[VIDEO] Watch this 2019 Corvette ZR1 Hit 191 MPH in the Standing Mile
Oh ZR1, how quickly we have forgotten you and moved on to the C8. But then comes along a video like this that reminds us that even with an engine upfront, you are still one of our favorites!
All kidding aside, the 2019 Corvette ZR1 is one of our favorite Corvettes of all time particularly because of the things it could do, like shooting down a former Space Shuttle runway at Cape Canaveral at nearly 200 MPH!
Typically we see these high speed runs with a ZR1 that has the ZTK’s High Wing. This Long Beach Red Corvette ZR1 has the low wing for less drag and it seems to definitely show off its speed in this standing mile run in which the Corvette reached a top speed of 191.16 MPH.
Two views are shown including the in-car with telemetry overlay on the screen. We see the car was still accelerating past the mile and we’re excited as they tell us that two more videos coming that show the ZR1 also running 2.3 miles and 2.7 miles down the runway.
The video comes the Johnny Bohmer Proving Grounds on Merritt Island Florida. Previously we have seen the Genovation GXE Electric Corvette run on the same track and in fact, it might be interesting to compare the two cars after the ZR1 shares the two final runs
From Johnny Bohmer Proving Grounds via YouTube:
Church and Williamson finish 19th in two-man bobsled World Championships
ALTENBERG, Germany (Feb. 23, 2020)– Hunter Church (Cadyville, N.Y.) and Josh Williamson (Lake Mary, Fla.) gained a spot to finish 19th in the two-man bobsled World Championship finale in Altenberg today. It rained throughout the night, creating wet and frosty conditions for today’s final two heats.
“It was a much different day, the ice was much slower from the rain,” Church said. “Overall I’m happy to be able to clean up some things from yesterday, and I’m feeling better heading into four-man. It’s good that I’m experiencing these challenges now, and hopefully I can continue to get better.”
Church and Williamson posted start times of 5.38 and 5.35 seconds today for runs of 57.17 and 56.57 seconds, respectively. His third run was 16th best of the heat, and his final run was 10th fastest. Church and Williamson edged closer to the field and finished 19th with a four-run combined time of 3:44.49.
“Today was a good note to end on in two-man,” said USA Bobsled Head Coach Mike Kohn. “Hunter has the same championship mentality as Kaillie Humphries. He’s 23 years old and this is only his second world championship. He’s doing great.”
Germany’s Francesco Friedrich won his sixth consecutive two-man World Championship today with Thorsten Margis. The duo was dominant, and won by 1.65 seconds with a total time of 3:40.44. Johannes Lochner and Christopher Weber from Germany moved into silver medal position with an aggregate time of 3:42.09. Oskars Kibermanis and Matiss Miknis from Latvia denied the Germans a sweep of the medals. The Latvians moved up from fifth to claim the bronze medal with a cumulative time of 3:42.23. Germans Nico Walther and Eric Franke dropped back into fourth.
The 2020 World Championships will continue next week with the women’s and men’s skeleton races, a mixed skeleton team event, and the four-man bobsled competition. Raced pick up again on Thursday, Feb. 27, and will conclude on Sunday, March 1.
NBC Sports and the Olympic Channel will have broadcast and digital streaming coverage. Fans can catch all the action in spectacular high definition via NBC Sports online at NBCSports.com/Live, or through the NBC Sports app. Additional coverage will be available on OlympicChannel.com and the Olympic Channel app.
Please contact USABS Marketing & Communications Director Amanda Bird at 518-354-2250, or amanda.bird@usabs.com, with media inquiries.
Results
1. Francesco Friedrich and Thorsten Margis (GER) 3:40.44 (54.00, 54.09, 55.98, 56.37);
2. Johannes Lochner and Christopher Weber (GER) 3:42.09 (54.59, 54.59, 56.36, 56.55);
3. Oskars Kibermanis and Matiss Miknis (LAT) 3:42.23 (54.49, 54.72, 56.35, 56.67);
19. Hunter Church and Josh Williamson (USA) 3:44.49 (55.25, 55.50, 57.17, 56.57);
About USA Bobsled & Skeleton
USA Bobsled & Skeleton (USABS), based in Lake Placid, N.Y., is the national governing body for the sports of bobsled and skeleton in the United States. USABS would like to thank its sponsors, suppliers and contributors for their support: BMW of North America, Under Armour, Omaze, Kampgrounds of America, Snap Fitness, Boomerang Carnets, Machintek, deBotech and Carpenter. For more information, please visit the USABS website at www.usabs.com.
Humphries and Gibbs lead women’s bobsled World Championships after first two heats
Photo credit: IBSF
ALTENBERG, Germany (Feb. 21, 2020)– Kaillie Humphries (Carlsbad, Calif.) and Lauren Gibbs (Los Angeles, Calif.) currently lead the women’s bobsled World Championships after the first day of racing in Altenberg, Germany. The Americans have a lead of 0.21 seconds, but Humphries isn’t celebrating yet.
“There are still two more runs tomorrow and a lot can happen and change,” Humphries said. “I’m going to treat tomorrow like another race. I’ll debrief with the coaches to go over what worked and what didn’t, and we’ll come back tomorrow with our best.”
Humphries and Gibbs matched Germans Stephanie Schneider and Leonie Fiebig at the start with the fastest push time of 5.63 seconds in the opening heat. Humphries guided the Omaze branded sled to the finish in 56.47 seconds to pull away from the Germans by 0.03 seconds.
Germany’s Kim Kalicki and Kira Lipperheide put pressure on the field in the second heat with a run of 56.45 seconds, which moved them ahead of Schneider and Fiebig by a large margin of 0.33 seconds. Humphries and Gibbs responded with a blistering start time of 5.62 and downtime of 56.33 seconds to pull away even further from the field. The U.S. pair has a two-run total of 1:52.80 to give them a lead of 0.21 seconds heading into tomorrow’s final heats.
“It’s great having coach Shauna Rohbock here to go over lines at the finish, because we could debrief right away after each run to make a plan for the next run,” Humphries said. “I’ve been through four heat races before, and it’s not time to get excited yet. There’s still a lot racing left.”
Rohbock is an expert driver to gain advice from, and today is the 14-year anniversary of Rohbock’s silver medal finish at the 2006 Winter Olympic Games.
Kalicki, who won her first career World Cup medals earlier this season in Lake Placid, N.Y., and Lipperheide and currently in second place with a total time of 1:53.01. Schneider and Fiebig are in third with an aggregate time of 1:53.34. Reigning Olympic champions Mariama Jamanka and Annika Drazek from Germany are also in the medal hunt in fourth position with a cumulative time of 1:53.44.
The deciding heats for the women’s bobsled competition will take place tomorrow at 3:30 p.m. local time, following the opening heats of the men’s two-man bobsled event at 11:30 a.m.
NBC Sports and the Olympic Channel will have broadcast and digital streaming coverage. Fans can catch all the action in spectacular high definition via NBC Sports online at NBCSports.com/Live, or through the NBC Sports app. Additional coverage will be available on OlympicChannel.com and the Olympic Channel app.
Please contact USABS Marketing & Communications Director Amanda Bird at 518-354-2250, or amanda.bird@usabs.com, with media inquiries.
Results
1. Kaillie Humphries and Lauren Gibbs (USA) 1:52.80 (56.47, 56.33);
2. Kim Kalicki and Kira Lipperheide (GER) 1:53.01 (56.56, 56.45);
3. Stephanie Schneider and Leonie Fiebig (GER) 1:53.34 (56.50, 56.84);
About USA Bobsled & Skeleton
USA Bobsled & Skeleton (USABS), based in Lake Placid, N.Y., is the national governing body for the sports of bobsled and skeleton in the United States. USABS would like to thank its sponsors, suppliers and contributors for their support: BMW of North America, Under Armour, Omaze, Kampgrounds of America, Snap Fitness, Boomerang Carnets, Machintek, deBotech and Carpenter. For more information, please visit the USABS website at www.usabs.com.
Tech We Would Like to See on the C8 Corvette: Active Aero
With the highest performance versions of the seventh generation Corvette, customers were forced to make a choice. Did they want their car to have the highest possible top speed, or did they want to sacrifice some of that by bolting a slew of aerodynamic aids to their car for maximum cornering ability?
We would love for Chevrolet to take that decision out of the ordering equation for buyers of the upcoming Z models and the Grand Sport. They could give buyers the best of both worlds with the incorporation of Active Aerodynamics.
