Re: DFWW TRANS AM

Wheelwash Sun Jul 07, 2013 10:00 pm

The third round of the DFWW Trans-Am Championship saw the teams rolling out to the magnificent Road Atlanta Raceway at Braselton in Georgia for 22 laps of fun and merriment around the 2.54 miles full circuit, home of course to Panoz and the Petit Le Mans, always a firm favourite amongst the drivers and this week in the Across The Pond camp had been no different for three of the drivers, ATP Flying Ace though decided that changing things up even going into the race itself in his Shelby GT500, a plan that did backfire slightly.

For myself this week saw an extra race in my calendar on the 4th July, so practice had been compromised somewhat, although it was very apprant early doors that the Mercury Cougar had one major issue to deal with, its not exactly great under acceleration and the long straight on the Full Circuit at Road Atlanta was providing to be an excellent way of losing a place or two per lap, especially with ATP Ginge making overtaking me look so easy in his Z28, which is on the opposite of the scale. So it was a week to hope for a good qualifying position and hope to not get swamped going down to Turn One.

The qualifying lobbies saw Baby Huey and m4rlb0r0 m4n 81 doing a fine job, a couple of new names to the series, both well known throughout the world of Forza Motorsports as being, 'a bit quick' as F4H Diablo and PLOW RUN WIDE were very welcome additions to the series, the Plow speedster armed in a 1970 Chevrolet Camaro Z28 and F4H Diablo in a stunning looking Plymouth Barracuda. They both made good use of there cars as well, securing the front row after qualifying had finished, PLOW RUN WIDE clocking up a simply amazing time of 1:28:361, nearly eight tenths faster than F4H Diablo in second. Myself ATP Wheelwash ran a 1:29:665 which just pipped Wingnut x820x for third on the grid, as our friendly rivalry continued into the third week, although come racetime this week, the Pontiac GTO disappeared this week, definitely enjoying the Road Atlanta Circuit was the British American Racing man.

Fourteen cars then lining up on the grid for the race and a frantic start as well as the Mercury Cougar of myself showed its acceleration pitfall and was swamped by rows three and four on the grid, it was like a flashback to the VM Classics in Season Three when i had the 'Rolling Roadblock', the M4rlb0r0M4n81 making it three wide going into turn one, which certainly tightened things up, but we all got through damage free. F4H Diablo grabbed the early lead, but PLOW RUN WIDE soon had the Camaro back up front, a position that he wouldnt relinquish for the remainder of the race taking a very smooth victory. An early pit stop from myself in the Mercury as the opening few laps saw me pretty much in the way of everyone, excellent through the bends, but the steraight bits were tough and the driver was losing the capability of driving pretty quickly also, as mistakes were plentiful as i slipped down the field to ninth at one point.

The early pit stop settling me down nicely, Wingnut x820x also in the pit early, but he was long gone in the '65 GTO, but for the lover of all things Pontiac, my team mate ATP Jeep appeared from the pit lane a couple of hundred feet ahead, and well due to the unique way in which ATP works, 'we must beat each other first', the chase was on, my excuse being i only wanted to look at the pretty '68 Pontiac Firebird................ Honest!!

I finally closed the gap by the races end, but alas, it was too little too late and ATP Jeep took the team honours for the second week in a row. With Wingnut's excellent podium finish again this week, the BAR man currently holds the points lead after Round Three as the teams prepare to travel to Sunset Peninsula next Saturday evening.

A very entertaining evening in Braselton, the battle between WskeTango and M4rlb0r0 M4n81 sounding excellent over the airwaves. Many thanks to Baby Huey59, professional as always and a very slick operation. If you would like more information on the series, including builds, liveries or simply for a chat about the upcoming weeks round, then pop across to the DFWW Forum where you will find the answers to all the questions.

If more photos are your thing, well F4H Facepalmer has been a busy man and has a delightful selection on the DFWW forum from Round Three, as well as myself of course as rumour has it i like a photo or two. Theres also the full collection on the Wheelwash Racing & Media Facebook Page and remember to check out the events section for the latest gossip and times from myself and the rest of the ATP guys if i can extract the information from them.

On to Sunset Peninsula then, i know ATP Ginge cant wait, he loves this track!!

