Subaru Drive Performance Magazine

Subaru Road Racing Team – Hot at Homestead

On April 24, warm, sunny weather greeted the Subaru Road Racing Team (SRRT) at Homestead-Miami Speedway for the third round of the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge (CTSCC) season. 
 
Through two days of practice, the #35 Subaru WRX STI ran strongly each session, consistently putting out top-five times. Even some mechanical issues couldn’t keep this team back; they were ready for battle.
 
Out for the qualifying session, Bret Spaude turned his quickest laps of the weekend. At the end of the 15-minute session, the Bushnell, Florida, native had posted the second fastest qualifying time, placing the blue #35 on the front row for start of the race.

After tech inspection, the #35 team was awarded the pole position, and Spaude walked away with the CTSCC Grand Sport class qualifying record.
 
Race day began with overcast skies for the final practice session. The team pulled out of the session early, that day’s sign that the Subaru was perfect – and ready to rumble!
 
A few hours before the scheduled start, the rain began. A heavy downpour soaked everything and everyone. As #35 took the green flag, the rain still sputtered down, but the wet track worked for Spaude as he opened up a lead over the competitors. 
 
The rain soon stopped completely, and the cars dried up the track, minimizing the all-wheel drive advantage of the Subaru. An early pit stop to change tires put Spaude back to 10th, and the driver change brought Andrew Aquilante out of the pits at the back of the pack.
 
Known for skilled and aggressive driving, Aquilante worked his way back to the front of the pack. With many teams still needing to pit to do the required driver change, much of the competition ended up behind Aquilante and out of his way. He worked his way up inside the top 10. With the help of several yellow flags bunching up the field, Andrew was inside the top five with about 15 minutes to go. But he still had more. With three laps to go, Andrew passed for fourth place, and on the last lap Aquilante took away the third, placing the team on the podium. 

 

 

 

Read more about the CTSCC race.

Check out more images of SRRT from Homestead.
 
 

Watch video of the #35 Subaru WTX STI in action at Homestead-Miami Speedway.
 
–Melissa Carlson

Subaru Motorsports Teams Start Their 2012 Seasons

Subaru Rally Team USA (SRT USA) and Subaru Road Racing Team (SRRT) both have made promising starts to their 2012 racing seasons -- SRT USA in the Sno*Drift Rally in Michigan and SRRT at the Daytona International Speedway in Florida.

SRT USA

Driver David Higgins and co-driver Craig Drew have returned to defend their Rally America National Championship in stage rally. The team's first event took place the last weekend in January, when Higgins/Drew began the season with a dominating win.

Read about SRT USA at Sno*Drift here, where you can link to the team's video about the event!

The next round of the Rally America National Championship takes place in Missouri February 24-25, 2012. We'll be attending in one of the last trips in the Drive Performance WRX.

SRT USA Performance in the 2012 Rally America National Championship
Round/Date	Event/ Location	Driver	Finishing Position	Driver Standings
Round 1 – January 27-28	Sno*Drift Rally Atlanta, Michigan	David Higgins	1	1

 SRRT

As part of a 40-car starting field at Daytona International Speedway, SRRT placed well in practice and on the starting grid. Starting 7th, drivers Bret Spaude and Andrew Aquilante took the #35 WRX STI as high as 3rd. The race ended with an on-track incident on the last lap that knocked the team to 28th.

Read more about the weekend here.

The next round for SRRT in the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge will take place at Barber Motorsports Park in Leeds, Alabama, March 30-31, 2012. We'll be attending that race in the Drive Performance WRX's final round trip out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for the magazine. Watch for us!

SRRT Performance in the 2012 GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Grand Sport Class
Round/Date	Event/Track	Location	Drivers	Qualifying/ Finishing Positions	Team Standings
Round 1 – January 26-27	BMW Performance 200 at Daytona Daytona International Speedway	Daytona Beach, Florida	Andrew Aquilante/ Bret Spaude	7/28 (DNF1)	28

¹ Accident

SRRT Driver/Team Member/Consultant Don Knowles Receives RRDC's 2011 Bob Akin Award

Veteran driver Don Knowles has been recognized by the Road Racing Drivers Club with its top motorsports award as a driver who best exemplifies the qualities and characteristics that the late legendary sports car driver Bob Akin represented. These include "... a passion for motorsports and automobiles, a high level of sportsmanship and fair play, and who has contributed to the sport of motor racing." (From the RRDC press release of January 26, 2012.)

