Lime Rock

[cameraman]

Did anyone watch besides me? It'd be nice if John Fields didn't drive...

[Trevor Longman]

I was there! Aside from the sheer downpour on Friday which provided great pictures and soggy tents, the weekend was great! The BMW's may have been able to catch the #45 Lizard at the end but the GMG porsche and the short rain shower really caught them out. As far as the Graf/Brabham incident goes I would have to side with Brabham on this. While I'm happy with the result and the fact that someone other than Highcroft actually won, the move he pulled was dangerous and idiotic. The crowd there was massive, probably bigger than the one I've seen there in the last 2 years, and I think a lot of that is down to the return of Corvette Racing.

[cameraman]

It looks to me that Graf didn't know that Brabham was along side of him. There was no way two cars were going to fit between the traffic and the grass anyway. It was going to end in tears no matter what Graf did.

[Trevor Longman]

Ok I see your point. I will agree that Brabham never should have even put his car in that position in the first place. He obviously had the faster car and had no reason to try that with 15 minutes left. Over the last hour I watched him close the gap down from something like 30 seconds to nothing and I would find it hard to believe that that was going to be his only chance to pass Graf with speed like that.

[Methanolandbrats]

Did anyone watch besides me? It'd be nice if John Fields didn't drive...

I didn't. I don't care. Thin field on a bumpy go-kart track. I was mowing my lawn and cleaning my gutters when ALMS and cabs were on.

[NismoZ]

Yeah, I watched. Very painful. As bad as ChampCar at it's worst near the end. Poor numbers, demo derby, wrong track, (for LMPs) FOUR classes. Had an overall bad feel. Future does not look bright. (Graf should have used his turn signal when changing lanes!)

[extramundane]

Yeah, I watched. Very painful. As bad as ChampCar at it's worst near the end.

Gentilozzi doesn't have an ownership stake yet.

I DVRed it and, after Dyson and Drayson kicked the bucket early, mostly FFWDed through the rest. Happy to see someone besides Highcroft win, but finding it hard to GAF anymore.

[Steve99]

I watched it and enjoyed it. I was glad to see the Muscle Milk Porsche win LMP; I was on the edge of my seat to see if they could pull it off. If Graf knew that Brabham was there when he moved to the right, then I'm disappointed in him, but the replay showed him looking at the traffic on his left. Lime Rock usually creates crazy ALMS races, and this one fit the bill. :thumbup:

[Trevor Longman]

Oh come on! All this talk of "thin field on a bumpy track" and "the future doesn't look bright" is dead wrong! At least on the 1st point. Since the track was resurfaced in 2008, the track is as smooth as the best tracks out there and the field of 33 looked great out there. Sure the prototype field is very light and it would be nice if something like one of those gulf Aston Martin's were to run full time but really thats just because the prototypes are very expensive and hard to fund in relation to the GT's. Most privateers can't pull together enough money to run a car with a price tag like that in a time like this. In addition to that, with the regulations being rewritten for next year, factory teams aren't willing to invest in a car that will just be outdated next year.

That said, obviously the incentive for manufacturers is there, all you have to do is look no further than this years GT class. You have 5 well funded factory teams all with a shot at the win. That class alone is worth the price of admission IMO. Just give it until next year and I think things will improve across the board, but then, maybe I've just been drinking too much of the Braselton kool-aid... :p

[rosawendel]

i'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest that, as much as I don't care for the Daytona Prototypes, the GS and ST divisions in Grand-Am are pretty friggin cool. "stock cars" in the purest sense of the word, and with plenty of manufacturer variety. As sad as it is that the Audis and Peugeots of the world have chosen not to run a full schedule in ALMS, I'd be pretty interested in something like GS and ST in ALMS. Maybe not at the same time as the prototypes, but as a support series.

[chop456]

It's GT3 cup, but with crappy cars.

[extramundane]

Just give it until next year

Trouble is, that's been the ALMS' mantra for the last few years, it seems. Lots of "if you only knew what I knew" stuff that doesn't deliver. GT(2) is the sole bright spot. Prototypes are close to a disaster, and if those Dyson rumors pan out...


i'm going to go out on a limb here and suggest that, as much as I don't care for the Daytona Prototypes, the GS and ST divisions in Grand-Am are pretty friggin cool. "stock cars" in the purest sense of the word, and with plenty of manufacturer variety. As sad as it is that the Audis and Peugeots of the world have chosen not to run a full schedule in ALMS, I'd be pretty interested in something like GS and ST in ALMS. Maybe not at the same time as the prototypes, but as a support series.

Y'know, I've come to really like the Continental Series. The only real negative I can find is that it's hard to find TV coverage, but I think flying under the radar has also helped it escape some of the overthinking that makes the Rolex series so uninteresting. I don't see any point in an ALMS-run series with the same rules, though. As much as I've hated on GA management over the years, my opinion of Atherton & Co isn't much higher these days.

[Trevor Longman]

Yes even I will say that if the dyson to grand am rumors do pan out it would be a huge blow to the series. For over 25 years they have been IMSA guys and if they jump ship it wouldn't look good if their most dedicated team leaves for the competing series. :(

[cameraman]

Petit Le Mans might be pretty interesting especially if the bring the Porsche Hybrid:saywhat:

[oddlycalm]

Y'know, I've come to really like the Continental Series. The only real negative I can find is that it's hard to find TV coverage, but I think flying under the radar has also helped it escape some of the overthinking that makes the Rolex series so uninteresting. I don't see any point in an ALMS-run series with the same rules, though. As much as I've hated on GA management over the years, my opinion of Atherton & Co isn't much higher these days.

Yeah, I gotta agree with you on all points. BTW, you say overthinking I say contrived. ;)

oc

[Steve99]

Yes even I will say that if the dyson to grand am rumors do pan out it would be a huge blow to the series. For over 25 years they have been IMSA guts and if they jump ship it wouldn't look good if their most dedicated team leaves for the competing series. :(
Some versions of the Dyson rumor have them running pay drivers in GA DP while continuing in LMP.


Petit Le Mans might be pretty interesting especially if the bring the Porsche Hybrid:saywhat:
The Porsche Hybrid will be running (although unclassified) at Petit.
http://americanlemans.com/primary1.php?cat=news|15002

[73B]

It was an exciting race, right up to the end. LMP had the Porsche - Acura battle going on. GT had the BMW's trying to get past the Flying Lizard Porsche. Even the LMP Challenge and GT Challenge races were competitive.

It's too bad the manufacturers aren't backing a full LMP schedule, but on the flip side, it does give the privateers a chance to get some glory, add some sponsorship and get some valuable track time to up their game. It makes Sebring and Petite better races.

Prototype Challenge running the spec european chassis and GM LS-3 V-8's makes for good, level racing. You can get all the torque and horsepower you need out of that engine.

The GT competition is fantastic. Better than it has been in years. And the GT challenge gives previously successful teams like Alex Job and TRG a chance to find their feet before moving up.

I think they have a good balance of innovation and stability. Looking forward to Mosport.