Anybody out there following the Grand Am?

Parnelli Bone

Parnelli Bone

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Parnelli_Bones
I'm surprised I haven't found a topic relating to the Grand Am here at GTP.

I'm notoriously bad for watching the Grand Am, but this year I've vowed to really study the schedules, get to know the drivers, and follow who's leading in points. Grand Am is America's version of sports car racing, so I'm not sure if it's shown in other continents and countries. OUR Speed Channel doesn't show Touring Car events from Europe and Asia, for instance; if they do, I keep missing them. :mad: So it wouldn't surprise me if half the people reading this have no idea what Grand Am is.

There's a couple different series: Rolex Sports Car Challenge, which features Daytona Prototypes and a GT class, and the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge, which has two classes (both 'regular' sports cars). There's the Grand Sport and Street Tuner classes.

Just wanna know if anybody else is following the Grand Am this year, thoughts on yesterday's broadcast of the Homestead 200, etc. Both classes were running a close race at the end, until the 2nd-place BMW (GS class) wrecked near the end, leaving a Mustang the winner. ST class was even closer, with a Mini closing a huge gap on the second-to-last lap upon the leading MX-5 and (I think) a Mazda.
 
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I really want to get into it more this year. With Dinan/BMW engines in the 01 car I have somebody to cheer for.

Unfortunatley here in the UK there is Zero coverage as far as I know, same as the Touring car classes (speed world challenge) which I'd like to follow.
 
MatskiMonk
(speed world challenge) which I'd like to follow.
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It's no longer the "Speed World Challenge", it's now just the SCCA Pro Racing World Challenge, it's also shown on Vs. instead of Speed.

I also try to catch the Grand-Am races, they always seem to be interesting.
 
MatskiMonk
I really want to get into it more this year. With Dinan/BMW engines in the 01 car I have somebody to cheer for.

Unfortunatley here in the UK there is Zero coverage as far as I know, same as the Touring car classes (speed world challenge) which I'd like to follow.
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Yup. That's the problem with America...not much coverage of Euro Touring Car or the JGTC or God know how many other racing series featuring sports cars. ESPN Speed Channel is so obsessed with NASCAR and F1. Not that both organizations haven't got a place on TV, but I wish there was more diversity.


I've taken to studying Grand Am's website instead. And then putting all the scheduled events into my cell phone organizer so I won't miss any racing this year. :D I'll be updating this thread, so those who watch Grand Am can have some discussion here.


First thing I noticed when studying the line-up yesterday. A driver named Jeff Altenburg (new Camaro GS-R) is from Ellicott City, which is 10 or 15 minutes from my home! So of course I was initially roooting for him. But no Camaros could even touch the front lines, all of which included Mustangs and BMWs. :indiff:

But it's a dream come true for Parnelli: watching our muscle cars compete alongside Europe and Japan. :dopey:
 
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Parnelli Bone
I don't normally watch the Speed Channel much,
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There lies the problem. They actually do air a good amount of other racing, they just don't hype it up like they do with NASCAR and F1.

* AMA Superbike
* AMA Supercross
* American Le Mans Series (some races shown on local channels)
* ARCA RE/MAX Series
* British Touring Car Championship (1 hour broadcasts in winter)
* FIM Superbike World Championship
* Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge
* Formula One (4 races per year on Fox)
* Formula D
* German Touring Car Championship (1 hour broadcasts in winter)
* GP2 Series
* IHRA
* Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series
* Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
* Monster Jam
* FIM MotoGP Series
* NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
* NASCAR Nationwide Series
* NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (Gatorade Duels at Daytona & Sprint All-Star Race)
* Porsche Racing Series
* Rolex Sports Car Series
* Star Mazda Series
* V8 Supercar Series (Australia)
* Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup
* World of Outlaws
 
Justin
There lies the problem. They actually do air a good amount of other racing, they just don't hype it up like they do with NASCAR and F1.

