Michele Abbate's SCCA Western Conference Majors Win

[2016 Camaro SS]

Surprised the Mustang didn't break down halfway through the race...


Regardless, congrats on your win. I got a chance to watch the video at work and man I wish I could drive like you. I think Forza and Grand Turismo is about as close as most of us get to being actual racecar drivers, lol.

[cycleboy]

Originally Posted by billyk

While I have owned a few performance sedans in my time and am infatuated with my FRS (at 60 years old no less), I have never attended a race, nor have I watched one on TV all the way through.

If you ever have a chance to see racing in person, you should! It's totally different than on TV. Much louder, much faster, much more exciting.

That track looks like lots of fun!

Congratulations Michele on the win!

[Ultramaroon]

Originally Posted by MicheleAbbate

Thanks for that. I'm an avid believe of "never give up" and this race proves exactly that. Just before I came onto the front straight i radioed my crew cheif and said "hey" he said "what" and I responded "we NEVER ****ing quit!" Haha it was so awesome thanks for sharing the experience.

You're a goddamn WARRIOR, Michele! From now on, I'm looking at pics of your stickers to decide who gets my business. That's gotta be the next best thing to throwing money at you, right? #99percenter

[extrashaky]

Here's a question for you track folks. I have ZERO track experience, so I'm looking for some education here.

Watching that race, it seemed to me that the driver of the Mustang was taking really weird lines into the corners. Michele had a more capable car in the turns to be sure, but she also entered them from the outside of the straights and positioned herself to blast right through them on the inside of the turns to come out of them at a higher speed. That other driver seemed to run right up to the turn and then stand on the brakes to lose enough speed to make it through, then stand on the gas to get the car moving again.

So how much of that is adapting the line to the car, and how much of it is just Michele being a much better driver? Or put another way, was that car really that bad in the turns, or was he just not a good driver in the turns?

[MicheleAbbate]

Originally Posted by Ultramaroon

You're a goddamn WARRIOR, Michele! From now on, I'm looking at pics of your stickers to decide who gets my business. That's gotta be the next best thing to throwing money at you, right? #99percenter

Thank you, I really do appreciate that because without them, there is no way I would be able to do this. They are each true partners and without their product and support we wouldn't be where we are today.

[MicheleAbbate]

Originally Posted by extrashaky

Here's a question for you track folks. I have ZERO track experience, so I'm looking for some education here.

Watching that race, it seemed to me that the driver of the Mustang was taking really weird lines into the corners. Michele had a more capable car in the turns to be sure, but she also entered them from the outside of the straights and positioned herself to blast right through them on the inside of the turns to come out of them at a higher speed. That other driver seemed to run right up to the turn and then stand on the brakes to lose enough speed to make it through, then stand on the gas to get the car moving again.

So how much of that is adapting the line to the car, and how much of it is just Michele being a much better driver? Or put another way, was that car really that bad in the turns, or was he just not a good driver in the turns?

There are a few angles to the answer of that questions. #1 - based on Sunday's race (which you can also watch on the racecast.me site), the mustang was driving whatever line he could to make his car as wide as possible. Monday's race, he gave me just a little more room than Sunday... with that being said - his car did not handle nearly as well as mine. I think that it was a combination of all of the above - driving the wrong line to be wide, plus being extremely defensive by blocking, not the smoothest driver, and also, having a poor handling car. You can see from our rear facing camera, as I pull out of the exit of each of the tight turns, the mustang washes out and has a lot of body roll on entrance and exit. This is what suspension set up is all about, sway bars, bushings, bracing, alignment, etc. This is where our cars are unbeatable (they are even fairly competitive in stock form). Here is another video from a previous race at thunderhill that shows that power (bmw m3) does not always win on the track:

(granted i was a little less aggressive here thank I was with the mustang because the m3 driver was a bit more respectable. The intent is to race, not make contact, so I would come off the throttle to avoid touching.)

Race car set up paired with a good driver, is what wins races. We are kind of at a disadvantage as we have no one to really turn to for set up advice, so to be able to dial in our chassis to where it is now, without any previous data (besides last years' events) it's pretty humbling I am excited to be paving the road for the frs chassis with respectable drivers like the Pedder's team in Australia and Tony Rivera in world challenge. I firmly believe in a handful of years the FRS will be the new spec miata.

[superpenguin]

Originally Posted by MicheleAbbate

I firmly believe in a handful of years the FRS will be the new spec miata.

Have you told JRonq that?

[zooki]

Is that a GT or a V6 Mustang you're racing against?

[cycleboy]

Originally Posted by MicheleAbbate

I firmly believe in a handful of years the FRS will be the new spec miata.

That'd be really cool as 1) I'd like to see an 86 race every year at Laguna instead of Miatas and 2) mine could be retired from commuting duty by then and turned into a racer! (Though the human inside would need a lot of mods to compete.)

[FRSapex]

very Fernando Alonso-esque performance - bravo

[billyk]

Just watched the race a second time.

Didn't think I'd find watching racing to be so engaging and downright hypnotizing. It helps that it's an FRS, so that's a direct connection for me. Having a dashcam perspective makes it a much more personal experience, and one that allows me to clearly see the difference between my driving skills and Michele's.

Coming back from behind on a couple of occasions really highlights her never-give-up attitude. Major chutzpah.

When's the next race??

[Cal3000]

Originally Posted by zooki

Is that a GT or a V6 Mustang you're racing against?

I think it is a V6

[5thGenOwner]

That was absolutely intense. Bravo! Some amazing driving and well deserved win, done in style. That track looked like it was made for the twins, too. Does it get any better? Are you still wearing the grin?

[MicheleAbbate]

Originally Posted by billyk

Just watched the race a second time.

Didn't think I'd find watching racing to be so engaging and downright hypnotizing. It helps that it's an FRS, so that's a direct connection for me. Having a dashcam perspective makes it a much more personal experience, and one that allows me to clearly see the difference between my driving skills and Michele's.

Coming back from behind on a couple of occasions really highlights her never-give-up attitude. Major chutzpah.

When's the next race??

Thanks a lot next race in the FRS is the championship race at Portland International Raceway 4th of July weekend! Can't wait!!

Next race in general is at Irwindale in the NASCAR stock car roundy rounds (I have a lot more to learn with circle track)