Einstein's debut marred by accidents and bad luck

Bad luck in qualifying and an extra stop after Einstein was hit by an overtaker under double yellow meant RPR Racing ended as last finisher on P11 in the CUP1 class at VLN#3 .

26 April 2014

VLN3 started with a rather strange, walking wounded feel: MC, however brave a face he was putting on it, was clearly still in some pain – watching him getting in and out of the car was more like watching an old man, compared with the way he sprung in and out of MEC at the last race; and Carsten had contracted tinocineritis during the week, so had had to admit himself to hospital for a quick operation on Thursday (sort of feels like a “minor contact”); and his right cheek was still pretty swollen up. Stoic doesn’t begin to describe the boys.

Coupled with that, the Nürburgring looked like a set from the Golden Compass, with a light golden dust covering everything. Whatever it was, it was making Einar sneeze like anything. He’d arrived the night before, having been unable to stand Mons for a moment longer, so was raring to go.

We had obviously offended someone since, as we assembled on Friday morning, although the car was in our traditional place in the second row, the truck had been banished to the outer reaches of the third row. We were all left wondering quite what we had done to offend the organisers, since our stickers were gleaming and new? This feeling was further compounded by then finding out that we had no garage either. Well, 13 may be an unlucky number for some, but its better than no garage at all isn’t it?

T&E

We all eventually found the truck, and the car even found its way there too. Carsten was promptly rechristened the Rattling Chipmunk for the weekend with the usual appropriate level of sympathy, although a couple of people turned rather green at the thought of consuming 2400mg of ibuprofen a day, but still being in pain; MC offered a cocktail of drugs from his “medical kit”, which no one quite dared to ask how he had sourced.

So, we stood around and admired Einstein, our new race car, the front of which was finished in a rather fetching shade of Kermit green (others have suggested less elegant names for the colour, but at least everyone agreed on two things: it was distinctive; and it needed to be refinished in proper RPR colours as soon as possible).

Our friends Dickie Meaden and Monkey Harris had joined for VLN 3, both having driven out in rather nice Aston Martin Vantage N430s – I guess you wouldn’t expect them to be in a Pious, would you? They were racing together in the Test Centre SP8 car, which would be at least one faster car not to worry about, as both are hugely experienced racers and both know the Ring well.

Its sort of becoming a tradition at RPR that we manage to squeeze a really late lap in somewhere. Well, this weekend that was extra important. When MC levered himself into Einstein’s race seat, there was a good 10cm of lateral movement at the shoulder level, which none of the drivers felt comfortable about. However, the stickers were just fantastic. The mechanics set about sorting this immediately, but somehow the runners from MEC didn’t just bolt into Einstein, so we lost almost all of the T&E session simply getting a seat in Einstein. With 12 minutes to go before the end of the session; and a curfew at 10 minutes, MC, who had been strapped in with odd pieces of foam protecting the most painful parts, followed Julius to the pit lane gate and squeaked out onto the track just in time. Unwilling to risk a warm up lap in case the chequered flag came down, he went straight out onto the Nordschleife, and shortly afterwards a slightly dejected Einar came on the radio saying “its over, pit lane closed”; but he cheered up no end when MC’s reply came back “thank you, am just out of Flugplatz”. It looked like it was a wise decision not to risk a second warm up lap.

Initial impressions were that Einstein was a lot stiffer than MEC; and that the turbo had a quicker response, so it was harder to stop the car understeering in corners as the power came on. It was a cautious lap on cold tyres and a sore driver, so to be treated with caution. However, it turned out that Einstein was on much stiffer damper settings than MEC had been, so they were backed off to where MEC had been all along.

T&E over, Carsten and MC, having done some obligatory paperwork of course, set off to talk to the VLN officials to try to understand how we had offended so mightily that we had no garage. Well, why did we even ask? Our paperwork was inadequate in some undefined way – you almost felt like we were about to be set lines as a punishment or something…..

Off, then to the drivers’ briefing, with high hopes that the VLN might actually take some of the threatened steps to improve safety in some way. Aside from a very softly softly comment about faster drivers being careful overtaking, which was most welcome, there was nothing; but we settled down to watch some films about double yellows; although we couldn’t help wondering if it might not be better to try and prevent the double yellows, rather than becoming experts in how to drive through them. The state of puzzlement increased further as we watched three videos of cars behaving perfectly in double yellows; but finally, like some bizarre fetish film, we ended on a loop of a Bonk Astra, er, bonking another Astra in a double yellow. Over and over again. We do still miss the 70s-style intervention video, but this was at least a replacement of comparable quality. Notwithstanding our having all signed into the briefing, we all queued up for our wristbands that no one would ever look at, and go slightly soggy in the shower.

