Event Coverage Tech Day for ECTA @ Wilmington, Ohio

My co-criminals went to Wilmington, Ohio to get our LSR Belly Tanker looked over before we fiinshed it up....
Here are some pics of what awaits you if you stroll down there....


Spoons

 

Here's a few more........

 

Awesome, just got back home from there. Saw some of these cars from the road! Really hope it doesn't get rained out tomorrow...

 

Thanks Spoons for the pics, now I'll never get to sleep tonight, can't wait to get over there and see some runs.

 

How long is the track? JC

 

9,000 feet..

 

Damn i miss maxton!..............THANKS FOR THE PICS.

 

Thanks for taking the pics, I went and forgot my camera
Just so all the out of towners know, today it will be dry until about 11am, then rain into the evening.
Tommorrow, Sunday, it is forcast to be a beautiful day, high of 65.
Hope to see you there! It is a great track, and all the drivers are really excited since it is so well laid out.

 

Thanks for the weather update Koth. Hopefully it wont rain like they are saying, seems like the Cincy weather is always a few hours off of when it is supposed to rain or not...

 

How does the 9,000 feet compare to Maxon's track? Wasn't there a portion of Maxon (at the start) that wasn't usable?

Frank

 

The racers are loving the track here. Every single one that I've chatted with has stated this course blows Maxton out of the water as its flat, smooth and straight.

They just called the racing cuz of the rain. A group of us are sitting in Bubba's schoolbus passing the time hoping the rainwill let up this afternoon.

 

Too much fun and the price was right!

 

My son and I was there on sat. a little rain delay, they dryed the track and back racing. My frist time at a ECTA event, I will be back again for one of the later events. Even with the weather I still enjoyed the day.

 

Critique of the racing surface;
Pre-stage is double line - same as Maxton - located on the taxiway for the runway, excellent concrete.
Starting line staging area is located on the runoff apron. It is big and in excellent condition. 200 x 150'.
The first 20 feet from the starting line has white painted panels that are smooth and dont have the traction that the runway has.
Racing surface (runway) 9000 x 150 feet. It is crowned in the center and has 1/8" grooves 2" apart that run from side to side entire width and carry the rain away from the center. The condition of the concrete is pristine. There is sufficient shutdown if you dont run long. Because it is concrete it is not perfectly smooth but it is close to it. You dont feel the surface irregularities on a rigid frame motorcycle. From the start to about the 1/2 mile it appears to be level or slightly inclined and than it drops off and descends slightly to the far end. Towns people are nice and appreciative for our presence. Good racing surface and nice venue.

 

9000 feet is about 500 feet shorter then Maxton. But there is no comparison. Wilmington is straight and wide

 

i miss maxton and i cant wait to get to ohio!

 

wheres the orange studebaker out of??

 

Today started off good, I worked the starting line, checking drivers were all ready before running down the track. It rained after only a few runs, then we ran maybe two runs and it poured! Then we all got in our cars and ran up and down the track to dry it off. After that we ran steady until 4pm. It is fantastic to work the line, and check out the cars. The racers really enjoyed seeing so many spectators and said that Maxton usually only had 140 entrants and maybe 40 spectators. This venue filled up the 175 registration in 2 weeks and had a waiting list, and there were quite a few spectators at the pre stage and starting line. It was great!

 

How fast did it go.....

 

Chelsea,OK, his HAMB name is Hooley. He set a record of 254 or something like that at B'ville during Speed Week a couple of years ago. GREAT guy. He went 223+ today.

 

We were within arms lenght of each other on Saturday afternoon at the start line. Thanks for everything you did for all the guys over the weekend. A second set of eyes are always appreciated.

 

That blown v6 was a shocker in the s10.....would look good in my model a.

 

Really good event. The track beats Maxton for conditions, but it's about 500 feet shorter. Just ask the dudes in the orange Stude, they found the grass after the runway on their 223+ run. I have a feeling it will end up being a two parachute kind of place. We had issues and couldn't get the lil banger over 100. Between the weather and some staging inconsistencies we only got three runs in. We changed the carb first, then the ignition. Before the last run we discovered a vacuum leak and tried to get her sealed up, still no dice. She just wouldn't take full throttle. All in all it was still a success though, we got the brand new car done in time and the chassis shake down is done. Better find that sruff out in Ohio rather than Bonneville. Great event! and the people in Wilmington were awesome!

 

My first LSR event (I'm hooked). Drove 8 hours to get there, will be back in June. Cold and rainy but worth every minute. Everybody was great, learned alot. Love it.

 

Nice description of the new Ohio Mile location.
I ran the 56 Corvette in the first group of photos. Our best run was
186 MPH and we got 4 runs in 2 days. The track surface was straight and fast. Even though it rained on both days, we didn't loose much time because of the rain grooves in the surface. I cant wait to get back for the next event. The town of Wilmington couldn't have been nicer and many came to watch the event.
Congrats to the ECTA organizers and volunteers for putting on a first class event.
Dave Gray
# 3611 BGMS

 

My first ECTA event,too. i got to crew with Bearing Burner and Ridge Runner. It was great despite the cold ,rain and wind.
Anyone know these two ????
Love the wagon,Denise !!!

 

My first ECTA/LSR event also.Myself and 2 buddies went Sunday and despite a slight rain delay and being windy I thought it was a great turnout.As a spectator of all sorts of racing from drags to dirt track I have to say the LSR competitors are by far the NICEST bunch of people ever.You should all be commended for your awesome attitudes towards spectators.We never felt like we were intruding when looking or asking questions.Best bunch of racers ever.Thank You for making some first timers feel welcome.We will definately be back and hope to double the number next time.Hope to get to know some of you better as I am sure there are some very interesting stories that belong to all those cars/drivers.

 

Totally agree, they were a great group of competitors and wished me luck with my projects and genuinely seemed interested to hear about them. Great people with great cars and I am looking forward to talking to some of them again in June! Now I need to start an lsr project, maybe us Ohio guys should get together and build one

 

This was the most fun I have had at an automotive event in a long time.The competitors were all so friendly, and the whole event had a very relaxed,casual feel to it.

Can't wait to go back in June to some warmer temps.,though