* AMA Superbike
* AMA Supercross
* American Le Mans Series (some races shown on local channels)
* ARCA RE/MAX Series
* British Touring Car Championship (1 hour broadcasts in winter)
* FIM Superbike World Championship
* Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge
* Formula One (4 races per year on Fox)
* Formula D
* German Touring Car Championship (1 hour broadcasts in winter)
* GP2 Series
* IHRA
* Lucas Oil Off Road Racing Series
* Lucas Oil Late Model Dirt Series
* Monster Jam
* FIM MotoGP Series
* NASCAR Camping World Truck Series
* NASCAR Nationwide Series
* NASCAR Sprint Cup Series (Gatorade Duels at Daytona & Sprint All-Star Race)
* Porsche Racing Series
* Rolex Sports Car Series
* Star Mazda Series
* V8 Supercar Series (Australia)
* Volkswagen Jetta TDI Cup
* World of Outlaws
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Ha haa! Yea, you're right. Unfortunately I'm not interested in about 80% of the above list, but some of the series you mentioned (V8 Supercar, for instance) I had no idea is on ESPN Speed. I'll keep an eye out for them.

I do like casually watching Formula D, F1, and a couple others mentioned, but don't follow them religiously. This thread is gonna be dedicated to following the Grand Am (Rolex Sports Car Series and Continental Sports Car Challenge), with perhaps some commentary on the AMLS as well.

I'm basically a n00b here, since as I mentioned I keep missing Grand Am year after year (except those times when I go "hey, it's Saturday! Wonder if there's a sports car race on!") So I'll be learning the names of various drivers and teams as I go. Bear with. :indiff:
 
I try to watch as much Grand Am as I can, but it's hard when the races are shown live, considering I'm all the way down here in Australia.
 
I like Grand-Am racing alot and watch the series pretty regularly on tv. Last year I sat in the pouring rain watching them run in NJ at Thunderbolt(amazingly my radio survived getting drenched for hours!). I plan to return again this year.👍
 
I watched it off and on the past couple seasons, This season I dove in head first and attend the rolex 24 in person.. Got the best of everything, rain, night, warm, cold, and great racing. Awesome, will attend again.
 
I went to the GP of miami. One of the continental tires drivers gave us 3 free garage suite passes so we got to walk the paddock. Go in the garages, met some drivers, walked through victory lane. If I had the smallest idea of that Id brought my camera but I was expecting seats all the way up the grandstands.

1 thing though. Those camaros sound like ****. Jesus and it gets 200 times worse when they go through the pits. It sounds like an elephant wanting to get out of its taco bell induced missery. Now the RX-8s sounded beutyfully down the straights. The Porsches downshifts are worth 1 grand each, just beutifull. Although they were loosing, they lost with style. The turner M6 also sounded a bit raspy but not even close to the camaro, the M6 was enjoyable. The corvettes were also decent. The DP cars are also very quiet except for 2 of them. The brumos porsche was beutifully loud and the other which I dont remember was just another loud V8. What surprised me was the acceleration on the start, not even nascar get out of that rolling start so fast. They would spin the tires down the first of the inside straights if they went too deep. It was a great sight and definetly I crossed it off my bucket list. I want to double check it though ;)

This is who gave us the tickets
http://www.kaylagrahamracing.com/ :drool:
 
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That BMW wreck at Homestead yesterday could have been a lot more brutal if it weren't for those sand filled barriers.
 
Yes, I follow the series.

I will be attending the races at Lime Rock during the Memorial Day weekend.
It should be a great weekend as last year we only had the Challenge series cars, GS one day and the ST another day.
It'll be great to have the DP and GT classes back again.
 
I follow the Rolex series, some great racing in there, more fun to watch IMO than American Le-Mans, but thats probably because of the chassis-engine configurations in the RSC than ALMS.
 
Anyone have any idea when the next Grand Am race will be aired on ESPN/Speed? Can't load the page on my computer today for some reason.

EDIT: never mind. I've got some info here...says the next Rolex sport car race is aired on April 10th (next Saturday) at 1:30 pm e.s.t. Next Grand Am race is the following Saturday (April 17th) but I'm not seeing a time.
 
I'm a big fan of the Rolex Grand Am Series.

I find that the racing is close and there's lots of passing involved. Starting on pole is no guarantee that you will win the race. Position changes are frequent.

I've been able to watch races at both VIR and Daytona in person, and I look forward to the race at Lime Rock this summer, since its my home track:), (a 2 hour, 30 minute drive).