Read more about Don Knowles in the RRDC press release here.

-- Ric Hawthorne

 

SRRT Ends 2011 Season at Mid-Ohio

The Subaru Road Racing Team (SRRT) ran its last race of the 2011 season at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course in Lexington, Ohio.

 

 

 

A key aspect of this track is staying in control and not getting caught up in a wreck. During the 15 minutes of qualifying, I watched most of the cars take turn 9 at the north end of the track on three wheels. At least four different cars lost their handling and barreled through the gravel straight for the outside fence.

This track has tire barriers in front of many of the concrete walls and guard rail sections, but walking the track I could see spots where the guard rails had been bent from hard contact.

The drivers ran strong practice sessions, and Bret Spaude qualified the #35 WRX STI in 15th place. The race began with a caution. A total of seven race cautions collected many cars and eliminated some from a series title.

 

 

 

I was asked by a fan where to watch the race from. Being my first time to the track, I could only point them to the spot I had just came from, the Esses.

Spin outs, a blown engine with a fire, and nose-to-tail racing added plenty of excitement to this season finisher.

 

 

 

We asked Phillip Ly, a first time attendee at a Subaru Road Racing Team event to comment on what he experienced, “I had a blast,” he said. “The guys in the pits were very friendly and encouraged me to get close to the action.”

 

 

A well-timed pit stop put #35 out front for 8 laps. The #35 WRX STI went in for another pit stop right before caution came out, moving the team to the back of the pack. Aggressive driving brought the Subaru back up through the field to finish 15th – a great team effort to end the season.

 

 

 

View more images from the race.

Click image below to view the SRRT 2011 Season Performance Chart.

 

 

 

 

-- Melissa Carlson

DP WRX Journal -- Fourteenth Drive (Thirteenth Round Trip)

Purpose: To join Subaru Road Racing Team (SRRT) for the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race weekend at New Jersey Motorsports Park (Millville)

Start/Finish: Drive Performance headquarters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Distance:

• According to mapping services -- 1,878.3 miles
• Actual (with commutes to/from hotels) -- 1,968.3

Major routes:

• Wisconsin: Interstate 94
• Illinois: Interstates 94, 294
• Indiana: Interstates 94, 80
• Ohio: Interstates 80, 76
• Pennsylvania: Interstates 76, 676
• New Jersey: New Jersey State Highway 55

Fuel consumption: 77.0 gallons

Mileage: 25.6 mpg

Almost anywhere in the United States that you might have been during the fourth weekend in July was suffering from heat. Crossing from the Midwest and into Pennsylvania and New Jersey in the Drive Performance WRX, heat held the high hand.

I stopped in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, to meet with other members of the editorial staff at Subaru of America, Inc. headquarters. Then I checked in with the rebuilding the engine of the 1986 Subaru XT Coupe under restoration (reported in Summer 2011 Drive magazine). Afterward, I took a quick ride to Autobody Enterprises to find Hank Reynolds sanding the Coupe's body as another part of the restoration. Watch the Drive website for more images of this work in progress.

GRAND-AM doesn't wait at the track, so I headed southeast to Millville to catch up with Subaru Road Racing Team (SRRT), which was preparing for practice at New Jersey Motorsports Park. The Subaru-sponsored facility has two road courses -- Thunderbolt and Lightning -- that were laid out next door to the Millville airport. Known as America's First Defense Airport, it played a key role in training pilots in Thunderbolt fighters during World War II. The land on which the tracks were built has a bunker that had been used to align the sights of aircraft at that time. A fighter plane was on display there throughout the weekend.

Everyone at the track -- drivers, crew, officials, fans, photographers -- all had to deal with the same conditions. Temperatures ranged from the high 90s into triple digits, so water and sports drinks were sought out by everyone. SRRT put a white roof on the black #35 WRX STI to help hold down the temperature inside the car.

SRRT's practice times were credible -- always within striking distance of the fastest cars. Driver Bret Spaude had the third-fastest time in qualifying, but a minor rule infraction involving the turbocharger put #35 in the back of the Grand Sport Class field for the beginning of the race. Both drivers -- Spaude and Andrew Aquilante -- moved #35 up through the field. From trackside, it was easy to watch the progress until the GS Class cars began lapping ST Class cars.

