National Staff Greg G. Posted January 5, 2012 National Staff Posted January 5, 2012 i find the mixing of corvettes(st2 poster car) and mustangs in st2 to be increasingly interested.it goes hard against what nasa national wants out of that class. What does NASA national "want" out of the class? NASA has foundational lifestyle, marketing groups with which they have so well built their product. GTS3/4 cars are for the BMW lover. ST2 is for the Corvette racer. American Iron is for the pony car enthusiast. Put all those cars on similar tire and setup rules and they all run similar lap times. The NASA model though is to grow them seperately. I am not saying its bad by any means. I wonder what kind of racing we would have if like performing cars all ran in the same class. Sorry Rob, but you are 100% wrong. ST2 was built for any production car, period! We already had a loser Corvette/Viper series that failed, and we developed this series to not only replace it, but to bring in a variety of other Marques that would allow for better racing with larger classes. I suppose there are some regions where Corvette's dominate ST2, but there are others where ST2 is full of Porsche's and BMW's, and Factory Fives, etc. It is actually the competitors that have "driven" the GTS classes and AI classes popularity. When we tried to start consolidating the GTS cars into ST and SU there was a pretty huge push-back from them. The same goes for AI--it has a huge following in some regions, where some other regions have seen a decline with some unhappy drivers. The problem with them coming into ST is that they have modified their cars in ways that we do not want in ST, but they are 100% welcome in STR, which will definitely be growing in the future as we move the tube-frame cars that had ST approval into STR where they belong. Some of you may not know this, but in Arizona, they have tried folding everyone into either PT or ST for a few years now. And, there are some drivers that just prefer the spec classes. They have been pretty successful at having the cars basically double classed, but ultimately, one has to prep a car for PT/ST or prep the car for the spec class. So, those prepped for the spec class are not really competitive with the cars prepped for PT/ST. Quote
Varkwso Posted January 6, 2012 Posted January 6, 2012 ok....i am usually wrong. You must be married... Quote
jrgordonsenior Posted January 6, 2012 Posted January 6, 2012 STR which will definitely be growing in the future as we move the tube-frame cars that had ST approval into STR where they belong. Greg I have mixed emotions about that move. While I agree that making the tube framed cars run STR is healthy for the future of the ST classes, here in So Cal we most likely now won't have enough cars to qualify for the Yokohama or Goodyear contingencies. So perhaps it's Hoosiers for 2012, or maybe I'll run TTS where the fields are larger.... Quote
National Staff Greg G. Posted January 6, 2012 National Staff Posted January 6, 2012 Yep, its time to get the STR classes going, and the way to do it is to take the cars that belong there and have them run there. As well, we kept getting requests for more and more changes to those tube-frame cars that were approved for ST under somewhat of a spec class type set of rules, and it is just better to let them do what they want in the correct class that does not require our review or approval. Now, you are free to go run with them in STR2 if you want, because the ST cars are legal in STR, just not the other way around. In fact, with the changes that they will be making, they may actually be able to compete with you. I'm guessing that you still drive for fun and competition, and not just tires, right? Actually, I've been trying to get a deal where I can come and race with you guys in ST2 this year, but without being the owner of the car, I'm not going to race it without some specifics in the rental arrangement. Quote
jrgordonsenior Posted January 6, 2012 Posted January 6, 2012 Yep, its time to get the STR classes going, and the way to do it is to take the cars that belong there and have them run there. As well, we kept getting requests for more and more changes to those tube-frame cars that were approved for ST under somewhat of a spec class type set of rules, and it is just better to let them do what they want in the correct class that does not require our review or approval. Now, you are free to go run with them in STR2 if you want, because the ST cars are legal in STR, just not the other way around. In fact, with the changes that they will be making, they may actually be able to compete with you. I'm guessing that you still drive for fun and competition, and not just tires, right? Oooh didn't know we could run STR2, forwarding to Issac and Scott now. Agree that the Mazda GT's are competitive when they're on decent tires. Josh proved that in 2010 on Hoosiers, and Thorpe, Thor, and JVC at the end of this year on Hankooks. Thanks for that tip.... As for me.... tire contingencies are a stong motivator but winning will always be the biggest motivator I know. Wish that ST2 Mustang had been at Miller.... Quote
jrgordonsenior Posted January 6, 2012 Posted January 6, 2012 Actually, I've been trying to get a deal where I can come and race with you guys in ST2 this year, but without being the owner of the car, I'm not going to race it without some specifics in the rental arrangement. I remember talking to you about this at the last race. I hope you can work it out and come play with us. Issac and Scott have new motors, Billy Bass has promised to come down and play occasionally when he's not too busy beating up ST1 Vettes, and I'm always pushing the class on my unsuspecting POC brothers. Porsches fit well in the ST classes and it's much more fun to race against different marques..... Quote
Varkwso Posted January 6, 2012 Posted January 6, 2012 ......but without being the owner of the car, I'm not going to race it without some specifics in the rental arrangement. You bend it you fix it, even when it is not your fault. First hand experience. Quote
drivinhardz06 Posted January 6, 2012 Posted January 6, 2012 But I know of no actual C6 Z06 (aluminium framed) racing in ST2. a no cage C6Z could be the perfect TTS car from a ground up build, if somebody wanted to drive a no cage C6Z.... Quote
beretta Posted January 6, 2012 Posted January 6, 2012 ok....i am usually wrong. You must be married... Quote
Varkwso Posted January 6, 2012 Posted January 6, 2012 But I know of no actual C6 Z06 (aluminium framed) racing in ST2. a no cage C6Z could be the perfect TTS car from a ground up build, if somebody wanted to drive a no cage C6Z.... I am willing, any sponsors? Quote
petemac Posted January 7, 2012 Posted January 7, 2012 Hey Guys, I have seen a few vettes running in enduros. They do eat through fuel, but compared to Evo's and STI's (a few of ths ST cars you will see running too) they are pretty good. In my car we run a restricted LS3 to get the power down to the 320ish range. David runs a C5 with a LS7 in it. To get his power to 370ish the cam had to be changed and the motor was plated. Speaking of class consolidation, I think that if an inter-regional series does take place it should be run in that manor. Forget about ST, AI, and GTS, use the NASA Endurance classification. This will make for some super competitive races and large fields for every class. Get everyone together at the premier tracks and let them go at it !!! Just my two cents Quote
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