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    WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    I'm hoping to go to the WEC race in Austin, Texas on September 15 and 16.  Probably my last time to see, and hear, the 919's. Anybody been, or planning to go? Does anyone know if Porsche is offering a hospitality package?


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    I'm still in mourning over the decision taken. In my mind Porsche is synonymous with sportscar racing. Seeing it reject it's natural home seems to me so abnormal (I'm a traditionalist) and almost ungrateful. Sportscar racing played such a big role in the Porsche mystique. To see them kick it in the teeth  hurts my soul.

    I know they will continue with the RSR program, but for me it just doesn't cut it. I have so many issues with that program, but I don't want to bore anyone with my ranting.

    I'm still contemplating whether I'll watch anymore of the WEC season. It's not a protest. It's almost a lack of interest and pain avoidance.

    As for FE: Waste of time and money


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    For those that want to listen to a retrospective of the Porsche LMP1 program:

    http://www.radiolemans.co/2017/08/02/porsche-in-the-wec-a-retrospective/


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Spyderidol:

    I'm still in mourning over the decision taken. In my mind Porsche is synonymous with sportscar racing. Seeing it reject it's natural home seems to me so abnormal (I'm a traditionalist) and almost ungrateful. Sportscar racing played such a big role in the Porsche mystique. To see them kick it in the teeth  hurts my soul.

    As for FE: Waste of time and money

     

    100% my feelings...SmileySmileySmiley

    Blueflame


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    I suspect there is a lot of truth in this article: http://www.automobilemag.com/news/are-porsches-formula-1-aspirations-really-to-blame-for-lmp1-withdrawal/

    Lets see if they don't get their ass kicked.


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Spyderidol:

    . I have so many issues with that program, but I don't want to bore anyone with my ranting.

     

    It is always interesting to read your knowledgeable post about racing . I have learned a lot from you . Keep ranting Smiley


    --

     964 Carrera 4 --  997.2 C2S , -20mm --  991 GT3 RS 


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Gnil:
    Spyderidol:

    . I have so many issues with that program, but I don't want to bore anyone with my ranting.

     

    It is always interesting to read your knowledgeable post about racing . I have learned a lot from you . Keep ranting Smiley

    You are very kind! Thank you. I cannot tell you how it pleases me to learn that I may have helped someone further enjoy the sport that I love. You have made my day.Smiley

     


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Spyderidol:
    Gnil:
    Spyderidol:

    . I have so many issues with that program, but I don't want to bore anyone with my ranting.

     

    It is always interesting to read your knowledgeable post about racing . I have learned a lot from you . Keep ranting Smiley

    You are very kind! Thank you. I cannot tell you how it pleases me to learn that I may have helped someone further enjoy the sport that I love. You have made my day.Smiley

     

    Smiley As you are form Mozambique , do you know anything about Anantara Bazaruto Island Resort ? We are looking into it , but I find the prices pretty steep for what it seems to be . 


    --

     964 Carrera 4 --  997.2 C2S , -20mm --  991 GT3 RS 


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    I love the Bazaruto Islands! My favorite place in Mozambique.

    I don't know that particular resort. So much has changed since I was last there...except for the very high prices.

    I would choose Benguerra Island over Bazaruto island. It's smaller and just beautiful. They are both part of a 5 island archipelago 

    Also - It is a magnificent place to go to if you want to relax. If you need night life and shopping, then it is definitely not a place to go.

     


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Spyderidol:

    I love the Bazaruto Islands! My favorite place in Mozambique.

    I don't know that particular resort. So much has changed since I was last there...except for the very high prices.

    I would choose Benguerra Island over Bazaruto island. It's smaller and just beautiful. They are both part of a 5 island archipelago 

    Also - It is a magnificent place to go to if you want to relax. If you need night life and shopping, then it is definitely not a place to go.

     

    Thanks . I was on honey moon at Benguerra . It was just perfect for it , we had a wonderful bungalow far from any neighbor Smiley The diving was good also . Only downside , my wife came back with malaria . 


    --

     964 Carrera 4 --  997.2 C2S , -20mm --  991 GT3 RS 


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Spyderidol, I second Gnil's emotion; I always enjoyed your posts, alsways giving me new insights into the sometimes overwhelming world of WEC!


