One Lap?

Any One Lap of America veterans here? Article in the current edition of GRM.

Makes me want to do it. $3k entry fee a little steep, though.

One of my very close racing buddies does it nearly every year. He wrangles sponsorships from local car related businesses (photos do sometimes appear in print) and partners with another driver to split the cost. It is still expensive, though, between the entry, cost of hotels, tires, etc. He loves it. I personally can't see the sense of all that driving for a few laps at each track. It's a different kind of motorsport and doesn't appeal to everyone. You WILL see a lot of impressive hardware, if that sort of thing is enticing.

I also have a friend that runs every year, this past one in a new GTR, and i had to turn down a drive in a new 700hp z06 this year. If you want to run for the overall, it takes serious money. The GTR was only a week old this year so was totally stock, since then it's been in development for next year. Let that sink in for a minute. A year long development process for an already fast, expensive car, for one event. If you want the overall though, you have to have a very fast, well developed car, and a serious driver as well.

Some people really like this, my friend included, but i think if i were to spend that much cash, the targa might be a better dollar per fun ratio.

Something I'd like to do one day, but of course the entry costs are bigger than a GRM Challenge budget and you need a seriously quick car to compete with the Big Money vehicles in the running. From what I've read recently it's just been GTRs stomping all over everything else. Although that just makes me itch for sweet underdog victory even more

I talked to a guy here locally that entered his Miata (we go watch at Hallett when One Lap comes this way), he said the really fast GTR guys all even have a computer guy with them to tweak the car.

I think at Hallett (which is a tight, twisty course) the Spec Miata's run around 1:30-1:31.

The GTRs came out on street tires and were in the 1:18s.........just unbelievable to watch those things come out of the corners.

Back in my day, we didn't get hotels at the One Lap...

I think your best bet for taking down the Godzillas on a mere mortal's budget would be a boosted C5 Z06 or maybe an Elise with something beastly swapped in (boosted K20?). Lowering the boost on the street in both cases for longevity.

In NFS:S2U I take them down with a built & boosted Exige, if there's a big straight they pass me on it but I pass them back under braking. It's very close though.

But the GTRs are big and slow, I read the GRM forums and I ought to know. Oh, and they're ugly too.

Real men don't drive GTRs and they couldn't win a race against a good XXXXX car.

GameboyRMH wrote: I think your best bet for taking down the Godzillas on a mere mortal's budget would be a boosted C5 Z06 or maybe an Elise with something beastly swapped in (boosted K20?). Lowering the boost on the street in both cases for longevity.

I doubt it. If look at the above post by racerdave, the guy he was going to run with decide on the GTR over the 700bhp Z06 because the GTR untuned was faster around a track.

93EXCivic wrote:

GameboyRMH wrote: I think your best bet for taking down the Godzillas on a mere mortal's budget would be a boosted C5 Z06 or maybe an Elise with something beastly swapped in (boosted K20?). Lowering the boost on the street in both cases for longevity.

I doubt it. If look at the above post by racerdave, the guy he was going to run with decide on the GTR over the 700bhp Z06 because the GTR untuned was faster around a track.

Agreed, two wheels will never put down power as well as 4.

I'd still try a TT C5 Z06 w/ coilovers, stripped with big downforz, widest possible wheels and a shorter final drive. If I had to put my money on a sub-$30k car, that would be it.

I think the GTR might walk away from any Elise on a course with enough straights sadly.

Yeah, keep in mind that the reason I was offered the drive is that they bought two cars, the C6 Z06 modified to 700hp, and the GTR. The totally stock GTR was the faster of the two, and the easiest to set the lap times. I think they finished 5th or something in the GTR, where the Z06 was around 10th or 11th. The guy that ended up driving the Corvette said it scared him a bit, and he has several years of Grand Am Cup racing experience and fastest laps in that series.

Previous years they drove a modified STI with something like 600hp, but it would not last the entire event. It still wasn't fast enough to run with the GTRs though.

The guys that won the last couple of years have a VERY modified GTR. And Keen doesn't hurt in the driver's seat either.

I ran One Lap from 1997-2001. The first year in a Spec Miata and the last 4 in a 200SX SE-R that I kept modifying. I think you need to decide why you want to run One Lap. I did it for the experience and the first year we had fun but were not competitive. The second year we were going to run a Miata with suspension and a supercharger but discovered when loaded with 2 passengers and stuff we would bottom out on every bump.

We then ran my 200SX stock and we got crushed but we had fun and never had to work on the car. Then we started with modifying the car by the last year I was breaking alternator bolts, missed a shift and destroyed the cams and rockers. I was finishing in the top half with a NA 4cylinder car but it went from being a fun event to being consumed with doing well and trying to win my class.