Respectfully,
GTsail
 
Today's race at BMP was a good reason to watch this series.
What a great track.

It's too bad the Butler Porsche's (TRG) chose not to participate.
I mean, it was the Porsche 250
They have to make their point though.
 
01GTP
Today's race at BMP was a good reason to watch this series.
What a great track.

It's too bad the Butler Porsche's (TRG) chose not to participate.
I mean, it was the Porsche 250
They have to make their point though.
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Don't much care about the DP class, personally, but was really rooting for Russell's Corvette when he broke the RX-8's domination somewhere in the middle of the race. Got all bummed out when he lost it though. :( Had to stop watching, matter of fact. :guilty:

It's kinda like in Gran Turismo: I hate seeing one make blow away everyone else, prefer closer races. Looking forward to the Continental Tire challenge! No prototype class if I'm not mistaken...just GTs battling it out! :D

http://www.grand-am.com/schedule/event.cfm?series=k&eid=1503

It says the race starts at 5pm today, e.s.t.. Trying to see if ESPN's Speed channel corresponds to this, but as usual it's not loading correctly on my comp.

EDIT..never mind....Continental race isn't even listed at ESPN today. :mad: Bastards. It's listed for next Saturday at 3pm, though, so that's something to look forward to.
 
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01GTP
Today's race at BMP was a good reason to watch this series.
What a great track.

It's too bad the Butler Porsche's (TRG) chose not to participate.
I mean, it was the Porsche 250
They have to make their point though.
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I agree 01GTP, the Butler TR Group felt that the rules have given an un-fair advantage to the Mazda's so they did not field any of their Porsche's. Usually they have four or five. I thoroughly enjoyed the race anyway, right up to the point Gainsco blew their engine!:yuck: (I'm a big Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty fan).

I'm pretty sure that the Grand Am competition committe will change the rules somewhat before the next race since they have always tried to balance out the cars so that more than one make of car can compete. In the past, the Porsche's have dominated, now the tables have been turned. It will be interesting to see what they do to prevent future Mazda domination.

I like both classes, as there is usually close racing in both.

Off Topic: Just in case you want to watch more racing at the Barber Motorsports Park, the Indy Cars are racing there today at 3:30pm on Versus.

Respectfully,
GTsail
 
Parnelli Bone
...but was really rooting for Russell's Corvette when he broke the RX-8's domination somewhere in the middle of the race. Got all bummed out when he lost it though.
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lol, when he went off the track I was like, "NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

Those RX-8's sure look good in race gear, though.
 
GTsail290
I agree 01GTP, the Butler TR Group felt that the rules have given an un-fair advantage to the Mazda's so they did not field any of their Porsche's. Usually they have four or five. I thoroughly enjoyed the race anyway, right up to the point Gainsco blew their engine!:yuck: (I'm a big Alex Gurney and Jon Fogarty fan).

I'm pretty sure that the Grand Am competition committe will change the rules somewhat before the next race since they have always tried to balance out the cars so that more than one make of car can compete. In the past, the Porsche's have dominated, now the tables have been turned. It will be interesting to see what they do to prevent future Mazda domination.

I like both classes, as there is usually close racing in both.
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So what is it exactly that the RX-8 has that's giving such huge advantages this season? I've heard in the past, Mazda got declassified or banned from running 3 or 4-rotor engines in the LeMans series (sorry if that info is wrong, this is according to an avid Mazda fan I work with).


Shadow Wulf 2k
lol, when he went off the track I was like, "NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!"

Those RX-8's sure look good in race gear, though.
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Agreed. They look way better as racing cars than they do as pedestrian cars. RX-8s look slightly goofy to me as street cars, with their happy-smiley face grille. :)
 
http://www.theracersgroup.com/news/show.php?id=449
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 8, 2010
TRG MAINTAINS TOP-FIVE IN POINTS AFTER GRAND PRIX OF MIAMI

After a tough weekend for the team, TRG held their ground to survive both the GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series presented by Crown Royal Cask No. 16 as well as the Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge with top-10 finishes, keeping the team in the top-five points positions in both series.

