{"id":853,"date":"2009-09-26T16:08:14","date_gmt":"2009-09-26T20:08:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/racinginfocus.com\/rif\/?p=853"},"modified":"2012-03-17T18:30:17","modified_gmt":"2012-03-17T22:30:17","slug":"american-le-mans-2009-petit-le-mans-road-atlanta","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/alms\/american-le-mans-2009-petit-le-mans-road-atlanta\/","title":{"rendered":"American Le Mans 2009 – Petit Le Mans – Road Atlanta"},"content":{"rendered":"
PETIT LE MANS | ROAD ATLANTA\u00a0| SEPTEMBER 26, 2009<\/span><\/h5>\n

\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

ALMS: Petit Le Mans Post-Race Notebook<\/strong><\/p>\n

Flying Lizard Tests E85<\/strong>
\n<\/em>
\nFlying Lizard Motorsports had a well-kept secret for much of the week at Road Atlanta. The GT2 championship leaders were evaluating the use of cellulosic ethanol in its No. 44 Porsche 911 GT3 RSR.<\/p>\n

The Sonoma, Calif.-based squad first tested E85 in last weekend\u2019s two-day test, but didn\u2019t walk away with as much running time as they had expected to. So the evaluation continued into practice and qualifying, with team manager Eric Ingraham and crew chief Tommy Sadler green-lighting it for the race as well. <\/p>\n

While Saturday\u2019s Petit Le Mans was called short with just under five hours of running time, the No. 44 crew of Seth Neiman, Darren Law and Johannes van Overbeek had no fuel-related issues.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe didn\u2019t have any technical problems with it,\u201d Ingraham said. \u201cIt seemed to provide some small performance advantage. I don\u2019t think we got a handle on fuel mileage yet because we had so few clean, straightforward sessions. But it seems like it\u2019s certainly got it\u2019s advantages. I think we had a good first experience with it and will continue to run it depending on what presents itself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ingraham told me earlier in the week that the reason for evaluating E85 was mainly performance-based. Porsche also showed some interest in the results, and could consider making E85 a compatible fuel for its 2010 model 911 GT3 RSR.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s been something that Porsche has been thoughtful about for quite a long time,\u201d Ingraham added. \u201cThis is the time in the season where, because of where we are in the championship, we can start considering other options. We\u2019d rather do that testing [now], rather than roll it into next year when you begin with a new car.\u201d<\/p>\n

E85-powered GT2 cars are allowed 20 additional liters of fuel than standard E10 entrants because of its increased consumption rate. The No. 44 car ran close to the 110-liter fuel capacity in the race. And while no hardware changes were made to the engine, software mapping was adjusted to boost fuel delivery.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe haven\u2019t even discussed about running it at Laguna Seca yet.\u201d Ingraham said. \u201cWe need to take the [fuel] cell apart and take a good look at everything to really understand it. It\u2019s a first outing and it was a successful one certainly. Credit has to go to the team on the technical side, as it was really a seamless integration.\u201d<\/p>\n

The No. 44 car also took Michelin Green X Challenge honors for the GT class, despite its seventh place finish. Ingraham credits this achievement mainly to its fuel choice.<\/p>\n

\u201cRunning E85 is a big boost in the Michelin Green X Challenge,\u201d he said. \u201cIt made a difference in this race. Even though we finished seven laps down with equalization and all of the complex mathematical and technical components which go into the final Green X Challenge score, the different fuel made the difference. It was really positive.\u201d<\/p>\n

Flying Lizard was the first Porsche team to test E85, and given the results, we could be seeing more 911 GT3 RSRs running this alternative fuel in the future.<\/p>\n

Patron Highcroft\u2019s Remarkable Rebuild<\/strong>
\n<\/em>
\nIf the American Le Mans Series gave an award each race for the hardest working team, it would certainly go to Patron Highcroft Racing after this weekend\u2019s remarkable comeback.<\/p>\n

Less than 48 hours before the start of Saturday\u2019s Petit Le Mans, the LMP1 championship leaders had a destroyed prototype following Scott Sharp\u2019s horrific accident in Thursday afternoon\u2019s practice. Preparations began immediately to rebuild the Acura ARX-02a around a new tub.<\/p>\n

