2013 Tequila Patrón American Le Mans Series At Long Beach

Street Course , Long Beach, California, USA

April 19 - 20, 2013

Broadcast Info

Television Broadcast: ABC
Sunday, April 21, 2013 - 12:00pm CDT

Live Streaming: ESPN 3
Saturday, April 20, 2013 - 6:15pm CDT

Live Qualifying: ESPN 3
Friday, April 19, 2013 - 7:00pm CDT


LIVE TIMING:
http://www.imsaracing.net/2003/lt/ltc.html
http://scoring.alms.com/

Live Timing for mobile device:
http://scoring.alms.com/mobile.html

SEBRING PIT NOTES:
http://twitter.com/almsnotes
http://www.alms.com/races/tequila-pat ... -mans-series-long-beach-1

RADIO ALMS
http://www.americanlemans.com/

TICKET INFO: 888-82-SPEED (77333)
http://gplb.com/mediafiles/files/2013 ... ette%20Corral%20Flyer.pdf

Entry List
http://www.alms.com/sites/default/fil ... ong%20Beach%20Entries.pdf

Spotters Guide: (03/12/13)
http://www.spotterguides.com/

Corvette Corral:
Not posted yet

Event Schedule:
http://www.imsaracing.net/2013/events ... 20Beach%20Supp%20Regs.pdf

Map:
http://www.alms.com/sites/default/fil ... Beach%20Track%20Map_0.pdf

WEATHER:
http://www.weather.com/outlook/recreation/outdoors/weekend/90806

Anyone coming? I will be there!!!

If I get my act together, there will even be Guru stickers!!!

Pics!

It's a month off, Brian!!! gimme a break!

as in "take pics!"

yea yea... that's what you say NOW...

Video!

Quote:

I got one for you!

Johnny O takes you around the Long Beach street circuit:
http://youtu.be/TBetxnv0_qs

There' ya go!

Any chances of you coming out for Long Beach, Charley?

Quote:

Not living in Florida! Maybe some day when my job doesn't interfere with my fun!

oh, gee... I sure hear that one!

Corvette Corral Schedule:
http://www.alms.com/sites/default/fil ... 20Corral%20schedule_0.pdf

CORVETTE RACING LOOKS FORWARD TO LONG BEACH RETURN



(LONG BEACH, Calif., April 19, 2013) – Corvette Racing returns to where its championship season in 2012 earned its first of four victories: The 1.968-mile, 11-turn Long Beach Street Circuit.



Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner, co-drivers of the No. 4 Compuware Corvette C6.R, won at Long Beach last year en route to the Team and Driver championships. It was their first victory as a team, and Milner’s first victory in the American Le Mans Series.



“Long Beach was the start of the run to the Championship for Tommy and me,” Gavin said. “As you so often have to be on street races, we were a little lucky in that the two cars in front of us on the grid had issues on the fourth corner of the race and their race was compromised from there on. We still had to battle our way from then on to the front but our car was good straight off and that was a big plus point.”



One of the keys at Long Beach, Gavin said, is the very last turn.



“The most important corner on the track is the last one and getting off that corner well is vital for lap time and opportunities to overtake other cars,” Gavin said. “If you can get into someone’s tow on the straight it’s the best chance you get to pass others going into Turn 1. Street tracks are always a bit of a lottery, but if you are able to switch on your tires fast, ride the bumps easily and go through and off the corners well, you’ve got a good chance to be fast.”



Doug Fehan, Corvette Racing Program Manager, agrees that luck is important, particularly on street courses.



“There’s a formula that I like to extoll, and it’s for any race: It’s 25 percent great car, 25 percent great team and 50 percent good luck,” Fehan said. “And that gets modified just a little bit when you go to street races, and the good-luck portion plays a much greater role. Because you have a great car and a great team, but in a street race anything can happen to you – from turn one, lap one to turn 10, final lap of the race. You’ve got to have good fortune on your side. Anybody who wins at Long Beach, has good fortune on that day. That’s just the way street races work.”

Corvette Racing, which also won the 2012 ALMS Manufacturer Championship, opened the 2013 season with a victory last month. Milner made a late pass for the lead and held on for the final 15 minutes as the No. 4 GT Compuware Corvette C6.R overcame an early electrical issue and two key penalties to win the GT class 61st Annual Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring at Sebring International Raceway.

