Mayolives

February 27, 2008 Salisbury Post by Steve Huffman SPENCER — Richard F. Combs said that for anyone who has doubted that High Rock Raceway will come to fruition, he's got a little advice: Lay those concerns to rest. "We're there," Combs said Tuesday night. "The financing is in place. From here on, things are going to happen in a hurry." Combs, 60, of Atlanta, was named Tuesday as president and chief operating officer of the proposed Spencer raceway. He'll also invest a significant amount of money, he said, into the track that's to be built between U.S. 29 and Interstate 85 near the banks of the Yadkin River. Combs has an impressive resume. He's a director of First Charter Bank, which is headquartered in Charlotte, and in 1978 he founded Pureflow Ultraviolet Inc., an industrial ultraviolet technology application company. Combs sold the company in 2001 to a Canadian-based subsidiary of Danaher Corp. He's obtained national and professional racing licenses and qualified three times for the Sports Car Club of America's national championships. He was also a charter member and regular participant in the Shelby CanAm Pro Racing Series, an event founded by racing legend Carroll Shelby. "Rich brings so much racing experience that I don't have," said Dave Risdon, the racetrack's CEO and the driving force behind plans for its creation. "We couldn't be more pleased to welcome him to High Rock and have him become a key member of our team." The coupling almost didn't happen. Combs said that two years ago, he was in the process of planning a racetrack outside Atlanta that's similar to the one planned for Spencer. The track was to be called "Brookland's Circuit," based on the design of a British track by a similar name. Combs said the track was to be built along Interstate 20 west of Atlanta and said funding was in place. But Combs said much of that money was to come from European investors and at the last minute he pulled the plug on the project. "I just didn't feel comfortable with some of the funding sources," he said. "Being in the banking business, I know that it's very important to not just secure funding, but to know where that money is coming from." Combs said he shelved plans for his own track, then visited another Atlanta raceway one day. While there, he picked up a flyer advertising High Rock Raceway. The track is to be a nifty 2.15-mile road course, complete with 10 sharp curves, a similar number of dramatic elevation changes and a 2,400-foot straightaway. Combs said he was convinced of the track's success and immediately invested in one of the track-side condominiums that are planned for the raceway. He said that while visiting High Rock a few weeks ago, he and Risdon started talking. The two hit it off, Combs said. "Dave and I are on the same page," he said. "We see eye-to-eye on a lot of things." Combs said High Rock will succeed largely because of its location — a 45-minute drive from either the Charlotte or Greensboro airports. "You need a major airport within an hour's drive for one of these courses to be a success," Combs said. "The drivers who compete in these events fly in, spend a weekend or a day, then fly out. High Rock fits that criteria perfectly." He noted that the track's location in the heart of NASCAR country will also serve it well, though the drivers who compete on road courses are often vastly different from NASCAR's finest. "There's a tremendous market for this kind of racing," Combs said. "Lots of people across the Southeast want something like this so bad." He and Risdon say the track will cost about $30 million, money that they both insist is in place. Combs said major grading for the track will take place by June and asphalt will be poured in July or August. He said it's best to let asphalt cure for several months, so it may be next spring before High Rock hosts its first races. The adjoining condos, which will provide an overview of the entire track, should also be ready by then, Combs said. He said he'll be moving to Rowan County to be a full-time part of the venture. Combs said Spencer and the rest of Rowan County will benefit from the economic boost the track provides. "It's going to be a boom to the economy," Combs said. "It's going to generate a lot of tax revenue. There's going to be a lot of people, a lot of money." --------- If anyone has any questions feel free to email me at smb@racehighrock.com I am a NASA Spec Miata racer as well as the VP of Development for High Rock Raceway. Sam

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Centerforce has a new DFX clutch that will hold your stated requirements. It engages smoothly and is not heavy on the foot!

John.............Shame on you!.........Don 't become a traitor and give up on the go fast Z. (By the way, I like the M3.)

leX.............Nice

Bank Of America fuc--- me over in a business deal some years ago. At the time I was younger and dumber and didn't have the wherewithal to litigate so I decided to suck it up and live with the screwing they gave me. I haven't done any business with them since. They are on the top of my perpetual ♥♥♥♥ list.

