Lots of good drivers, get to race, in the endurance races, even though they are not in it, for the full season. We are going to go around under the safety car, because of all this rain. The factory Porsche GT teams have had radio problems, with the rain, and the nature of Road Atlanta, being in a valley. The yellow flag is a blessing and a curse. When the yellows come, the water can't be dissipated at low speed, even though the drivers get to race. Race Director Beaux Barfield, and his assistant, (former driver, Johnny Unser), are out on the road, checking the conditions. Road Atlanta drains well. But, with a high water table, there's nowhere for the rain to go.
We see the #22 Alex Job Racing WeatherTech Porsche 911 GT America, in GT Daytona, pitting. Andrew Davis is getting into the car, and we will be set to go back to green on this lap. Driving slowly, visibility gets worse. There's not enough airflow through the car, to defog the windscreen. We are ready, to go back to green flag racing! Dane Cameron is your race leader at this moment. Where are the puddles? Where are the rivulets of water? Oh dear! The #17 Porsche, spins! Whoa! He almost gets T boned by another car flying by on the straightaway! Wolf Henzler is a very lucky chap indeed, to escape that mess.
His crew chief comes on the radio saying, "good job, Wolf! You missed everyone!" You can open your eyes now. When you go to racing school, your instructor will always say, "look where you want the car to go." Well, that's good advice, especially if you spin a car, in the same fashion as Henzler did. Oh dear me! Another spin. It's the #90 car! Michael Valiante has buried the front splitter of his Corvette Prototype in the red Georgia clay. Valiante faces the same problem, as Wolf Henzler. He can't back up, because there are race cars, booking it, at full speed, down that straightaway.
We are two hours, and 17 minutes, into this race. Don't panic. But, it's still precarious. Keep it on the asphalt, and watch out for other cars around you. Valiante is having a hard time, finding reverse. We are under another full course yellow flag, and the pits are closed. Phew! Valiante has it started again. This will be a short full course yellow. Don't get mud in your radiator. If it heats up, it will gum up the radiators and causing major overheating problems. Valiante will have to catch up to the pack.
The rain is falling a little more. It's moderate rain, and not a thunderstorm. However, there is no wind to evaporate the water, which hangs in the air, as mist in the valley. Oswaldo Negri Jr. thinks the race should be put under full course yellow, behind the safety car, or, under a red flag. The drainage of the water, is what is being looked at as it runs down the edge of the race track. IMSA Race Director, Beaux Barfield, and other marshals, are looking at the track conditions, very seriously right now.
The marshals are trying to dig a ditch, to get the water to run through the grass, and off the racing surface. You've got people, who have driven race cars, before, doing this kind of work. Beaux Barfield, Johnny Unser, and up in race control, the decorated veteran driver, Elliott Forbes-Robinson. We're going to go racing again. There is zero control, with all the water. Aerodynamic vents on the Prototype cars, are to keep them from blowing over. But, the spray comes out of the top of those vents, and it's just like running an open wheel car, like a Formula 1 car or an Indycar.
Car #90 continues to run. So, he could be OK. VisitFlorida.com Racing has to finish third or better, in order to win the championship. The temperatures are looking good. Maybe they dodged a bullet. The conditions are cool as well. Dane Cameron and Eric Curran lead the points, and if the race ended now, they'd be champs. The safety crews are digging a trench to try and get the water out. But, it is like a bathtub, because if you sweep water from one side of a bathtub to another, it will still get there. There's no chance for it to drain away.
We watch a pit stop, for the ViperExchange.com SRT Viper, which we saw off the road, earlier. Check that. This is the team car, #93. Sharing the driving chores are Cameron Lawrence, Marc Goossens, and Al Carter. Goossens leads GT Daytona and gets fuel. He came in during a closed pit period. They may be fixing the car. There could be a problem with the electronics in the paddle shifter. Everything seems to be OK. The team did replace a part.
The cleanup crews are back to work, cleaning up the standing water, and putting the jet dryers out. The cars don't move as much water off the road, when they are moving slowly. Mike Rockenfeller has taken over the #90 car. The #007 GT Daytona Aston Martin V12 Vantage pits, with Kuno Wittmer at the wheel. The #93 car has had emergency service, which was explained earlier. Sebastien Bourdais has taken over the #5 Action Express Corvette Prototype.
We are back to green. There is a puddle on driver's left. Watch out for it. That is the normal line. So, it's scary. In the rain, you want to run a higher line. Another dangerous spot is in the downhill, in the esses. Water runs downhill. Oh no! Speaking of downhill, the #90 car has another spin! Same corner as the one we saw before. Mike Rockenfeller has gotten caught out at turn 12. At the same time, the Deltawing, has also looped it, in turn 11, down towards the start/finish line. Mike Rockenfeller, (because he does not normally drive a Corvette Prototype), is having problems, getting the car, into reverse.
He has found reverse, and creeps the car out of the grass. He should be OK as long as no cars are coming. Ooh! The #31 Corvette Prototype, speeds by! Rockenfeller goes down a lap, tries to recover, and spins backwards, back into the grass! Ugh! One of the best sports car drivers in the business, Mike Rockenfeller has his hands full, right now. He's stuck. Meanwhile, problems for the #88 Prototype Challenge racer in the hands of John Falb. Falb has solidly hit the wall, and the left front of the car, is definitely askew. When the cars begin to fly off the road, sometimes you just can't go slow enough.
When you hit a puddle at high speed, you have no chance to catch it, and then, the car goes through the series of rivers, and cannot be brought back. The #88 car, slides off, at a dip in the road, and hits the wall, a ton! Prototype Challenge cars, don't have traction control. So, if he mashes the gas, he's got 400+ horsepower from a small block Chevrolet V8 under his right foot, and if he lights the tires up, the rear end is gone, and ker-rash! He's into the wall. Mike Rockenfeller, is gesturing with his hands, howling in agony over the radio, because he can't get anyplace!
Dane Cameron continues to lead overall. Rockenfeller is back up and running, with no damage. Car setup plays into this. Why is one bloke flying off the road, while another isn't? Subtleties in suspension setup, can make a huge difference. Pit lane is closed. Car #90 is dealing with a vibration, which could be a clump of mud inside a wheel. This yellow flag is going to take a long time.
The Deltawing had to have a tire replaced. These cars, can't deal with the amount of water, coming through the downhill at turn twelve. In defense of the race marshals, they are doing what they can, to get this race in. In hindsight, going back to green, was likely, the wrong move. If we stopped now, it would be tough, too. So, race control, is going to have to mull over a very difficult decision. There is no sun to dry the track, and the ambient temperature is cold, so, the rain won't evaporate. Pit lane is open, for Prototypes.
When you race in the rain, it's better to look for grip, around the outside. But, the outside of turn 12, has standing water, in it. The marshals have put sandbags down to direct the water flow in turn five. The pits are open, for service, for the Prototypes. Mike Rockenfeller was hearing a noise, in the car, on some of the corners. The turf and mud is also being cleaned out of the car. It is odd, that the team would not pull the front wheels off the car, not so much to change tires, but to see about debris, causing a vibration, and clean it out.
The right front tire bounced over a metal grate during the spin. The #3 Corvette, is in the pit lane. The rain is tapering off. But, the track itself, is still wet. It's a high risk situation, bringing heavy equipment, like the jet dryers, onto the track. The #3 Corvette has a flat tire, and has to come back to pit lane, for repairs. Jan Magnussen is at the wheel, seventh in class in GT Le Mans. He needs to stay on the same lap as the GTLM class leader.
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