Dinner in the Opel tent was excellent as usual – thank you to the Agnesenhof chefs – and as there wasn’t much data to analyse, we all drifted off relatively early for the night, chatting to friends, heading to hotels etc.; although we find early evidence of Capricorn’s much feted investment programme in the loos before we go.

Qualifying

Somehow, as we gathered for qualifying, to the wonderful soundtrack of the VLN paddock waking up (is there a better alarm clock anywhere in the world?), there was a slightly odd mood. We had a new, and pretty much still unknown car; Einar was in good form, but it wasn’t clear how many laps either MC or Carsten was going to be able to do, so we settled on sending Einar out on new rubber, followed by Carsten and finally MC.

Never a team to flinch from a last minute panic, as Einar was strapped in, we realized that the transponder wasn’t transponding (or whatever it is transponders do?). So, testing once more Einar’s capacity to sit motionless in a race car, Gert, Pascal and Annie set to with soldering irons and the like until the transponder was beaten into submission and worked. At this point, in a somewhat surreal way, more paperwork was required, so Einar had to sign a few documents in the car. Still, at least it distracted him from the clock ticking away.

20 minutes after the session started, Einar was chasing Julius through the paddock, the wrong way down the aisles, and onto the circuit. Happily, everyone in garage 13 mucked in and made (a little) space for us, so things started to feel a bit more normal at this point. Einar came back in with mixed news: he liked the feel of the car, although he wanted more rear wing, but had faced a plethora of double yellows on his lap, so had not been able to post a decent time at all. We talked through turn in, mid corner grip and the turbo as Carsten rolled round the GP circuit.

News of another big crash started to filter through to the pits. Dickie has had a nasty crash in Schweudenkreutz (his first in seven years), having gone up the inside of a 991 which moved to the right on entry, but tapped his rear right around the apex, seemingly unaware of the brown Aston right on his front wing. You do wonder where exactly some of these drivers are actually looking when they are driving? Its not like Dickie’s car has stealth paint on it (although maybe Aston will respray it in a brighter hue when it returns). Although the car hit the barriers on both sides of the track and didn’t come to rest until Aremberg, Dickie is fine, with his injuries limited to biting his tongue (literally, rather than figuratively) and a stiff neck, but the car will not race tomorrow. Inexperience strikes yet again.

Carsten liked the feel of the car a lot: our friend in car #32 barged past in a cloud of electronically-controlled oversteer through Hohe Acht, so he doesn’t seem to have learned very much; however forewarned is forearmed, and Carsten almost parked in the sauf guard, losing time in so doing; but the overall mood is improving as we settle into Einstein.

A swift pitstop, outside our borrowed garage space, and MC is on his way with a brief to complete two full Nordschliefe laps and come in. He has armed himself with padding and has finally been convinced to take some painkillers. The Nordschliefe looked like some Mardi Gras celebration, with yellows littering the circuit, so he wasn’t able to post a great time; although the car feels better with the damping backed off. What is clear from MC’s debrief is that Einstein’s damper settings are not the same as MEC’s, and some of the advice from Kissling on damper settings start to feel much more realistic. In true RPR style, we’ve just got time for one more lap, so tyres fresh from the warmers are slapped on and MC is sent out again.

Hello oversteer in the first left, hello understeer then oversteer in the next corner: guess the tyres hadn’t been in the warmers for very long, then? With cold tyres and two double yellows, not much is learned from our final quali lap. What with a new car, and some back luck with the yellows, we haven’t made a very good fist of qualifying and end up near the back of the pack, with MC having posted a 9.45, despite a double yellow. That’s what we like, British Steel.

MC disappeared straight after debriefing the team to check on Dickie, and to meet with Derrick Rowe, who is Stuart Leonard’s manager. A good discussion is held, in which Rowe accepts responsibility for the crash; and wants to talk about the commercial side with AMR. The crying shame here is that with the right approach, and a lot more humility, Aston could have a genuinely front-running car. A meeting with Leonard is promised for the following weekend, but it still seems like sorry is the hardest word.

Race

After our usual Chinese parliament on running order, we did not come up with our traditional order, but decided that Einar should start, MC needed to go second, as he had to disappear back to the UK; and Carsten would polish off. There’s always something special about waiting for the start at VLN races, with the enormous grids (over 200 for this race), the start groups, the familiar traditions on timing, cars being pushed through the start grid, others wap wapping their engines noisily as they drive through and, most importantly, the friendly words of encouragement to and from other competitors, which feels quite unique.