I wouldn't change what I did but if I go back I am going to bring a stock car with spare pads / rotors and run it. Less work and more fun. Half the point of One Lap is the people you meet and spend time with. They guys that run for the overall are a different animal. They are usually trying to demonstrate that said car / tuning shop / parts can be abused and win in a very tough environment. Leh Keen won the last 3 years with a GTR that is superbly prepared and tested, a driver (Leh) who is a pro and who get seat time at almost all of the tracks before the event, a codriver (Doug Wilks) who can repair, tune the car as he is the builder of the car.

I can give an example of Chuck Mallett bringing his Corvettes for years trying for the overall win only to be beaten by a stock Viper GTS driven by Michelin test drivers who could wring the last bit out of the car and tires.

For One Lap a good driver in a good car ie Z06 or a GTR should finish in the top 10. But are you having fun?

My $.02.

Jeremy

If I wanted to be competitive, I'd try to get seat time at every track to prepare. You only get a few laps of each track, don't you? Definitely not enough to really learn it.

Definitely not my kind of motorsport though. It's like stage rally but on much shorter, tamer special stages and really, REALLY long transits

I did it in 2007 and had a fun time. It's like an overgrown Auto-x in that you spend all your time on the highway driving to the tracks and only get 6 laps at each track.

You have to figure on a $5-6000 budget to compete, to cover the entry fee, the tires you have to buy, and fuel/food/hotels.

I'm glad I did it, but I don't have much desire to do it again unless I get the costs covered with sponsorship and it's going to tracks that are either on my bucket list or that I've done before so I can do well.

There are a number of different classes, no? Seems some would require $100K plus to be competitive in and others would be more GRM-y, entry fee aside.

http://www.onelapofamerica.com/rulesForms/ShowRules.do

1lapdawg wrote: I am going to bring a stock car with spare pads / rotors and run it. Less work and more fun. Half the point of One Lap is the people you meet and spend time with.

This is the way I would approach it. I think I have a pal interested in joining me. Now we've got to figure out whether we take my mostly stock 5.0 'Stang or his fully prepped M3. My sense is that this would be a death march in the M3. Highway miles in a gutted/caged car would seem to suck.

Teggsan wrote: There are a number of different classes, no? Seems some would require $100K plus to be competitive in and others would be more GRM-y, entry fee aside. http://www.onelapofamerica.com/rulesForms/ShowRules.do

GTR's and Vette's were brought up if you were chasing the "Overall" Win. Not just a class win.

We talked to some guys this year......he took his basically stock '02ish GT Mustang with upgraded pads and his buddy as his mechanic/road driver just because he wanted to do it. This car was also his DD.

Placed near the end of the pack and his class, but he was having a great time and was a cool guy to talk to.

So yes, there are all budgets/types there from guys with a huge investment, to guys who just said, "This weird endurance event sounds cool, I'll do it in my DD."

I have met many people that fly in and use a NASA-HPDE to practice on VIR or SPMP. I am sure that they fly to many other tracks as well. We generally have to chastise them for how they are running in HPDE (passing without a point-by, taking the low percentage pass, consistantly putting two wheels off, etc). It's not that they aren't welcome, just that they aren't playing by the rules in place. I would think that flying to each track, and having your car transported to each event would run into the cubic dollars. As in a E36 M3 ton of dollars. And a metric one at that.

A friend of mine has done it a few times. He's not going for an overall win. Basically, they're there to have fun, drive some cool tracks, and be part of something special.

This past time he did it in a nearly bone-stock Porsche 997 Carrera S. Their 944 Turbo failed at the last moment, so they switched horses before setting out. He said the 997 was cake. I will say, he had a huuuuuge smile when telling me about it.

I want to do it, just for the experience........but need a buddy who can drive with whom to split the cash outlay.

I think 3-5 years is a realistic goal to make an entry.

I want to do it, just for the experience........but need a buddy who can drive with whom to split the cash outlay.

I think 3-5 years is a realistic goal to make an entry.

In regards to the GTR being King, didn't Mike Skeen beat more than one at this year's UTCC? I think that there were a few of the Nissan flagship at this year's event. Could be mistaken though. Maybe the Nissan has an advantage when no R compounds are available?

z31maniac wrote: I want to do it, just for the experience........but need a buddy who can drive with whom to split the cash outlay. I think 3-5 years is a realistic goal to make an entry.

When you're ready message me.

Did it in 2003. Definitely worth every penny, every minute of lost sleep, and every bit of the cholesterol elevation from eating gas station food for a week. I was driving my X-11 Citation in the Econocar class with someone I met on the One Lap board and finished 5 out of 7 in class and had the time of my life doing it.