Bri-Y's Endurance Race Reports - 9 hours of Tsukuba Completed 6/16

Hey everyone I figured I'd jump on the bandwagon and do some race reports on my endurance races. I've done 5 so far but only have replays for 3 and a report on one so I'll be playing catch up with the other two and figuring out a system for the reports on the following ones.

I'm going to start out with my attempt on Friday at the 4 Hour's of Nurburgring. After reading all of GTsail's and Famine's race reports I figured it was time for my own.

All my races will be done using my custom cockpit which includes a beat up leather seat from a 1989 BMW 325i Convertable, Logitech G25 and inverted pedals.

June 24th 2011 - 4 Hours of Nurburgring (Brian, Pete, Pops in the JG Tune Audi R8 FSI quattro '09)

June 26th 2011 - 4 Hours of Nurburgring (Brian in the JG Tune Audi R8 FSI quattro '09)

June 16th 2012 - 9 Hours of Tsukuba (Brian, Pete, Pops, Josiah in the RKM KIA Impreza Touring Car)

4 Hours of Nurburgring - Friday June 24th

Encouraged by GTSail's and Famine's reports on their experience with the 4 Hours I was really excited to finally do the event. They've used mostly Racing tire compounds so I wanted to give it a go with Sports tires, Sports Hard to be exact. So I set off building a car pretty evenly matched with the competition while using a much harder compound to try and counter act the cornering ability, or lack there of, of the ai.

What I came up with was an Audi R8 5.2 FSI quattro with 525 HP, weighing 1350 kg's and coming in around 570 pp. I used a setup from JG's Tune Shop and my test resulted in laps just above the 9 minute mark so I deemed it race worthy. I did put ballast in the car and moved it to the front to try and balance the weight some more (47, 53).

Here is the JG Tune Audi R8 5.2 FSI quattro



Starting Lineup
HPA FT565 Twin Turbo Audi TT
Mine's BNR34 Skyline GT-R V-Spec N1 Base
Amuse S2000 GT1
Nismo 400R '96
HPA Stage II R32
HKS CT230R
JG Tune Audi R8 5.2 FSI quattro '09
Nismo Skyline GT-R R-Tune R34
NISMO Fairlady Z Z-tune
Mine's BNR34 Skyline GT-R N1 Base '06
Nissan Gran Turismo Skyline GT-R '01
NISMO 380RS Super Leg

Lap 1 - 1st - 9:10.284
I get a really good start off the line and pass two cars straight away. Down into turn one a couple of the other cars got tangled on the outside leaving room for me to dive deep into one and I come out of there the leader. The Amuse S2000 stayed right with me through the GP Strecke and once we get on the Nordschleife we put a few car lengths between us and the rest of the field. A slip up in Bergwerk (@#$@) allowed the S2000 to jump ahead of me but it was short lived as I was able to get around him keeping the power down through Kesselchen. The S2000 wouldn't back down however staying with me through Pflanzgarten until I could pull a few car lengths staying flat through the next section of s-turns. I ran wide through the first part of Schwalbenschwanz and he snuck in front just to get passed back on the concrete exit. When I went by him he checked up a bit causing the now close Audi TT to go wide and catch some grass, giving me some time to get on the straight without them catching my draft. The Audi TT however was able to draft the S2000 and brought the Mine's V-Spec with it and the Mine's V-Spec passed the Audi for 2nd before Tiergarten.

Lap 2 - 1st - 9:09.170
The battle for 2nd second became a 4 way affair in the GP Stecke adding the Fairlady Z to the mix. Good news for me as I was clean through Kallenhard with about an 8 car length advantage. As soon as I start to rest I brake too late down into Wehrseifen and catch the barrier. The Mine's V-Spec was able to get around and almost the TT as well but I was able to get the power down in time. Side-by-Side with the V-Spec on the run up to Bergwerk he came up and touch my door panel at which point I should have let off but the frustration of my off's got to me and cause another one. On entry to Bergwek I had the outside line and apparently he wanted it, pushing me off and I tagged the gaurdrail. Off goes the V-Spec and I try to get back on the tarmac as the Audi slips by. I pull the belts tight knowing I had the advantage through K&K, then I fly by the Audi up through the s-turns and out brake the V-Spec on the lead up to Klastetal. "Breathe" I said trying to will myself to regain my composure, "this is a 4 hour race." I was clean for the rest of the lap but my focus wasn't quite yet restored.

Lap 3 - 1st - 9:13.464
About this time my long time co-pilot dating back to the original GT showed up and I started to regain my focus. I ran clean up till Bergwerk (#$%#@) but it was only a slight off and still had a few car lengths lead on the Audi. He was however close enough to draft and pass me down the straight, but down the hill I was able to regain the lead. The top 10 cars were all on the front straight at the same time and I crossed the line with under a second lead. My front tires were more than half way gone and even though it was the cleanest lap so far it wasn't the fastest.

Lap 4 - 8th - 9:26.260
The GP Strecke seemed to be the toughest part of the track for my Audi with less grip than the rest of the field and I was passed by the TT into the 3rd turn. I fought with the Fairlady all the way until we got onto the Nordschleife but was able to keep in front of him. I bit it hard into Adenauer-Forst falling back to 6th and really beating up the car and what rubber I had left. Certainly not going to make it another lap on these tires. I was able to keep in front of the CT230R for 6th and made it to the pits for a driver change, new rubber and fuel.