Pit stops for SRRT and the leaders were out of sequence, and #35 moved up to as high as 4th.

With approximately an hour of the two-and-a-half hours to go, I was on the far side of the track. I thought I saw smoke coming from the back of the car. A couple laps later, I was almost certain that I had seen flames from underneath the car. Then #35 didn't come around again. So I started the long trek back to the paddock.

An oil fire put #35 out of the race.

So much for Round 9 of the 10 races to be run in the Continental Tire series for 2011. The remaining round is to take place at Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course the weekend of September 16-18.

Notes from the Trip

Throughout the round trip to New Jersey, the Drive Performance WRX never missed a beat. It never seemed bothered by the heat as far as performance was concerned. But I think the heat affected mileage -- as did the 70-mile-per-hour speed limits on most of the highways that I traveled and the mountains through Pennsylvania.

Mileage ranged from 22.5 mpg to 27.0 mpg for the seven fill-ups. I'm reasonably sure the 22.5 tank included the three laps that I drove on the Thunderbolt course along with other Subaru owners. I'll post a video of that within the next couple of weeks.

For other notes, see the "Road Trip Musings" Journal entry on the Subaru Drive site www.drive.subaru.com.

-- Ric Hawthorne

At Home with the Subaru Road Racing Team

West of Monterey, California, Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca is a 2.238-mile track nestled in the mountains on 542 acres.
  

 

 

Although this track is not lengthy, it holds a few other challenges. The course starts out with the Andretti hairpin and boasts 11 turns through the course. The most technical is The Corkscrew. After driving an upward slope to 929 feet, the cars then descend with a 18 percent drop (109 feet) through The Corkscrew, which is the most famous part of the track. There are many parts of The Corkscrew where things can go wrong: miss any part of the first turn and you are in the sand. Drop in too quickly and you can spin out on either side of the middle section. Come out of The Corkscrew too loose or too quickly and the sand once again will collect you.
       

 

 

When most cars go off course at this track, they are stuck in sand pits and require assistance getting out. During practice, the Subaru Road Racing Team (SRRT) #35 WRX STI Sedan, drove wide coming out of The Corkscrew in Turn 9 and went off into the sand. Skilled driving and the All-Wheel Drive of the Subaru pulled the car from being amongst those collected.
    

 

 

SRRT looked good through all the practices. They went out and posted the fastest lap to start out the qualifying session, which held up to place them in seventh to start the race. Overnight the team replaced the transmission and went out for practice the following morning with the third fastest lap. SRRT #35 was ready to challenge the other competitors.
    

 

 

Unfortunately, the team suffered some heavy damage from other competitors and had to retire from the race early. 

SRRT brings an open and family atmosphere with them. I spent quite a bit of time talking with Jean Aquilante, wife of SRRT team principal Joe Aquilante. She told us how Joe first got into racing and how current SRRT driver Andrew Aquilante raced quarter midgets from the age of 10 until he outgrew that car.

Jean also said that within days of receiving the now-race-ready Subaru WRX STI Sedan, Andrew had that car completely taken apart. It is amazing how Andrew knows that car so intimately, and you can see the pride he takes in building the car. Read about his transformation of the #35 race car in Drive Performance Version 8.1 cover story.

The team tent is always a home away from home when covering a race with them.

Click here to view more images of SRRT at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca.

--Melissa Carlson

Welcome to Wisconsin -- Part One

Subaru Road Racing Team (SRRT) ran at Road America near Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, a week ago. The four-mile track is located only two hours from home, so it was easy for my family to join me to experience road racing together.

On the first day, my stepson, Johnny, and son, Matt, set out in the cold rain to find SRRT in Road America's paddock. We walked in circles among the other team haulers and had no luck finding the Subaru team. Finally, after a hard downpour, we returned to the car for shelter. Although the #35 WRX STI would be on track soon, I couldn't take pictures in such a rain. After practice, we followed the car toward the team trailer.

We found the team hidden away with a few others. There were a lot of competitors at Road America for the weekend. I introduced the boys to team owner Joe Aquilante, and we checked out the #35 WRX STI Sedan and the work area.
 
After lunch, it was dry enough for photography. The boys spectated from Turn 5 for the second practice session of the day. The track has fencing around a lot of it, so getting shots without the fence takes some planning and considerable walking.