Homestead-Miami speedway, featuring both a tight infield configuration in combination with a banked oval designed for NASCAR, was expected to be a difficult track for TRG’s Porsches and Porsches in general. In the Rolex Series, the series-spec Pirelli tire really rewards the tube-framed chassis such as the Mazdas, Camaros, and Corvettes. Driving in the No. 66 AXA Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car, drivers Ted Ballou and Andy Lally fought tire wear all race to bring the car home in a steady eighth place, finishing as the top Porsche and keeping the duo fifth in driver points, as well as placing TRG third in team points.

Although the race was incident free for the AXA Porsche, driver Andy Lally was disappointed with the challenge to keep the car competitive.

“We just couldn’t run the pace that the tube-frame cars could this weekend, it’s extremely frustrating to race like this,” stated Lally, a three-time series champion. “When I got in the car I did everything I could to keep us on the lead lap, but after only a few laps the rear tires just burned off, and we were just doing what we could to hold on.”



For Team Owner Kevin Buckler, all eyes are forward on the next steps for the team.

“We really wanted to show well for AXA this weekend, they’ve been such a big supporter and their commitment to our team and GRAND-AM couldn’t have been more evident than with their sponsoring of both programs,” stated Buckler. “It’s a shame we have a set of rules and tires that won’t let a Porsche compete. Porsche and TRG have been part of GRAND-AM since the beginning, but right now there’s just no way for these cars to compete. When you have two great drivers and a great team, execute flawlessly and get lapped by lesser drivers and finish eighth——something is horribly wrong with the rules. We have been saying it for a long long time but we are now at a crossroads and the other Porsche teams are looking to exit the series. We will run our brand where we can be competitive. I was, however, VERY happy to welcome Enrique to our team. He did a fantastic job and was a real pro. He will have a great future here at TRG.”
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I skipped some other news and hi-lited the comments about the reason RX-8's are doing well, besides the fact they're great cars.
 
Wow. Wonder what woulda happened if the Barber 200 wasn't finished under caution.

Anybody see the altercation interviews between Sarah Catteneo (Mini) and that Kia early in the race? Bad blood there....she apparently hit the Kia, got ahead of him, but the dude decided (purposely) to get her sideways!
 
Yeah, the mini deal didn't have to happen on lap 1.
I heard her interview, but I would imagine it didn't happen the way she explained, at least the part about a Rolex driver being beat by a girl in a Mini.
It looked like a mistake to me and not on the Mini's part.

I did enjoy the race and was glad to see so many different makes of cars in the race, except for the Kia's, as I own a Kia Sorento.
Kia to me equals crap.
 
01GTP
Yeah, the mini deal didn't have to happen on lap 1.
I heard her interview, but I would imagine it didn't happen the way she explained, at least the part about a Rolex driver being beat by a girl in a Mini.
It looked like a mistake to me and not on the Mini's part.
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The guy driving the Kia freely admitted to spinning her, though. He was claiming she punted him, basically. Then she got ahead of him so he spun her. Not sure if you heard his side of the story, but later on when he gave his interview, it definately sounded like bad blood. Sounds almost like something we'd read in the GT5P forum. :lol:

I did enjoy the race and was glad to see so many different makes of cars in the race, except for the Kia's, as I own a Kia Sorento.
Kia to me equals crap.
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Yea, agree Kia used to be crap...now it's hard to say. To quote what I've read in a few automotive mags, the Koreans have a habit of catching up fast. I have a hard time saying their new car (the Koup) isn't a force to be reckoned with when it did put up a great race.

But overall it was one of the best races I've seen in recent times, period, except the yellow-flag ending. My heart was pounding in anticipation, waiting to see what would happen when the leading Mustang, the 2nd-place Rousch Mustang, and the BMW would all go for it, since they were running a tight race before the caution. I have a feeling it woulda got a little ugly, perhaps.

The only thing that kinda sucks is the fact that ST also has alot of action going on, most of which gets missed because the camera is focussing on the GS class 80% of the time.

Oh, did you see the part where that 5th-place Subie (in GS) got off-track and then bounced its way back on like a kangaroo without a hitch? :lol: I was laughing at that point!
 

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