Ray Hofman sets new World Record.

[donnymac]

Congrats big boy!

You got one FFF!!! :cheers

 

[pe2unia]

WOWeek:eek Great job to all involved:thumbsup

 

[TCT]

Just an FYI,

I created an ever evolving (so check back as time goes on) summary page about this weekends fun on the Heffner site.

It will include all the video's, pictures and relevant commentary for future reference and reflection.

http://www.heffnersperformance.com/miami_hofman_mile.htm

 

[soroush]

you cant take anything away from the people that were involved during this event, those two gts are fast as hell! however I it seems that the timing equipment may have had issues, so it brings it back to: shall we see all parties back to texas in october? I think since the texas mile has established itself as the predominant venue for mile racing and that no one has questioned the validity of the timing equipment, then how you perform at the texas mile will stand the scrutiny of all doubters. I hope to see everyone at the mile in october:thumbsup

 

[Shelby#18]

What a fantastic accomplishment, congradulations to all involved in making these cars go above and beyond! Perhaps we will see a GT reach warp speed....

 

[Fast Freddy]

There is no lift in the modern FGT. A stock GT's front suspension is fully compressed (bottomed out) from downforce at 205 mph.

Chip

Chip - so what you are saying then is that is not necessary to lower the front of the GT for speeds in excess of 205 mph? in other words the stock ride height from the factory is adequate?

this is a very important piece of information that i need clarity on because my life depends on it :thumbsup

 

[Fast Freddy]

It was a pleasure seeing many of you, and meeting many of you for the 1st time. The pleasure was all mine, believe me.

With all due respect to everyone who attended, especially for those who traveled from out of state, hats off to all your incredible efforts.

Now for the bad news.....

The event yesterday was run as poor as an event could have been run. All the times in the first half of the day were off by close to 10 MPH. All the top 3 tuners, UR, Heffner, and PPR agreed. UR and Heffner had 2-3 GPSs in their cars, and all them showed a faster time than what they gave. After lunch, they started moving all the sensors again to compensate for the slow times, but in reality, they must have over compensated for the slower times from earlier on.

One of our friends who runs ALL the time, Stormer, who is a perfect example, runs high 180s all day long. He ran a low 190 with a tail wind at Top Gun Run. Yesterday, he was running 186 all day, and at the very end of the day when they gave him his printout, there were 2 runs that had an identical quatermile time, identical quartermile mph, identical Mile time (29.3 seconds on both runs), but the MPH was a 20 MPH difference. They gave him a 203 MPH run!!!! All for a pulley and tune? Does that sound correct to you?

Brooks from DragTimes was talking to the owner of the Cooper SC Z06. He runs 184 all day long. When they gave him his printed sheet, it said 195. Even he laughed at it and said there's no way that his car is that fast.

I heard from UG that after they showed a 246 MPH on the GPS systems in the car that ran 250 MPH in Texas, they told him yesterday that he ran a 232!! After that, Kevin pulled Seth away and made a major complaint to him. Seth told him that he could correct his run and Kevin asked how? Seth said by just inputting the number. After that conversation, Kevin packed up and he was done.

When Ray had one of his fastest runs, these guys weren't even able to give him his time due to a system malfunction. I believe that was really one of his fastest runs. But the timing guy did say, and I heard it with my own ears, that Ray's car was running 168 MPH at the quartermile. Now does that seem possible to you? Ray's car is fast, but 168 MPH? Not even the fastest street cars with slicks launching and pulling the front tires can run 168.

There were too many discrepancies with the timing equipment yesterday, that NO ONE really knows what is right and what isn't. All I know is that NONE of this can be relied as an official time. It's ashamed that E. Rally really dropped the ball. But what did you really expect? Especially coming from their previous event when they had to share 1 VBox amongst all the drivers.

After being charged $450 per car, and $50 PP, you would expect that they would have spent a little money to get the right timing equipment and run a proper event. Then again this was a club event.

There wasn't even anyone at the end of the track to give clearance. When Johnny blew a water hose towards the end of the track, no even bothered to come down to inspect it to see whether or not it was safe to run again. If you wanted the timing slip from the machine, you were given a computer generated printout. Not what you get with the Tag system. Anyone running Texas or Top Gun Run can get an actual slip from that system.

In any event, the cars were very fast, and no one got hurt.