Wheelwash Sun Jul 07, 2013 10:03 pm

What do they say about great minds thinking alike Facepalmer? I took the very same shot, but from a different angle of yourself battling the kerb coming on to the start / finish straight.

Excellent photos sir!!

F4H FACEPALMER Sun Jul 07, 2013 11:10 pm

Thanks! We actually had a few similar shots. I even had one lined up of Diablo's car from the same exact angle but never took it because Huey sent me an invite to do laps at Sunset. Laughing

Wheelwash Tue Jul 16, 2013 3:12 am

Round Four on Saturday evening saw the teams arriving at Sunset Peninsula for twenty laps around the Full Circuit, now unfortunately i have simply run out of time this week to do a full report, my meds and the hot weather has beaten the crap out of me, im now discovering that they dont mix well at all. So unfortunately its going to be the pictures and few words only this week.

F4H Facepalmer's Trans Am was looking rather gorgoeus as always this week as he popped in a top five finish

ATP Jeep may have been running his last race in the series due to work, but another strong performance in the Pontiac again this week

Sir John Raptor had the worst possible start to the race, falling over at Turn Six on the opening lap

..................... as did someone else, but the replay didnt quite go far enough Mr Ginge!!

ATP Flying Ace took the Shelby to victory lane this week, Wingnut x820x a fine second from way back on the grid and myself rounding out the podium.

Next up is Road America, the greatest road course in the world in my biased opinion, so maximum effort in the practice room this week hopefully, if you want more pictures, then please take a look at the Wheelwash Racing & Media Facebook Page which is full of them from all the series im competing in.

Again, sorry about the short report this week and the amount of time to post it.

Wheelwash Mon Jul 22, 2013 8:49 am

Round Five was the highlight for this campaign for myself, i personally think Road America is the greatest road racing circuit in the world, and any series that pays a trip to Wisconsin's finest, usually has a #367 lining up on the grid come race time, The practice sessions this week had gone really well, after the tyres got warm fully, very consistent mid 2:20's, with regualr trips in to the lower and flat 2:20's, car was great in the corners, especially coming out of them and that was seeing me well down the straights as the corner exit was really good this week.

As far as Team USA goes, its looking like im the sole survivor, as work as denied ATP Jeep the opportunity to take part this week, and probably the remainder of the season unfortunately, and with the win for ATP Flying Ace last week at Sunset Peninsula, Team Europe were looking towards capitalizing here this week.

Just eleven drivers this week for qualifying, F4H Diablo taking the top honours and pole position this week with a 2:20:010, unfortunately though, no paint loaded on the '68 Plymouth Barracuda this week, as our connections werent sitting well together, the replay, which is on the ATP Wheelwash storefront if you fancy a look, saw the Fight 4 Her speedster's car mainly travelling on either two wheels, or a foot off the ground in a kind of Hovervan Top Gear moment, which us lucky people in the United Kingdom have just bared witness too from Season 20.

Second was myself with a 2:20:195, a time i was more than happy with, and Wingnut x820 rounding out the top three with a 2:20:600. We also had a welcome visitor into the lobby during qualifying as Team Gizmo's TG Takumi popped in and said hello and being someone that enjoys a race or two, was signed up and sitting on the back of the grid come time for the off in the race.

TG Takumi wasnt the only newcomer to the series this week, DFWW's very own Azone was also making his debut appearance in the series, armed in the 1970 Dodge Challenger which is just an awesome car to photograph. The start saw Wingnut using the pace of the '65 Pontiac GTO to perfection off the line, grabbing the inside line from myself in the mercury Cougar which is a bit like watching a hippo in a mudbath through the early gears. ATP Ginge was another that got away well, and pulled alongside for the opening lap, running side by side for the first half of it. F4H Diablo got the early lead, but never able to pull away from the charging Wingnut.

Most of the field were in the pits early doors, TG Takumi and F4H Facepalmer in the gorgoeus Pontiac Firebird staying out to the last moment. F4H Diablo just losing the lead by the tightest of margins in this pit stop as TG Takumi took the Chevrolet Camaro SS from the back of the grid to the lead, but the battle wasnt finished, the first four finishing just two seconds apart, F4H Diablo hanging on to second, Wingnut x820x holding off myself for third place.