    --


    Porsche, separates Le Mans from Le Boys


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Thank you kindly Joost! I feel like its Christmas!wink


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    I suspect that soon it will be I that will be learning from all you F1 fans.kiss


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Gnil:
    Spyderidol:

    I love the Bazaruto Islands! My favorite place in Mozambique.

    I don't know that particular resort. So much has changed since I was last there...except for the very high prices.

    I would choose Benguerra Island over Bazaruto island. It's smaller and just beautiful. They are both part of a 5 island archipelago 

    Also - It is a magnificent place to go to if you want to relax. If you need night life and shopping, then it is definitely not a place to go.

     

    Thanks . I was on honey moon at Benguerra . It was just perfect for it , we had a wonderful bungalow far from any neighbor Smiley The diving was good also . Only downside , my wife came back with malaria . 

    A great place for a honeymoon...or a romantic vacation. Smiley

    Sorry to hear about your wife catching malaria. My wife and I have lived in Mozambique for 17 years and have been fortunate enough never to have caught it. Funnily enough, despite the deplorable health facilities, it is one of the best places to be treated for it, as it is so common that it is easily recognized. Often , when tourists get malaria and return to Europe, doctors are slow to recognize the symptoms and by the time it is diagnosed, it is quite far advanced.


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

     As a long term Porsche racing enthusiast, I'm somewhat disappointed about the decision to leave WEC. But I'm also intrigued by the new venture into formula E. Makes both engineering and marketing  sense.  I will get a better impression of Formula E when I go to the New York race this fall. I will also enjoy the sound and fury of the 919s in Austin.

    I'm extremely skeptical about Porsche and Formula 1. Porsche's brand is engineering which endures over long term racing conditions. Formula 1, even though I'm a fan, stresses flashy speed, sprint type races, and depends as much on driver personalities/celebrity as on the cars/manufacturers themselves.  Besides the fact that Porsche will undoubtedly get its butt kicked for several years before anything amounting to success might result.


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Joost:

    Spyderidol, I second Gnil's emotion; I always enjoyed your posts, alsways giving me new insights into the sometimes overwhelming world of WEC!

    x3 Smiley


    --

    ⇒ Carlos - Porsche 991 Carrera GTS


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Spyderidol:
    Often , when tourists get malaria and return to Europe, doctors are slow to recognize the symptoms and by the time it is diagnosed, it is quite far advanced.

    That was the case with my wife . She is South African but did not realize she had malaria . Thought it was a cold , until a friend of mine pointed out that it was probably a tropical disease . Treatment with lariam was tough , but after , all back to 100% normal and no consequences . 


    --

     964 Carrera 4 --  997.2 C2S , -20mm --  991 GT3 RS 


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Carlos from Spain:
    Joost:

    Spyderidol, I second Gnil's emotion; I always enjoyed your posts, alsways giving me new insights into the sometimes overwhelming world of WEC!

    x3 Smiley

    X4Smiley


    --

    997TT RS Tuning stage II(sold),2011 Cayenne Turbo(sold),waiting 991 GT3 RS


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    X5!!

    But I disagree with you, Spyderidol, on your very negative view on GTE. While BoP is not as fair or exciting as EoT in LMP1, I actually think that GTE is the new heart and soul of WEC, with tight races among the top cars and professional drivers...and the RSR, despite its inherent conceptual shortcomings is the best sounding car on the planet right now


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Thank you for your support Oli!

    Perhaps I have been less clear than I should have when describing the reasons for my negative view of GTE so I will attempt to make my case a little stronger:

    1. Whilst I can certainly understand the attraction of close bumper to bumper racing amongst many different makes of cars, I have some difficulty making the intellectual leap required to take it seriously as in the back of my tiny mind I know that some of those cars have been neutered and others have been boosted. I keep thinking I’m watching WWW. Not my cup of tea.
    2.  An important component of my attraction to sportscar racing is the car itself and all the technical creativity and genius that goes into producing a race winning machine. Racing under regulations that essentially eliminates any advances that you obtain from this hard work and intellectual capacity, eradicates most of my interest in this class of racing.
    3. The BoP system essentially allows one to bring a knife to a gun fight (see the RSR). To me, it’s a cheap and cowardly way out. It goes against everything Porsche has claimed in the past related to using racing as a lab for road car development.
    4. Porsche has essentially painted itself into a corner with its insistence on using the 911 as its GTE car whilst the opposition has properly designed and developed mid-engine turbo products (Knife to a gun fight). The racing program now looks (to me) as a pure marketing exercise. The hunger to win and conquer  seems to me to have completely disappeared. Not the Porsche I knew.