Having only had one single lap in Einstein, ET not only had to try and make up positions, he also needed to figure out how to get the best from the car. Off on the warm-up lap, waving to the marshals and crowd that waved back enthusiastically, and then the start. Cup cars go at very similar speeds down the start/finish straight, so the overtake action can really only happen in the corners. ET went for the outside line in corner 1 and swiftly had made up one position by getting ahead of #348, P14. Kurtzanbindung 3 wide, sudden braking ahead, double yellow, #348 slips by on the inside, back to P15. Elsewhere, the race had got off to a smashing start, with a Lexus and Porsche clattering into each other and the barriers on the GP circuit. Way to go boys, that’s always going to be the way to win a 4-hour race.

Around GP, down Hatzenbach, the field starts to stretch out, ET is on the tail of #348 they fly over Flugplatz and catch #354 who is not as quick through that section. #348 slips past on the outside on the crest before Schweudenkreutz, but the gap is closed as ET tries to follow through; moving to the inside, no, he's closing that gap too. Down to Aremberg #354 stays on the outside and a classic out-brake passing on the inside gets ET through, P14. Through Beetle curve there is a massive cloud of dust and double yellows are being thrown up, but there is nothing on the track so the chase continues. Lap 1 ends with bumper to bumper slipstreaming #348 for the full length of Dottinger Hohe, but it generates no overtaking opportunity, hmmm.

Out of Hohenrein Schikane, #361 has a bad exit and #348 pulls away on the start/finish straight with ET in tow; around corner 1 on the outside line and through Mercedes Arena the job is done, P13. #348 slips past a Cup5 BMW but ET is forced to take a wide line through Kurtzanbindung, #361 goes for the inside but is not turning in sharp enough so a slight contact is made, but no change in positions. ET gets past the BMW down towards Hatzenbachbogen, eases up to #348, #342 and #363 who is leading the train towards Schwedenkreutz when an LFA comes flying from behind. #342 slips past #363 in the wake of the LFA and is gone, leaving #348 and ET with the challenge of getting past #363. Across Metzgesfeld #361 has gone past the BMW and is joining the pack as #363 is slowing the group of Astras down. Through Beetle curve they catch up with a slower car and as ET recognises the car left at the barriers from the lap 1 accident as #344 and thinks P12, #361 takes advantage of the congestion and squeezes past, P13, oh well.

Coming onto Dottinger Hohe again, the four cars are very close together, sometimes three wide, going in pairs of two towards the Antoniusbuche with #363 having the inside lead and ET on his bumper, and then he brakes! #348 and #361 slip past on the outside whereas ET is stuck, bummer! More braking through Tiergarten and Hohenrein Schikane and #348 and #361 are pulling away. #363 becomes the widest Astra ever produced, but at Metzgesfeld 2 ET makes a surprise move to the inside and gets through, P12.

There is now some distance to the two Astras ahead, so in laps 3 and 4 ET gets the hammer down and records a 9:36. In lap 5 the Seat accident in Wehrseifen causes double yellows and the fastest cars are now starting to appear from behind. ET has now caught up with #348 and #361 who are separated by an Audi TT. Gerd comes on the radio with the message "You are P11, 3 laps to go" and the response from ET is "P10 and P9 in my sights, all OK!". Up Kesselchen, the three cars are very close, through Karussell and towards Hohe Acht, the Audi squeezes past #361 who gets a bad entry to Hohe Acht, #348 has better speed and is aiming for the classic inside overtake, but #361 turns in - contact! #361 is pushed around and into the barriers whereas #348 manages to continue, but ET is able to exploit the situation and is suddenly ahead, P9!

In the remaining 2.5 laps ET pulls away from #348 and in lap 8 the double yellow in Wehrseifen is gone, so the laptime drops 20s again, but it is time to pit and hand over to MC. Very happy to have advanced from P15 to P9, ET receives even better news from the team, we are now P8!

MC straps in, fuelled up and heads down the pitlane, suitably armed with foam padding and pain killers, straight into a pile of double yellows, firstly with a GT86 in Tiergarten, who looks to have been over ambitious on corner entry speed, resulting in an inopportune corner exit into the barriers. No one’s hurt though, so we all plough on though a lap with two more double yellows. The management clearly wants to make sure we get plenty of practice after our videos in the drivers’ briefing.