The monocoque arrived by plane from HPD\u2019s headquarters in California early Friday morning, and the Danbury, Conn.-based squad went to work. Twenty hours, and many energy drinks later, the rebuild was complete, and the car fired up for the first time at 5:45 a.m. on Saturday.<\/p>\n

“My guys did a great job and I am very proud that their efforts have made Patron Highcroft Racing into a highly respected race team,\u201d Dayton said. \u201cEver since we first became a part of the Acura program, we have worked night and day to provide value for them.\u00a0 We were the little team from Connecticut up against the big names. My guys share my extreme passion for the sport. We love what we do and we know we must do all we can to provide value for our partners and sponsors. They don’t take no for an answer.\u201d<\/p>\n

With effectively a brand-new car built overnight, Highcroft\u2019s Sharp, David Brabham and Dario Franchitti drove to a sixth place finish overall in the rain-shortened race, extending their championship lead heading into next month\u2019s season finale.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have worked incredibly hard to hold this championship lead throughout the year and were going to do whatever it took to ensure we came away with points today,\u201d Dayton added. \u201cTo actually extend our lead in the championship is a bonus. But the job isn’t done, we will be very focused in the final race at Laguna Seca to ensure we complete the task we set to do at the start of the year.”<\/p>\n

Enjoy a time-lapse video of Highcroft\u2019s Herculean rebuild, thanks to the team and its PR director Paul Ryan.<\/p>\n

Salo To Get First NASCAR Test<\/strong>
\n<\/em>
\nRisi Competizione\u2019s Mika Salo will his long-awaited first taste of NASCAR in November, when the Finn will test a Michael Waltrip Racing Sprint Cup Series car on a Florida short track. Salo scaled back his sportscar program this year to pursue his stock car racing dreams.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve been trying to have a go for a while and I finally got the chance from them,\u201d Salo said. \u201cI\u2019ve never been on an oval and never tried a stock car before. All my efforts this year have been around getting a chance in NASCAR and it worked out. So now I have a chance in November to do it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Salo has watched Formula One star turned NASCAR ace Juan Pablo Montoya be a legitimate contender for this year\u2019s title, but the Finn\u2019s desire to go NASCAR racing hasn\u2019t been swayed by any ‘transition’ drivers’ success in the sport.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s my own feeling,\u201d he said. \u201cI went to see a few races and really liked the show. I\u2019ve done pretty much everything else. I\u2019ve been in Champ Car, Formula One, sportscars and rallies. NASCAR was really the only thing missing. I want a new challenge. GT is getting boring [for me], as I\u2019ve won everything there is with this program. I know it\u2019s going to be a big thing for me, but it\u2019s nice to try something new.\u201d<\/p>\n

On Saturday, Salo and co-drivers Jamie Melo and Pierre Kaffer capped off the endurance racing \u201ctriple\u201d with the GT2 class win in the Petit Le Mans, adding to their streak of endurance wins dating back to the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2008. While Salo may be bored with racing sportscars, he\u2019s certainly one of the best there is.<\/p>\n

Successful Run For Biobutanol Dyson Lola-Mazda<\/strong>
\n<\/em>
\nAll season long, Chris Dyson and Guy Smith couldn\u2019t find a break. From mechanical failures to accidents, the No. 16 Dyson Racing Lola B09\/86 Mazda appeared to be jinxed, with only four finishes out of the nine races heading into Saturday.<\/p>\n

Well, for once, their luck turned around with a seventh place overall finish and highest of all P2 cars. But neither were able to stand on the podium after the race to celebrate, although for a very good reason.<\/p>\n

The No. 16 machine ran unclassified this weekend because of a revolutionary new alternative fuel the team was using. For the first time, IMSA allowed the use of biobutanol, but any team that ran it was unable to score points and not be scored.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve raced a lot of cars that are good and a lot of cars that are bad, but I\u2019ve never raced any cars that were unclassified,\u201d said Rob Dyson. \u201cThose guys did an excellent job in finishing seventh overall. So it\u2019s kind of a 1-1 finish for Dyson Racing, a first in the unclassified class and first in P2.\u201d<\/p>\n