Lap 5 - 4th - 9:49.153
My co-pilot "Jesus" Pete jumped in and usually we're about 1 tire grade difference in speed so I put him on Sport Soft tires, the race being on Green Hell and all. I sit back and try to calm myself down after a very disappointing run and he drives off. We come out of the pits in 11th and he knows he has some work to do. He catches the GT Skyline and battles with him till Aremberg where he puts a good distance between them. A bit sloppy but finally we're clean through Bergwerk and the Skyline is nowhere in sight. The high speed section before Schwalbenschwanz was an adventure catching some grass and going around. As we cross the line most of the field is pitting so we jump up to 4th.

Lap 6 - 3rd - 9:13.110
Lap six was clean up until Wippermann when the 3rd place S2000 was insight. It seemed like he started to push more and more to track him down and went off. He was able to get by him at Brunchenn but spun a few seconds later and the Audi TT came out of nowhere to close down on his tail. Pflanzgarten was clean and both he and the TT got by the S2000 for good with the Audi sticking to him down the front straight.

Lap 7 - 9th - 9:52.718
We passed two people in the pits to jump into 1st place. The tires aren't looking like they'll last 2 more laps so I told him to use them up to keep ahead of the TT and that was a mistake. Late braking into turn 1 caused a slight off but he did hang onto the position. Clean until Bergwerk (@#$%) which cause a spin and we fell to 4th with the Audi and two skylines jumping ahead. From there we did ok until Gatgenkopt where a spin dropped us to 6th and ate up the rest of our tires. Another spin down the hill at Tiergarten dropped us to 8th and we had to pit as the tires were gone.

Lap 8 - 10th - 9:29.016
I took the wheel in the pits and slapped on sports soft tires to try and make up some time. The pit strategy is going all to hell so I figured I could at least make up some track position. I come out of the pits in 11th and the GT Skyline is in sight by the time I get off the GP Strecke. I follow him through Hocheichen and make an outside pass through Quiddelbacher-Hohe. The car feels really sticky with the Sports Soft rubber on it and I start getting into a groove. Clean through Bergwerk for what feels like the first time this race and fly up through K&K. About 10 mph faster through the Karussell with these babies! Clean the rest of the way till Galgenkopt where I came off slightly but recovered and blasted through Dottinger-Hohe. Still in 10th as I cross the line but it looks like all of the competition is on the GP Streke so they are within 1:30.

Lap 9 - 10th - 8:46.378
I get through the GP-Strecke rather quickly in about 1:30 and continue the quick pace onto the Nordschleife. Clean through Bergwerk and I close the gap down considerably up K&K. I can see them once I hit the straight to the Karussell not in reach yet though. Slight off on the exit of Pflanzgarten slows me but right back on and still can see them as I hit the mini Karussell. A quick exit and I see 4 cars ahead of me on the straight but not close enough to draft them. Next lap I'll get 'em.

Lap 10 - 5th - 8:54.897
As soon as we hit the Nordschleife I'm on the 380 Super Leg's tail. By him through Hatzenbach and right on the HPA R32. Dust him through Hocheichen. The Nismo is in sight too and he gives me an opening on Quiddelbacher-Hohe. 7th place, I'm flying and feeling confident. The Amuse is next but I can't see him until Ex-muhle. Fly up the first K and pass him on the lead up to the second. Clean track for now as it looks like the next cars I'll pass will be in the pits. Had to slow quite a bit through Eschbach as all that flying has seem to taken the grip away but I need to make it another lap on this set. The Fairlady must have had an incident on track because I pass him on Dottinger-Hohe. 5th place.

Lap 11 - 3rd - 9:11.950
3 of the leaders were in the pits so I land in second. The CT230R is ahead and he's just barely out of sight. Our other co-pilot from the 4-Hour Roadster event showed up and asked to join in on the fun so we planned on pitting this next lap and getting him some seat time. "Pops" is not an experienced driver and he's only completed 3 laps on the ring but he's part of the team that lead us to victory at Tsukuba. Back on track I start to see the tail lights of the CT230R through K&K but he's not in reach. I try to stay with him through Hohe-Acht and Wippermann but the grip is gone. Clean through the rest but not making time on the CT230R. As I go to enter the pits I catch the pit wall and bang up the car ever more... So disappointing after such a great stint. I hit the pits in 3rd and select Racing Softs for Pops and put in a half a tank of fuel for a quick 3 lap stint. I get out and pops is nowhere to be found! "Jesus" I yell, "take the wheel!"

Lap 12 - 3rd - 9:29.034
Jesus pulls out of the pits in 7th place and has the super soft tires on. Wasn't planned that way, but hey we should make some headway. The GP-Strecke is clean and by Quiddelbacher-Hohe we can see one of the Mine's cars. In fact once we get to Wehrsefien we realize it's both Mine's cars. He gets by the first one on exit and the second at Ex-Muhle. Slight off at Bergwerk barely slows him on super softs and he has the Amuse 380 in sight by the top of Klostertal. A great exit and good braking into the Karussell allows him to get by the 380 and next up his is teammate in the Amuse S2000 who gets dispatched by Wippermann. The Audi TT is in sight now and it looks like he might be close enough to draft him through Dottinger-Hohe, but he's just out of reach once he gets there.

Lap 13 - 1st - 8:44.764
The TT is 5 tenths of a second ahead and the lead CT230R is in the pits so this is a battle for the lead! Jesus out brakes the TT to the outside and passes him in turn 1. For the first time in a while the JG Tune Audi is in front. Except for an off at Bergwerk and a tag of the wall at Galgenkopf it was a clean, fast lap which is what we needed. The lead over the TT is 17 seconds.