Practice the next morning resembled deer hunting in the woods. There were a lot of orange (photographers') vests visible through the trees. Matt assumed his usual position -- taking pictures from the fence behind me.

Later that day, the rest of my family -- my husband, Mark, my daughter, Madalyn, and my step-daughter, Lily -- joined the boys and me for the race weekend. Everyone put on their Drive Performance T-shirts, and we walked down to the main paddock area and the Subaru trailer.

Madalyn wondered what happened to all the stuff from inside the car. I explained that the team removes everything to make the car lighter and to make room for the roll cage. 
   

 

 

Before each Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race, fans are allowed to walk pit lane, meet the drivers, and ask for autographs. The girls played bashful, but Lily wanted the Subaru drivers to sign her shirt. This was her very first time at a race, but she was getting the hang of it quickly.

SRRT's race took place late in the day, and one of the interesting aspects was viewing the cars driving at night. Following the headlights around the turns once it turned dark was a unique experience.

 

 

Spending time with the team made me feel like I was a part of it. The kids were just as excited for Subaru Road Racing Team. They even spoke of the car in terms of "we."

SRRT had its first top-10 finish of the 2011 season, coming in 6th place.

Find more images from SRRT at Road America here.

But we weren't done supporting Subaru teams for the weekend. After the road racing at Road America, Madalyn and I headed to Wautoma, Wisconsin, to follow the Subaru Trek Mountain Bike Team racing in the Subaru Cup. Read the journal from that event on the Subaru Drive magazine website here.

-- Melissa Carlson
 

P.S. One of the places I chose to shoot was the Sargento bridge, which has a natural association with Wisconsin -- cheese. During the race, I realized that only in Wisconsin would you most likely be able to find cheese and sausage bridges at the same venue.

 

DP WRX Journal -- Twelfth Drive (Eleventh Round Trip)

Travel dates: June 1-5

 

 

Purpose:

• To attend the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race at Watkins Glen International (Watkins Glen, New York) with Subaru Road Racing Team (SRRT)
• To attend the RallyCar Susquehannock Trail Rally (STPR) around Wellsboro, Pennsylvania, with Subaru Rally Team USA (SRT USA)

Start/Finish: Drive Performance headquarters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Distance:

• According to mapping services -- 1,807.3 miles
• Actual (with commute to/from hotel): 2,023.7 miles

Major routes:

• Wisconsin: Interstate 94
• Illinois: Interstates 94, 294
• Indiana: Interstates 94, 80
• Ohio: Interstates 80, 90
• Pennsylvania: Interstate 90, U.S. Highway 15
• New York: Interstates 90, 86; U.S. Highway 15

Fuel consumption: 72.3 gallons

Mileage: 28.0 mpg

This trip ended up to be a total immersion in Subaru Motorsports. Both SRRT and SRT USA were competing in racing events at venues less than 100 miles apart. SRRT's race in the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge took place on Friday, and SRT USA's rally around Wellsboro, Pennsylvania, ran Friday and Saturday. Planning for the weekend made provisions to attend both events.

However, I hadn't prepared for a couple of twists that put me in touch with both teams more intensively than usual. SRRT's practice in preparation for qualifying on Thursday revealed an engine problem that required replacement. As a result, the team missed qualifying and would have the start from the back of the GS Class field in Friday's race.

The Ride of my Life

We had some free time following qualifying. Subaru Motorsports Manager James Han asked if I'd be interested in a media ride in one of SRT USA's rally cars. Why even ask?! SRRT team member Bill Spaude (grandfather of driver Bret Spaude) and I both joined Han at the RallyCar/Susquehannock Trail Rally practice stage south of Wellsboro, near Morris, Pennsylvania.

I'll have observations about my ride with Dave Mirra in a future Journal entry. Stay tuned ...

The Rest of the Weekend

SRRT #35 had another problem in the morning practice on race day, so SRRT pulled out the backup car and entered it as #135. 

Watkins Glen is a wonderful place for spectators, because you can witness high speeds as well as turns requiring good handling. The GRAND-AM series provides close racing. There were no surprises with #135. Drivers Bret Spaude and John Heinricy pulled up to mid-pack by the end of the two-and-a-half-hour race, which ended at dusk. SRRT's weekend proved a stalwart effort. (SRRT consultant Heinricy replaced Andrew Aquilante for two races while Aquilante healed from an accident he had suffered at another racing event.)