    My apologies for my rather bleak views, but they are what I think. I hope that I’m wrong.


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    x6!


    --

    1992 Mercedes-Benz W124 500E / 2003 BMW M3 CSL (sold) / 2008 Porsche 911 GT3 RS / 2014 BMW-Alpina D3 biturbo Touring / 2014 BMW-Alpina B3 biturbo Touring Allrad


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Hi Spyderidol, thanks for your detailed response!

    I completely agree with your fascination for the sophisticated high tech prowess if LMP1 cars. However, bear in mind all this technical brilliance has a mind-boggling price tag...and this almost F1type price tag is out of sync with the quality and range of the WEC "product".

    GTE, by comparison, is super basic tech-wise and thus dirt cheap. But many people care because these cars bear some resemblance to their own favorite toys. You have front-mid, mid and mid-rear engined cars, with large and small displacement NA engines as well as turbos.

    In the 2018 season, you will have 6 manufacturers competiting on an equal footing. Without BoP, this would degenerate into a free for al, super expensivel arms race again. With BoP, you define a maximum performance level and the winning edge is in traditional race craft, including set up finetuning, tire management, pit stop strategy and above all driver skill.

    We all lament the fact that Porsche still does not have a "960" mid engine sports car in its model line-up. Hence the marketing driven decision to compete with a silhouette racing car that is a 911 in name only.

    If the general GTE engine power level was ever increased, up to approx 600 hp Porsche might stick to a variant of the current NA engine, beyond that they would probably slap on turbos at long last.

    It may not be your cup of tea, but I like GTE a whole lot better than LMP 2 where basically everybody uses the same chassis and engine.

     


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    I'll agree that GTE is better than LMP2.

    BoP to some extent has always existed, but it has never been this intrusive. I  remember back in the Porsche vs Ferrari battles  looking forward to the following years'  RSR and admiring  the innovations and ideas that came from  Weissach. Now it is irrelevant. If the car becomes too quick they will reel it in. I just don't see the point. 

    BTW - Porsche will be selling the "new" RSR to customers next year. 

     

    Actually - I wouldn't mind seeing a mid-engine GT3R. That car at the ring with decent BoP could be interesting.


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Before they sell the RSR to privateer racing teams, it needs to become a little more successful...the same applies to a possible road legal version, not much of a halo product without the race win pedigree.

    Completely agree on the mid-engine GT3 R...but that would probably blow up many team budgets.


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    olli:

    Before they sell the RSR to privateer racing teams, it needs to become a little more successful...the same applies to a possible road legal version, not much of a halo product without the race win pedigree.

    That will have to depend on BoPSmiley

    Completely agree on the mid-engine GT3 R...but that would probably blow up many team budgets.

    Racing is expensive. Corvette coming with rear mid engine car too.

    http://sportscar365.com/lemans/wec/porsche-confirms-911-rsr-customer-program-increased-gt-focus/


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    BoP is rules-based and fairly stable now, with only minor adjustments to minimum weight (+/- 5kg), restrictor size (+/- 0.1mm) and maximum turbo boost.

    Still, a maiden win in WEC would come in very handy in a lot of ways, and it would help sell some of those RSR...non-works teams won't want to buy an expensive underdog.


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

     

    Very informative posts, thanks to all.

     There's a lot in flux now, but over the years you can always bet on Porsche to be successful in racing. And especially now, with resources being moved from LMP1, the RSR program will receive the benefit of more resources, more engineering improvement and more competitive pressure.

    But back to my original question that started this thread-- is anyone going to the WEC race in Austin? Would love to meet up with fellow enthusiasts.


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Hi Wonderbar, would love to go but it is quite a long haul trip from Europe, so I think I will pass and watch it on TV😢


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    olli:

    BoP is rules-based and fairly stable now, with only minor adjustments to minimum weight (+/- 5kg), restrictor size (+/- 0.1mm) and maximum turbo boost.

    Still, a maiden win in WEC would come in very handy in a lot of ways, and it would help sell some of those RSR...non-works teams won't want to buy an expensive underdog.

    The BoP is set race by race and is capped at 20Kg (quite a difference) and 10 kW.


    Re: WEC Race in Austin, Texas

    Agreed, but that is the maximum adjustment, the actual tweaks have tended to be much smaller, which is not that surprising given we are half way through the season.


     
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