Petit Le Mans

[Boorish Grobian]

The wife & I are heading to Road Atlanta in a couple of weeks for the now traditional 1000 miler in the north Georgia hills.  Any other CA'ers going?  I know its the Tudor series, and yes its something of a hot mess, but its still Road Atlanta in the autumn.
Fax

[Canada Phil]

Hi Fax,
          I chose a motorcycle rally in North Carolina so will not be at Petit. I was disillusioned at Sebring and the early races were equally poorly run. Having friends running in the Continental tire series has kept my interest alive. DO make sure to watch the Continental race 2 1/2 hour format and a great lineup of cars and drivers. Probably run on Friday.
Enjoy  Yes it is a nice time of year to visit the area. I will be interested to hear of your experience compared to other years.
Phil
 

[Boorish Grobian]

Hey Phil,
Shame you can't make it, would be great to catch up.  You riding Deals Gap, and the Tail of the Dragon while in NC?  I haven't had a chance to ride it yet, but have some buddies that do it every autumn.
Fax

[Canada Phil]

Hi Fax,
         Yes we always include the Dragon. There are so many other great roads in the area that are less crowded but you should make the effort at least once to ride the Dragon. 318 curves in 11 miles is very demanding on a old touring bike.
My favourite is the Cherahala Skyway longer and higher and more open.
Phil

[Boorish Grobian]

Sounds like some great riding Phil, hope you get good weather and have a blast.  The Dragon is definitely on my bucket list.
I'm not expecting much from the actual race at Road Atlanta, I suppose in my advanced years its become more about the overall experience at the track, than the racing itself.  I'm just hoping its not a complete turkey of a race the way Sebring was.
Fax

[Dirk3D_NL]

sadly not there this year, priorities have been with other holidays... enjoy, it is a great track and great area to be in (even better if it wasn't located in a dry county though....)

[Boorish Grobian]

I guess you learn something new everyday.  All my years of going to Road Atlanta, and never realized its in a dry county.  We always stay during the preceding days over in Augusta (about three hours southeast, on the Savannah River) with my sister & brother in law, and purchase our beverages for the weekend there.  That would be a bummer to run out of beer and then have to drive to the next county to restock.
The weather for the race looks good, 74 and sunny during the day, low of 50 during the overnight.
Fax

[Boorish Grobian]

This had me interested, so I dug up some info about Hall County (Road Atlanta's location).  It is wet, but dry on Sundays, like most of North Georgia.  I would imagine they make exceptions for big events like they do in Indiana, which has similar alcohol laws.  The sale of booze is prohibited in Indiana on Sundays, but they'll sure as hell sell it at IMS on a race day, or at a Colts NFL game.  They definitely sell beer at Road Atlanta, and they just signed a big new agreement with Anheuser Busch. http://roadatlanta.com/road-atlanta/228-road-atlanta-and-anheuser-busch-br-br-announce-corporate-partnership
Fax

[Dirk3D_NL]

last year Randy's booze got confiscated at the gate though...

[Boorish Grobian]

Christ! If that happens to us...goodbye Road Atlanta, forever!

[Boorish Grobian]

Just got back from Georgia, odd experience it was.  The ten hour Tudor series race was...well, a ten hour Grand-Am race.  I left there Saturday night feeling more than a little unsatisfied, and discouraged.  There was a good crowd, not the biggest the Petit ever seen, but not the smallest either.  It just never felt like The Petit Le Mans.  It was Road Atlanta, it's autumn, there were fans rolling in, but there was Eli Gold and MRN doing the PR broadcast in place of the Hindy, and ALMS radio crew. There were big noisy, clunky DP's instead of the high tech LMP1 cars.  It felt like NASCAR had taken over, and it didn't feel comfortable.  A lot of the folks I spoke to felt the same way, the overall vibe was just wrong, and awkward.  The Petit was the signature event of the ALMS, and this didn't feel like the Petit.  If they want to continue this race, they should change the name to something like "NASCAR's ten hour race for what we think sports cars are".  But it's not The Petit Le Mans anymore, that's been retired to memory.  Next year the SCCA Runoff's are at Mid-Ohio again, so I won't be able to make back to Road Atlanta, but even if I could, I don't think I would go, it's just not the same.
Fax

[jimclark]

The Petit was the signature event of the ALMS,
Fax

Oh really? Not Sebring? I learn somethinng new every day...I guess......

[Boorish Grobian]

With all due respect Jim, the Sebring 12 Hours existed long before the ALMS (of course it was a World Championship for Makes round originally).  The Petit was a race that essentially was created for the ALMS, was unique to it.  I think that makes it a signature event.
Fax

[jimclark]

'Appreciate the attempt at educating, however, I've been around the block more than a couple of times. 

The petit was an addition, but Sebring was the real deal. It's all irrelevent now. 

[Boorish Grobian]

And your point is? You obviously have burr up your ass over me calling the Petit the ALMS signature event. I get the history of Sebring, I've been there many times and not diminishing the event at all (and the Daytona 24 for that matter) I love all of them...well not Daytona so much.
Jim, I'm curious, do you ever actually go to races, or do just sit around and put your two cents on stuff you watch on TV. Never actually have anything to say about a race you've attended.
Fax