Developed by BP, biobutanol could be the next alternative fuel trend for the automotive industry, as the biomass-based fuel generally requires no modifications to a car\u2019s engine, or even the infrastructure used to store and deliver the fuel. Dyson Racing made no changes whatsoever to its Mazda MZR-R-powered Lola.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re very appreciative of the organizers and ACO for allowing us to run on biobutanol from BP,\u201d Dyson said. \u201cIt\u2019s been an important research and development effort taken upon by BP to get a more sustainable source of motor fuels, and they\u2019re leading the effort in this green sustainability sphere.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have seen, so far in our R&D effort with BP, that there\u2019s no degradation of the parts or any kind of decline in power. Arguably, it\u2019s a little bit better than straight gasoline. In addition to that, it\u2019s also greener. The tailpipe emissions have changed significantly, reducing some harmful pollutants.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Dyson and Mazda have yet to sit down and calculate its exact fuel mileage with biobutanol, early results look promising, with no drop off in speed and no significant decrease in fuel economy.<\/p>\n

IMSA has allowed the fuel to be used for the remainder of the season and Dyson hopes it could be introduced as a fully classifiable, alternative fuel choice for 2010.<\/p>\n

News & Notes<\/strong>
\n<\/em>
\n\u2022 Saturday’s race was red flagged for the first time in the 108-race history of the American Le Mans Series. Not only that, but it was called short. While the checkered flag flew at the eight-hour and 44-minute mark, the clock kept ticking during the nearly four-hour rain delay. It marked the shortest Petit Le Mans in its 12-year history (467 miles, 184 laps), and the first ALMS race not to run to its full length or time limit.<\/p>\n

The general consensus among drivers was that officials made the right call to red flag the race, especially considering the massive amounts of standing water. But with a steady amount of rain falling during the red flag, could IMSA have called the race a bit earlier knowing conditions wouldn’t likely improve?<\/p>\n

\u2022 Team Cytosport\u2019s Klaus Graf set a new race lap record on Saturday, the only driver to do so. The German reeled off impressive lap times early in the wet race, putting all his LMP2 competitors a lap down by the first hour. However, Graf lost considerable time when almost getting stuck in wet grass after spinning the Porsche RS Spyder on his out lap on slicks. The team later battled fuel-related issues, relegating he, Porsche factory ace Sascha Maassen and team owner Greg Pickett to a third place finish in class.<\/p>\n

\u2022 With the LMP2 victory by the No. 20 Dyson Racing Lola-Mazda of Marino Franchitti, Butch Leitzinger and Ben Devlin, the team secures an automatic invitation to next year\u2019s 24 Hours of Le Mans. Will Dyson Racing finally make its first trip to La Sarthe?<\/p>\n

\u201cWe have been discussing doing Le Mans for a period of time,\u201d Rob Dyson said. \u201cLe Mans is a big bite for us, though. It\u2019s not a small endeavor. However, I think everybody here has done Le Mans before. Clearly we have an invite. The question is what do our various stakeholders want to do? If they want us to do it, we\u2019ll be there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/em><\/em><\/p>\n

\u00a9 RIF\/ALMS<\/span><\/em><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

PETIT LE MANS | ROAD ATLANTA\u00a0| SEPTEMBER 26, 2009 \u00a0 ALMS: Petit Le Mans Post-Race Notebook Flying Lizard Tests E85 Flying Lizard Motorsports had a well-kept secret for much of the week at Road Atlanta. The GT2 championship leaders were evaluating the use of cellulosic ethanol in its No. 44 Porsche 911 GT3 RSR. The …<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0},"categories":[9],"tags":[5264,197,5288,211,225,84,40,38,5275,228,100,5295,64,5299,5273,170,226,5296,78,104,12,220,109,224,210,5281,110,5304,5280,5278],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/853"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=853"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/853\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":15515,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/853\/revisions\/15515"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=853"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=853"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.racinginfocus.com\/rif\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=853"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}