Find information about all of the SRRT's races in the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge on SRRT's website. 

Meanwhile, further south, SRT USA's David Higgins/Craig Drew led the rally going into the final Super Special -- the last stage at the Tioga County Fairgrounds, which is near Wellsboro. The lead was only 2.5 seconds ahead of Antoine L'Estage/Nathalie Richard in 2nd.

 

Contrary to previous years, the fairgrounds was full of mud instead of dust. One lane of the Super Special was so muddy that the organizers stopped the runs going through it. L'Estage/Richard were quicker through the Super Special, but not quite enough. Higgins/Drew won the rally by 1.3 seconds -- the winner determined by the shortest stage in the rally.

Performance Charts 

SRRT Performance in the 2011 GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Grand Sport Class
Event	Date/Location	Drivers	Finishing Position
Round 1: GRAND-AM 200 Daytona International Speedway	January 28 Daytona Beach, FL	Andrew Aquilante/ Bret Spaude	13
Round 2: Kia 200 Homestead Miami Speedway	March 5 Homestead, FL	Andrew Aquilante/ Bret Spaude	DNF1
Round 3: Barber 200 Barber Motorsports Park	April 9 Leeds, AL	Andrew Aquilante/ Bret Spaude	DNF2
Round 4: Bosch Engineering 200 at VIR VIRginia International Raceway	May 14 Alton, VA	Andrew Aquilante/ Bret Spaude	11
Round 5: Memorial Day Classic Lime Rock Park	May 28 Lakeville, CT	Andrew Aquilante/ Bret Spaude	11
Round 6: Continental Tire 150 Watkins Glen International	June 3 Watkins Glen, NY	Andrew Aquilante/ Bret Spaude	183

¹ Transmission

² Electrical

³ Car #135

SRT USA Performance in the 2011 RallyCar National Championship
Event	Date/Location	Drivers	Finishing Position	Driver Standings
Round 1 Sno*Drift Rally	January 28-29 Atlanta, MI	David Higgins	DNF1	—
		Dave Mirra	2	2
Round 2 100 Acre Wood	February 25-26 Salem, MO	David Higgins	2	4
		Dave Mirra	3	2
Round 3 Olympus Rally	April 30 Ocean Shores, WA	David Higgins	1	3 (tie)
		Dave Mirra	4	2
Round 4 Oregon Trail Rally	May 13-15 Portland, OR	David Higgins	1	1
		Dave Mirra	DNF2
Round 5 Susquehannock Trail Rally	June 3-4 Wellsboro, PA	David Higgins	1	1
		Dave Mirra	5	4

¹ Engine

² Accident

 

Notes from the Trip

My notes from this round trip are in the Drive Journal entry Change of Pace.

 

 

-- Ric Hawthorne

 

 

DP WRX Journal -- Eleventh Drive (Tenth Round Trip)

Travel dates: May 11-16

Purpose: To attend the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race at VIRginia International Raceway (Alton, Virginia) with Subaru Road Racing Team (SRRT)

Start/Finish: Drive Performance headquarters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Distance:

• According to mapping services -- 1,957.0 miles
• Actual (with commute to/from hotel) -- 2,141.3 miles

Major routes to VIRginia International Raceway (VIR):

• Wisconsin: Interstate 94
• Illinois: Interstates 94, 294
• Indiana: Interstates 94, 65
• Kentucky: Interstates 64
• West Virginia: Interstates 65, 77
• Virginia: Interstate 77, U.S. Highway 58

Major routes from VIR to Tail of the Dragon:

• North Carolina: U.S. Highway 29, Interstate 40, U.S. Highway 74, North Carolina Highway 28
• Tennessee: U.S. Highway 129

Major routes from Tail of the Dragon to Milwaukee:

• Tennessee: U.S. Highway 129, Interstate 75
• Kentucky Interstates 75, 64
• Repeat route taken from Milwaukee

Fuel consumption: 80.8 gallons

Mileage: 26.5 mpg

I've come to terms with music in the DP WRX. Perhaps it would be more accurate to flip that thought and say that I've come to terms with my hearing. After traveling a few thousand miles with the Genuine Subaru Accessories 10-Inch Powered Subwoofer (made by Kicker(R)) installed, I don't focus on its bass notes anymore -- only to make sure it's playing. The other part of coming to terms with hearing ability is not being able to hear the high pitches that my son plays via a smartphone app; at least I can hear the bass notes.

