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In Reply to: Good time with Ferrari Club at Laguna Seca (m) posted by TummyRub on June 17, 2001 at 18:54:56:
Did any of the Ferrari guys tease him?
Doug
Ferrari Club, Pacific Div had a lapping day at Laguna Seca Saturday. They had a couple of open spots. So I "applied" and was "accepted" and assigned to the top group (there were 2 other run groups). Gasp, My li'l MCoupe amongs a herd of 450 hp, 3000 lb purebred stallions.
The paddock ended up being stocked with about 50 Ferraris of all ages (3 displaying their new car stickers) and models. All ran on the track. The 4 fastest cars in our group were 2 challenge Ferraris (I gather they are the performance model for Ferrari (sort of like our Ms) that crank out 550 horse, have race suspention, etc.), They were a little faster than a Viper. An old Nascar Winston West car was probably fastest. He could run faster than me while weaving back and forth scrubbing in his tires,
The rest of the field in the top group was included about 1/2 Ferraris and a mix of other cars including an M5. Most of the rest of us were fairly evenly matched based on who passed who. I think most of the Ferrari drivers are a tad more conservative when it comes to risk and were likely running at 75% instead of 90%. All the drivers in our group were very courteous and knowledgeable. Only one car (in a ford cobra I think) was aggressive and didn't drive the lines. He only ran one session. We could pass on any straight with or without a point. The Ferrari drivers always pointed . Actually they are a social group so instead of a point by it is a wave by. They first point to indicate which side they would permit you to pass and then wave to you out the window as you pass. The polite thing to do was to wave back.
A couple of other memorable experiences, Tech was supposed to open at 0700 and drivers meeting at 0800. I arrived at 0715 to a paddock that looked like a ghost town. Most Ferrari drivers cruised in after 0800 (including the one with the registration packets). Keeping in character they had lunch catered by Tarpy's Roadhouse (a very nice local restaurant).
All in all I'd rate the experience a 9 or 10 base on organization (All run groups got in their 6 each 20 minute sessions (25 miles per session)), safety (Rick Weldon was lead instructor), I only know of 3 spins all day and no damage).
I highly recommend attending a Ferrari track day if the opportunity arises. If was more of a festival than a High Speed Driving Event. Plus you get a neat T-shirt and an arm band that say Ferrari. The last time I say so many Oakley sunglasses was at a ski resort.
For Lester and DPeete, I hate to say it but Rick Weldon driving his old spec miata reeled me in during a couple of session (but my mcoupe is stock, Rick is an ex club racer, and my pinkie hurt, he he).
.....Gary
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