Lap 14 - 1st - 8:42.397
Jesus slides through the first turn after braking late but gets through the rest of the GP-Strecke clean. Pretty uneventful round with no traffic in sight except for a small off at the exit of Klostertal. Another fast lap from Jesus and the gap over the TT is now 36 seconds.

Lap 15 - 10th - 12:26.356
GP-Strecke was clean but the Nordschleife started to become an adventure with the tires starting to show some wear. That wasn't our biggest problem though. "Brian!" Jesus said as he entered Adenauer-Forst. "We're going to run out of GAS!" Crap. I had planned on Pops taking a 3 lap stint and only filled half a tank of fuel and with the last minute confusion on who was getting in the car I didn't think about it. Do what you can was all I said to him but by the Karussell we were limping back to the pits at 50 mph...By Pflanzgarten the gap over the TT was gone. 4 more passed by Schwalbenschwanz and 4 more down the straight. By the time we reached the pits we were in 10th.

Laps 16, 17, 18 - 11th - 11:43.6390, 10:27.527, 11:05.462
Pops got in during the pit stop and we all sat and waiting while a full fuel load went into the car taking no chances... 1:12 later and the adventure began. Pops, bless his heart, did what he could but it wasn't fast and it wasn't clean. His best lap at the ring (in this config) is 11 minutes in the BMW I've been prepping and he said this car was no where near as good. It showed as he clipped the grass and spun on several occasions. If our R8 wasn't a wreck in the first place it certainly was after. Valuable seat time none the less.

Lap 19 - 11th - 8:38.590
There was plenty of life on the tires but when Pops put it in the ditch in turn one and we were down by 8 minutes we paused it and pulled him out of the car. I had 1 hour and 5 minutes to try and make up the time but I knew if I wanted to get close I'd have to push. I put the hammer down and immediately started seeing large gains but I felt uncomfortable because of the super sticky rubber. 2-3 and 4 seconds I was gaining per sector but we had 7 and a half laps left on tires that could probably only go another lap or 2. I decided to get as much out of them as I could and pit twice. This endurance race just turned into a sprint. The gap that was 7:56 was down to 7:17.

Lap 20 - 11th - 8:34.720
Still not a soul in sight as I tried to make up the ground lost. I had one big off through Adenauer-Forst but kept in the pedal through the grass. With the sticky rubber I was able to hit 190 mph on the base of Tiergarten. The gap as I entered the pits for tires and fuel was 6:42. The math on this did not look too favorable.

Lap 21 - 11th - 8:46.120
The GT Skyline was the car ahead of me but he was still a sector ahead so I pushed on with clean track. Taking metzgerfeld at 125 mph. 165mph up through K&K. Gaining about 5 seconds per sector on the Skyline but still 30 seconds back at sector 12. At the line I was 5:34 back of the leader and 23 seconds back of 10th.

Lap 22 - 10th - 8:10.200
By the end of sector 4 I was 10 seconds back of the skyline and he was in sight at Aremberg. I was in 10th before Metzgerfeld. The track was again lonely as the other 9 cars were within 2:15 of each other after 3 hours and 24 minutes, about 4 sectors ahead of me to 9th. Blistering lap and boy would I need more of that. Gap was 4:37.

Lap 23 - 10th - 8:30.229
I'm absolutely chewing up the front tires but I knew I'd have to pit again anyway. Gap after the lap was 4:00.

Lap 24 - 10th - 8:47.939
Lost 30 seconds in the pits so it's back up to 4:30. I think I took on too much fuel but considering how this race has gone... I'd gained 14 seconds by sector 5. Another 22 seconds by sector 10. Still nothing but an empty track and the sound of my tires squealing. At the line the gap is down to 3:44 and I really don't like this math.

Lap 25 - 9th - 8:20.148
Two laps left and they all will have to pit. More pushing this lap and we'll see what happens. 19 seconds gained in the first 5 sectors. Sector 6 I gained 3 seconds, then I lost it in sector 7 and gained 0. Out of the karussell I can see I'm closing in on 9th place. 13 seconds gained in sectors 8,9,10. I draft by the Amuse 380 on the straight and cross the line in 9th, 2:55 back. Crap.

Lap 26 - 4th - 8:27.009
A lot of people are pitting so I'm into 6th by turn one. There are two other cars on the GP Strecke so they're in striking distance but the 3 leaders are checked out. By Dottinger-Hohe I'm in 4th and depressed. Our beat up Audi R8 finishes 4th. 1:14 seconds behind the leader at 4:03:10.376.




Race Summary
Well what started as a single man attempt turned into a team event and we obviously were not prepared for that. Looking back there were so many things we could have done differently to close the gap at the end, namely put enough fuel in the car. We did get everyone some seat time at the Green Hell which is a plus for the future and I got to do an extended session with the R8 to see how the tire/fuel consumption is so I can better plan my lone attempt. Disappointing yes, but pressing this car the last hour was exhilarating. I got out of the race seat and felt quite a bit of adrenaline. Sounds like mission accomplished for a night of racing

Great story Bri-Y👍

Quite an assortment of lap times!

I liked that you got to run with the Amuse S2000 on the first lap. I hardly ever get a chance because he generally just runs away at the start and leaves everyone battling for second!

Good luck on your next attempt.

Respectfully,
GTsail

4 Hours of Nurburgring - Sunday June 26th

I was thinking about our failed attempt all weekend long and got the chance to run the race again Sunday night. This time all by myself.

I made some adjustments to my JG's Tune Shop Audi R8 5.2 FSI quattro. First was to move all of the ballast to the rear of the car trying to prolong the life of the front tires. Secondly I reduced the values on the front LSD to 5, 10, 5.