Active Aerodynamics can take many forms, from grille vents that close at high speeds to streamline a car, to suspension that lowers at speed to reduce lift. We know that the Corvette team would build a fully functional system that integrates several of these technologies into a cohesive package, just like they did on the C7 ZR1’s chassis-mounted wing and innovative balancing front underwing, but what we mostly want to focus on here is the most visible piece of such a system, the rear wing.
This unit would elevate both the performance and even the prestige of GM’s looming halo car. There are several benefits of an active rear wing that accompany their off-the-charts cool factor.
1. An active rear wing can be lowered, causing it, for all intents and purposes, to disappear, along with any drag that it was creating. Top-end General Motors Products have become so fast that the most track-worthy editions have suffered at the dragstrip because of massive fixed wings. The effects of the C7 Z06/Z07’s wickerbill spoiler have been well documented. Chevrolet officially listed the top speed of ZR1’s with the “big-wing” ZTK package as 10 MPH lower than their stock counterparts, and the Camaro ZL1 with the 1LE package has proven slower than the car it is based on, even in distances as short as a quarter-mile. Allowing these serious track performers to retract their wing, and the ZTK/Z07/1LE models become the best version of their respective model-line with no excuses or asterisks, which is what buyers that dole out more funds expect.
Photo Credit: https://www.sciencelearn.org.nz
2. Just as these wings can retract to reduce drag and improve top speed, they can be “actively” placed in full “attack mode” for maximum downforce in the corners. This increases cornering speed, stability, and driver confidence which can lead to drastically lower lap times.
3. Upon hard braking, an active wing can also go vertical, transforming into an air brake. This assists the actual brakes, resulting in shorter stopping distances. It also keeps more weight in the rear of the car, again helping with stability and, especially in a rear-wheel drive car, improved corner exit speeds.
Photo Credit: Car Magazine (UK)
All three of these traits brought to the table by an active wing radically assist the driver and make the car faster in all aspects. The coolest thing is that, with the right programming, the wing does all three automatically with seamless transitions, and, did we mention how awesome they also look?
There has been speculation about Active Aero coming to the Corvette for several years now. These rumors were fueled by GM’s own patent filings which showed a sketch of a C7 fitted with advanced aerodynamic trickery. We think the top dog mid-engine offerings are the perfect place for the General to finally deploy this technology that can already be found on the majority of the world’s supercars.
Watch These Multiple C8 Corvettes Utilize Launch Control
For the last two days we’ve been in Corvette Heaven as we were invited by Chevrolet to come out to Las Vegas and test drive the 2020 Corvette Stingray. The test consisted of two parts that included a route through the Valley of Fire state park and then today we drove the new mid-engine sports cars at Spring Mountain Motor Resort & Country Club.
Today’s driving session culminated with the very talented instructors from the Ron Fellows Performance Driving School offering hot laps around the track. Each driver gave their passenger a demonstration of the capabilities of the new Corvette and those two fast laps started with engaging launch control as each car took to the track.
With 60% of the weight of the 2020 Corvette residing over the back wheels, the Launch Control demonstration shows just how quick these cars are able to put power to the pavement as those Michelin Pilot Sport 4S summer tires quickly hook up to send the car on the track.
We will be traveling from Las Vegas to home in Tampa on Wednesday, but keep checking back as we got a lot of great photos and videos from our 2020 Corvette drive on deck!
Source:
Video by Keith Cornett
D’Arpino collects silver and bronze medals in Park City’s women’s monobob event
PARK CITY, Utah (Feb. 17, 2020)– Vanessa D’Arpino (Grants Pass, Ore.) claimed silver and bronze medals in Park City’s two-day women’s monobob event over the weekend to lead the U.S. team. Shelby Williamson (Colorado Springs, Colo.) and Lake Kwaza (Sycamore, Ill.) also posted strong performances for Team USA, each finishing in the top six both days.
This is D’Arpino’s debut season, and she’s only raced once before this week; she finished 12th in the Lake Placid monobob race in November.
“This season I came in with low expectations, and I didn’t know where I’d end up in the sport,” D’Arpino said. “Starting with rookie camp and push champs for bobsled, to sliding skeleton for a couple weeks, it was a process figuring out where I was going to do. However, I knew bobsled was for me and I was thankful when coach Mike Dionne got me in the driver’s seat. So far I have loved it.”
D’Arpino was close to qualifying for the 2020 Olympic Team as a track athlete, but she fell just short of her goal. The setback turned into an opportunity when USABS Director of Athlete Development Mike Dionne sent her a direct message on Twitter asking if she wanted to consider trying out for the bobsled team.
D’Arpino admits that she initially thought it was “weird,” but after speaking with Dionne on the phone about the opportunity, she decided to give it a try.
“My goal for this year was to learn as much as I could and stay as involved as much as possible,” D’Arpino said. “We discussed a few monobob races early into training, and being the competitive person I am, I joked about reaching the podium after only a couple weeks of driving. Coming into Park City with more confidence and training, I told coach Dionne I was getting that podium, and he was fully supportive. It’s awesome to actually reach that goal.”
The former University of Oregon sprinter was the fastest athlete off the start block in race one with push times of 5.63 and 5.64 seconds. D’Arpino crossed the finish line in 54.89 seconds, which was second best of the heat, and 55.58 seconds to secure the bronze medal in 1:50.47.
Karlien Sleper from the Netherlands was race one’s winner in 1:49.20, while Ashleigh Werner from Great Britain was second in 1:50.38.
Williamson was just off her teammates pace in fourth place with a combined time of 1:51.00 after posting runs of 55.42 and 55.58 seconds. Kwaza, who is easing back into bobsled after joining the Army’s World Class Athlete Program, finished sixth with a combined time of 1:51.38.
“It is so good to be back on ice,” Kwaza said. “I joined the Army right after last season in May. I spent all summer doing Army training and got back on November 1st and right into a sled.”
Kwaza is no stranger to success on the ice. She has four World Cup medals, all won as a push athlete for Elana Meyers Taylor. Since returning to the ice after her Army training, Kwaza has jumped from the back of the sled into the driver’s seat.
“So far I have been extremely frustrated because, like anything new, it takes time and I have a hard time waiting,” Kwaza said. “But the time I’ve spent being in the front seat has been extremely valuable and I’m excited to continue with this path.”
D’Arpino was back on the podium in race two, earning the silver medal with a combined time of 1:58.99 after clocking runs of 57.99 and 1:01.00. Sleper was again victorious, this time with a two-run total of 1:56.63. Marina Silva Tuono from Brazil claimed bronze in 1:59.39.
Kwaza moved up into fifth place in race two after posting runs of 58.67 and 1:01.11 for a total time of 1:59.78. Williamson was sixth in 2:00.29 to place all Team USA competitors in the top six in both races.
Kwaza said she’s been able to use her veteran teammates as extra coaches as she learns in her new role as a driver.
“The drivers that we have on the team are just amazing human beings and are all about Team USA being successful,” Kwaza said. “Not one of them have declined helping me out in any way. No matter what stage I’m at, I have always felt like I’ve had the entire team behind me. Coach Dionne has also been so patient and helpful.”
“I have the best teammates around, and we’re constantly supporting each other,” D’Arpino said. “Lake Kwaza and I have been paired up since day one in the process of learning how to drive and I am her biggest fan. It’s going to be fun to progress as drivers together.”
There are two monobob events remaining this season; in La Plagne, France from March 2-8, and Lake Placid, N.Y. from March 30-April 3.
Please contact USABS Marketing & Communications Director Amanda Bird at 518-354-2250, or amanda.bird@usabs.com, with media inquiries.
Results
Race #1
1. Karlien Sleper (NED) 1:49.20 (54.73, 54.47);
2. Ashleigh Werner (GBR) 1:50.38 (55.30, 55.08);
3. Vanessa D’Arpino (USA) 1:50.47 (54.89, 55.58);
4. Shelby Williamson (USA) 1:51.00 (55.42, 55.58);
6. Lake Kwaza (USA) 1:51.38 (55.67, 55.71);
Race #2
1. Karlien Sleper (NED) 1:56.63 (57.36, 59.27);
2. Vanessa D’Arpino (USA) 1:58.99 (57.99, 1:01.00);
3. Marina Silva Tuono (BRA) 1:59.39 (58.44, 1:00.95);
5. Lake Kwaza (USA) 1:59.78 (58.67, 1:01.11);
6. Shelby Williamson (USA) 2:00.29 (59.48, 1:00.81);
About USA Bobsled & Skeleton
USA Bobsled & Skeleton (USABS), based in Lake Placid, N.Y., is the national governing body for the sports of bobsled and skeleton in the United States. USABS would like to thank its sponsors, suppliers and contributors for their support: BMW of North America, Under Armour, Omaze, Kampgrounds of America, BiPro, Boomerang Carnets, Hudl, Tesa Tape, PVS International, Ferris Mfg. Corp, Machintek, deBotech and Carpenter. For more information, please visit the USABS website at www.usabs.com.