The Police M235i, however, seemed somewhat over-inspired by the Bonking Astras video in the briefing and wastes no time in overtaking and side swiping Einstein in full view of the double yellow after Hocheichen; having passed a single yellow. Way to go boys, no time to waste; and he scorches off at steady 60 in the double yellow zone. 60 mph, that is.

The drivers’ side mirror has been knocked forwards leaving no view that side, but free of the double yellows, MC presses on. Woooaahhh, that’s the barrier getting mighty close after the compression in Fuchsrohre: we are in understeer central. Has Einstein picked up a puncture, or has the tracking been knocked out? MC calls in firstly to report the Police (feels slightly ironic, doesn’t it?); but also for a contact check. He’s coming in.

We didn’t cover ourselves in glory in the pitstop. New boots are fitted, although the old set appear to be fully up to pressure. Einstein is also refueled, but the team is slow getting fuelling started, and it seems to take an age coming off the jacks. Gert signals MC out, but the fuel flap isn’t closed, so he has to pause again. Precious time bleeds away; then MC is heading down the pitlane again.

Straight into another set of double yellows. A Z4 GT3 has had a coming together with a GT86 in Flugplatz. Not clear what happened at this stage, but there’s debris covering the track, and only a very narrow line through it. There are a lot of marshalls and medics on the scene; and MC tags onto the back of #360, the Kissling Astra leaving the double yellow zone. Its tough sticking with him, although MC bravely does so, as the understeer is prevalent everywhere. Corner entry, apex, and worse as soon as you breathe on the throttle. The Police contact must have knocked the geo out slightly.

Lap times are in the ten minute zone for much of the middle of MC’s stint with yellows and double yellows seemingly everywhere, so its impossible to get into any kind of a rhythm and a clear lap feels like a chimaera today. There’s a bad smash in Bergwerk, MC radios in: he thinks its our sister car #537, the GT-86 driven by Dom Solembrino. From driving past, he doesn’t think the car is repairable as even with a cursory look see, there is a kink in the roof panel, and both the front and rear ends have sustained major impacts.

Later, we find out that the Frikadelli Cayman’s brakes had failed and Dom wasn’t able to get out of the way quickly enough. Dom passed out briefly and has been taken to the medical centre. Understandably, the double yellows remain for the rest of the stint; and stretch further and further up towards Kesselchen as the vehicles are towed to the nearest sauf garde and the debris is cleared.

It’s a sore and frustrated MC that comes down the pit lane after 8 laps of understeer and double yellows. The team are well prepared for the car, but the unusual driver line up takes everyone by surprise, so the seat cushions aren’t ready. Much shouting and running around and Carsten is comfy again. He’s managed to get his helmet on over his chipmunk cheek and is feeling much stronger. As he runs down the pit lane, MC and ET debrief on the stint.

MC is pretty sore and sweaty: Einstein needs a window to keep temperatures down. He dismisses any concern for his well being, but complains about the understeer throughout the session after the Police contact. Couldn’t hold flat in many places where it was easy before, but the team confirm that the tyres that came off were also fine. Full geo check before the next race needed, then. In true British Steel style, MC needs to leave before the end of the race to get back for a friend’s stag night.

While’s Carsten’s stint on track is relatively peaceful, although plagued with the same understeer that MC was complaining about, the race was full of action. While MC was changing back at the truck, the B Racing 458 explodes during refueling in front of our garage. Two mechanics are badly hurt and a few others: it’s a miracle that no spectators were badly hurt, but luckily not.

Then our friend in #32, clearly not happy with having skittled a couple of cars in the NGK chicane earlier in the race, rams the Frikadelli TT-RS on Dottinge Hohe in full view of the television cameras at the end of the straight. This time Leonard is summonsed to the Clerk’s offce. Two hours in the Clerk of the Course’s office leads to a no fault verdict. An Audi R8, which isn’t fully visible in the long-range shot from the end of the straight squeezed Leonard to the right; and although the Falcon Porsche made the gap, he wasn’t able to and tagged the back of the TT-RS. 4 contacts in three races; keep it up, lad.

Despite some spirited driving from Carsten, although he struggles with understeer the entire stint as well, we end last in class. Frustratingly, adding back the time lost with the contact check, we would have been 4th or 5th in class. We reported the Police to the clerk and followed up with video evidence, but its not going to get the time back: that’s racing I guess.

So, from a weekend to forget in VLN2 to an unforgettable weekend in VLN3, sadly, not because of the result. On the bright side, Einstein’s a go go, and we’ll be back after a rest in a few weeks for VLN4 hopefully in rather better physical shape all round.

Thanks to all track-side photographers for great pictures; watermarks are preserved for identification and rights protection.