The Specs were mostly the same.
525 HP 1350 kg's 568 pp

Here is the JG Tune Audi R8 5.2 FSI quattro



Starting Lineup
Mine's BNR34 Skyline GT-R V-Spec N1 Base
HPA FT565 Twin Turbo Audi TT
Amuse S2000 GT1
Nismo 400R '96
HPA Stage II R32
HKS CT230R
JG Tune Audi R8 5.2 FSI quattro '09
Nismo Skyline GT-R R-Tune R34
NISMO Fairlady Z Z-tune
Mine's BNR34 Skyline GT-R N1 Base '06
Nissan Gran Turismo Skyline GT-R '01
NISMO 380RS Super Leg

Lap 1 - 3rd Place - 9:10.598 - Gap 7.768
The race starts and I draft the HKS CT230R down the front straight passing the Nismo 400R. Down in to turn one I get side by side with the HKS Evo but I'm unable to make a pass on him. However a good run through the Mercedes Arena enables me to take 5th place from him. The top 4 cars were able to drive away the rest of the Grand Prix track but by Kesselchen I'm able to fight with the HPA Volkswagen and Mine's BNR34 Skyline and I'm by them and into 3rd by Angstkurve. The gap to the two leaders is about 5 seconds at this point so I've got some clean track ahead of me. Other than a couple powerslides through Schwalbenschwanz and Galgenkopf it was a clean and productive lap moving from 7th to 3rd.

Lap 2 - 3rd Place - 8:57.522 - Gap 15.397
Lap number two starts off quite uneventfully. Lots of clean track ahead but I slowly start catching 2nd place. By the Karussell he's in sight, but barely. I had dreams of catching his draft down the straight but another powerslide through Schwalbenschwanz kept him out of reach. After two laps I'm 15 seconds behind but the gap to 2nd place was trimmed to 3 seconds.

Lap 3 - 3rd Place - 8:58.819 - Gap 20.242
The 3rd lap was much like the 2nd early on. I was a bit hot through Adenauer-Forst but I kept it between the lines and was quicker than both leaders through that sector. This time through the Karussell I'm about 3 car lengths back on the 2nd place HPA Audi TT but I punch the accelerator a bit early and come off the banking just to watch him drive away again. Another good run through Pflanzgarten II gave me ideas on drafting him down the straight but again they were thawrted, this time by a slight slip off on entry to Schwalbenschwanz. Another second closer to him at the line however.

Lap 4 - 3rd Place - 9:06.945 - Gap 28.005
Lap 4 I again found myself alone through the first portion of the track, however the gap decreased significantly through the Aremberg-Fuchsrohre-Adenauer-Forst sections. I drafted him a bit too closely and carrier too much speed through Metzgerfeld getting side by side with the HPA TT, as he took a wide exit I avoided contact and drove a bit into the grass allowing him to drive off while I got back on track. The slight off cost me less than a second and by Kesselchen I was able to fly right past him into 2nd place. Down the straight the TT was close enough to draft me but not close enough to pass so I started to think about pit strategy. My adjustments seemed to work well as I felt I had plenty of tire life left to go for a 5th lap, possibly even a 6th! Way better than last race. The TT got close at the crest of the hill and it seemed to make me push that mush harder and coming down to the Hohenrain-Schikane I carried too much speed, went off track and brushed the red and white barrier allowing the TT to sneak past. I crossed the line 1.2 seconds behind him and not it a good mood.

Lap 5 - 3rd Place - 9:19.807 - Gap 42.447
With that in mind what do I do? Dive too deep at the TT into turn one and put my left front into the sand for a split second... No spin but it certainly isn't going to help me catch the HPA or the leader. Another lapse in focus send me sliding off at the highspeed Hatzenbach-Bogen and by the end of the GP-Strecke the TT is no where in sight and the Fairlady Z Z-Tune is on my tail. Sections 6-10 I'm slightly quicker than the 2nd place TT but by a few tenths, still happy to have settled back in. Down the straight I realize my tires won't hold up another lap so I plan to pit. Coming down the hill i'm to fast again on the last turn but this time I only catch the grass a bit. The TT and I hit the pits along with everyone else except the Amuse S2000, HKS CT230R and Amuse Nismo 380 SL. (Nismo 400R also didn't pit)

Lap 6 - 3rd Place - 9:54.533 - Gap 30.717
I come out of the pits in 4th behind the 3 cars who have yet to pit with the TT slightly behind me. With a fresh set of rubber I set out to attempt to make my 6 lap run on this set of tires. The TT and I are dead even through the next 3 sectors and it's not until Aremberg that I put a few car lengths between us. By Pflanzgarten I'm able to see the 380 SL but I come off into the gravel in Schwalbenschwanz. Luckily his tires are worn and he makes a mistake in Galgenkopf and I'm able to pass him before the straight.

Lap 7 - 1st Place - 9:02.687 - Gap -2.613
As I cross the line I see the leaders in the pits and assume the top spot. The Amuse S2000 ran a wretched 10 minute lap on his worn out rubber so the CT230R should be quite close to him when they exit. The gap back to the TT is 7 seconds now so I feel pretty good about myself even though the last few laps haven't been clean. Uneventful, quick and... DOH Schwalbenschwanz reached out and grabbed me again... this time spinning the car around and losing 6 seconds to the HPA Audi TT.

Lap 8 - 1st Place - 8:58.259 - Gap -7.138
With such a small gap I expected to have the TT hounding me by the time we got to the Nordschleife but he didn't run his best through the GP-Strecke so my lead was intact. The rest of the lap wasn't perfect but it was clean and under 9 minutes so I was happy.