Source: TeamUSA
10 Essential Options For The C8 Corvette Stingray
If you’re going to tick option boxes, then these are the ones to concentrate on.
The C8 Corvette is finally in production, which means people can start getting excited about their orders. The new Chevrolet Corvette comes well-stocked from the factory before you hit the options list, and the mid-mounted 6.2-liter V8 engine with a dry-sump oil system making 490 hp and 465 lb-ft of torque is just the beginning. It also comes with an 8-speed dual-clutch transmission, a limited-slip rear differential, Brembo brakes, a 10-speaker Bose sound system, 8-way power seats, keyless entry, and remote start, and a starting price of $59,995.
That’s one hell of a lot of car for five bucks shy of $60,000, and we would not turn our nose up at a base model. A lot of people are going to tick options though, so for those that are going to go beyond the base model goodness, these are the must-haves, and how we would go about speccing out a C8 Corvette.
1. 2LT Package
If you want more creature comforts for daily driving duties, the 2LT Package adds heated and ventilated seats, a head-up display, wireless phone charging, memory seats, upgraded digital rear-view mirror, forward-facing camera, power-folding mirrors, blind-spot monitoring, and rear-cross-traffic alert. For track days, it also includes a performance data recorder. It adds $7,300 to the price, but if it’s not going to be stored in the garage for weekends, this is the way to go.
The 3LT trim adds even more luxury to the Corvette but also pushes it over the $70,000 price point before anything else is added.
2. Z51 Performance Package
Whether you want the added convenience of the 2LT Package or not, any enthusiast will want the performance package for $5,000. It adds a performance exhaust, electronic limited-slip differential, a different rear axle ratio, upgraded Brembo brakes, improved engine cooling, front brake cooling inlets, Z51-specific front splitter and rear spoiler, and Michelin Pilot Sport 4S tires.
It also adds an extra spoonful of power, taking the 490 hp and 465 lb-ft of torque up to 495 hp and 470 lb-ft of torque. However, that’s purely from the performance exhaust which can be added without the Z51 package for $1,195.
3. Paint
Let’s face it, everyone and their neighbors will be ordering their C8 Corvette with red, white, yellow, or black paint. Which is a shame as there are some seriously cool colors available. We are partial to the Zeus Bronze Metallic, but we know that’s not going to be bold enough for many. Thankfully, the Elkhart Lake Blue Metallic is available and looks stunning. Rapid Blue is the lighter shade, but the darker hue of the Elkhart Lake Blue is sophisticated, accentuates the lines of the Corvette’s bodywork, and with the black accents, gives it a little extra menace without being too dark.
4. Visible Carbon Fiber
This is an easy way to ramp up the price of the C8 Corvette, so the key is to be judicious here. The $2,095 Visible Carbon Fiber grille insert is a bit much, as is the $1,145 carbon-fiber door mirror option. However, we would go for the visible carbon-fiber roof panel with a body-color surround that is not just lightweight, but can also be stored away in the rear trunk. For $3,495, you could go with the Carbon-Fiber Dual Roof Package that includes a transparent roof panel. That’s what we would opt for if the climate where you live doesn’t provide for long warm summers.
5. High Wing Spoiler
You don’t have to spec the High Wing Spoiler in Carbon Flash Metallic, but it’s the only way to get it with some paint schemes and will replace the Z51 spoiler if the package is added already. How much difference to the aerodynamics the higher spoiler makes isn’t clear, but it gives the C8 Corvette a different look. If you don’t want the optional spoiler in Carbon Flash metallic, then your paint is limited to Arctic White, Black, Shadow Gray Metallic, and Torch Red.
6. Engine Appearance Package
It’s frivolous and costs $995, but the carbon-fiber closeout panels on each side of the engine and LED lighting illuminating the engine compartment is a nice touch for the mid-engined sports car. You can get engine covers with different color accents, but in plain black with the bare carbon-fiber being lit up keeps things tasteful when looking through the rear window.
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7. Upgraded Seats
If you’re reading this and want a C8 Corvette, you’re probably planning on driving hard. They’re expensive at $1,995, but the Competition Sport Bucket Seats increase lateral support when cornering at speed on the track, and the high-wear areas are bolstered with harder wearing textiles.
The less hardcore option is the GT2 bucket seats, which look cool, but are more about comfort than holding you in place. For around the same price as the Competition Sport Bucket Seats, you can also get the GT2 seats in two-tone with Sky Cool Gray, Adrenaline Red, and Natural seat colors.
8. Carbon-Fiber Interior Trim
Carbon-fiber trim is played out on cars that don’t deserve it, but we think the C8 Corvette is worthy. The carbon-fiber material replaces the plastic black that holds the instrument cluster with a carbon-fiber frame. It also adds carbon-fiber to the center console below the infotainment screen and to the door switch plates. It’s costly at $1,500, but we think its a must-have if you’re splashing out on the new Corvette.
9. Wheels
The $1,495 Trident Spoke wheels with their Y-shaped elements are going to be a popular box to tick in one of the two finishes available, but we also like the more low-key but stylish 5-open-spoke Carbon Flash-painted aluminum wheels. The Carbon Flash takes the shine off the wheels and helps keep the Corvette looking sleek. A lot of people will be going after-market, but this is a great option for staying stock. There’s no option for size, though, and all styles and colors are for the staggered setup featuring 19-inch wheels on the front and 20-inch discs on the back.
10. Corvette Museum Delivery
Buying a new car, let alone a new Corvette, is not something people often do. That’s why we like the idea of the National Corvette Museum delivery program. You can take a few days and go to Bowling Green, Kentucky, where your car is built and take a tour of the museum where your Corvette will be displayed. Then you’ll have a delivery presentation, followed by a drive-off ceremony. As you road trip home, you’ll be able to admire the personalized interior plaque on the dashboard with your name, VIN, and the NCM logo engraved upon it.
We knew by the time we loaded one up it would get much more expensive than the $59,995 entry level, and optioned out with everything we talk about here, you’re looking at $83,610 before delivery.
Ian Wright CarBuzz
Sigulda to host World Cup season finale this weekend
SIGULDA, Latvia (Feb. 12, 2020)– The 2019-2020 World Cup season will come to a close this weekend in Sigulda, Latvia. USA Skeleton will field three women’s and three men’s athletes in the finale. USA Bobsled athletes will not be racing this weekend, opting instead to spend time in Altenberg, Germany to prepare for the upcoming 2020 World Championships.
The competition schedule for the skeleton races is as follows, with all times listed in local time:
Saturday, Feb. 15
12 p.m.: Men’s skeleton run #1
1:45 p.m.: Men’s skeleton run #2
Sunday, Feb. 16
10 a.m.: Women’s skeleton run #1
11:30 a.m.: Women’s skeleton run #2
Fans can watch the action live and on demand. NBC Sports and Olympic Channel will have broadcast and digital streaming coverage of the IBSF Bobsled & Skeleton World Cup in Sigulda. Fans can catch all the action in spectacular high definition via NBC Sports online at NBCSports.com/Live, or through the NBC Sports app, which is available on the Apple App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store, Apple TV and Amazon Fire. Additional coverage will be available on OlympicChannel.com and the Olympic Channel app.
Savannah Graybill (Denver, Pa.), Megan Henry (Roxbury, Conn.) and Kendall Wesenberg (Modesto, Calif.) will compete for Team USA in the women’s field, while Andrew Blaser (Meridian, Idaho), Austin Florian (Southington, Conn.) and Alex Ivanov (Carlisle, Mass.) will represent the red, white, and blue in the men’s race.
Henry, Blaser, and Ivanov will be racing on the Latvian track for the first time in their young careers. Wesenberg and Graybill competed in the December 2018 World Cup in Sigulda, finishing 11th and 14th, respectively. Florian has also raced in Sigulda once before when he competed in the 2017 Junior World Championships.