The subwoofer definitely enriches the audio system's output, just as the performance exhaust system enhances any drive with engine music. Even though the two sets of sound sometimes crosses over each other, they enable the DP WRX to make a statement through the sense of sound.

Tail of the Dragon

This round trip originally was intended only to take me to VIR for the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race in which Subaru Road Racing Team was competing. But I added to the itinerary after studying a map to see how close VIR is to Tail of the Dragon -- an amazing 11-mile stretch of U.S. Highway 129 in Tennessee that should be the mecca for any driving enthusiast.

Tail of the Dragon has 318 turns in its 11-mile span, and they're not for the faint of heart. The 30-mile-per-hour speed limit is too much for some of the turns -- the ones marked for 10 miles per hour, for instance.

Read more about Tail of the Dragon on the Drive Perfomance website.

Watch the video from the drive of Tail of the Dragon.

Weather

This trip was all about weather. Through Indiana and Kentucky, temperatures ranged between the 70s (at night) and lower 90s, but once I reached the mountains in Virginia, lower temperatures and rain clouds dominated. What I had hoped to be a journey into early summer became chilly, rainy, early spring.

In the mountains of Virginia on Highway 58 -- one of my favorite portions of road to drive -- rain clouds were low enough to be fog.

Rain threatened during practices and for the race on Saturday. The Subaru team would have benefitted from it toward the end of the race, but it didn't fall until approximately half an hour after the checkered flag.

Later in the weekend, when setting up a video camera for the drive on Tail of the Dragon, threatening rain affected camera location. I had to mount it inside the cabin rather than on the hood.

You'd think that all of this would ruin the weekend. Instead, the overcast skies worked out well for photography, and there was enough grown grass that the mud could be avoided when tromping around VIR. The weather probably kept people away from Tail ofthe Dragon, leaving it more open for those of us who were there.

Notes from the Drive

Driving at Night

There's a wonderful children's book called Night Driving (by Peter McCarty) that's probably out of print now. One of my sons gave it to me because we had driven so many miles after midnight. The illustrations are in black and white, and the story is placed in the 1930s or 1940s, by the appearance of the vehicles. The story celebrates night driving for long distances.

I did some night driving again this trip, and it was wonderful. At a certain point in the night, you realize that you're one of only a few cars on the road. The other vehicles are mostly trucks, and there are few of them. Rarely are there traffic jams or crowded roads. If the moon is right, you have plenty of light beyond the headlamps, and landscapes can be surreal.

AM radio used to be excellent after midnight. You could pull in New York, Chicago, and someplace in Texas. The Texas station had the best music; that's the one on which I first heard "Big Joe and Phantom 309." Look it up.

Stalking DP WRX

I suppose the word stalking is a little strong. People aren't shy about approaching me concerning the DP WRX. One fellow followed me into a parking lot to ask if it was the car in the magazine. Another was picking up coffee at a fast-food place where I was eating breakfast one morning and found me because he had seen the car in the parking lot.

Beautiful Views

Interstate 64 across Kentucky has some beautiful scenery. If you have a chance, take a tour.

Dragon Pitt

If you drive the Tail of the Dragon and would like some good conversation, stop and see Dennis Dearing at the Dragon Pitt BBQ nine miles north of the stretch's north end, at the junction of Highways 129 and 72. After attacking the Dragon, one of Dearing's BBQ sandwiches tastes pretty good, and you can sit in the outdoor restaurant and watch other vehicles heading for the drive. Look it up at www.punkincenterinn.com.

-- Ric Hawthorne

 

 

 

DP WRX Journal -- Tenth Drive (Ninth Round Trip)

Travel dates: April 5-10

Purpose: To attend the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge race at Barber Motorsports Park (Leeds, Alabama) with Subaru Road Racing Team (SRRT)

Start/Finish: Drive Performance headquarters in Milwaukee, Wisconsin

Distance:

• According to mapping services -- 1,578.2 miles point to point
• Actual (with commute from hotel) -- 1,795.5 miles

Major routes to Barber Motorsports Park:

• Wisconsin: Interstate 94
• Illinois: Interstates 94, 294
• Indiana: Interstates 94, 65
• Kentucky, Tennessee, Alabama: Interstate 65

Fuel consumption: 66.7 gallons

Mileage: 26.9 mpg

The Drive Performance WRX was a different beast this trip. As noted in the March 25 Journal entry, we've added several new pieces to the car, and it makes a difference in how the car travels.

