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YRS Enduro Round 3

Tsukuba Circuit in Inbaraki, August 18th, 2001


Weather: Cloudy

Condition: Dry

Lap Time(by TOYOTA 92 Levin)

Only my lapping times
Lap123456789101112131415
Time61"50250"06249"81450"97650"26149"03149"04749"50651"54949"08350"07849"72148"48148"54950"233
Lap16171819202122232425262728
Time49"70950"32249"36649"74549"72049"14549"96052"90950"16448"68778"13649"88950"340

- REPORT -

Entry

With my RVR , I left home for Tsukuba at 4 o'clock in the morning, but with the child seat on it, not as usual. I am going to join the 2-hour endurance race "Tsukuba Enduro Round 3", but without my RVR. I had got an e-mail from YRS that had been inviting entries about 10 days ago. It said that we could join as an individual and YRS would prepare for cars to join. I applied just soon. A few days later, I had got another e-mail to let me know the members with their e-mail addresses that I would drive as the same team . It was meaning that we could introduce ourselves each other and could plan strategies. Then, the only strategy we planned was that we would drive the entire race with doing as being taught by YRS, because we could not even see the car till the day to race so could not plan any strategies.

UNKNOWN

We, 4 members first met at Tsukuba Course 1000. They are "I" with TOYOTA Aristo, "T" with ROVER Mini, and "Y" with TOYOTA Mark II, and all have ever joined the events by YRS, I have the slowest lap time and the youngest age among them, but they all are easy to get along with. Our team have been named "Racing Team UNKNOWN" by me from our first endurance race with the first met members and the car.

TOYOTA Levin

We also first met the car. It is TOYOTA Levin Type AE92 with super charger. We have seen it only on photos, and the car just before our eyes is getting to excite us more and more. We took the luggage on the trunk, the rear seat, the floor mats and anything we could put out of the car to get it lighter before the race. And then, "T" put the full harness to Levin out of his Mini! How quickly his work was!!

Course 1000

Today's schedule is practice without timing, practice with timing, practice without timing again, and the final. We had time to have the next schedule, so made a preliminary inspection of the course on foot. I will show you "Tsukuba Course 1000" below.
1st turnHairpin turnS-turn
Straight in the infieldExit out of the infieldHome straight

Rolling or not

We need another fee to drive in the practices without timing, but agreed to do both, by paying only 2,000 yen each. We drove in order we had decided, "I", me, "T", and "Y". How fast this car is, without rolling at all! Wow!! However, this impression seemed to be just for me, and the others were so cool to say, "that was rolling a little much."

Strategies

Just before the final race, the chief instructor of YRS, Tom advised us that we had been driving too fast, and we decided to drive in 50-51 seconds as our object. We filled it up at the gas station in the circuit, and now, we are ready!

Start!!

The final race will start at 11:00. We all aim to get to the goal after 2 hours. First, we put the cars diagonally on the home straight in order of the places of the practice. We, "Racing Team UNKNOWN" was on the 6th place in the practice. The first drivers stood at the opposite side of the cars with their key, and by the sign of start, dashed to each car! Fastening the seat belt, turning on the engine, they started one by one. "UNKNOWN" could start at the 3rd position at the moment, and soon, jumped up to the 2nd place by passing City driven by Tom! But just after that, we got settled at the 4th position by being passed by Civic and Skyline.

Rivals

I will show you the entry cars here. They are 9 cars; #51/HONDA Civic, #52/NISSAN Skyline Type 32, #53/MAZDA Roadster, #54/Peugeot 205, #55/TOYOTA MR2, #56/Levin (it is us!), #57/ISUZU Piazza Nero, #58/MGF, and HONDA City (special entry driven by Tom). Our rivals are Piazza, Peugeot, and MGF that drove at the almost same lap times as us at the practice. Piazza and Peugeot are the units formed by individual participants as us.

Changing drivers

On the 2-hour race, we have to stop at the pit for 3 minutes 3 times. So, we, "UNKNOWN" have set each driving time into 25 minutes. And just after the time, "I" came back to the pit after driving without any problems. Finally, it is my turn. I am in high tension! Fastening the seat belt, gripping the steering wheel, now I am ready! And, when can I start? I could not clearly hear the staff's speaking because the window was shut and I was with a helmet on my head. I started as recognizing his sign to start, but it was not the time yet so I had to go back to the pit. I took myself into high tension again, and then, I drove into the course this time indeed!

Pace to drive

I can do anything I want on the course(?). As feeling that I could step on the gas more here and there, and overtaking a few others, I forgot the pace to drive we had decided before the race. I casually found 48 - 49 seconds as my lapping time. I thought it would be bad, and followed Peugeot (or MGF?) to drive at 49-50 seconds. That team's sign board was good for me to read easily (hey me!).

Spiiin!

At the 23rd lap of my driving, the pace maker was on the further way after being overtaken by Civic and Skyline that are by far the fastest in the race. I lost myself again, and stepped on the gas more and more on turning on the 2nd corner to get faster. But, I was going out of the course at the exit of the corner by under-steering! Just at the moment, putting my foot out of the accelerator, my car began shaking right and left, and in spite of my desperately handling, I got spun. It stopped just before the hairpin turn with heading to the inside of the course. That means I have been blocking half of the course, also on the record line. But I cannot turn on the engine easily! I am just about to panic. It was lucky for me that the other cars did not come here until my restart.
Damaged on the marked spots
(also on the many blinded spots)
No relaxed
My 25 minutes passed by 2 laps after the spin. I went into the pit and the next driver "T" got on the car after me. 25 minutes was such a long time for me that more 10 minutes had remained when I saw the timer in the car as thinking that I had driven so long time. But honestly, I saw nothing to get information but the timer and the rev meter, neither the water temp. meter nor the fuel meter. And also, the left front tire after my driving has been damaged on the several spots of the outside. It is from my driving over the limit. I have to reflect.
Civic that won (center)
Skyline that got 2nd place (left)
Roadster that got 3rd place (left) and City driven by Tom (center)

Fuel mileage

"T" and "Y" after me could not drive as they want because they had to care about how much fuel was in the tank. Especially, the last driver "Y" said that he had driven only by 3rd and 4th speed. It is because I had stepped on the gas too much. I am sorry...

Finish

Finally, 2 hours after the start, "Team UNKNOWN" could get the checker flag. The result is 7th place of 8 teams, except Tom. But do not you think that we could do better than your expectation though by such members with no experience and the car we had never driven? I want to join the next race! I will drive more carefully about tires..

Today's lesson: Necessary torelaxmyself to drive with thoughts and observation

このページは、2019年3月に保存されたアーカイブです。最新の内容ではない場合がありますのでご注意ください