Please contact USABS Marketing & Communications Director Amanda Bird at 518-354-2250, or amanda.bird@usabs.com, with media inquiries.
About USA Bobsled & Skeleton
USA Bobsled & Skeleton (USABS), based in Lake Placid, N.Y., is the national governing body for the sports of bobsled and skeleton in the United States. USABS would like to thank its sponsors, suppliers and contributors for their support: BMW of North America, Under Armour, Omaze, Kampgrounds of America, Snap Fitness, BiPro, Boomerang Carnets, Qwixskinz, Hudl, Tesa Tape, PVS International, Ferris Mfg. Corp, Machintek, deBotech and Carpenter. For more information, please visit the USABS website at www.usabs.com.
Source: TeamUSA
America’s Cup: American Magic release video of Test Boat nosedive
New York Yacht Club’s America’s Cup team, American Magic have released a video of their test boat doing a spectacular nosedive while sailing off the team’s base in Newport.
The team is now in Pensacola, Florida their training base during the northern hemisphere winter.
They have taken their AC75 Defiant to Pensacola.
The video is shot from one of the team’s drones flying above and astern, whether the nosedive was intentional (to get test/simulator data) or accidental is not clear.
While splashdowns (where the bow enters the water with a spectacular splash) are commonplace on the larger AC75’s, only one boat (and maybe two) have capsized, most of the foiling mishaps have occurred on the test boats. American Magic’s test boat, named “The Mule” is designed (apart from the 38ft production M38 hull) to be as close to an AC75 as possible.
The reason for this nosedive is two-fold. First, the boat is flying very high on her foils, and second, the rudder wing breaks free of the water about midway through the low-resolution clip, and at that point the nosedive becomes inevitable. The “phenomenon” is common to all boats that have similar foiling physics such as the AC50, F50, AC72 and AC75. In the AC50 it was reckoned that a rudder wing contributed 500kg of downforce when immersed in the water, and if it breaks clear of the water then that 500kg of downforce is suddenly released triggering the nosedive.
It is not known if The Mule was flying under manual or automatic flight height control at the time.
Within the leadup to the nosedive The Mule is flying high and level, rather than going through a rear up, followed by a crash/splash which is the common routine on an AC75.
At the end of the video an on-board sequence shows the top of the rudder post being moved fore and aft – this controls the angle of attack of the wing rudder – and it is this movement coupled with the high flight height that triggered the incident causing The Mule to trip over her foils, nosedive and then capsize.
Source Sail Word
Chevy does a deep dive on mid-engine 2020 Corvette Stingray development in new documentary
Revolution, as the documentary is titled, will air in two parts and goes deep behind the scenes of the biggest ever change to the Corvette.
If there’s one word that describes the 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray pretty darn well, it’s probably “Revolutionary.” It’s the first time in the nameplate’s history that the engine resides behind the driver, as Chevy elevates its long-running sports car to battle the world’s best.
Naturally, curious minds have to wonder what went on behind the scenes to make this car come together. Chevy has good news for you. Revolution, a two-part documentary detailing the C8-generation Corvette’s development, is set to air in the coming months, the brand said Monday.
Chevy told Roadshow the documentary will air on the Corvette’s homepage here, but for now, the quick trailer embedded above will give fans a taste of what the upcoming feature holds. There’s plenty of first-hand knowledge on display — the team that put the latest car together gets plenty of camera time. Numerous people in the mid-engine Corvette program spill how it felt to take an icon and reinvent it.
The documentary announcement comes just after Chevy announced that the production of the 2020 Corvette Stingray kicked off on Monday. With the C7-generation car in the rearview mirror, and all necessary retooling done for the mid-engine car, the workforce in Bowling Green, Kentucky is solely focused on the new Corvette.
Chevy didn’t have an exact timeline for when the first part of the documentary will air, but it should give fans eagerly awaiting their cars something to pass the time as deliveries begin in early March at the latest. Hopefully by this summer, we’ll see plenty of 2020 Corvettes on the road as the plant ships them out to their new homes.
Kaillie Humphries Wins Fourth Bobsled World Cup Of The Season In St. Moritz
Can anybody catch Kaillie Humphries? As the world cup season in bobsled approaches its end, the answer is a more and more definitive no.
Humphries clocked her fourth victory of the world cup season in St. Moritz, Switzerland, further extending her lead in the overall IBSF World Cup standings. The two-time Olympic gold medalist and her 2018 Olympic silver medalist brakewoman Lauren Gibbs tied for the best push (5.5 seconds) on their first run on the Celerina Olympia Bobrun course to secure the lead halfway through the competition with a time of 1 minute. 8.24 seconds.
Though they recorded only the fifth-best second run in 1:08.94, their overall time of 2:17.18 was enough for the win, edging Germany’s Mariana Jamanka and Kira Lipperheide by 0.16 seconds. The most consistent pair of the day, Germany’s Stephanie Schneider and Leonie Fiebig completed the podium 0.01 behind their teammates.
Download the Team USA app today to keep up with bobsled and all your favorite sports, plus access to videos, Olympic and Paralympic team bios, and more.
Thirty-four-year-old Humphries, who competed for Canada and has only been representing the United States since November, has already proven herself a valuable asset to Team USA. She and Gibbs began their 2020 season with a pair of wins in Lake Placid, New York, and Humphries drove with Sylvia Hoffman in last week’s victory in Koenigssee, Germany. Humphries also has a bronze medal from Innsbruck, Austria, to her name this season.
The U.S. will be absent from the final world cup competition over Valentine’s Day weekend in Sigulda, Latvia, in order to prepare for the world championships in Altenberg, Germany at the end of February.
With Saturday’s results taken into account, Humphries has accumulated 1,484 points in the world cup standings, extending her lead ahead of Stephanie Schneider, who holds second place with 1,411. 2019 world cup titlist Jamanka is currently third with 1,381.
Source: Blythe Lawrence, Team USA
A Le Mans Winner Ripped The C8 Corvette Around The Nürburgring In 7 Minutes 29.9 Seconds
When you’re Chevrolet and you have access to five-time Le Mans winner Oliver Gavin, it’s a smart idea to shove him behind the wheel of a new C8 Corvette with the Z51 performance package and point him out for a flying lap of the Nordschleife. These lap times are largely irrelevant as they absolutely do not correlate to driving enjoyment or real-world usable performance, but it’s a slightly abstract way to compare the relative abilities of sports cars.
With ideal conditions and an incredibly capable driver, Chevrolet managed a lap time of 7 minutes and 29.9 seconds. That’s quicker than a recent independent test Porsche 992 time, and Chevrolet’s own high-powered Camaro ZL1. That said, it’s 16 seconds off the pace of the C7-generation Corvette Z06. Interesting? Maybe.
Chevrolet confirmed to RoadShow that this was the lap time, as hidden (below) in a teaser video for its upcoming documentary on the development of the C8.
Are you and I capable of this lap time? Hell no. But the car is capable of it in the right hands, and I guess that has bragging rights of some kind.
Obviously this is still just the base model Corvette with its 495 horsepower V8 mounted in the middle. The Z51 pack adds aero bits, better tires, better suspension, and better cooling for the entire car. There will be more powerful, better, and faster Corvettes coming, but for now you can rest assured knowing a C8 Corvette is slightly faster around the ‘ring than the big bad supercharged Camaro. That is, unless the ZL1 was of the 1LE variety (which ran a 7:16.04).
Bradley Brownell for Jalopnik
THESE LEGENDARY ‘LOST CORVETTES’ COULD BE YOURS
Imagine yourself in the driver’s seat of one of these 36 beautifully restored ‘Vettes.
Way back in 1989, when VH1 was still airing music videos, the cable network held a promotional sweepstakes in which one contestant could win a collection of 36 Chevrolet Corvettes, one from each the storied American sports car’s first 36 model years.
Long Island, N.Y. carpenter Dennis Amodeo won the sweepstakes, but then sold his coveted prize to famed German pop artist Peter Max, who intended to use each car as a canvas, but never followed through, as USA Today notes.
The vintage ‘Vettes ended up deteriorating in New York City garages for nearly a quarter century, out of the public’s eye. Fortunately, the restoration specialists at Corvette Heroes bought the entire collection from Max and are bringing the so-called “Lost Corvettes” back to life for a new sweepstakes, proceeds from which will go to the National Guard Educational Foundation.