The best part of the whole event? Seeing Ray take off on the runway in his jet. That was priceless!!

there are no issues like this whatsoever at the Mojave Mile :wink the Mojave Mile is run by a Professional racing organization. that being the USAS and MKM racing promotions :usa

 

[ivanrho]

what did Ray's jet run down the Mile?

did we get data on that?


:biggrin

Ray's Jet didn't even make it to the half mile mark when it came up off the ground hoovering at about 30 feet. Once he came towards the end of the runway, it shot up like a Fighter Jet. Not sure if Ray was piloting it, but I'm sure he was used to the g's. It was an incredible sight.

 

[Copenhagen GT]

Totally awesome Ray :thumbsup
:cheers
Anders

 

[B.M.F.]

Posted by slavik off 6speed online

a few things i would like to address... I was there helping the event organizer as he is a friend of mine....
Here is what happened and how it happened...

"Absolutely there were timing issues for the first 1/2 of the day.

History: We arrived at the Airport 5am to begin setting up the timing system. Due to Ray's Jet landing at 7am we needed to wait until then to actually place all the traps in their proper place. Once landed we proceeded to setup the system completely. Everything was measured accurately and it was tested as well, compared with vBox and was completely functioning properly.

8am, Jason Heffner approached me with an issue regarding the placement of the timing system and that the 'lane' was running over painted stripes which could potentially cause a major hazard and someone could lose control and he had experienced this first hand on Thursday when they were test running on the same airstrip.

Immediately I instructed my timing tech to relocate the lane where there was no painted markings. Unbeknownst to me he did NOT remeasure the mile but simply moved it across the strip. I think we all know that it is almost impossible to laterally move such items and have them in the exact same location with the same measurements. Admittedly I should have supervised and/or measured it myself for accuracy as it plays such an important role in an event of this nature.

All the runs from 9am - 1pm were off by a margin of approximately 9 mph. Once we broke for lunch, we re-measured the mile and the traps and were able to adjust it accurately and since our timing system records all of the readings on the hard drive we were able to populate the correct times in the records. We then printed out the time slips and people commented that their vBox readings were matching the times displayed on the time slips.

I ran my personal car 3 times through the traps setting the cruise control at 60/75/82 and each time the system came back with 100% accurate readings after is was recalibrated.

The second half of the day - the readings were accurate. There were however a few that did NOT read at all or completely wrong due to a few spectators blocking one of the antenna's at the starting line which caused a false reading."

"Unfortunately with electronics as well as cars there is a margin or failure. However I did my best to make sure it was resolved. At the end of the day most were happy with the accuracy of the timing equipment and I apologize to those who were not."


Many have attested to the fact that times were dead accurate to 1-2 tenths of their vbox readings in the second part of the day

 

[ivanrho]

there are no issues like this whatsoever at the Mojave Mile :wink the Mojave Mile is run by a Professional racing organization. that being the USAS and MKM racing promotions :usa

The importance of the "timing equipment" needs no explanation. I second the idea of forming a timing sanction to make all events official without question. Just because Texas has been doing it since 2003 doesn't make them accurate as well. It depends on who sets up the equipment. Forget about the mile being surveyed. It comes down to who sets up the strobe points etc.

FYI, Top Gun Run has had 2 events out there and both events were timed without question from anybody. Period. PLUS there will be a redundant system to record the run just in case there is a problem. Texas and Maxton both do it this way. All this is added costs, but when you want to recognized as a "proper" race, there's no question that all this has to get done.

 

[DoctorV8]

I'd love to know what Ray's trap speeds were at the 1/4 and 1/2 mile mark! I'm guessing 150 mph and 200 mph...

 

[ivanrho]

Posted by slavik off 6speed online

a few things i would like to address... I was there helping the event organizer as he is a friend of mine....
Here is what happened and how it happened...

"Absolutely there were timing issues for the first 1/2 of the day.

History: We arrived at the Airport 5am to begin setting up the timing system. Due to Ray's Jet landing at 7am we needed to wait until then to actually place all the traps in their proper place. Once landed we proceeded to setup the system completely. Everything was measured accurately and it was tested as well, compared with vBox and was completely functioning properly.