The two Team Europe ATP guys finishing fifth and sixth, ATP Ginge winning that battle over last weeks winner, Wske Tango having another solid outing with F4H Facepalmer back in eighth. Azone taking the DFWW Honours this week in ninth.

Theres some more pictures up on the Wheelwash Racing & Media Facebook Page from the event, and the entire series, think its totaling around the 60 mark already, try it you might just like it!!

Next week sees the Classic Muscle Cars travelling across to Florida and the Sebring International for fifteen laps next saturday Evening, if you fancy a bit, why not check out the DFWW Forum for all the details, including build regulations and car choice, they even have them ready to race, and TG Takumi showed last night, good enough to win in too!!

Wheelwash Mon Jul 29, 2013 4:08 am

The sixth round and Sebring International was a calling this week for the Classic Trans Am series, now unfortunately a clash with the Indy 500 over on VM affected numbers slightly, as well as the Across The Pond guys busy coining the overtime, or dragged out with the wife shopping and if anyone hears from a person answering to ATP Ginge in the UK somewhere, probably under a mountain of carrier bags, point him in the right direction please, thanks!! Just the eight drivers this week then, but we had the welcome sight of Gamacor for the debut appearance in the event, adding another Shelby to the field as well as the return of Schuey75 you has finally been hooked up with internet in the new palace of glittering delights.

This week had seen plenty of practice from myself after a couple of disappointing efforts in a row, and i had the Mercury Cougar working really well around the Sebring International Raceway, running times around the 2:17 mark fairly consistently, but more important for this place, riding the kerbs well, especially the two kerbs which have been known to trip a few cars up, and this week was again no exception in that department, as Sir John Raptor, Baby Huey and Gamacor will all confess to.

Qualifying saw myself claiming pole position for the second time in the series, with a 2:17:290, closly followed by Wingnut x820x with a 2:17:320 achieved late in the qualifying process. Wske Tango and Brute Terror holding out row two and it appeared that the DFWW members had been running a side bet on whose car would fall over the most during the process, of which Sir John Raptor and Gamacor were both putting in very good claims judging by the paintwork at the end of the twenty minutes, finding the limits and just stepping over the line in the quest for a quick lap.

The race got off to a frantic start. the Mercury Cougar has about as much acceleration as muyself going to the bar when its my round, and Wingnut was by in the Pontiac GTO by the first fifty feet, but he went wide at turn one and the second row of Wske Tango and Brute Terror amde there move, forming a three a breast move heading down to Turn Two, which ended up with Brute Terror out front, myself completely forgetting what the tarmac was there for and Wingnut appearing to hit the stickiest bit of sticky you ever did see. Schuey75 got a good run through the melee and found himself in third place on the track in the magnificent Vortex Dodge Challenger.

Brute Terror and WskeTango decided to have a duel to the death at the head of the field, myself taking advantage of an early pit stop in the hope of using the clean air to my advantage. Wingnut x820x finally got the car going, but was miles behind the pack, but never gave up the fight and eventually came back to finish in fourth position on the evening.

For myself, i managed to succeed in the clean air and after the round of pit stops, held a comfortable lead, we unfortunately lost WskeTango on Lap Ten as he lagged out and the battle between himself and Brute Terror unfortunately finished earlier than expected. Schuey75 had a quiet race in third, logging the laps to take his first podium in the series, Brute Terror in second and myself taking the chequered flag.

Theres some more pictures up on the Wheelwash Racing & Media Facebook Page from the event, and the entire series, think its totaling around the 75 mark already, try it you might just like it!!

Wingnut x820x holds on to the points lead in the standings, but the gap is now down to two points, with just two rounds remaining. Next up is Infineon Raceway and the Long Circuit, one of my favourite tracks so the practice this week will be going in again. If you fancy a bit, why not check out the DFWW Forum for all the details, including build regulations and car choice, they even have them ready to race.

Wheelwash Tue Jul 30, 2013 1:30 pm

I had a welcome visit today from the crew from Scooby Doo, arriving in The Mystery Machine looking to solve another strange mystery, and this time it was the curse of the really sticky, erm sticky, that hindered the progress of Wingnut X820X at the weekend. Well, i received a message from the man himself and thankfully not only did he complete the race but he also saved the replay and to say that it was slightly more telling in the truth, would be an understatement.