Additionally, six of the rarest and most iconic Lost Corvettes are being shown at the Chicago Auto Show from February 8-17:
- ’55, one of 700 built and the first year a V8 engine appeared in a Corvette
- ’56, one of 290 in the rare color of Cascade Green; this car was driven by Jerry Seinfeld in an episode of “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee” with Jimmy Fallon
- ’57, featuring its original 283/245 horsepower engine with dual-quads
- ’66 coupe featuring its original colors of Nassau Blue with a stunning White interior
- ’67 convertible, a replica of the world-famous Ko-Motion Corvette
- ’69 coupe, a replica of the rarest production Corvette ever built: the 1969 ZL1
Individual tickets to enter the giveaway can be purchased for $3 or in ticket bundles for prices ranging from $10 to $7,200. Visit www.corvetteheroes.com or www.thelostcorvettes.com for more details.
Source: Maxim Staff
Florian top American finisher in St. Moritz’s men’s skeleton World Cup
ST. MORITZ, Switzerland (Jan. 30, 2020)– Austin Florian (Southington, Conn.) was the top American finisher in this morning’s men’s skeleton World Cup after finishing 19th in St. Moritz. This was Florian’s second career competition on the all-natural track.
Florian was tied for 16th position with Austrian Samuel Maier after a first heat time of 1:08.69. The American bettered his start time from 4.92 to 4.89 seconds in the final heat, and despite a nice looking run Florian fell back three spots with a downtime of 1:09.16. He finished 19th with a combined time of 2:17.85.
Alex Ivanov (Carlisle, Mass.) and Andrew Blaser (Meridian, Idaho) finished 26th and 29th, respectively. Blaser never competed in St. Moritz before today, and Ivanov had just two European Cup competitions under his belt heading into this week’s race. Ivanov clocked a start time of 5.06 for a run of 1:09.55, while Blaser pushed off the block in 4.90 for a downtime of 1:10.00.
Martins Dukurs from Latvia was today’s victor with a total time of 2:15.89. Germany’s Felix Keisinger claimed the silver medal with a two-run total of 2:16.20, followed closely behind by his teammate Axel Jungk in third with a cumulative time of 2:16.23. Sungbin Yun of Korea was the first run leader, but he fell back into fourth with only the ninth best second heat time. The Chinese are starting to stake their claim in the sport leading into 2022. Wengang Yan and Wenquiang Geng finished seventh and ninth today.
Racing continues with the women’s skeleton competition at 1 p.m. local time. NBC Sports and Olympic Channel will have broadcast and digital streaming coverage. Fans can catch all the action in spectacular high definition via NBC Sports online at NBCSports.com/Live, or through the NBC Sports app. Additional coverage will be available on OlympicChannel.com and the Olympic Channel app.
Please contact USABS Marketing & Communications Director Amanda Bird at 518-354-2250, or amanda.bird@usabs.com, with media inquiries.
Results
1. Martins Dukurs (LAT) 2:15.89 (1:07.73, 1:08.16);
2. Felix Keisinger (GER) 2:16.20 (1:07.98, 1:08.22);
3. Axel Jungk 2:16.23 (1:07.79, 1:08.44);
19. Austin Florian (USA) 2:17.85 (1:08.69, 1:09.16);
26. Alex Ivanov (USA) (1:09.55, DNS);
29. Andrew Blaser (USA) (1:10.00, DNS);
About USA Bobsled & Skeleton
USA Bobsled & Skeleton (USABS), based in Lake Placid, N.Y., is the national governing body for the sports of bobsled and skeleton in the United States. USABS would like to thank its sponsors, suppliers and contributors for their support: BMW of North America, Under Armour, Omaze, Kampgrounds of America, BiPro, Boomerang Carnets, Hudl, Tesa Tape, PVS International, Ferris Mfg. Corp, Machintek, deBotech and Carpenter. For more information, please visit the USABS website atwww.usabs.com.
Mid-Engined Chevy Corvette C8 Production Has Started: Report
[UPDATE] Contacted by Motor1.com, GM spokesperson Chris Bonelli says production of the new Corvette will begin in February.
It’s a great day for those who have signed their names on the dotted line to buy a C8 as it appears production of the mid-engined Corvette has finally started. The eighth generation of Chevrolet’s popular sports car was originally scheduled to hit the assembly line towards the end of 2019, but the UAW strike took its toll and forced General Motors to push back production until February.
It looks like they’ve managed to get everything ready a few days sooner, with production at the Bowling Green, Kentucky factory now underway. The reveal comes to us from Chevy salesperson Mike Davenport through his YouTube channel called “Chevy Dude” where he regularly posts videos about everything interesting that’s going on related to the C8 and other models that have the bowtie emblem. He was the first to break the news about Chevy cutting back on dealer allocations for the Corvette’s 2020 model year, which was shortly confirmed to Motor1.com by a spokesperson.
It goes without saying Chevy Dude is talking about the production of customer cars, including his very own C8. Another tidbit revealed is about the cancellation of the optional exposed carbon fiber ground effects for the 2020MY due to supplier issues. If you have ordered the car already with this option, Chevy will have no other way but to delete it.
For those who haven’t pre-ordered the new Corvette and are interested in getting the 2020MY, it appears April is going to be the last month when dealers will be able to ask Chevy for cars. Interestingly, Chevy Dude also knows the production of the mid-engined sports car will transition to the 2021MY in September.
That effectively means the initial model year of the C8 will only be in production for about seven months. We also get to learn the first cars will hit dealers across the country around mid-February or closer to the end of the month.
As you might have heard already, the 2021MY is rumored to come with a price bump, but nothing is official at this point. All we have for the time being is a rumor originating from a “well-placed source” cited by Motor Trend who is saying the Corvette will lose the sub-$60,000 sticker. Chevy Dude doesn’t expect the price increase to be significant, based on his 20-year experience in selling cars and analyzing Corvette pricing changes from one model year to the next.
Motor1.com has reached out to Chevy for comment and will update the article if we get a response.
Source: Chevy Dude / YouTube
ROLEX 24 AT DAYTONA – AN IMPRESSIVE DEBUT FOR THE NEW CORVETTE C8.R
The 58th Rolex 24 at Daytona, the first round of the 2020 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season, saw the first race for the new Corvette C8.R, the participation of an all-female driver line-up, 2019 NASCAR champion Kyle Busch’s first start in a 24-hour race and Ben Keating at the wheel of two different cars.
A NOTEWORTHY DEBUT FOR THE NEW CORVETTE C8.R
The #3 Corvette C8.R finished the first 24-hour race of its career in fourth place in GTLM (the equivalent of LMGTE Pro at the 24 Hours of Le Mans). Drivers Antonio García, Jordan Taylor and Nicky Catsburg encountered zero problems with the car and completed 785 laps (nearly 5,000 kilometers). Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of the #4 Corvette C8.R of Gavin-Milner-Fässler. As the car was in the top 5 in its class going into the ninth hour, an oil leak caused the car to return to its garage. The leak was found to be in an area that forced the mechanics to remove the engine for repair and the work took almost nine hours. The #4 was then able to hit the track again and finished the race in 36th place.
Much like the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the 24 Hours of Daytona is an extremely challenging race. To make it to the checkered flag with an all-new car is already a major accomplishment for Corvette Racing. The American team’s next stop is the 6 Hours of the Circuit of The Americas on Sunday 23 February in Austin, the fifth round of the 2019-2020 FIA World Endurance Championship season.
AN ALL-FEMALE DRIVER LINE-UP
All-female driver line-up Christina Nielsen, Katherine Legge, Tati Calderon and Rahel Frey shared GEAR Racing powered by GRT Grasser’s Lamborghini Huracan GT3 in the GTD class, but the car was forced to retire after a fire.
KYLE BUSCH ENJOYS HIS FIRST ENDURANCE RACE
2019 NASCAR champion Kyle Busch took the start in his first Rolex 24 at Daytona at the wheel of the AIM VASSER SULLIVAN team’s Lexus RC-F GT3. Along with teammates Parker Chase, Jack Hawksworth and Michael de Quesada, Busch finished 26th overall and ninth in the GTD class. The American driver pulled off a double and a triple stint without the slightest mistake and said after the race he really enjoyed the experience and hopes to return for the overall win.
BEN KEATING DOUBLES DOWN
Ben Keating participated in his 10th Rolex 24 at Daytona at the wheel of not one but two cars: the #52 ORECA 07 fielded by PR1 Mathiasen Motorsports in the LMP2 class and the #74 Mercedes AMG-GT3 fielded by Riley Motorsports in GTD. Both cars crossed the finish line, the #52 ORECA 07 in 10th place overall and second in its class two laps from the winners, and the #74 Mercedes AMG-GT3 in 29th place overall and 11th in its class. This was the fifth time Keating participated in the race with two different cars.