Fehan thinks the one-month break between the first two races will be a good thing for the two Corvette Racing teams.



“It lets the guys wind down a little bit, and you clearly get to take more time and get the car correct and ready for the next race,” Fehan said. “There’s a huge emotional build-up to that event at Sebring, and a huge emotional release when you’re victorious, so to have a little extra time to catch your breath, get yourself sorted out, and enjoy and contemplate what you’ve accomplished, and then re-focus on what you have to do. So, the break is actually pretty good.”



The No. 3 Compuware Corvette C6.R, driven by Antonio Garcia and Jan Magnussen, looks to bounce back from an electrical issue at Sebring.



“The issues that we had with the 3 team at Sebring were just devastating,” Fehan said. “As it turns out, a simple little pin on one little wire, and it took those guys out of contention – and they had a car that was good enough to win. Now, if you do this game long enough, you’re going to have those experiences. Everybody goes through that. They all want to perform at their optimum, they all want to make sure that they bring a car that they know can win. And they did that at Sebring. It just didn’t work out. It was one of those racing bad days. As quickly as that can happen to you, it can turn around. I think they are very energized by that, I think they know that at a street race it is anybody’s ballgame and the 3 guys are not at all down and out about it at this point. You go home, you get past it and you come back harder than ever.”



Corvette Racing has 78 ALMS class victories, including four in 2012, making it the most successful team in American Le Mans Series history.



CORVETTE RACING

86 RACE WINS (78 ALMS, 7 LeMans, 1 GRAND-AM)

AMERICAN LE MANS SERIES



CORVETTE RACING ADVANCE

Tequila Patrón American Le Mans Series at Long Beach

LONG BEACH TEMPORARY STREET COURSE

LONG BEACH, CALIFORNIA

APRIL 17, 2013



DID YOU KNOW? Both the 2014 Corvette Stingray coupe and convertible are powered by the new LT1 6.2L V-8, with an estimated 450-hp and 450 lb-ft of torque. As no structural reinforcements are required for the convertible, both models share almost identical power-to-weight ratios. The LT1 combines several advanced technologies, including direct injection, Active Fuel Management and continuously variable valve timing to support an advanced combustion system designed to balance power and efficiency.



CORVETTE RACING & TEAM CHEVY SOCIAL MEDIA: Connect with Corvette Racing and Team Chevy on social media. Like us on Facebook at facebook.com/TeamChevy, follow us on Twitter @CorvetteRacing and @TeamChevy, and add +TeamChevy into your Google+ circles



CORVETTE RACING FOR THE FANS AT LONG BEACH:

• Fans can visit the Corvette Racing and Chevy IndyCar Display in the Long Beach Convention and Entertainment Center.

• Fans can check out great Chevrolet vehicles including: 2014 Corvette Stingray, 2014 Silverado, 2014 Impala, Camaro ZL1, Volt, Malibu, Traverse, Sonic, and Spark.

• At the display fans can see a variety of show cars and specialty vehicles including: The IndyCar Series Series No. 1 Dallara-Chevrolet show car, the Turbo movie Camaro show car, Corvette C6.R and 60th Anniverisary Corvette 427.

• Fans can see a sample of engines, parts and accessories available for purchase from Chevrolet at their local Chevrolet dealer.

• Other activities at the Corvette Racing and IndyCar Display include a variety of interactive games for adults and kids.

• Display hours of operation: Friday, 8:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.; Saturday, 8:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m.; and Sunday 8:00 a.m. - 5:30 p.m.



CORVETTE RACING IN AMERICAN LE MANS SERIES (ALMS) COMPETITION:

• Corvette Racing has 78 ALMS class victories, making it the most successful team in American Le Mans Series history.

• Longest winning streak in GT1 (25, 2007 Sebring-2009 Long Beach)

• Corvette Racing has nine Manufacturer and Team Championships, and eight Drivers Championships.

• Corvette Racing was the Michelin Green X Challenge GT Manufacturer Champion (Chevrolet) and Team Champions (No. 3 Corvette C6.R, Jan Magnussen/ Antonio Garcia) in 2012.