So then, the only photo to explain the situation from my replay was this one, as seen on Facebook since Sunday Morning i think, its a shot of Wingnut stuck in the mystery sticky, erm sticky!! The dust cloud is from the '65 Pontiac GTO itself and it was stuck there for a good while.

From Wingnut's replay, it tells a whole different story though, so much so, you have to feel for him as Lady Luck deserted him completely in this incident. The set up sees Brute Terror in the AMC Javelin, breaking away from the pack, when:-

It makes a rather sudden right turn, clattering the tyre wall and bouncing out, straight into the path of the British American Racing's GTO. So it turns out that the really sticky, erm sticky, was in fact an AMC Javelin.

It didnt get much better for Wingnut, the collision completely destroying the Pontiac GTO, with everything turning that shade of red which you expect with an impact into a solid object. The Javelin just flew back down the road and was fine, no damage at all.

I would like to thank Scooby Doo and his team in there solving skills, as well as Wingnut for saving the replay. Ltes hope for better luck at Infineon on Saturday.

Wheelwash Mon Aug 05, 2013 12:46 pm

The penultimate week of the DFWW Trans Am Championship and a trip to Wine Country as the teams enjoyed the sun of California and the superb Infineon Raceway, ahead of them 22 laps of the Long Course and with it being tight at the top in the points standings its still all to play for. I will admit, seeing Infineon on the calendar always brings a smile to my face, its one of my main testing circuits, in the handling department, so i have done a fair few number of laps around here in all sorts of cars, and a van!! So in the Mercury Cougar which had proved itself to be a very good handling car in this series so far and around one of my favourite circuits, there was an air of confidence of a good potential week this week.

Oh how wrong was I??

Due to the third round in the TORA TEC, i will admit that the R3 BMW had taken up some of my time to dedicate to the Mercury this week, as well as the grand finale at the Nordschleife in the Spec Cup, but i thought by now, a few small tweaks and the Mercury would be good to rock n roll. I couldnt have been more wrong, the first few laps last Thursday were a complete disaster, the car felt like it was running on the rims, it was so loose in places and the usual smooth driving style wasnt working at all.

I threw everything at it, and eventually got the thing working better, and the times had dropped, running the odd very late 1:41 lap, but mainly in the 1:42's. I havent really looked for laptimes in this series, but i felt that the car wouldnt be too far away against the main competition in WingNut x820x.

Oh how wrong was i again??

WingNut x820x popped in a 1:41:119, of which yopu could probably hear my jaw hitting the ground, i hadnt come within three quarters of a second of that time, and after doing around fifty laps of practice, at this stage, i wasnt likely to either. WskeTango was another amn right on my level this week, and popped in a late 1:41:956 to claim second on the grid, myself just 0.029 seconds behind in third.

The race then and just the seven cars lining up this week, the clash with the TORA TEC this week effecting the numbers again, it didnt start well for myself, clipping the back end of WskeTango going up the hill under the bridge which saw myself spinning out, if catching the front two was going to be tricky before the race, i had just made it alot harder now.

although my issues were small in comparison to Sir John Raptor, our magnificent lobby host for the evening, who unfortunately lagged out of his own lobby after the grid lap and then proceeded to fall over on Lap One in the '68 Shelby GT500.

WingNut x820x was away out front, the British American racer extenting the lead every lap, with WskeTango in pursuit, the race on the track saw the two 1970 Dodge Challenger's going at it, Azone getting the better of the Vortex version from MNM man Schuey75. Brute Terror was having a lonely race, Wske Tango gradually pulling a gap on him, and myself charging from the back, perked up a battle for a couple of laps in the mid race.

There was only one winner this week though and WingNut x820x sealed it in fine style, even chucking in a fastest lap of 1:40:824, exactly a full second quicker than i ever managed in the whole practice, qualifying and race.

Theres a few more pictures up on the Wheelwash Racing & Media Facebook Page from the event, and the entire series, think its totaling around the 85 mark now, try it you might just like it!!

Wingnut x820x holds a decisive lead now in the tables after a dominant performance at Infineon Raceway, can he maintain and be crowned DFWW Trans Am Champion next saturday evening at Sedona Raceway Park? If you fancy a bit, why not check out the DFWW Forum for all the details, including build regulations and car choice, they even have them ready to race, it may be the last round, but you will get a good taste of what your missing and be back for season two.

