remember them all. I do remember having lots of fun and laughing out loud many times during races. My shouting of thank yous and sorrys all the time. Going off course repeatedly, but still managing to gain good places because we all went off course at one time or another

Also very fun, at one point, when the network on one side had to be reset, I think, many of us took a break. But some others actually did a few stints. I saw Smallhorses doing hotlaps on the Gulf Ford GT in Midfield, and noticed someone had left a M3 GTR Race Car "lying around" on the track... so we had a go pushing each other for hotlap after hotlap. Roo joined in a XJ220 Race Car as well. Loads of fun. After that Spec and I had a go in Deep Forest with the same M3 GTR Race Car for about 10 laps, never being more than .100 apart. And after he got tired, dustdriver sat and we went 15 more laps... same thing, never too far apart... all under the watchful eye of Vexd and anyone else who came to see some good driving... or at least that's what I thought

Endurance race was great, but not really my thing. Fifty laps, and on lap 48 we're running fourth, 30 seconds behind 3rd place, and G.T goes into the pits so that I can take over. Sureshot says "we need some good driving now"... priceless

As it usually happens on these things, everything went by too fast and we're always left wanting more. In the end I'm extremely glad of meeting each one of you.

I was going to post a bit to remind me of each one of you, but noticed the only thing missing was some John Denver/Kenny Rogers soundtrack, so I'll just leave it at that.

Looking very forward to the next one... could we find a venue that doesn't have class on the folllowing day and gather up for more days? Anyway, again, thanks to all for attending, thanks to Famine for making it happen and Cass and David for being awesome hosts ... and why not, even friends.

dustdriver

Actually, i didn't mean to let you win, i just couldn't keep up on the straights
I was really racing at maximum speed around the track.
I gave up after i crashed in the corner after the long straight, proving that i really was racing at (or above) the maximum of my possibilities, but you were just faster.

Click to expand...

Faster in a faster car huh? My GT prowess knows no bounds (!)

Note to self: Don't take pics of Spec early in the morning... that's AMG behind him and Race Idiot, next to Roo.



G.T, dustdriver and EXelero



Sureshot, Touring Mars and Vexd having a go



Or rather, Vexd going at his usual speed again





G.T and dustdriver seem to be having what I can only describe as an enormously great time there.



I can't stop laughing at how serious Smnallhorses looks when he's playing



Have I mentioned Sureshot doesn't like his picture taken? Also worthy is Touring Mars' running around when he's racing.



Please don't hurt me Sureshot! I was just taking a pic of Roo and his donut gobbling.



AMG's AMG with AMG



Sunday night at the pub... just got there. Spec and Mars were on their first pint and daan still hadn't managed to spill his cider



A lot later



a lot lot later (notice Mars making cute faces at the cameraman)



a lot lot lot lot later.... Smnallhorses couldn't keep his eyes open



It was bound to happen... eventually Mars got overtaken by the glasses... you can just make out his panic-striken face there.

-Diego-

Then I had an almost win in a Zonda 7.3 on Apricot Hill, against daan in a Ford GT. He won by .050, but it was an awesome race.

Click to expand...

I was looking in my mirror for the last 2 and a bit laps watching you gaining on me everywhere. I was thinking I would be able to just take things easy, letting you get closer, and that the time gap was too big and you'd never be able to close it completely, and then all of a sudden you were right there!

-Diego-

The second race I won was in Fuji 2005, again, battling with daan throughout the whole race. He was in the Merc SLR and I was in the Audi R8 (not the race car, the concept)... awesome overtaking by both of us throughout the whole race.

Click to expand...

That was a fantastic race. My view of the way you came past me, sliding past, out of the last corner was an amazing sight.

I really enjoyed my races against you as we always seemed to be fighting for the same bit of track at the same time. How often were our names called out, and as we sat down at either the left or right LAN, looking to see who else was there, only to see each other and end up saying, "Oh, not you again!"

-Diego-

Also worthy is Touring Mars' running around when he's racing.

Click to expand...

Sitting next to TM when he's driving is like sitting next to a drunk on the train.

daan

Sitting next to TM ...snip... is like sitting next to a drunk ...snip...

Click to expand...

You've got me there...

Great write up, Diego! You just reminded me, I forgot to say thanks to Ben as well, for booking my hotel room for me... thanks alot, I really appreciate it, especially given how badly the Rutland managed to screw up yours and Bert's bookings (although they did redeem themselves in the end by reimbursing you both - albeit accidentally in Bert's case! )

I've plenty more pix to post up, but first the montage (bonus points for spotting 'what's wrong with this pic')

I can't seem to be able to enlarge them... but is Sarah not playing? Is that it?

I also forgot to post yesterday: Racing against Race Idiot on La Sarthe in the DTM cars, only to be completely outclassed by the Abt TT (I think I was in the CLK) and later having a lap-long battle with Famine for second place and finishing less than half a car ahead of him after a bit of pushing and shoving from both sides in the chicanes previous to the finish lines.

Also, racing against Spec in La Sarthe, being about 8 seconds ahead of him before the chicanes, only to have him go straight through them without touching the brakes, and at the finish line, have him be less than one second behind... cheater!

Oh, by the way, which races were recorded on the DVDs? I'm kinda hoping the ones I've mentioned were, but in all honesty I'd like to see them all

It appears that Ben's identical twin Beaker is stood at one end, and Ben is at the other!

oh... dang!

-Diego-

Oh, by the way, which races were recorded on the DVDs? I'm kinda hoping the ones I've mentioned were, but in all honesty I'd like to see them all

Click to expand...

I don't know - some of Sunday's, including the Endurance (sadly following the lead car throughout, so missing all of the 2/3/4/5 place battling), but the Recorder had an eppy with the first disk. I'll review this evening.

The results thread is being hand-crafted as we speak.

-Diego-

I can't seem to be able to enlarge them... but is Sarah not playing? Is that it?

Click to expand...

I know it almost seemed like that as I was going so slowly!

I didn't shoot a cow, man. I didn't do it, nobody saw me do it, there's no way you can prove anything.

I'm almost sure Roo has positive evidence of this... you cow shooter you

-Diego-

I'm almost sure Roo has positive evidence of this... you cow shooter you

Click to expand...

I have Roo's photos here. He only has direct evidence of a cow being shot by Spec, not by me. I wouldn't do that sort of thing....

daan

I didn't shoot a cow, man. I didn't do it, nobody saw me do it, there's no way you can prove anything.

Click to expand...

He didn't even have a moo-tive...

Oh Chris!

normally your puns are cool, but that one was friesian.

Udderly rubbish.

I look like a murderer in the photos /o\

Sureshot

I look like a murderer in the photos /o\

Click to expand...

In real life too. Why do you think I jumped every time I heard you behind me?

It's a different reason to why I jumped every time I heard VEXD behind me too.

Sureshot

I look like a murderer in the photos /o\

Click to expand...

Maybe you are, we don't know. Maybe you were just really annoyed that you couldn't fit your chainsaw into Roo's mini.

Touring Mars

He didn't even have a moo-tive...

Click to expand...

Are you still here? I'm sure I asked you to leave quite some time ago...




I would just like to add, as I don't believe i've said this yet, that it was great to meet you all and you are all truly lovely
(I've had some sleep...and i'm feeling less ratty and more sociable now )

Famine

It's a different reason to why I jumped every time I heard VEXD behind me too.

Click to expand...

Would that have something to do with............





Spec....

Edit, apologies for the quality, the original was over 10mb! I had to take quite alot of frames out and reduce the quality to get it hosted anywhere.