On the weekend following Targa Tasmania, we traveled 12,000 miles northeast to Road Atlanta and the 30th anniversary running of the HSR Walter Mitty.

As usual it was a great turnout, but we were a day late, arriving in Atlanta at 3 AM Friday morning. Our first session was at 8, and track was wet. We tested a big and ugly front spoiler during the afternoon practice session, which turned out to be a complete disaster.

Turn 9 at Road Atlanta is a high speed bend that drops away at the apex into the downhill run to Turn 10. Up to this event, we have raced the LightWeight just as it was run in 1965, without aerodynamic crutches like spoilers or wings. The car is aerodynamically balanced without a spoiler, but since there is no place like Turn 9 at Atlanta to test high speed stability, we ended up wasting the session finding out that a big ugly front spoiler will plant the front end but loosen up the back end like you wouldn’t believe. After the session, the spoiler went back in the trailer.

Spoiler Testing at Road Atlanta

The first race of our weekend was the one hour enduro on Saturday afternoon. Eric Bretzel qualified on the pole in his incomparable 911. We started on the outside of the front row.

Of course we had the advantage at the start and were first into Turn 1. For the next 40 minutes the fight was on. Eric passed us three times, only to be re-passed each time before the start finish line. We led every lap until the mandatory pit stop. When we came in, Eric and our LightWeight had lapped everyone through sixth place, and we held a 40 second lead over third place.

Unfortunately a dropped #2 intake valve ended our race and our weekend. My hat is off to Eric Bretzel for one hell of a drive.