Source: 24H LE MANS
Radical New Corvette Renews Interest In American Cars In Japan
Having just captured the North American Car of the Year gong, the revolutionary all-new Chevrolet Corvette Stingray (C8), the first-ever Vette to get a mid-engined layout and right-hand drive, has just been unveiled in Japan for the first time. Given the fact that this reveal at the Tokyo Auto Salon was the first time that this radical new Vette has been shown anywhere in Asia, the reception was nothing short of rapturous.
At the world’s third largest customizing show, after SEMA and Germany’s Essen Motor Show, the Tokyo Auto Salon, staged inside the massive Makuhari Messe site became the location for GM Japan to unveil their biggest, most high profile launch in a decade.
Sitting on the stand in Zeus Bronze Metallic with a light tan-colored leather interior, GM Japan’s president Tadashi Wakamatsu explained to the thousands of gathered press and onlookers that the Japanese market would get a US-spec “2LT” and the high performance “3LT” and that deliveries would start in early 2021.Today In: Lifestyle
Asking several of the assembled media and Vette fans in the audience about their interest in the new coupe, this writer was not surprised to learn that all interviewees found the revolutionary new mid-engined layout, in comparison to the outgoing front-engined setup employed through seven generations of Corvette since the first 1953 model, especially appealing.
All pundits also agreed that the recently launched and highly rated movie “Ford v Ferrari” had heightened their desire to see the all-new Vette.
“Sure the Vette is not a Ford, but its a reasonably-priced mid-engined American muscle car and that is more than worthy of attention,” said one Vette fan. In a country where American cars account for less than 2 percent of the market, it is rare to hear car buyers speaking in such glowing terms of American cars.
Several other audience members said that they found the all-new mid-engined layout and right-hand-drive feature “extremely appealing.” Even though the starting price in Japan will hover around $100,000, in contrast to the surprisingly low $60,000 entry level sticker price in the U.S., dozens of Japanese onlookers expressed great interest in an American-made supercar that undercuts many of its European rivals like Lamborghini, McLaren and many Ferraris by less than half.
Even at that $100,000 entry level price in Japan, one sports car fan said, “I think Chevrolet have pretty much pulled a rabbit out of a hat here. Apart from the near 500 hp V8, which has switched from front-engined to mid-engined, it gets lightweight hi-tech aluminum construction, its composite and it has carbon fiber in it. And I love that sleek supercar silhouette.”
That is all true. But one of the main ways that parent company GM was able to keep the new Corvette’s starting price under $60,000 back home is to leverage the company’s economies of scale, with specific reference to the brand’s new Global B electrical platform. At last November’s L.A. Auto Show, I listened as Corvette chief engineer Tange Juechter explained how this new platform would provide the wiring, computers and structure for active safety systems, infotainment systems and even the groundwork for future electric cars.
GM Japan’s Wakamatsu couldn’t hide his joy as he unveiled the new Vette by saying, “We have a car here that gets inspiration from both an F35 jet fighter and and F1 race car. That great design, the all-new mid-engined V8 power, 0-60mph in 3 seconds and an appealing price tag is generating tremendous buzz in Japan.” And that will no doubt lead to unprecedented Vette sales in Japan. Time will tell.
Source: Peter Lyon for Forbes
Exclusive! C8.R Corvette 5.5L DOHC V-8 Pics and How the Flat-Plane Crank Alters Its Iconic Sound
There’s A New Engine In The C8.R Corvette, And It Sounds Nothing Like Its Predecessor.
They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and although that’s true, it can also be in the ear of the listener.
Since the Corvette first hit the streets back in the 1950s, it was imbued with the beautiful and nearly magical sound of V-8 performance. It was a deep, bass-filled rumble that just oozed a feeling of power. Over the years, the sound emanating from Corvettes, both on the street and at the track, had a distinctive note that became synonymous with the car. When the Corvette moved to the LS1 in 1997, the firing order was tweaked a bit, and although the sound did change, it still had that deep rumble that we all love.
But the only thing constant in the world is change. For the C8.R, Chevrolet Racing really changed things up with its new mid-engine marvel, but it wasn’t the engine placement that ended the car’s iconic sound signature. It was the engine itself. Gone is the deep baritone exhaust note, replaced instead with a high-pitched Ferrari-like sound. Think puberty in reverse. And although we love the sound of a wound-out Ferrari or other Italian supercars, having that pitch emanate from the back of a Corvette is something that will be hard to get used to. We’re not saying the sound is bad—it’s actually pretty badass—but it’s not even close to the sound signature we’ve come to associate with Corvettes.
The real culprit here isn’t the new 5.5L DOHC V-8 that Chevrolet moved to. Instead, it was the choice to go with a high-revving flat-plane crank. This drastically changed the firing order of the engine and eliminated the classic American V-8 sound that’s typical with the firing sequence of a traditional cross-plane crank. But we know what you’re thinking: “Well, this is just the race car, so I’m going to be able to get my V-8 rumble fix from the production car!” Well, yeah, for now. You see, for Chevrolet Racing to run this new DOHC flat-plane crank mill in the C8.R, it has to, according to the rules, run a similar engine in at least 300 production cars. So does this mean that an eventual C8 Z06 variant will lose its iconic exhaust note?
New Corvette Had ‘Reason to Go Back Out’ After Long Delay
Corvette “had reason” to take its No. 4 car back out on track after lengthy repair…
The “tough lessons” of the No. 4 Chevrolet Corvette C8.R’s tumultuous Rolex 24 at Daytona debut gave Corvette Racing confidence going forward with its new car, according to team manager Ben Johnson.
The silver No. 4 Corvette spent eight hours in its garage during the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season-opener after a cracked bell housing resulted in an oil leak.
Having pitted at around 11 p.m. the car eventually returned to the track close to 8 a.m. but it still managed to be classified as a finisher, albeit 327 laps behind the GTLM class winner.
While not divulging the extent of the oil leak and associated damage, Johnson explained why the team kept its car in the garage for so long.
“To fix the problem we had to move the engine back,” he told Sportscar365.
“We tried to do it with the engine installed to expedite it but then we realized that if we wanted to get it back on track, we had to take time to take the engine out and put it back in.
“We just took our time to make sure that there was nothing else. At that point, we were no longer in contention, but we had reason to go out and just understand where else the car may have issues.
“It was just kind of a test session after that.
“I think we will go back and disassemble the whole car. We have some issues to address with the oil leak.”
Oliver Gavin, who shared driving duties in the No. 4 with Tommy Milner and Marcel Fassler, said the Corvette crew “wanted to be methodical” about its repairs which added to the length of time it spent in the garage.
The Englishman suggested that the car was starting to show signs of promising pace that it could have taken through the night had the leak not occurred.
“It was really tough on the guys, eight hours of working from midnight until eight in the morning, it was crazy,” Gavin told Sportscar365.
“As soon as that happened, we knew that our day was done and that we wouldn’t be challenging. It was a shame because up to that point, our car had just started to come along.
“It wasn’t super strong right at the start, but we were gaining on it as we went through the race. Could we have been in the mix at the end? Who knows. But there was a lot that we’ve learned from this.
“As a team, we figured a lot of stuff out today. Testing is great but you really see exactly where you are when you come to a race and see where your competition is.
“We’ll take that away and process the data to see how we can make ourselves and the car better for Sebring.”
The No. 3 Corvette fared better than its sister car with Antonio Garcia, Jordan Taylor and Nicky Catsburg bringing home a fourth-place class finish on the lead lap.
Johnson said that this car’s run wasn’t entirely straightforward, but it held up well enough to remain in contention for a podium heading into the final two hours.
“We had a slight clutch issue at one point, but we had fixed it after the first stop that we witnessed it, so it wasn’t a time loss,” he explained.
“But nothing held up that car specifically again. We were really happy that all the execution, pit stops, driver changes… all things that you don’t get to test in anger until you reach the race, all went super well.”
Johnson added that the Rolex 24 has given the Corvette team confidence ahead of its next race outing at the ‘Super Sebring’ endurance racing double-header weekend in March.
“Coming away from our first race with one car on the lead lap… the issue with the oil leak is obviously very apparent, but when we looked at it we realized it’s a pretty simple fix,” he said.