CHEVROLET ON THE TRACK—GRAND PRIX OF LONG BEACH:

• Corvette Racing has participated in every ALMS race in Long Beach, winning three straight in the GT1 class (2007-09) and one in the GT class (2012).

• The team also scored consecutive runner-up finishes in 2010-11 after moving to the GT category.

• Corvette Racing has qualified first in class three times in Long Beach (Qualifying was cancelled in 2012 due to rain).

• Oliver Gavin and Tommy Milner’s 2012 victory in Long Beach was the first for this driver combination, and Milner’s first career ALMS win.



CORVETTE RACING IN THE PADDOCK AT LONG BEACH GRAND PRIX – DOUG FEHAN

“There’s a formula that I like to extoll, and it’s for any race. It’s 25 percent great car, 25 percent great team and 50 percent good luck. And that gets modified just a little bit when you go to street races, and the good-luck portion plays a much greater role. Because you have a great car and a great team, but in a street race anything can happen to you – from turn one, lap one to turn 10, final lap of the race. You’ve got to have good fortune on your side. Anybody who wins at Long Beach, has good fortune on that day. That’s just the way street races work.”



CORVETTE RACING FROM THE DRIVER’S SEAT, LOOKING BACK ON 2012 RACE IN LONG BEACH – OLIVER GAVIN, NO. 4 COMPUWARE CORVETTE:

“Long Beach was the start of the run to the Championship for Tommy and me. As you so often have to be on street races, we were a little lucky in that the two cars in front of us on the grid had issues on the fourth corner of the race and their race was compromised from there on. We still had to battle our way from then on to the front but our car was good straight off and that was a big plus point.”



Chevrolet American Le Mans Series Statistics



Manufacturers and Team Championships

Total (2001-2008, 2012): 9



24 Hours of Le Mans Class Wins

Total (2001-02, 2004-06, 2009, 2011): 7



Drivers Championships

Total (2002-2008, 2012): 8



2013 Event Victories

(Sebring): 1



2012 Event Victories

(Long Beach, Laguna Seca, Mid-Ohio, Virgina International Raceway): 4





The Tequila Patron American Le Mans Series at Long Beach starts at 4:30 p.m. Pacific time on Saturday, April 20. GT Qualifying is at 5:25 p.m. Pacific time on Friday.

CORVETTE RACING QUALIFIES 4TH AND 6TH AT LONG BEACH



(LONG BEACH, Calif., April 19, 2013) – Jan Magnussen, driver of the No. 3 Compuware Corvette C6.R, qualified fourth (1:19.047 secs.) in the American Le Mans Series (ALMS) GT Class at Long Beach. Tommy Milner, who won his first ALMS race at this event last year, qualified sixth (1:19.083) in the No. 4 Compuware Corvette C6.R on the 1.968-mile, 11-turn Long Beach Street Circuit.



“We definitely made some good improvements between practice and qualifying,” Magnussen said. “It’s always hard here because there’s such a long time between the two sessions, so you really have to think about how the track is going to develop, so I think we made some good choices. We’ll go back and look at some old data and fine-tune a little bit, but overall, I’d be happy to race this car.”



Magnussen added that the No. Corvette C6.R experienced a minor problem during practice, but it was fixed before qualifying.



“We had a small issue shifting this morning. Fixed. All gone,” Magnussen said. “I’m really looking forward to tomorrow.”



Magnussen will team with Antonio Garcia for tomorrow’s race.



Milner will again team with Oliver Gavin. The two won the 2012 ALMS drivers’ championship, and opened the 2013 season with a victory at Sebring last month.



“Obviously, it’s super, super close, as it always is in GT,” Milner said. “So, the position doesn’t sound great; sixth is not what I was hoping for, but it was only two-tenths off the pole. That’s pretty close.



“Obviously, I’d love to get a win here again, like I did last year, my first win in ALMS, but at the end of the day is the championship and finishing the race and keeping the nose of the car clean, give it to Oliver and let him work his magic like he did last year.”



Corvette Racing has 78 ALMS class victories, including four in 2012, making it the most successful team in American Le Mans Series history.

The Tequila Patron American Le Mans Series at Long Beach starts at 4:30 p.m. Pacific time on Saturday, April 20.

just sat down... long day!

We got up early, had breakfast with friends and headed to the track.

Thankfully, they took care of my parking pass problem very nicely! Apparently, I wasn't the only victim... one other person had the same thing happen to them.

