portland – Page 3 – Brian Towey

Rose Cup – Race 2

First, thanks to Sean Hedrick at Miatacage.com for providing me with a really good car to drive and some excellent frosty cold beverages, last week. I would not be racing without his support.

The race – I had qualified well (5th) for race 2, and I had a very simple plan – maintain contact. The easiest way to botch up a simple plan is to make a simple mistake – this is where I come in…

I was driving conservatively and pretty well, I thought. The single most common problem I’ve ever had with the Spec Miata is making a clean 2nd to 3rd gear shift in anger. So, as part of my preparation for the race, I went through the 2-3 shift in my head a dozen times – there is a way to do it and get it right every time.

What often happens is that a driver will grasp the shift nob and force it to where they think 3rd gear should be. Invariably 3rd gear isn’t there causing the dreaded 2-5 shift and ensuing feeling that the car has a sea anchor chained to the rear bumper. I didn’t do that… I quickly pushed the gear lever to where nothing is. The good news is that I got it right on the second try. WTF!?!?!?!!!!!

Too late, however, as my “brilliant” qualifying effort had been erased by those behind me that successfully found 3rd gear – everybody, in fact. All of the sudden I found myself in need of a new plan. Maybe I should try to make it through the chicane first, though..?

I’m pretty sure I thought it was cool that David deRegt, who had started just behind me in seventh, had a good start and was in front of me going into turn one. David is a relatively new guy that I haven’t had a chance to race with yet and he seems to be going pretty fast. I’d had a similar experience with Eli Cuevas the day before in the Miatajaula.com car.

Eli Cuevas - "south of the border" Miatacage.com car

Eli was a student at the Driver’s School in March and was visible in my mirrors for the entire race – it’s the same kind of feeling I imagine a proud mother goose having…

But, I haven’t raced with David, and I don’t know if his qualifying was a fluke (probably not) or where and when he is reliably quick. This isn’t really the ideal time to panic, but contact with the leaders is nearly lost for good – I must attack him, NOW!!!

I had a better turn 7 than he did (entering the back straight) but still couldn’t draw up on him very quickly. The car did suck up a little bit and finally, as we entered the breaking markers, I was able to pull out. I was willing to go side by side through there with David from the inside of turn 10 – it would be a low risk move for me, and I slowed a little bit extra to make sure I could leave him some extra room at 11 if he decided to come along.

He didn’t and we were both slower through the 10-11-12 complex than necessary, but not too bad for me.

I was freight trained at the start of lap 2 by a blue car running one of the early Sunbelt Spec Miata motors and Toyo RA-1’s. The same RA-1’s that the front runners had agreed not to use this year (even though they are still technically legal). Frankly, I don’t really consider that car a Spec Miata – I am certain that it runs significantly afoul of both the spirit and the technical rules of the class.

Sean Hedrick - the Roger Penske of Northwest Spec Miata Racing

Enough sour grapes – looking at this objectively, overall I finished 5th on points for the two races, ended up about .5 of a second off the leaders pace and was very consistent. I can live with that (especially after 6 months out of the car), as it is a great confidence boost for the enduros the team plans to run in the fall.

I owe big thanks to Ken Sutherland who helped me get the car dialed in very quickly – and who traded wins and runner up positions with Will Schrader in both races. And, I do truly think that my time on the bicycle has helped to retain “the edge” needed to compete at this level.

Speaking of bicycles, it’s time to focus again. I’ll be riding the Cascade Cycling Classic in Bend with my brother-in-law and his Simple Green team mates at the end of July. It’s 4 stages in a mixed Cat 3-4 field, and it could be kind of hard… Yikes.

I could quit car racing whenever I want – but, I could also come back…

Rose Cup Race Report

After 3 days of a 4 day race weekend everything is still proceeding as normal for me. The race yesterday morning was typical Spec Miata and my plan was to attempt to maintain contact without being so close as to be the guy that made the small mistake that took somebody else out.

That mistake was made, of course, and I would have video if I had set the camera up properly (these things usually involve a bit of trial and error – error being the key, in this case). As the 26 car field was sorting itself out during the first couple of laps two of the cars directly in front of me went side by side through turn one, and they didn’t quite get clear of each other before getting back into line for turn 2.

So, there was a tap, and a half spin, and some moderately heavy contact. Bruce Wilson’s car was damaged beyond repair (more on that in a moment) and Geoff Cochran’s car had a corner pretty well torn up.