Most emphatic is the sound of the performance exhaust system. It grows from a low rumble at idle to a staccato baritone as the engine climbs the rpm range. In addition to the benefit of increased horsepower, it provides a constant audible reminder of the engine's potential.

Another addition contributing to the sounds emanating from DP WRX is the Genuine Subaru Accessory KICKER® subwoofer installed in the trunk. Music played through the audio system now benefits from richer bass with noticeable vibrations. The subwoofer adds to just about any type of music -- yes, including classical. (The beginning of Richard Strauss' "Also Sprach Zarathustra" takes on added dimensions.)

The new boost gauge reacts to engine and turbocharger operation, depending on how you drive. Increased throttle pedal and kicking in the turbo is reflected by the gauge.

Perhaps the most significant change was switching the snow tires for the original-equipment summer performance tires on the new O.Z. wheels. The Bridgestone Blizzak^TM tires were as good for handling in the snow during the winter as these tires are for spring, summer, and fall months.

 

Notes from the Drive

As I traveled south from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to Birmingham, Alabama, my thoughts went to layers and levels. (This is the type of thinking I do when I'm alone in a vehicle for long distances.)

It occurred to me that a lot of the things we encounter organize readily into levels. The seasons, for instance, and divisions in racing lend themselves to such categorization.

Seasons: When I left Milwaukee on April 5, I left piles of snow behind. Throughout the day, I drove into spring.

In Indianapolis, Indiana, the grass was green. Those of us who live in the upper Midwest haven't experienced that change yet this year.

In Louisville, Kentucky, the secondary tree level had blossoms and flowers.

The trees in Nashville, Tennessee, were budding.

Many of the trees in Birmingham, Alabama, had leaves. Of course, all the fun stuff like pollen is part of springtime, and the car had a green coating after sitting parked for any length of time.

 

Racing Divisions: GRAND-AM has four levels of racing. Since I spend a good amount of time with the series, I forget that everyone might not be aware of them. Two levels are in each GRAND-AM series: Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 (Daytona Prototypes and GT) and Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge (Grand Sport -- GS -- and Street Tuner -- ST). In descending order of performance, the levels sort out from Prototype to GT to GS to ST.

Read more about these divisions here. 

Barber Motorsports Park: The paddock at Barber has four levels. From bottom to top, they're quite a hike! This terraced scheme gives the park an opportunity to organize the race teams so fans can visit teams from the same series on the same level, rather than having to hike up and down between them.

 

Electrical Gremlins

SRRT did well during practice, qualifying, and the first part of the Barber 200 at Barber Motorsports Park. Drivers Bret Spaude and Andrew Aquilante put the #35 WRX STI in the top half of the field during practice sessions, then qualified 8th.

 

At one point during the race, pit-stop strategy and full-course cautions worked together to put #35 in 1st. The team held the lead for several laps before falling prey to an electrical glitch that required a tow to the pits during another caution period.

The start of the 2011 GRAND-AM Continental Sports Car Challenge season has proven difficult for SRRT, which has two DNFs in the first three races.

The next race is at VIRginia International Raceway near Alton, Virginia, May 13-14. SRRT would love to have your support!

SRRT Performance in the 2011 GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Grand Sport Class
Event	Date/Location	Drivers	Finishing Position	Driver Standings	Team Standings
Round 1: GRAND-AM 200 Daytona International Speedway	January 28 Daytona Beach, FL	Andrew Aquilante/ Bret Spaude	13	25/25 (tie)	13
Round 2: Kia 200 Homestead Miami Speedway	March 5 Homestead, FL	Andrew Aquilante/ Bret Spaude	DNF1	38/38 (tie)	20
Round 3: Barber 200 Barber Motorsports Park	April 9 Leeds, AL	Andrew Aquilante/ Bret Spaude	DNF2

¹ Transmission

² Electrical

 

 

  

2012 Impreza, STI at Nürburgring, Subaru Road Racing Team, Subaru Rally Team USA at Global RallyCross Championship Round 1 (video)

2012 Subaru Impreza to Debut at New York International Auto Show

Subaru has announced that the world debut of the all-new Impreza 4-door and 5-door models will take place at the 2011 New York International Auto Show. The show is open to the public April 22 through May 1.

