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Racing
Autocross Video – Mickey’s Toyota MR2 last run
Nov 23rd
Video from Autocross KLCC, 20th November 2005. Mickey’s final run in his Toyota MR2. A very good run as he avoided any burn out this time around, hehe. View the rest of the entry to see the video.
Autocross Video – MK’s heroic drive on Toyota MR2
Nov 23rd
Video from Autocross KLCC, 20th November 2005. MK’s with his Toyota MR2 did a very fine run.. until the end. Gave a hell of a scare to everyone, but the heroic attempt did not hurt anyone. Don’t try this on public road! View the rest of the entry for video
Autocross Video – Black Lotus Elise
Nov 22nd
Video from Autocross KLCC, 20th November 2005. Car number 64, the black Lotus Elise making a very awesome run. View the rest of the entry for the video.
Grassroot Motorsport Autocross Event at KLCC
Nov 20th
MR2 Mickey in his track car, ready to go
I went to the inaugural Grassroot Motorsport Autocross Event at KLCC on the 20th of November, 2005, as a spectator. I got to know of this event from MR2 Mickey, who is a participant, and an MR2 enthusiast.
The organising company, Grass Racing Autosports (GRA), accepted over 90 cars participating in 6 different categories in the event. Entry fee was only RM 65 per car per category per round. The affordability probably was the most important factor contributing to the high turn-out. GRA had to stop receiving applications early.
some of the participating cars
The categories were:
- Class A: Below 1300cc engine capacity
- Class B: 1301-1600cc engine capacity
- Class C: 1601-1900cc engine capacity
- Class D: 1901-2400cc engine capacity
- Class E: 2401cc and above engine capacity
- Class F: Sports Car Class
Class E has no restrictions on modifications, though car must retain it’s original dimension. Class F is any vehicle with open top/close top and two seater non turbo. Micro cars and K cars are not eligible into this class.
old school Datsun Fairlady Z
The event was hugely entertaining, with a very funny MC giving scores and witty comments during the entire afternoon. Some of his gems include:
- “kelisa pun lagi cepat” (even a kelisa is faster) – when commenting on the EVO 8
- “dia suka makan angin” (he loves sight seeing) – complaining cars running too slow
- “kalau pemandu tak berhati-hati, kita pula kena berhati-hati” (if the drivers are not careful, we’d have to becareful) – a spin on the slow drivers
a toyota MR2
Average runs are in the mid 40 seconds. The fastest time was by a Lotus Elise that recorded a below 39s. Mickey’s best run was 41.13 in his MR2. The Datsun Fairlady Z was the best entertainer of the day, spun out and decided to make donuts on the track and hit a few cones before finishing his run. The crowd went wild.
K cars too
There were lucky draws at the booth, with winners having a chance to sit in veteran racing and rally driver Ivan Khong’s BF Goodrich sponsored Subaru Impreza, or MR2 Mickey’s car for a taxi ride on the track. The taxi service isn’t your ordinary KLIA limo ride, it’s a high speed drift with two of the very experienced drivers. The winners had a great time, and I wonder if any of them peed in thier pants.
how can an auto event be complete without race queens?
Tonnes of pictures posted in my Gallery
For more info, join the GRA group at Yahoo.
A1 Grand Prix Practice Session at Sepang Circuit
Nov 19th
Most of you are familiar with F1 Grand Prix, but might have yet to heard about the new A1 Grand Prix just yet. From the the official site at a1gp.com:
A1 Grand Prix is the first opportunity in any area of motorsport for nations to compete on a level playing field. It is a series where technology and innovation are deliberately equalised and performance is determined by human bravery, skill and excellence.
Paul, Kenneth, and I decided to go to Sepang Circuit for the A1 GP practice session on Friday to check out what’s the whole fuss about. Since it was free anyway, why not?
Team Brazil getting off the pit
Some details about the A1 GP cars, with more details here:
- Engine: 3.4 litre V8 with 4 overhead cams, 4 valves per cylinder
- Power: 520 Horsepower with extra 30 Horsepower on boost
- Weight: 680 kg
- Chasis: Aluminium honeycomb surrounded by carbon fibre skin
Teams getting ready for the practice session
The A1 GP is distinctly different from F1. Where F1 have cars from different manufacturer with varying budget, A1 cars are identical, the only differring factor is the drivers. The honour of winning goes to the countries too, with 25 different teams from around the globe, including countries never associated with the more established F1 series, such as Lebanon, Indonesia, and Pakistan.
Was the Russian team still drinking vodka behind the closed garage?
The interesting bit about the race is the ability of each driver to use the limited extra 30 hourse power electronic boost at critical moments, such as when performing overtakings, or when going for that last sprint. However, some drivers claimed that the difference is not significant as it only raises the speed by some 2 km/h.
Team Japan zipping by
The practice was without much fanfair, the drivers did not push the car too hard. It got a bit boring after a while with the total lack of competitive action. Since the engines were producing tremendous amount of noise and we did not bring ear plugs, we left the venue before the session ended. However, I do think that the actual race would be a lot of fun to watch.
Good luck to the Malaysian team with Alex Yoong and Fairuz Fauzy who are currently tied on 9th place out of the 25 teams, with 23 points after 4 rounds.