This all left me 5th (after qualifying 7th) and quite alone. The Miatacage.com Spec Miata might be the best handling Spec Miata I’ve ever driven – I really like the new Toyo R888’s despite the complaints I’ve heard about them (this might be due to the data my team mate Ken Sutherland has collected, and the fact I can go straight to the proper tire pressures).

We do still have a horsepower deficit. The car seems to roll quite well, so I think it’s something we’ve attached to what we believe is a reasonably strong motor. There are things you can do at the race track to correct this type of issue, and most of them we’ve done – new proper exhaust system, check and re-check the timing, AFM calibration. The car needs some time on the dyno and I’ve decided to continue enjoying the opportunity to drive a good race car again.

My strategy for the second round of qualifying (for race 2, Sunday) was to stay close enough to the faster cars to gain some benefit from the draft. This, more or less, worked out and I have qualified 5th after having run my 5 fastest laps of the weekend in the same session (including my fastest by .4 of a second).

The funny thing about my drafting partner

The paddock "frame rack and body shop "doing magic

is that it was Bruce Wilson, in the what I believed 4 hours earlier, was a junk yard bound car. It still is probably, but a bunch of guys rigged up a frame rack in the pits and pulled the thing kind of straighter (in a twisted midnight body shop kind of way).

Anyhow, that car is still kind of quick and it suited my purposes

well, as it still pushes just as big a hole through the air as it always did.

One more race today and then back into “retirement” for me. I feel kind of like the smoker that keeps quiting and could quit again whenever he wants to…..

Back in the Saddle

We took the “new” number 11 Miatacage.com Spec Miata to Portland International Raceway yesterday for the pre-Rose Cup test. So far, so good.

This is, by the way, the first time back at PIR since I decided the Tuesday night bicycle racing there was getting a little bit sketchy, and the first time in a race car there since the Cascade 12 Hour victory last October. I have had a day teaching at the Pro-Drive school recently, but that doesn’t really count as I am usually just riding around in other peoples cars trying not to get motion sick…

The plan was simply

The 87 car driven this weekend by Cindi Lux

for team mates Ken Sutherland, Chuck Hall and I along with Miatacage.com owner, Sean Hedrick, to shakedown numerous cars, including the newly rebuilt 11 and the 87 (ex- #1) cars. I wouldn’t have been there if it hadn’t been for Jonny Davies lending me the tow rig and trailer of his A Sedan Mustang, which was still at the shop having an alignment before arriving at the track Thursday night (just after I returned the stuff) – thanks, Jonny.

I had one small situation at the very end of the day (there’s a hole inside of

the apex curbing in turn 7 – duuuh…) which then necessitated a set-up check and some extra work – thanks Ken.

It appears that I’m somewhere around one second off the pace, but the car feels really good. I’m a bit suspicious of the horsepower, but there is no reason it shouldn’t

The Jon Davies A-Sedan Mustang that belongs to the tow rig I borrowed

have plenty, so we’ll try a little bit of tweaking today.

Giddyup…

She’s a Runner

Finally, I’ve collected enough parts to make the car run – thanks Sean!!!

I was at the shop yesterday until 8 with breaks only for food and trips to the

hardware and auto parts stores for various bits. With luck, I may manage a couple of hours on the bike today – wishful thinking…

Now its down to detail stuff, an alignment and a thorough nut and bolt check. We may make it to Rose Cup, after all.

Bicycle Law – Getting Along with Cars

A couple of weeks ago I was nearly run off the road by a motorist. It is a common occurrence to be crowded by fast moving vehicles, and while it sometimes really pisses me off, I understand the frustration of some drivers when they approach riders that haven’t a clue that anybody else might be using the road. In this case, however, I was a single bike traveling very close (6-12 inches) from the curb on a narrow road. There was no oncoming traffic and I could have easily been passed safely with lots of room to spare. But, it turned out, as I learned when we had the opportunity to discuss it 5 miles up the road, this guy simply hates cyclists – I mean, really hates cyclists, in a bulging vein, eyes popping out the head kind of way.

