Ugh, frustration. I’m in the middle of an 810-mile round trip to Summit Point Raceway and my brand-new (well, not BRAND NEW, we’ll get to that in a moment) right rear Hoosier race tire developed a hideous bulge after something like twelve laps.
Not that Boxxy (yes, I recently renamed one of my Porsches after her) was having a great weekend anyway. It’s suffering from the typical Boxster 1.3g left-hand cut-out at the bottom of Summit Main’s big downhill. The exhaust leak is clearly robbing power: Boxxy can’t quite hit 130mph on the long front straight. The good news: I swapped the brake discs on Friday afternoon and they’re fine.
Now for the depressing math.
I bought those Hoosiers as new-old stock in 2006 and have left them out for a couple of years. It’s my fault that the tire died, probably. You can’t treat race tires like street tires. Luckily I only paid $600 a set back in the day. The bad news is that I still have two more sets and I’m pretty sure they’re no good either. Let’s say I got ten good laps out of them, although as you can see from the laptime in the video (a dismal 1:32, albeit in traffic, against the 1:24.5 record for NASA Time Trial C, where prepared Boxsters compete) none of the laps were truly “good”.
$600 for the tires
$160 for fuel
$100 worth of wear on my Pagid Orange pads and new discs
$15 worth of horrifying energy drinks like “NOS GRAPE”
Total is about nine hundred bucks. For ten laps. Ninety bucks a lap. Well, any time I’m prepared to be depressed by something like that, I remember how much it cost me to run Grand-Am; maybe $500 a lap. So this is cheap by contrast, right?
That’s Racing…. You can’t measure these things in money. When racing costs become and issue, your done.
The ‘contrast’ is, your on the track, and the guy who can’t afford it and probably never will be able to, is watching you do something he would damn near kill to do, and he knows down deep, he probably never will. Measure that cost/contrast………..
I’ve spent $100.000’s of dollars on racing parts and pieces, busted trans-axles, engines, cars majorly f-ked over, tires… could have built a mountain out of tossed tires.
I probably spent more on the costs of race weekends, but I never, ever, wished for any of it back, it just brings a smile to my face when I think about it, or when somebody who doesn’t understand, questions my involvement in racing by alluding to possible mental or character issues, or a lack of critical thinking. You know the type, the count every penny, accountant/investor type(usually a brother in-law), who never have any ‘real’ fun, really live, and just through envy, want to gore you at the family reunion. I never see anybody hanging around that type.
I won’t get into your tire issue, Jack, because I know that you know, how to take care of them, their condition reflects something else.
But for those who don’t know, the compounding in race tires, is such that they have very little useful/effective shelf or track life, even when properly taken care of. There are other involved reasons for a tires short life on the track, but since Jack framed the issue of the tires being NOS… old, I will keep it, simply, to that.
Very complex chemical compounding, affecting cure rates, and construction, are involved. These tires continue to cure(chemical inter lacing), the process being affected by heat, oxygen, light, pressure, etc. Tires become hard and construction issues can affect integrity of the tire build.
Even fresh race tires start to give up traction after a few hot laps, as the frictional and mechanical heat generated in the tires, accelerates curing(while also breaking down the structural integrity/bonding), and the tires become hard. Heat cycles continue the rapid degradation of competitive traction.
For weekend warriors, tires are big expense if you want to run at the front. There are ways to get a little more life out of a race tire, but usually after the first run/heat/practice, the tires are no longer competitive, good only for non-competitive practice laps, rolling the car around the shop, and back onto and off the transporter.
The life of a tire for professional racing, is measured in fuel stints. Come in for refueling and get more tires. Nothing is to be gained by going out on the same tires and you run the risk of putting your teams car into another car or wall if you do. Far more expensive then tires.
Recent developments in tire compounding, may be changing the competitive life of race tires. Racers can only hope, and I hope that technology filters down to my Summer tires. Feeding several sets of tires to several street cars every Summer, is costing me other ‘legal’ adventures…Oh! Well! What’z a guy gonna do?
Reading blog comments is generally a waste of time, so go out and burn some rubber, gear heads.
See you at the track.
Tre,
As always, a fantastic, considered set of comments.
Well, ‘Considered’ is appreciated, Jack, but as I have cautioned other automotive journalists, the use of the word ‘Fantastic’, is one adjective that should be carefully considered, considering its root origins…. col!
Would have felt more comfortable with ‘Superb’. With that comment, I better put ‘my own horn’ down and gravitate to doing something useful.
Thanks, Jack.
PS! I had a BoXXy for a weekend. Back a few years ago(2006?) I bought my annual raffle ticket for a local kids charity. They always give away a Boxster. I got a call one day from someone who said “Congratulations, you have won”….. Thinking it was a scam I said no thanks and hug up. She called back and said are you ‘so and so’, Yes, “did you buy a raffle ticket for the Children’s charity” Yes, “Well you won, and could you come get your car at the presentation… and we need your SS number.” I paused and deferred that by telling her I needed to consult my accountant.
Before the presentation, I told the charity organizers that I only wanted it for the weekend, then they could have it back for their charity. It was agreed. A ‘win… win’ for everybody.
I was presented the keys at the presentation, and then handed them back. After, I got the keys and some dealer plates and off to the coast I went with a pretty.
Fun time with spectacular weather, great curvy roads, fun new car, and a companion who screamed with glee at every corner and err…censored.
Delivered the car back to the dealership Monday morning, gave her a pat, and walked away.
New Porsche Boxster for weekend for only $100.00… Nearly priceless.
!
Have you ever considered using your name as a verb? Ala Ashes to Ashes;
http://youtu.be/ZgT1beCmlpU
“You’ve just been Quattro’d!”
I.E. “Hey M3! You just got Baruth’d!” Or the GT3 you chased with the Camary…
Of course that means you kinda Baruthed yourself with the tires, but as you alluded to in the TTAC about “Fire and Rain” a bad day at the track is still better than a good day working.
When I get the fuck out of this Middle East fuckhole, I am doing one of these Trackdayz events. Look for the guy with the 996 and better hair than you
Jack B, Can I just say that I’m still weak in my veins after today’s lessons at Summit Point. You are a fucking hero for sitting beside me in the car and only seizing the wheel when I was on the brink of self (and your) destruction. Thanks is an understatement. You abide! I’ll be back if you’ll have me. Not in the rain tho…
You did great. After watching the video, I’m about ready to put that into “act of God” status. You did the same thing you’d done the lap before and the car just wandered off on you. I’ll drop you a line about future events!