Note that in both pictures above of Yanagida and Suzuki, the rear of the hood is not in the full down, closed position. I would assume both teams were trying to reduce uplift and help keep the engine bay temps down.

Tech3R with all the "bells" ............We did not program temperature based (warm-up) enrichments when tuning the new system. Engine normally starts easily but will not idle properly without adding a little throttle for a few minutes. Hot starting usually has no issues and always idles good after warm-up.

John, Having no experience whatsoever with the 335 R6 tire, I can only base this response on my seat of the pants feelings that "wider is normally better" when it comes to road racing our old Dutsuns. Knowing that your setup has gobs of HP and torque, would lead me to believe that you would benefit from the taller gear ratio provided by the larger diameter tire/wheel combination and the added traction of more rubber on the ground. Sure, the wider tire would create more drag but that shouldn't be a big problem for you. We have discussed ways to lower the rear end our cars by raising the mounting points of the differential. Now would be a good time to consider making these changes to the rear. Logic would dictate that you would improve lap times by being faster through the middle and getting off the corners. I believe more tire would accomplish this for you. Also, I would agree with you about Hoosier making the wide boys for a long time to come but I have also read about how short lived these fat boys are. Coast is always a factor for me. And John, I would NEVER laugh at you only with you. You crack me up and have provided many good moments. You may take this post with a grain of salt because I rarely know which way to turn.

John and Mark.........After carefully reading all this......I really can't add anything intelligent, so I'll just continue to laugh out loud...all by my self.

I used the small pc680 (??) in a race car application. The first two were purchased on Ebay and lasted about one year. The third and currant one came from a local dealer at a higher cost with warranty and, with fingers crossed, is several months old and still going strong. The dealer told me they are prone to failure in higher vibration situations so I added more soft stuff to the mount. The jury is still out!

I had a Featherlite model 3111. It is one of the best open alum. trailers made. Light weight, well built, long ramps for smooth loading and pulled easily. Also, they hold their valve. I used mine for two years and sold it for almost what I paid for it. If I was in the market for another open trailer, this would be my choice.(http://www.fthr.com/trailerimages/3111/3111-curbside)

This is an update on my 82 zxt auto climate control issues. The air conditioning system would work spastically and blow cold air but I had no heat. When I moved the control to the heat side, the blower fan would not operate. So, I finally bit the bullet and removed the dash. Not really a fun job but a few hours of careful and tedious work does the trick. This car has 70k original miles on the clock and has been garaged for most of it's life so I wasn't suppressed to find all the vacuum lines really good, soft condition and I couldn't detect any vacuum leaks whatsoever. Then I disconnected and reconnected all electrical connectors and manually worked all the vacuum controls and levers to make sure they were operating freely. After restarting the engine and warming it up, I now have both heat and air conditioning. I wish all repairs went this smoothly. Now, if it would only put itself back together.

quote:"main question is i was told by a local tire company if i use a 1/4 spacer and of course longer studs i will destroy the wheel bearings and perhaps loose a tire while driving down the road ." Your local tire person is full of it....quarter inch spacers with longer studs will not damage your wheel barings and will work fine.

Bov?

I'm using ArizonaZCar's race brakes with Wilwood master cylinders and pedals without a booster. The pedal is very firm and makes contact near the "top". It does not have the normal pedal travel you may be accustomed to in the OEM setup. The entire system works very great!

Does anyone have a spare ticket for the Performance Racing Industry Trad Show being held in Orlando FL December 6-8? Please pm me mayolives@aol.com.

Chino240z.............Man that's a nice looking car. Can you post more pictures for us?

Dan... Prayers are in the works and my fingers are crossed for you and yours. Good luck

I have a Fidanza alum. 244mm flywheel in my turbo track car (L28) and also in my z32TT. Both cars are highly modded, make gobs of power, will idle without problems and are smooth and "streetable" if I wanted them to be driven that way. Believe it or not!

Yes...The hatch was open for that picture. However, I now have a rear wing installed which does create some seriour downforce.

Mom'sz............Looks like the smart camber tool could interfere with the fender or flares on our cars.

Lsd? What diff fluid are you using?