Hallmarks of the new Impreza include factory-estimated 36 miles per gallon (the highest fuel economy of any all-wheel-drive car on sale in the United States), a roomier interior, and improved levels of comfort and refinement.

Watch this website and www.subaru.com for more information as it becomes available.

 

Subaru Tecnica International to Compete in the 24 Hours of Nürburgring with a WRX STI Sedan

June is a busy month for Subaru. During the weekend of June 23-26, the Subaru performance arm Subaru Tecnica International (STI) will race its WRX STI tS on the daunting Nürburgring. 

Specifics about the event, the track, and STI's WRX STI tS can be found in the official press release. Don't overlook the link to the car's specifications and parts at the bottom of the release. 

 

Subaru Road Racing Team -- This Week!

This week, I travel to Barber Motorsports Park (Leeds, Alabama) in the Drive Performance WRX STI to join Subaru Road Racing Team for the GRAND-AM Continental Sports Car Challenge Barber 200. The race takes place Saturday, April 9 at 12:30 p.m. Eastern.

You may recall that Barber is the track where Andrew Aquilante and #35 WRX STI experienced a trip through the grass in turns 8 and 9 during in last year's race.  

 

Subaru Rally Team USA at Global RallyCross Championship Round 1

Last week's journal entry gave us John Rettie's report on Global RallyCross Championship Round 1. Following is part of a press release from Subaru Rally Team USA about Round 1, which includes a link to a video.

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NEW VIDEO: Raw sights and sounds with Subaru Rally Team USA and Dave Mirra at Round 1 of the 2011 Global RallyCross Championship @ Irwindale Speedway.
YouTube: http://goo.gl/69mE7

Photos: Lars Gange | subaru.com/rally

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

 

Subaru Driver Dave Mirra Finishes 4th At Hard Fought Inaugural Global RallyCross Championship Event

(March 31, 2011) Debuting an all-new 2011 Subaru Impreza WRX STI, Subaru Rally Team USA driver Dave Mirra finished an impressive fourth overall in round one of the newly announced three-event Global RallyCross Championship in the debut event’s A-Main Final. The BMX icon and full time rally driver for Subaru enjoyed the first event of the new rallycross series which was held this weekend at California’s Irwindale Speedway and will be televised April 17th on ESPN2. The event featured a field of world class rally and rallycross drivers who raced wheel-to-wheel on a short action-packed course consisting of a mix of tarmac and dirt as well as a 70ft dirt gap jump. Mirra debuted a new 2011 Subaru Impreza WRX STI specially prepared for rallycross competition.

“This was awesome, the course was fun and challenging but it was the wheel-to-wheel racing with a field of great drivers and cars that made it special,” explained Mirra. “My team just built a new Subaru meant just for rallycross and it’s a beast, an amazing machine. This new car is a lot different from our stage rally STI with many new components, so we have a lot of work and testing still to do. I’m really looking forward to the next rallycross where I hope we can battle for a podium spot.”

Mirra was slowed in the preliminary heat races with a rear suspension problem but his results were still sufficient to place him in the B-Main race where he finished in a close 2nd place. Mirra would have needed to win the B-Main to have advanced to the final race, the A-Main, but was advanced on to the A-Main via the ‘promoter’s option’ rule which enables the event promoter to add a 6th car behind the five-car main event grid. With just five short laps in the A-Main Mirra went on maximum attack and fought his way up to fourth overall, just short of a podium position. As a stipulation of reaching the A-Main via the promoter’s option Mirra will receive 6th place points.

 “Dave [Mirra] adjusted quickly to his new rallycross car and drove an exceptional event to give Subaru a solid result upon which we can build”, added James Han, motorsports marketing manager for Subaru of America, Inc. “As this is a debut event for our current competition car, I’m confident that our Subaru WRX STI will be a regular contender for podium finishes with some further development and testing.”

Full race coverage will air April 17th on ESPN2 (check local listings). The series has a multi-year programming relationship with ESPN, with Global RallyCross Championship broadcasts slated to follow NASCAR Nationwide and NHRA shows on ESPN and ESPN2. Round two of the Global RallyCross Championship will be in the Seattle area April 15-16 at the Old Mill Rally Park near Seattle, Washington.

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-- Ric Hawthorne