I must confess that I kind of enjoyed that part…

So anyway, I’ve been reading through Oregon and Washington bicycle law this week – I am searching for ways to communicate to both cyclists and motorists simple ways to improve how we get along. I’ve started (unsuccessfully) this project before, but then during this week I’ve heard two radio talk hosts (one in Portland and one in Seattle) do segments that were pretty aggressively negative regarding bicycles on the road. I think these incitements are potentially dangerous to, well, me, for example. So, maybe rather than just whine about it, I could do something sort of positive – hopeless, I know…

The bicycle laws are complicated (hard to read), and this is part of the problem. Washington State does have a pretty good “cheat sheet” on bicycle law.

Washington Bicycle Law

Oregon is a little bit tougher (but I’m still looking). There is a document that includes all of the laws that apply to pedestrians and bicycles . Part of the reason so few people understand these things becomes apparent – it’s long.

There is a good outline at the top that has links to different parts of the document. Some of it is good to know.

Oregon Bicycle Law

There is a bit about “Unsafe Passing of Person Operating Bicycle” 811.065, and the term “Due Care” pops up occasionally.

Too make it simple, as cyclists, we are required to do what we would in a car. Signalling continuously for 100 feet before stopping probably isn’t going to happen, for example, but it’s pretty clear these laws weren’t written by anybody with much time on a bike.

The same goes for rolling stop signs – in Oregon and Washington we’re supposed to stop. Personally, I want to spend as little time as possible in intersections (I believe in most cases it is safest and many experienced cyclists quickly process the information to do it safely and without disrupting the flow of traffic), so I always slow, and then come to a complete stop (foot down) only when traffic flow and safety require it. But, blowing through stop signs creates animosity and is not safest for anybody – so maybe we could use our heads a bit.

“Share the Road” means all of us.

Racing Bikes AND Cars

I’m lucky to have many “hobbies” of the type that just one would make me happy. For the past 5 years, or so, there has been an ebb and flow between my bike hobby and my car hobby.

I wouldn’t be able to do the car racing without help from friends and sponsors, and because of the relationships I’ve developed over time in the sport, I have an opportunity to race at the Rose Cup Races at Portland again this June.

The problem is balancing the time required to prepare for bicycle races such as the Mount Hood Cycling Classic June 4-7 and Rose Cup which begins with testing on the 11th. The car I am to drive for Rose Cup is the same car Chuck Hall, Will Schrader, Jonny Davies and I won the 12 Hours of the Cascades with last November and that Jonny and I drove with Ken Sutherland and Bruce Wilson at the 25 Hours of Thunderhill (leading until all of the oil fell out through 4 big holes in the block). Until last week, it was largely in the same state that it rolled (was towed) off the track in December.

The balancing process is hard (in a good way). Yesterday, I rode my bicycle for a couple of hours before going to the race car shop to work on putting the car back together (new engine, transmission, differential, shocks, brakes, repair light body damage, etc). Sean Hedrick of Miatacage.com has made the task possible by providing the big components in a mostly complete state.

This morning I will go to Silverton (near Salem) for a bicycle race with my Mt View Cycling team mates. I’ll work for a couple of days (sneaking some cycling miles in) and collecting more of the parts needed for the enduro / Rose Cup car, with the goal of installing the drive train late next week.

Bicycles – Stop Signs

I came across this while searching through Oregon Bicycle Law looking for the possible justification for the aggressive action taken by a motorist I encountered yesterday (I didn’t find it, by the way).

What I did find was this article at Oregon Cycling Magazine that suggests an idea that may (or may not) help relieve some of the tension that exists, particularly it seems in Portland, between cyclists and motorists.

I disagree with the logic of the “since most cyclists already do it, it should be made legal” argument. But, I have always believed that spending as little time exposed to traffic is a good idea for cyclists, and this type of law would help bicycle riders reduce the amount of time spent in multi-use roadways – I call this place the “Danger Zone”. And, as I also can’t find any law specifically prohibiting running over bicycles, I will personally continue to ride as I see prudent…

So, here’s the article and I say write your congressman – this is a sensible idea.