Lap 9 - 1st Place - 9:06.959 - Gap -3.43
Uneventful lap wasn't the fastest, or the prettiest but we got around without touching any walls or slipsliding into the grass.

Lap 10 - 1st Place - 9:14.484 - Gap -3.03
After the gap closed I again figured the TT would catch me in the GP portion of the track and catch me he almost did as I again short cutted through some gravel this time on the right hander before the final turn onto the Nordschleife. He got within 3 car lengths but again once we got onto the big track I was able to put some space between us. MY front tires started to wear more than my rears so I started to adjust my power output more towards the rear and also the brake bias to try and make them go further. I ended up playing with this the rest of the race and was able to really balance the tire wear. For the rest of the lap I started to be really conscious of the tires and that allow the TT to catch me. However he wasn't able to pass me and as I crossed the line he went into the pits.

Lap 11 - 1st Place - 9:20.199 - Gap -9.641
That put the Amuse S2000 into second, about 25 seconds back, surprisingly after coming out of the pits in 7th. I kept tweaking the biases and paying great attention to the tire wear this lap trying to make it around without losing too much time. I made it around just fine and headed into the pits.

Lap 12 - 3rd Place - 10:05.412 - Gap 26.506
I came out of the pits in 4th. Even after a spin losing 10 seconds (just getting heat in the tires) at Wehrseifen and 3 places I'm able to get back by the Mine's BNR34 skyline in the first part of the lap and had the sister car in my sights by Ex-Muhle. Got by and closed in on the Amuse 380 through Bergwerk setting up a pass early on through Kesselchen putting me back in 4th. I over take the crippled Amuse S2000 (6th lap on his tires) at Schwalbenschwanz. At the I am happy to see a 10:05 which after my 1:05 pit stop means I was around 9 minutes even for the lap, after the spin none the less.

Lap 13 - 2nd Place - 8:59.631 - Gap 7.355
I pass the HKS CT230R on the front straight while he's in the pits and I'm 12 about seconds back of the leader. I'm much quicker through sectors 3,4,5 and 6 and catch a glimpse of the leading Audi TT through Adenauer-Forst. I was inching closer but I get the car horizontal in Bergwerk and lose about 4 seconds on what was turning out to be a really quick lap. The rest of the lap I continue to catch the TT though she still is out of range.

Lap 14 - 2nd Place - 9:02.460 - Gap 5.828
A clean enough lap but it's all by myself as the TT is able to stay out of range. I catch a glimpse of him down the long straight but the gap is only down to 5 seconds at the line.

Lap 15 - 2nd Place - 9:16.790 - Gap 13.027
The start to the lap wasn't the quickest as we lost about 4 seconds through the gp track instead of the usual 2. However in Aremberg we go for a ride into the gravel and lose 2 seconds instead of gaining two as we had the rest of the race through there. Knowing the TT is going to pit this lap and I'll assume the lead, though only for a lap, I try to relax a bit.

Lap 16 - 1st Place - 9:34.533 - Gap -9.072
I take the lead with the TT hitting the pits and I set off on my last lap with these tires. Definitely need to learn to take it easier on worn tires as I go off somewhere I never have before, Flugplatz. The rest of the lap is uneventful but slower than my other pit in laps. Losing about 20 seconds to the HKS CT230R.

Lap 17 - 4th Place - 9:54.250 - Gap 36.617
After the pit work is complete I head back on track in 5th position. I start to see the 4th place Mine's skyline through Metzgerfeld. It's not until the long straight that I catch him and pass him however and as I cross the line I'm in 4th. It was my quickest lap so far when you take out the time for the pit stop however and I'm feeling good about this run.

Lap 18 - 3rd Place - 8:58.459 - Gap 25.71
The 3 leaders are pretty close together, with only 7 seconds separating them. It'll be a while before I catch them though and still have the Mine's Skyline on my tail through the first three sectors. The Amuse S2000 however is on his 6th lap and worn tires so I quickly start to catch him and I'm able to get by through the Karussell. Entering Schwalbenschwanz we get a bit wide, tag the wall and spin the R8 around. Quickly back on track, losing about 2 seconds in the process. Would have been the fast lap of the race.

Lap 19 - 2nd Place - 9:01.417 - Gap 22.505
The HKS Evo is in the pits so I jump to second place again trailing the HPA Audi TT. I get through Hatzenbach rather sloppily but the R8 is no worse for wear. Bergwerk is a bit different story as we run hot through there and kiss the barrier, though only losing maybe a second. The rest of the lap is clean and we continue to carry on in 2nd place.

Lap 20 - 2nd Place - 9:05.641 - Gap 18.28
Half way through the lap we hit the 3 hour mark, while still in 2nd place. The TT is ahead by a fair margin still but should be pitting this lap so a nice and easy lap should do just fine.

Lap 21 - 1st Place - 9:19.660 - Gap -32.05
We get the lead back, but we'll have to pit after this lap so we need to keep the lap time as low as possible without pushing to hard and making a mistake. It was sloppy but no big mistakes so it was a decent pit in lap.

Lap 22 - 3rd Place - 9:46.349 - Gap 10.603
Out of the pits in 3rd, behind the HKS and TT who will both pit again and we're done with the service work. Clean lap and the quickest out lap, but it was the shortest stop we did all race as well.

Lap 23 - 2nd Place - 8:57.968 - Gap 7.594
Only back 10 seconds and we should be on fresher tires than them, not to mention they should pit still so everything looks good! The HKS is running out of steam on those worn tires and by the Karussell I'm on him. I make a nice sliding pass (nice to look at, bad for the tires) through Brunnchen to take 2nd place.

