Superformance MKII, Riverside Racer 289 FIA vintage race car

[1795]

Well, I competed in another vintage race weekend at Watkins Glen, this one with the Vintage Race Group (VRG). I approached VRG about racing with them at the Glen this year using the Superformance FIA race car. I had raced with them last year with my MGB. VRG was initially reluctant to allow the car to race as it was a replica, and very few vintage race groups allow replicas. I was granted special dispensation to race with the stipulation that the FIA was not officially approved to race with VRG on a regular basis. VRG is considering allowing the Superformance FIA to race and I should find out in the near future. In general the car was well received and was unofficially nominated as the best looking car at the race.

The weekend was a mix of rain and sun. The track was quite wet at times and there were several cars that were towed off the track. A BMW race club shared time on the track with us and there was a 6 car pile-up at the top of the esses that resulted in one driver being helicoptered to the hospital; later we learned that he was alright.

I did not have the go pro going for the first race, which was my best. Ran a 2:21 on the 3.5 mile course, my best time of the year, and came in sixth. After that, I started having transmission problems with shifting into 3rd gear, sometimes it was there and sometimes not. I eventually started to skip 3rd and would go from 2nd to fourth. Obviously, my times suffered. Will be trying to figure out what is wrong over the winter. Rick and Ross came out to help on Sunday, but we were not able to get it straightened out.

We will have pictures and possibly some video posted later. Overall, a nice beginning to the Superformance/Riverside Racers career. By the way, there was a Ferrari 308 GT at the race and I was able to race against it in my final race and the the Cobra-Ferrari war ended with the Cobra winning this time around.


Jim

[Mark IV]

Jim's day ended with shifter issues that made getting gears "iffy" at best, not a good way to help your driving concentration.

We had a beautiful October day so the 289 Slabside was transport for Ross and myself. It had rained up to our starting time of 7AM so the roads were wet thus the dirt patina on the car however we had not drop one of rain fall on us and it turned into a an 82 degree, sunny day. I remember that this would have been "Grand Prix" weekend at the Glen and would have been my 50th GP were it still happening.

Jim has had no real mechanical issues with the car, the engine and chassis have been bulletproof so far......if only the shifter was!

I will add more pictures later, the site is so slow that it times out before a picture can upload.

[Mark IV]

More from the Glen VRG event:

[Mark IV]

more photos

[1795]

Hee is some race video of the VRG race at the Glen. Was actually having a nice race and was with a group of cars that were running in the 2:16-2:19 range, which would have helped me make my goal of breaking the 2:20 mark. Those time put you in the low end of the fast group. Have to wait until next year though. In the second lap coming into the bus stop you may notice a slightly audible clunk noise and se a slight shift in the rear of the car going into the turn. If you missed that you will certainly see my right hand fly up in disgust and you may notice my helmet bobbing as I yell, "What the @@@@!" A 240Z had neglected to brake early enough and he hit me from behind. Luckily it turned out for me that there was no damage to my car. There were two dents in the front of his car where me made contact with the rear quick jacks. How the nose of his trunk did not make contact, I do not know. It might have fit just under the rear of the car.

He gave me a wave as he went past. I was a little frustrated at first, knowing that I had to pull in to the black flag station because at the driver's meeting the VRG Steward was explicit that if you go 4 wheels off, or are the recipient of or make contact with another car you need to come in immediately and talk to an official before going back out. They then have a discussion with you after the race as well. After my initial frustration with having to go in and lose a lap, you will notice that I drive a little faster and catch the group before having to come off.

When I got back on the track you will see the shifting problems start. It was with 3rd gear and sometimes it would engage and sometimes not. That will be this winters project. It was not grinding, just would not go in, while the other gears would. Any suggestions would be nice. Close ratio top loader with a Hurst competition plus shifter. i have the nylon bushings and will be upgrading to the steel bushings. My plan is to take the interior apart, remove the tunnel and the top core on the transmission and see what is happening when I try to shift.

video link:

https://youtu.be_SdmQE208ng

If the link does not work just search Youtube for VRG Watkins Glen 2017 and you will find the video. The link does not work on m computer and I noticed that when I click on the link Safari turns the capital letters to lowercase letters and that is probably the problem. I am going to look at the second half of the race and see if it is worth posting; a lot of missed shifts and having to go from 2nd to fourth that made for a frustrating time. I did not get a video of the race that I passed the Ferrari, I just had to do it, as the camera was not working.

Jim

[1795]

Originally Posted by Mark IV

Jim's day ended with shifter issues that made getting gears "iffy" at best, not a good way to help your driving concentration.

We had a beautiful October day so the 289 Slabside was transport for Ross and myself. It had rained up to our starting time of 7AM so the roads were wet thus the dirt patina on the car however we had not drop one of rain fall on us and it turned into a an 82 degree, sunny day. I remember that this would have been "Grand Prix" weekend at the Glen and would have been my 50th GP were it still happening.

Jim has had no real mechanical issues with the car, the engine and chassis have been bulletproof so far......if only the shifter was!

I will add more pictures later, the site is so slow that it times out before a picture can upload.

Rick,
Thanks for the photos, well except for the ones with my ugly mug in it, and all of the support from you and Ross. It was great to have you there. It's nice to have a crew and support who are knowledgable.

Jim

[Mark IV]

More here: https://www.facebook.com/TimeMachine...85734231490809

[1795]

I had purchased a 195 degree thermostat to install after I drained the water and prior to putting in the antifreeze for winter storage. In reviewing my data from the last race weekend, the water temp was running at about 185 degrees and oil temp was at 220 degrees. I attribute the increase in oil and water temp to a combination of slightly warmer ambient temperature and running the car a little faster and at higher rpms. Based upon these results and the potential to be running in more southern areas where temps will be warmer, I am going to leave the current thermostat in. Would rather run a little cooler on the water temp, than risk running hot. If need be, I can always block off some of the radiator to increase water temp.

Will get the car up on the jack stand shortly and start working on the winter projects to get the car ready for next year. The car does handle well and is fairly neutral in the corners. Engine is running fine and had no problem running it up to 7200 rpms. I did notice that in second gear coming out of the boot with full application of power in the 6500 rpm + range it gets loud and my ears start to hurt a little.

Next year I plan on continuing to drive faster and faster and testing the limits of the car.

[Morris]

Originally Posted by 1795

I did notice that in second gear coming out of the boot with full application of power in the 6500 rpm + range it gets loud and my ears start to hurt a little.

You might want to get better hearing molds for your ears.... as it doesn’t get any better.....

1/2 hour at full race conditions.....will rattle your brain....

[1795]

Originally Posted by Morris

You might want to get better hearing molds for your ears.... as it doesn’t get any better.....

1/2 hour at full race conditions.....will rattle your brain....

Morris,

Some might say that my brain was a little rattled before I started to race

I will defiantly start wearing better hearing protection.