“I think it raises everyone’s confidence that we can get through some of these early tough lessons and move on to Sebring in a much better spot.”
Source: Daniel Llyod for Sportscar365
Two Americans in top 10 of women’s skeleton World Cup in Koenigssee
KOENIGSSEE, Germany (Jan. 24, 2020)– The U.S. women’s skeleton team posted impressive performances in this morning’s World Cup race in Koeniggssee, with Megan Henry (Roxbury, Conn.) finishing sixth, Savannah Graybill (Denver, Pa.) ninth, and Kendall Wesenberg (Modesto, Calif.) 14th.
“Our athletes did a great job of getting each section nailed down this week during training and trusting that they could put it together on race day,” said USA Skeleton Technical and Development Lead Coach Caleb Smith. “Megan hasn’t been here in four years, and she did an exceptional job of piecing it together today. Savannah struggled with a combination on the track, and ripped through the door on her second run today. It was really great to see those breakthroughs.”
Henry said training was challenging this week, and that she nearly crashed a few times.
“I really struggled with Kreisel this week and almost lost my sled a couple times,” Henry said. “It made me super anxious, but those types of things need to happen. I was squeaking by early in the week, but I wasn’t doing the correct things. Almost crashing made me hyper focus.”
Henry is fresh off her first career World Cup medal, bronze, in last week’s race in Igls, Austria, and she was knocking on the door of the medal stand again today. Henry has raced in six Intercontinental Cup competitions in Koenigssee before this week, but never a World Cup. Henry posted push times of 5.06 and 5.01 seconds, fifth best of both heats, to put her in medal contention from the start. She was in seventh position after a first downtime of 51.98 seconds, and moved up a spot with a second heat run of 51.87 seconds. Henry finished sixth with two-run total of 1:43.86.
“My goal today was to have two consistent runs, and I’m really happy with where I ended up,” Henry said. “When I crossed the finish line and Tuffy (Latour) told me my time, I said, ‘what, that sounds pretty good.’ It was really exciting. I was not expecting to be in the top six, and I can’t be disappointed with that.”
Team Germany finished 1-2 today. Tina Hermann broke the track record in the second heat with a downtime of 51.24 seconds on the way to securing the gold medal with a cumulative time of 1:42.79. Jacqueline Loelling finished second in 1:42.97, followed by Russian Elana Nikitina in third with an aggregate time of 1:43.20.
Graybill started off with the 20th best start time of 5.22 seconds, and drove herself up into 12th position with a downtime of 52.24 seconds. She bettered her start to 5.18 in run two, and threaded together a flawless run of 51.80 seconds. Smith pumped his fist in the coach’s box in celebration when Graybill crossed the finish line. Graybill’s combined time of 1:44.04 moved her up three spots into ninth for her best finish this season, and her best career World Cup result in Koenigssee.
In her eighth career race in Koenigssee, Wesenberg finished 14th with a two-run total time of 1:44.72. Wesenberg posted start times of 5.25 and 5.26 seconds for runs of 52.30 and 52.42 seconds, respectively.
Racing continues this afternoon with the men’s skeleton competition at 3:30 p.m. local time. NBC Sports and Olympic Channel will have broadcast and digital streaming coverage. Fans can catch all the action in spectacular high definition via NBC Sports online at NBCSports.com/Live, or through the NBC Sports app. Additional coverage will be available on OlympicChannel.com and the Olympic Channel app.
Please contact USABS Marketing & Communications Director Amanda Bird at 518-354-2250, or amanda.bird@usabs.com, with media inquiries.
Results
1. Tina Hermann (GER) 1:42.79 (51.55, 51.24);
2. Jacqueline Loelling (GER) 1:42.97 (51.64, 51.33);
3. Elana Nikitina (RUS) 1:43.20 (51.61, 51.59);
6. Megan Henry (USA) 1:43.86 (51.98, 51.87);
9. Savannah Graybill (USA) 1:44.04 (52.24, 51.80);
14. Kendall Wesenberg (USA) 1:44.72 (52.30, 52.42);
About USA Bobsled & Skeleton
USA Bobsled & Skeleton (USABS), based in Lake Placid, N.Y., is the national governing body for the sports of bobsled and skeleton in the United States. USABS would like to thank its sponsors, suppliers and contributors for their support: BMW of North America, Under Armour, Omaze, Kampgrounds of America, BiPro, Boomerang Carnets, Hudl, Tesa Tape, PVS International, Ferris Mfg. Corp, Machintek, deBotech and Carpenter. For more information, please visit the USABS website at www.usabs.com.
Source: Team USA
Koenigssee hosts sixth stop of IBSF Bobsled & Skeleton World Cup tour
KOENIGSSEE, Germany (Jan. 22, 2020)– Koenigssee will host the sixth of eight stops of the IBSF Bobsled & Skeleton World Cup tour this week. The German track was completed in 1968, and was the first artificially refrigerated track in the world.
The competition schedule is as follows, with all times listed in local time:
Friday, Jan. 24
11:30 a.m.: Women’s skeleton run #1
1 p.m.: Women’s skeleton run #2
3:30 p.m.: Men’s skeleton run #1
5:15 p.m.: Men’s skeleton run #2
Saturday, Jan. 25
12 p.m.: Women’s bobsled run #1
1:30 p.m.: Women’s bobsled run #2
3 p.m.: Men’s two-man bobsled run #1
4:30 p.m.: Men’s two-man bobsled run #2
Sunday, Jan. 26
1:30 p.m.: Four-man bobsled run #1
3 p.m.: Four-man bobsled run #2
Fans can watch the action live and on demand. NBC Sports and Olympic Channel will have broadcast and digital streaming coverage of the IBSF Bobsled & Skeleton World Cup in Koenigssee. Fans can catch all the action in spectacular high definition via NBC Sports online at NBCSports.com/Live, or through the NBC Sports app, which is available on the Apple App Store, Google Play, Windows Store, Roku Channel Store, Apple TV and Amazon Fire. Additional coverage will be available on OlympicChannel.com and the Olympic Channel app.
Savannah Graybill (Denver, Pa.), Megan Henry (Roxbury, Conn.) and Kendall Wesenberg (Modesto, Calif.) will compete for Team USA in women’s skeleton. Henry is fresh off her first career World Cup medal, bronze, in last week’s race in Igls, Austria, and she’s hungry for the medals once more. Henry has raced in six Intercontinental Cup competitions in Koenigssee before this week. Graybill has the most experience of the three women with eight races in Koenigssee on her resume, including a 16th place finish in the 2017 World Championships. Wesenberg has raced on the German track seven times, including fourth place finishes in the 2014 European Cup that helped her secure the 2015 overall title.
Andrew Blaser (Meridian, Idaho), Austin Florian (Southington, Conn.) and Alex Ivanov (Carlisle, Mass.) will follow the women on Friday in the men’s skeleton competition. This is Blaser’s first time in Koenigssee, and only Florian’s third. Ivanov has competed in Koenigssee six times in various European Cup and Intercontinental Cup races.
In women’s bobsled, Kaillie Humphries (Carlsbad, Calif.) will again team with Sylvia Hoffman (Arlington, Texas). The duo claimed bronze together in last week’s Igls race. Humphries is no stranger to success in Koenigssee– she’s earned seven World Cup medals and two World Championship medals on the track. The last time she raced the German course was in January 2018, when she finished second for Team Canada.
Hunter Church (Cadyville, N.Y.) is once again learning a new track. The 23-year-old will race with Kyle Wilcox (Tampa, Fla.) in Saturday’s two-man competition. Church’s four-man crew for Sunday will be Josh Williamson (Lake Mary, Fla.), Jimmy Reed (Garmisch, Germany) and Kris Horn (Pembroke, Mass.). Church had a breakthrough last weekend, when he claimed his first career four-man bobsled World Cup bronze medal with Williamson, Reed and Horn. It was the first World Cup medal in three years for a U.S. men’s team on foreign soil.
Please contact USABS Marketing & Communications Director Amanda Bird at 518-354-2250, or amanda.bird@usabs.com, with media inquiries.
About USA Bobsled & Skeleton
USA Bobsled & Skeleton (USABS), based in Lake Placid, N.Y., is the national governing body for the sports of bobsled and skeleton in the United States. USABS would like to thank its sponsors, suppliers and contributors for their support: BMW of North America, Under Armour, Omaze, Kampgrounds of America, BiPro, Boomerang Carnets, Hudl, Tesa Tape, PVS International, Ferris Mfg. Corp, Machintek, deBotech and Carpenter. For more information, please visit the USABS website at www.usabs.com.