Lap 24 - 2nd Place - 9:15.313 - Gap 18.414
Less than a half hour left and we're hawking down the leading Audi TT. I had a really clean lap going until Schwalbenschwanz where I came off and did a 270 degree spin losing my gap to the HKS and about 10 seconds in the process. Just when you think you have this car wrangled she jumps out of line! She sure is a blast to drive and with the hard sports tires you really can feel her.

Lap 25 - 2nd Place - 9:11.765 - Gap 20.126
The HKS heads to the pits and again we're by our self. I keep telling my self the Audi TT will pit and to just conserve the tires but here and there I still leave some tire smoke in my wake. This car just begs to be driven like that. Small off in Wehrseifen makes me really start to take it easy telling myself we'll make it. Ahead on the map I see the leading Audi pit and big smile hits my face.

Lap 26 - 1st Place - 9:35.911 - Gap ---
I assume the lead as I pass the pits and it looks like I have about a 47 second lead. 44, 42, 41... 38...35...31... 5 sectors to go. I lose 4 more seconds in sector 11. Down to 20 seconds but it's not enough as I drive away into the German sunset as the victor of the 4 Hours of Nurburgring!




Race Summary
I was really happy with the adjustments I made to the setup as I was able to get much better wear out of the tires. The on the fly adjustments also made it easy to stay out for that 6th lap on the 2nd stint. This car is just a blast to drive and though I wasn't nearly as clean as I'd like to have been I was pleased to win the race. I'm sure that in the right hands this car would be able to make 27 laps but for me it wasn't the case. I'd really like to give it another shot to see if I can better my time but this car has won so I think we'll be looking for another option next time. Overall it was a blast!

9 Hours of Tsukuba - Saturday June 16th 2012

The Drivers

Our normal 2 man crew (Brian - Platinum , Pete - Gold) is again joined by our normal 3rd driver Pops - Bronze who now has 2 full enduros under his belt. With the extended length of the event (and the fact he'll be over for the Le Mans party) we also have a 4th driver on the team, GT5 Rookie, Josiah. This will be the first enduro for Josiah.

The Car - RKM KIA Impreza Touring Car



Audi TTS Coupe '09 After testing multiple cars and before we even found out exactly how fast we needed to go we kinda fell in love with this car the Audi TTS Coupe. Come to find out even though she handles like a dream on sports tires and has plenty of power, slap on some slicks and she makes a sharp right hand turn when your braking.

Mine's Lancer Evo '00 This was our next choice as we saw the awesome tire wear we got from the AI during the testing for this event. Car handles like a dream and unlike the Audi it does so across all the different tire grades. Unfortunately even though it has more hp than the Audi it doesn't have the same top end and even on the race softs it just wasn't going to be fast enough to keep all of us competitive enough.

Ahh the KIA Impreza. RKM did such an amazing job with this car. It grips for days, and I mean days, and has as much power as you could ask for. The perfect combination of the two cars above all in a pretty white package. The car gave our drivers so much confidence, and they don't know this yet, but we're going to be putting it up against not just the mid level cars but two of the three rabbit S2000's.

Lineup and Targets

Using the data I collected which is now stored at the 9 Hours of Tsukuba Compaion we were able to determine which lineups were the closest and what the target times we need to achieve to compete.

The 2nd lineup seems to be the most compelling going against the RE Amemiya and Mine's Skyline who should both finish with 520 laps under their belts. Knowing this we determined our race average would need to be around 1:02.1. After some testing my average lap time was 1.6 seconds slower than my fastest lap through 4 runs.

The 21st lineup is the one I'm after now that we have this beautiful beast in our corner. The S2000 GT1 starts 7 places ahead of the quicker AEM S2000 and both cars have been found to do 527-528 laps. Also in the event and quite capable of reaching 520+ laps are the RE Amemiya FD3S RX-7, Mine’s BNR34 Skyline GT-R V.spec N1 base ‘00 and Lexus IS F Racing Concept ‘08 making this probably the fastest lineup without the S2000 GT1 Turbo.

The lead pace for the race should be somewhere between 61.3 and 61.8 with pit stops included, 60 dead - 60.1 race pace. With the RKM KIA Impreza in race spec (settings posted later) I was able to rip off an average of 61 dead with sports hard tires, 59.8 race pace, while our rookie driver was able to do a 61.6 average with racing soft, 59.6 race pace. It's going to be close.

Tire Testing

Wow. I thought the tire test for the Audi went well. Remember I said this KIA gripped for days? 40 laps all within a second of each other on sports hards, my first time in the race spec car! Color me impressed. Our Rookie driver should be in the 16-20 range on racing soft, our bronze driver 20-24 on race medium and our gold driver 35 on sports medium.

Morning Practice
Morning practice was scrubbed due to the fact that someone had the brilliant idea to rebuild the chassis!



So we took it all apart.



And made it wider while also raising the seat and the wheel.



We also left the ****er box un attached so we could move the rig a bit easier.



And trimmed the side panel and it's now much nicer to get in and out of.



