April 19-20, 2014 – Waterfall/Area 81 Racing gains experience at newly paved VIR Spring Sprints SCCA Major/USF1000

The Waterfall/Area 81 Racing team faced many obstacles while competing in the VIR Spring Sprints Major/ USF1000 Championship Series East on the newly repaved 3.27 Mile VIR Full Course. Tim finished 8th on Saturday and 7th on Sunday in Car 18. Richard finished 9th on Saturday and 8th on Sunday in an uncooperative Car #81. One bright spot of the weekend was a track visit from – Race City Injectors of Mooresville, NC. Look for an announcement regarding an Area 81 Racing / Race City Injectors Technical Partnership soon. In the meantime, feel free to visit their website at –> www.RaceCityInjector.com

After two straight weekends of blown engines, Tim got through an event with his GSXR1000 motor intact. He experienced a bit of paranoia in Saturday’s race & pulled into pit lane for a visual check of his differential, meanwhile a competitor slipped into 7th position. Race 2 on Sunday yielded a similar outcome when contact occurred with a P1 car in Turn 1, sending Tim airborne and nearly flipping him over. Once again, Tim arrived in pit lane for visual inspection of the suspension components of the RF1000, while again a competitor went past while in pit lane.

After a podium finish at the SCCA Major/USF1000 Championship Series East at Road Atlanta, Richard faced an uphill battle throughout the weekend. Mechanical issues kept the team preoccupied throughout practice, qualifying & both Races, which kept Car #81 from an optimal car set-up. After a very rare spin on cold tires in Saturday’s Race, Richard was unable to improve on his performance on Sunday.

Tim Pierce, Car # 18 – “The new track surface was clearly an equalizer this weekend. Those of us with experience at VIR may have been at a disadvantage because we were accustomed to the old race line & limitations of the old surface. We expect to be much more competitive in the upcoming races at VIR.”

Richard Franklin, Car # 81 – “Death by a thousand cuts. I’ve never faced a more grueling weekend. It was very difficult physically, mentally & also mechanically with the car. We were constantly working on it. Once the Area 81 crew & I would solve an issue by repair, replacement or maintenance, another major issue would appear. I’m sorry to say it really affected my driving performance. An uncharacteristic spin on cold tires in the uphill esses ended my Saturday race very early. Therefore, I did not learn anything constructive regarding the right set-up for Sunday. Racing is like that, one weekend may be worry-free, while the next weekend will be a huge challenge.”

The team begins their SCCA Regional schedule with the Jim Stark Memorial SARRC April 26-27th at Roebling Road -Savannah, Georgia. Soon after, Area 81 Racing returns to VIR for the May 10-11th SARRC/MARRS Challenge SCCA Regional. Stay tuned to www.Area81Racing.com and Face Book –> https://www.facebook.com/pages/Area-81-Racing-Team/173745692673454 for updates.

MORE AREA81 RACING NEWS