Source: TeamUSA
Ultimate Corvette Expected to Go PHEV
General Motors is plugging into EVs in a big way. And, among a wide range of electrified models set to come out over the next several years, one is expected to wear the Chevrolet Corvette badge.
GM CEO Mary Barra has repeatedly said the automaker is on a “path to an all-electric future.”
Several officials have acknowledge the C8 Corvette was designed to be electrified, though they have to confirm what form that will take.
A plug-based ‘Vette would focus on performance – likely nudging 700 hp or more — rather than mileage, though it likely also would be the most efficient version of the sports car.
When “spy shots” began circulating last week showing a plug hanging out of the nose of a new Corvette undergoing winter testing its was initially reported this was the rumored battery version of the sports car.
Parent General Motors subsequently explained that the pics had caught a conventional, gas-powered 2020 ‘Vette,” but the episode only underscores expectations Chevrolet is, indeed developing an electric Corvette — something an assortment of executives, including GM President Mark Reuss have taken pains not to deny.
If anything, Reuss effectively confirmed it is only a question of time, noting last July that the eighth-generation Corvette just coming to market will have to comply with the company’s “strategy of 0-0-0: zero emissions, zero crashes, zero congestion.”
But exactly what that means – or, more precisely, what form that would take – is far from certain.
GM officials have made it clear there will continue to be an assortment of different ‘Vette variants, perhaps more than we’ve seen in the past. During the July unveiling of the C8, several Corvette insiders told Ride that the new, mid-engine platform was specifically designed to allow the use of electric drive, with a battery pack placed below the load floor. What type of system it will be is the real question.
Only a few years ago, GM seemed focused on both conventional and plug-in hybrids, the original Chevy Volt being a good example of its PHEV strategy. But it has pulled the plug on Volt and is, for the most part, moving towards pure battery-electric vehicles. The current example is the Chevrolet Bolt EV, with an all-electric Cadillac SUV dues later this year. Among the nearly two dozen other BEVs under development: a battery pickup expected to revive the Hummer name.
For those who still think of battery drive as slow and boring, no need to worry, however. Making 100% of their torque the moment they start spinning, electric motors can deliver insane levels of torque given enough power. The “conventional” hybrid Acura NSX is one example. The plug-in Lincoln Aviator is the fastest and most powerful version of that SUV. And whether you’re talking Tesla Model S with Ludicrous Mode or the new Porsche Taycan Turbo 4S, pure BEVs can be blindingly fast.
If anything, says Sam Abuelsamid, principal auto analyst with Navigant Research, “no doubt about it,” a battery-based Corvette will be the quickest ever, “easily getting into the 700 horsepower range, with over 1,000 NM torque, and launching from 0 to 60 in under 2 seconds.”
A conventional hybrid, even one as exotic as the NSX, is unlikely, various sources indicate. The question, then, is whether Corvette goes all-electric or plug-in hybrid. Abuelsamid is one who believes it will be a BEV, though the evidence is still too vague to be certain. One high-level insider cautioned Ride last July it would be difficult to squeeze in enough batteries to deliver the range BEV buyers would expect. But pulling out the internal combustion engine and transmission could solve that.
Do expect the electric drivetrain to be all-wheel-drive, with motors front and back, every source has agreed upon, something critical in order to get all that power to the pavement.
Another unanswered question is what an electrified Corvette might be called. Some sources have hinted this will be the next-generation Z06, others that it might replace the old ZR1, the traditional pinnacle of the Corvette line-up. There has long been speculation Chevy might be working up a Corvette Zora, an homage to the sports car’s legendary first chief engineer, Zora Arkus-Duntov, and what better way to do that?
How soon? “A bit more than” 24 months was the best answer we could get from insider GM. That’s a bit further out than many expected, but the GM strike last autumn appeared to have pushed back development efforts.
WHY THIS MATTERS
The C8 is the first production Corvette to adopt a mid-engine layout, boosting performance to supercar levels at a fraction of the sale price global competitors demand. An electric ‘Vette, whether PHEV or BEV, would pose an even bigger challenge to exotic brands like Ferrari, Lamborghini and Aston Martin.
Source: Paul Eisenstein for Ride.Tech.
Corvette C8.R vs C7.R sound comparison
Sports car racing fans have come to know the sound of Corvette Racing’s menacing V8 engines as one of IMSA’s most unmistakable soundtracks. The punch to the chest delivered by the Corvette C7.R through the 2019 season, and all of its predecessors dating back to the program’s debut in 1999, was as unique as it was thrilling.
It makes the brand’s greatest shift with its mid-engine C8.R (pictured above) — which debuts in competition this week at the Rolex 24 At Daytona, featuring a fresh V8 motor with an entirely different voice — a new experience for Corvette fans. Thanks to the move to a flat-plane crankshaft in the 5.5-liter naturally-aspirated powerplants, the C8.Rs strike the ears with a higher pitch that, in typical Corvette Racing fashion, is unlike anything else in the field.
Which exhaust note sounds better? Take a listen to the C8.R from testing at the Roar Before The 24, and from a C7.R during December Daytona testing in 2016, and you decide.
Original Source: Marshall Pruett for Racer.com
Garcia, Gavin uncertain of Corvette C8.R’s Daytona prospects
Corvette Racing’s veteran stars, Oliver Gavin and Antonio Garcia, are positive about the new mid-engined C8.R’s progress but are uncertain how it will perform relative to its GT Le Mans class opposition at this weekend’s Rolex 24 at Daytona.
Gavin’s full-time partner Tommy Milner set Corvette Racing’s fastest time in Roar Before the 24 qualifying which decides garages and pit stalls, and he was encouragingly just 0.108sec off the top time in class, set by James Calado in the Risi Competizione Ferrari 488 GTE.
However, Gavin warned that the race will be several hours old before everyone gets an accurate picture of how the GTLM contenders match up.
“The C8.R is a brand new car and this is its first race outing,” said the 2016 Rolex 24 winner. “We won’t know where we are in respect to the competition, and they will be looking at us and figuring out where we’re strong and where we’re weak.
“You can pick up little bits and pieces during the Roar and even in the two or three practice sessions before the Rolex 24, but you never really get a great idea of where you’re at until you get five hours or so into the race.
“But it always comes down to the last two hours. It would be quite remarkable if we could come right out of the box and be super-fast, super-reliable and have a successful weekend the first time out.”
Two-time IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GT Le Mans title winner and 2015 Rolex 24 winner Garcia also sounded a note of caution.
“So far, the new Corvette has been quite decent in testing,” said the Spaniard who is entering his seventh season with the legendary team. “It is still very early stages for this car.
“Even though we think we are ready, there are things that can come up. We must do everything we can to make sure we are as prepared as possible. Then we can see what we really have.
“Our testing has been a consistent evolution between track days and simulator work. We’ve been able to develop a plan to develop the car even though we weren’t testing on the track. The correlation of data has been good. Everything that we have tested virtually is working in real life. That makes life a lot easier when you can use all your tools to improve.
“We continue to validate all the work we’ve done and what we find on the racetrack. We are on the right track.”
While Gavin and Milner continue to be partnered by Marcel Fassler for the endurance races, Garcia not only is working with a new enduro extra – Nicky Catsburg – he also has a new full-time partner.
Jordan Taylor, who in 2017 won the IMSA Prototype title with the team owned by his father Wayne Taylor, and has two Rolex 24 wins to his credit, has moved to the GTLM class with Corvette, replacing Jan Magnussen.
This continues a relationship with the Doug Fehan-run team that stretches back to 2012, the first of six years in which Taylor raced a Corvette in the Le Mans 24 Hours. Partnering Gavin and Milner, he won the GTE Pro class at Le Mans in 2015.
“I’m excited to go back into GT racing with Corvette in GTLM with all-manufacturer teams and all-professional drivers,” he said. “The class will get a lot of eyes on it with the first race for the C8.R.
“The race itself will be extremely difficult. I’ll have to get used to looking in my mirrors again! In testing, I was reminding myself to check the mirrors leaving certain corners so I could get in the habit of doing it for the race.
“So I’m looking forward to it. Overall wins are fantastic, but a win is a win; you still get a Rolex watch no matter what class you’re in! But for us in GTLM, the competition will be the same if not more difficult than in prototypes.”
Source: David Malsher-Lopez