Lightning071 Sat Aug 10, 2013 11:20 am

race 8 thread? I should be able to run it.

Wheelwash Mon Aug 12, 2013 9:32 am

The final week of the DFWW Trans Am Championship, the title still being up for grabs, to an extent, but WingNut x820x had popped himself in an extremely strong position after the dominant performace at Infineon Raceway last week. A fourth place finish would be good enough for the title, and with the form in recent weeks, that was looking a very likely outcome, but does ATP Wheelwash ever give up when the oidds are stacked against him, nope, never going to happen.

Practice had gone really well this week, the Mercury Cougar seemed to really enjoy this circuit, handling was strong in every area and although the acceleration wasnt great, i had high hopes of making a better effort than last weeks performance. The early practice sessions with my team mates were good and then we were join by WingNut x820x for a few alsp of pre qualifying practice. Always a welcome visitor, and well, he put my optimistic view in a big cardboard box, on a plane and FedEx'ed it to a desert island, as he ran a second quicker than i had managed, and i thought i was in good shape.

Twelve drivers this week, as the numbers rose again after the fortnight of clashes, including welcome returns for F4H Facepalmer in the '73 Trans Am (perhaps the second greatest car ever in my completely biased opinion) and Lightning071 who was enjoying a rare weekend off these days, and the fact that there wasnt a connection conflict. There was also a return from the ATP Europe team, looking to pip the ATP USA team in the Across The Pond team championship, the one thing that matters in every series!!

Qualifying saw myself running a personal best of 2:26:169, unfortunately though this was a full second slower than the time that WingNut x820x posted with a 2:25:205, although the pair of us was a full two seconds clear of the third place qualifier.

The race was a complete blur for myself, so this could be a short report, lol!! I state now, this wasnt due to a lack of interest, far from it, i was concentrating so hard trying to lay down laps in an attempt at catching Wingnut x820x that the chequered flag was out before i knew what had happened.

What i do know, is WingNut got a wee break out front as ATP Flying Ace applied the pressure on myself for second, F4H Facepalmer was making good progress from the back of the grid, as was Lightning071 in the, well what else than another Mopar Special. WskeTango quietly went about his business as usual, and it meant another finish on the podium, not only in the race, but the Championship overall. With the ATP Europe boys battling it out for fourth and fifth at the end.

We unfortunately lost Miko1971 on Lap 6 and thats about all i remember, so i shall apologize for the lack of info, as i was in the zone but i think Call Of Duty was mentioned during the race and Lightning mentioned the Super Nintendo.

No doubting the winner though as Wingnut x820x secured his third win of the Championship and took the title in fine style, really turning on the clkass in the final two rounds where he had the '65 Pontiac GTO running oh so well. Congratulations sir on the title and the tremendous racing over the last eight weeks. A shout to Wske Tango as well, ever present at all eight rounds and another that had the car singing the eprfect tune at the end of the series.

A big thank you to the DFWW boys, Baby Huey, Sir John Raptor and Brute Terror who stepped in to help out as well, being someone thats been on that side of the organising of series, i know only too well the amount of time and preparation that goes into it, and a superb job it was. A series that was run in a friendly manner from the start, and was very enjoyable from start to finish and zero moaning at all, well except for me wanting Wingnut to complete last nights event using reverse gear only, but that was my greed for the silverware.

Season Two, i shall look forward to it.

The full album of photos from the series, theres 83 of them to enjoy are now up on the Wheelwash Racing & Media Facebook Page , please pop along and take a look, you never know, you might just Like It!! Also, i shall give a mention to the third season of the DFWW Street Legal Series, coming to a Friday Night soon, full details can be found on the DFWW Forum of the builds and the latest news, go on, say hello, they dont bite unless you ask them really nicely.

**Sir John Raptor** Tue Aug 13, 2013 3:40 pm

Thank you wheelwash for all the picture and play by play was a pleasure having you and everyone else that tried out the trans am series.

Lightning071 Fri Aug 16, 2013 6:32 am

Thanks for having us! It was fun when I was home to run it, after Classics 6 wraps up, I hope y'all do another series of it.

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