Are we ready for an Idaho-style bicycle yield law?

by Ray Thomas

Would Oregon benefit from a law, similar to the one in Idaho, allowing bicyclists to slow down, yield to traffic and then travel through stop signs without coming to a complete stop or to stop, yield and then travel (when safe) through red lights? Many if not most cyclists tend to behave this way at stop signs already and some, though fewer do the same at red lights. Does it make sense to punish cyclists for slowly and safely riding through a stop sign when no cross traffic or pedestrians are approaching? Would cooperation and good will between cyclists, motorists and law-enforcement improve if these common sense bicycling practices were made legal? To answer these questions, it might help to consider the reasons bicyclists often choose not to stop fully at stop signs or to wait all the way through certain red lights.

link to full story

Oregon HB 2690

Enough of PIR

Last night, I “raced” a bicycle at PIR for the second time this year. What a freakin’ cluster…

I’m a Cat 4, and I get what that means. But, for God’s sake, is it so hard to pedal a bike around a 60 ft wide race track without running into stuff..? PIR is quite wide, but not without obstacles – some care and planning are warranted. It’s not like everybody doesn’t know what is possible…

Turn 7 was re-profiled for 2008 and it took a while to figure it out in the car (2nd gear, third gear, early turn in and throttle, rotate the car, etc…) – but everybody did. The bikes nearly came to a stop there once last night and half the field never did work out that the track narrows at exit. WTF?

Team mate E1 and I tooled around at the back of the field after the 2nd prime – both of us having concluded that we wanted to reduce our exposure. The field was crawling and at times became 10 riders wide at the front (blunt end). Every time I queued up to get into a rotation the third guy would sit up… That’s fine – I had helped to organize the chase last week and this time my plan was to let others do some work to see if I had any sort of sprint (I don’t). Maybe everybody else had the same plan… again.

But, we’re Cat 3’s and 4’s – and this isn’t the friggin’ Tour de France… It isn’t necessary to force your way between the barrier and the field in a sprint for a possible 10th place finish!!! If you F***ed up the last lap and started the sprint 30th – you can give it a go again next week…

Somebody is going to get hurt, and I don’t really feel like I need that right now. Racing is always a calculated risk – and the calculation says to stay away from PIR for a while. But, I need to race something, somewhere… I’m not much of a climber, but maybe the Tabor series will be more sensible – everybody has to work or get shelled there… Maybe stick to the Cat4 40+ races and the harder road races or mountain bikes. Maybe I should focus some more time on making sure a fast car is available for Rose Cup… aaah, the warm, friendly and happy security of a roll cage…

On the up side, Wes ended up 3rd on the night – pretty good for a Cat4 in a 100 plus rider Cat3/4 field. Well done.

But, In the end, E1 ended up on the ground on the second to last lap after riding us back to the front with 2 laps to go. It sounded like somebody had steered him into the barrier on the finish straight – why go straight when you could be having so much fun turning..? One of the teenagers elbowed his way between me and the barrier (using his body as first notice that he was coming through) and sprinted into the back of two guys who had sat-up after mis-timing their final efforts. Brilliant!!!

I feel like I dodged one (or eight) last night.

Sandy River Ride

This is a nice 34 mile ride from Troutdale. We got kind of lost and had to ride in the dark a bit, but this is a great scenic route with lots of little climbs.

Close to town with relatively little traffic once you’re off the main road.

Brian

Map

Driver School

The 2009 Oregon Region SCCA Driver School is now history. This was my second year as lead instructor – this time I shared the responsibility with one of my 25 Hours of Thunderhill team mates, Bruce Wilson.

Lot’s of people make the school possible. All of the turn workers, officials and instructors that show up a day early, the Stewards that make sure the paperwork stays in order, Todd the Road Race Director, who does all of the liaison work, and Karen in the Region office that personally walks everybody through the registration paperwork. Karen describes the process as like herding cats – whatever that is…

There were quite a few high points for me. There was really good progress made by everybody – most of the students had previous experience and completed the requirements necessary to compete in a Regional race. A handful of students were pretty quick and mostly needed guidance regarding their responsibilities (in addition to driving the car) while on course. There were no reported collisions this time – last year we had a couple, and most everybody always had a big smile on their face.

One student showed up in a mid-eighties vintage Renault Cup car (photo). I raced against this exact car at the beginning of my racing career. I had no idea that any of these things still ran. August, the driver, was fast, clean and consistent. In the one mostly damp session we had he was one of the fastest cars on course – that was awesome!!!

One of the Spec Miata’s that showed up was driven by a young guy that has just returned from a 15 month deployment in Iraq with a Stryker Brigade (photo). Eli is one of the nicest people you will ever meet and was quick enough to catch the attention of the Spec Miata brain trust that was working the school. It’s only right that we fastrack him toward making up an extra 15 months worth of racing experience – Eli will get lots of help on his way to becoming a front runner.

The first Regional race happens later today and many of the students will be seeing a green flag for real for the first time. Here they go again…

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