Qualifying
Qualifying was exciting as we each did an out lap, 8 flying laps and an in lap with other cars on the track. Josiah impressed big time with his improved consistency citing the extra room in the cockpit as the reason. We ended up putting him on the Racing Hards and he was still the quickest driver of the session. Pops was out getting beer and liquor so no time was set :-p

Pete - 58.5 - Sports Medium
Brian - 59.0 - Sports Hard
Josiah - 58.4 - Racing Hard
Pops- No Time Set - Racing Medium



Race

Start Time - 3:35 PM EST

Starting Lineup
A. Loiseau Nissan Gran Turismo Skyline GT-R ‘01
S. Boni Amuse S2000 GT1 ‘04
P. Nagel Amuse Nismo 380RS Super Leggera
H. Herzog Mine’s BNR34 Skyline GT-R V.spec N1 base ‘00
T. Alexander Nismo Skyline GT-R R-tune (R34) ‘99
O. Winkler Nissan Option Stream Z ‘04
B/P/J/P RKM KIA Impreza TC
F. Huber RE Amemiya FD3S RX-7
N. Turunen AEM S2000
C. Barroso Mine’s Lancer Evolution VI ‘00
K. Schulthe Nismo Skyline GT-R S-tune (R32) ‘00
T. Messina Lexus IS F Racing Concept ‘08

First Stint - Josiah - Racing Hards - 27 Laps - 27:05.118 Total - 60.190 AVG
Josiah qualified fastest and gets to start in the car and what a start he is off to. 3 Laps under our belt and he's in front of the pack as S. Boni and his GT1 got stuck behind the Skyline of A. Loiseau. After 10 laps the S2000 has gone through to 2nd and is just 1.3 seconds behind us. Josiah was able to stay just in front of the S2000 GT1 by about 2.3 seconds until we pitted on lap 27. We took tires only and got Pete into the car.



Second Stint - Pete - Sport Medium - 37 Laps - 37:14.438 Total - 60.388 AVG
With Pete in the car we came out second but the S2000 pitted on the follow lap. Since we took tires only we ended up with a 26 second lead on the S2000. Approaching the hour mark and we have added 5 seconds to our lead up to 31 seconds. From now on we'll have to take on fuel so our 1 advantage is now gone. Pete finished up on lap 64 and we had a solid lead.



Third Stint - Brian - Sport Hard - 41 Laps - 41:50.579 Total - 61.234 AVG
I jumped in the car on lap 65 and it was a pretty uneventful stint, went a little slower than I thought we might with the lower fuel, actually in 41 laps was a bit slower than my average in my test but we'll chalk it up to lap traffic. I came in at lap 105 with a 1 lap lead over the Amuse S2000 and 2 laps over the AEM S2000 who was right on my ass. We put 40 liters of fuel in the car, four fresh tires and Pops hopped in the drivers seat.



Fourth Stint - Pops - Racing Hard - 39 Laps - 39:29.796 Total - 60.762 AVG
Pops hopped in and started lap 106. During the first part of his stint he posted the fastest lap of our race 58.001. On lap 122 he posted a new best lap of 57.176. Looks like we might have to slow him down during his next stint. Lap 130 he made a sweet pass 3 wide through the giant tire, can't wait to get a snap shot of that one. He finished out an awesome stint after 39 and pitted in for tires, 50 liters of fuel and a driver change on lap 144.



Fifth Stint - Josiah - Racing Hard - 29 Laps - 30:10.664 Total - 62.437 AVG
Early on Josiah was a little out of rhythm with a couple costly off's losing about 15 seconds on track. He settled down after the few offs and with the Amuse S2000 right on his tail he pitted in after 29 laps at the end of lap 173. We pit for fuel tires and a driver change.



Sixth Stint - Pete - Sport Medium - 36 Laps - 36:43.914 Total - 61.220 AVG
Pete looked motivated when he got in (perhaps the jack n coke kicked in!) ripped off 3 58.5xx laps in the first 10. During those hot laps he re lapped the Amuse S2000. Sports Hards next time for sure. With everyone getting more comfortable with the car the lap times just keep dropping. The early quick laps seem to have worn out his tires a bit earlier than the last stint as the 1:01's have come in the first 30 laps. We pit for fuel and tires and driver chance after 36 laps on lap 208.



Seventh Stint - Brian - Sport Hard - 44 Laps - 45:18.745 Total - 61.790 AVG
Brian took over at lap 209 and after 15 re lapped the S2000 after a good 5 lap battle. It was other lap traffic slowing up the S2000 that allowed him to catch up. After that it was a long and pretty even stint ending with about 10 1:01.xxx's. I pitted for 4 fresh sports softs tires, 50 liters of fuel and Pops jumped into the car.



Eighth Stint - Pops - Sport Soft - 38 Laps - 39:33.460 Total - 62.459 AVG
After Pops' extremely sucessful first stint we decided to slow down his average lap time but putting him on the sports soft tires. It sure didn't slow down his fastest laps as his 2nd lap out was a 58.8xx and his 6th lap was a 57.9xx. In the first 15 laps we would see another 57, another 58, a ton of 59's and a 1:02 when he was going through traffic. The end of the stint though you could tell he was getting frustrated and it started to cause some offs in the final turn which turned laps that would have been 1:00 even into 1:01's and 1:02's. A snafu when we were trying to enter the pits kicked him back out onto the track so we had to complete 1 more lap than we wanted to. 4 tires, fuel and driver change.



Ninth Stint - Josiah - Racing Hard - 28 Laps - 28:48.128 Total - 61.719 AVG
Josiah took the wheel on lap 292 and the lead was somewhere around 35 seconds to the Amuse S2000. A few 57's and no mistakes later it was still dead even but the S2000 should be pitting in the next few laps. Somehow we missed when the S2000 pitted but the gap seemed to stay the same until the tires started to go away. After a few 1:02's we decide to pull it into the pits after a 28 lap stint. 4 tires, fuel, driver change.