I will post some pics later. One warning, photo ops at LB are TOUGH. I wanted to head over to the hotel, that is above and would offer some great angles, but just didn't get over there. We were delayed by the entire parking issue and wanted to see the presentations in the Corral.

Being late resulted in getting the best parking space in the Corral! The last spot was covered with a small tent! We had our own carport!

Harlan Charles, Program Manager for Corvette and Kirk Bennion, Chief Designer of the C7, were present and did a really nice presentation on the new car. Because of the lay of the land at LB, the C7 was over at the Expo center.

You see, the Corral is actually OUTSIDE the track! It is not on the race track area at all. It is just outside the gate, near the walk over bridge, in the Marina. If you watch the race on TV, and they show an aerial view, look for boats, then the land between the boats and the track, and then, the big white tent. That's the Corvette Corral! The little one is BMW.

Good news, Green is back!!! The Bogus Edition lives!

During Harlan's presentation, I asked a question, and over the PA, said something akin to "Mr Bogus, what was your question?" (Yea, we go back a few years now!), a couple of people at my table were like, "was that a joke?" I love explaining my last name. "nope, got ID to prove it."

However, I asked about the new computers that allow you to do lap times and other stats, like gforces and things like that. Well, I asked if they could include a transponder into the system? He felt it was a neat idea, but it's not on there at this time.

I also asked about EPA numbers. They are not in yet, but he indicated that the EPA tests won't really show how good it is... what that means, the cylinder deactivation won't help the EPA but will help the real world numbers.

The prices will be released next week... and dealers now have all data necessary to pre-order.

Production starts in August.

Good report! Thanks for sharing. Will post official GM media statement after the race views on TV.

Thanks! I didn't want to issue a race report quite yet...

A couple of additional thoughts...

In regards to EPA... Harlan didn't say anything, but, reading between the lines, these are my GUESSES. Expect the EPA numbers to be the same or marginally better than what the base Vette does now. The 7spd manual, for example, has a new .40:1 OD ratio!!! SICK! The Direct Injection will also help, so figure the EPA is now at 26 MPG highway, it might be 27 or 28 with the new LT1. HOWEVER... cylinder deactivation is going to do wild things with that number. A friend had a Honda Accord Coupe with the big V6, auto and cylinder deactivation. The EPA was like 30 highway, and he was getting 34! With that in mind, don't be surprised to see ppl report back with 32-34 highway.

Ron Fellows was discussing the new unified series. Right now, there are some 21 races between the 2 series... and several weekends are overlapping, like this one (GA is at Barber).

Since Ron is now part owner of Mo Sport in Canada, he is hoping it stays on the schedule. With that said, the track gets 60k+ for JUST and ALMS weekend.

My guess for a unified schedule, not entirely in order:

Daytona 24
Sebring 12
Long Beach
Monterey
Laguna Seca
* Le Mans
Road America
Belle Isle
COTA
Watkins Glen
Mid Ohio
Lime Rock
Mo Sport
VIR


The thing is, I am concerned that the new series might have too many cars for Long Beach or Lime Rock... they may have to limit classes or something... perhaps run 2 or three races.

Ron suggested that they would have run only 12-14 races; upping the count over a 2-3 year period.

One thing I forgot to add... and it actually surprised the living bejeebus outta me...

I had a chance to talk to Kirk Bennion. He is the chief designer of the C7 (as mentioned above, but if didn't read that, this catches you up). I introduced myself, and his first comment back was, and I paraphrase, "I have heard of you! Your name sounds very familiar."

OMG. Someone who has actually accomplished great things in their life has heard about (not so) little ole me... It was a bit surprising.

I told him I had done some work for Corvette Enthusiast a few years back and he indicated that was more than likely it, he reads many of the buff mags and such.

I also indicated perhaps it was Harlan mumbling obscenities in association to my name...

Even so, it was a surprising and rather humbling conversation... a real "wow!" moment.

I appreciate Corvettes having competition, but those BMWs mods are a bit much. the flares look wider than the cars!

All the flares are there, including the ones on the C6.r, because of the width of the Ferrari 458.

It's that simple.

Pics!!!

https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?se ... 95809&type=1&l=79df5805cf

You're welcome, John!