Tenth Stint - Pete - Sports Medium - 39 Laps - 39:33.538 Total - 60.860 AVG
Pete jumps in the cockpit and we've got a 24 second lead on the S2000. Consistent 59's keeps the gap the same through the first 6 laps. 24 laps into the stint Pete has been perfect gap remains 24 seconds. The S2000 pits and when he does our gap was up to 30 seconds which after the stop puts him about 10 or so seconds behind us. He pulls up behind us as pete's tires start to wear and we head into the pits after a 39 lap stint.



Eleventh Stint - Brian - Sports Hard - 42 Laps - 42:57.733 Total - 61.375 AVG
I pulled out of the pits and the screen flashed that I was only 12 seconds ahead of the Amuse. The gap stayed steady while I was warming up my tires but I was able to pull it out to a 30 second lead as his tires wore and he ran in to traffic. He pitted on lap 378 and the rest of my stint was about being smooth. By the time my tires wore he was on my bumper and he got his lap back as I pulled into the pits on lap 400.



Twelfth Stint - Pops - Racing Hard - 46 Laps - 48:09.732 Total - 61.484 AVG
We option to put the option tire on Pop's run as the day is wearing on all of us. Consistent 59-1:00 lap times proved we made the right choice. The S2000 started 12 seconds back of us but pitted shortly after and showed up only about 5 seconds ahead of pops around lap 410. Pops re laps the Amuse and rides out consistently in the 59 and in the later laps 1:00. Annnnd Forty effing Six laps later while still running under 1:01 he pulls into the pits... That my friends is how you treat your tires well.



Thirteenth Stint - Josiah - Racing Hard - 30 Laps - 31:05.833 Total - 62.194 AVG
A very consistent first 20 laps led up to 3 offs on consecutive laps including a head on into the tire barrier, our only major incident of the day. In the midst of that happening Turunen passed Boni putting his AEM S2000 into second place and on lap 475 we have a 51 second lead on him with a pit stop coming up shortly. The now 3rd place S2000 passes us as we pull into the pits on lap 477 preparing for our last two stops. Pete hops in with 35 liters of fuel and fresh Sport Mediums.



Fourteenth Stint - Pete - Sports Medium - 25 Laps - 25:11.511 Total - 60.460 AVG
It's a mad dash to the finish and we decided to split up the last 50 minutes into 2 stops giving us our lowest fuel loads of the day on fresh tires. With the AEM S2000 and GT1 unlapping them selves we come out with an 18 second lead of the AEM. Pete quickly bumps that up to 24 seconds in his first 5 laps hitting a 57.9 easily his best lap of the race. He finished his stint strong and came in at lap 502.



Final Stint - Brian - Sports Hard - 25 Laps - 26:37.407 Total - 61.439 AVG
35 liters of fuel and fresh sports hard and I was out, attacking the track with a low fuel load. 59's and 3 58's, my first of the race. The lead was 19 seconds and I was able to re lap the Amuse S2000. 10 laps later I was still flying and the lead over the AEM S2000 was 29 seconds before he pitted. I took a nice leisurely final lap (1:07) and we cross the line after 9 Hours of racing having completed 528 laps and only using 14 pit stops.



*Due to the timed race glitch the AEM S2000 which was in front of me had taken the checkers first, under normal scoring he would have finished at 528 laps about 53 seconds behind me.

Race Results

Closing Thoughts

Everyone involved had an incredible time. I have to give major props to RKM's Roj as he took some time out to tweak the car for me to suit our unique needs for this event. If anyone hasn't done at least one of the endurance races like this I seriously suggest you do as it is a blast to go through the strategy and teamwork aspect like you would in a real endurance race.

I can't complain about the race itself. After 9 hours we were 53 seconds ahead of one of the 2 cars we expected up front. I wasn't even sure he would make it up there it wasn't until an hour and a half left did he finally get in range of the Amuse S2000. It looks like the stop we made without taking fuel was the biggest difference in the race so to anyone out there doing something similar I suggest slowly lowering the amount of fuel in your tank or only using it as a means of catching up. All in all everyone contributed, everyone ran fast laps, and everyone got to over take a ton of cars on the track.

Awesome.

We celebrated the rest of the night by having some drinks, playing some music and watching the remaining 9 hours of the Le Mans 24. 6 am the drinks were gone and the crew was crashed out! We all woke up for the final hour of Le Mans and parted ways until next time.

Updated Car, Lineup and Tire Testing info for 9 Hours of Tsukuba.

Nice thread Bri-Y!

It looks like you've put in some excellent testing/planing for your Tsukuba Race.

Your write-up makes me wish I could join you for a race this weekend.

I'll take the RE Amemiya FD3S RX-7, and promise to use all grades of the sport and race tires!

Respectfully,
GTsail

You the man sail. We are off to a late start, just finishing up our practice/qualifying session as we did a complete chassis rebuild on our cockpit this am. I'm uploading photos to the thread now with the qualifying times.

Our first driver is back in the car, our lead holds steady at 1 lap and we are changing tire strategy a bit to balance out the average lap times.

5 hours 35 minutes in. Gap is down to 24 seconds but we're still out front.

Under an hour and a half left and we are up by 30 seconds. What a stint by pops!

Tsukuba 9 Hour race thread is complete!

An excellent read, sounds like you had a good time. I'm still working up to doing this race on my own probably over 2 days.

iainn

An excellent read, sounds like you had a good time. I'm still working up to doing this race on my own probably over 2 days.

Click to expand...

Thanks iainn, I don't think I could get up the motivation to do this one alone but our format really kept everyone engaged and it was quite a success