8am, Jason Heffner approached me with an issue regarding the placement of the timing system and that the 'lane' was running over painted stripes which could potentially cause a major hazard and someone could lose control and he had experienced this first hand on Thursday when they were test running on the same airstrip.

Immediately I instructed my timing tech to relocate the lane where there was no painted markings. Unbeknownst to me he did NOT remeasure the mile but simply moved it across the strip. I think we all know that it is almost impossible to laterally move such items and have them in the exact same location with the same measurements. Admittedly I should have supervised and/or measured it myself for accuracy as it plays such an important role in an event of this nature.

All the runs from 9am - 1pm were off by a margin of approximately 9 mph. Once we broke for lunch, we re-measured the mile and the traps and were able to adjust it accurately and since our timing system records all of the readings on the hard drive we were able to populate the correct times in the records. We then printed out the time slips and people commented that their vBox readings were matching the times displayed on the time slips.

I ran my personal car 3 times through the traps setting the cruise control at 60/75/82 and each time the system came back with 100% accurate readings after is was recalibrated.

The second half of the day - the readings were accurate. There were however a few that did NOT read at all or completely wrong due to a few spectators blocking one of the antenna's at the starting line which caused a false reading."

"Unfortunately with electronics as well as cars there is a margin or failure. However I did my best to make sure it was resolved. At the end of the day most were happy with the accuracy of the timing equipment and I apologize to those who were not."


Many have attested to the fact that times were dead accurate to 1-2 tenths of their vbox readings in the second part of the day

Nobody should use Cruise Control in a car to calibrate timing equipment to potentially set a World Record. That's ludicrous.

On second thought, I take that back. It was what it was.

 

[GTdrummer]

Based on what DBK said (that "security guard" should have been arrested--totally reckless and I am a big gun guy) and the other posts I have read (cruise control as a test ????) it sounds like I had had more fun staying at home--and my dog died. (RIP--Sam)

And this event has made EVERY forum I am on--still a lot of good press for GT nontheless.

 

[Mullet]

Chip - so what you are saying then is that is not necessary to lower the front of the GT for speeds in excess of 205 mph? in other words the stock ride height from the factory is adequate?

this is a very important piece of information that i need clarity on because my life depends on it :thumbsup

I ran 226.2 with stock ride height front and rear. I did have the smaller PS2's on the front and stock size R6's on the rear. With this setup the front was about 1 inch lower than stock because of the size of the tires.

 

[Mullet]

I'd love to know what Ray's trap speeds were at the 1/4 and 1/2 mile mark! I'm guessing 150 mph and 200 mph...

well over 200 at the 1/2 mile. I would guess 220-230

 

[Empty Pockets]

The SOUND his car made as it blasted (and that IS the word!) by the camera car caused the hair on the back of my neck to stand up & salute!

Good gallopin' KRYMUNY!!! What a sound!!!!!!!!!!! :thumbsup:thumbsup



Just as an aside...uhhhhh, now, are 'we' going to hafta throw away the wheels & tires used after 2-3 of these runs ala Veyron? :biggrin

 

[1418]

Hummm I missed Manny.. I see he showed up to another mile event without his car.... wonder why...:wink

Hey Mr 200+mphcat,

I saw you do a run and then you disappeared... I spent the whole day with my little guy which was cool. Unfortunately his tolerance for anything is 10 minutes. Heck I even missed saying hello to Ray and Jason...

Again --an incredible feat--

 

[Heffner Performance]

Once again I'd like to thank everyone for their support, enthusiasm and positive remarks. Thanks to Ray and Janna Hofman for allowing us the opportunity to be involved in such a tremendous project. Thanks to TJ, Zach, Aaron and John of Heffner Performance for putting in the long hours that it takes to ensure a successful outing each time we take the car out. Thanks to John Mihovetz of Accufab for building us the most incredible Ford GT engine ever! Thanks to Naoto and Brian Sakata for doing such a phenomenal job with the electronics on this car. Thanks to Dave and Francesca Bannister, Chip Beck, Torrie McPhail and many others for their help and support of this program. We have without a doubt assembled a team of people whose skill and dedication will be nearly impossible to match and without their help we could not be where we are today.

With regard to this weekend's event and concerns about the timing equipment I do not have a lot to say. Prior to attending this weekend we were aware that any numbers obtained during the event may be considered "unofficial". The purpose of attending this event was to race against two of the other fastest one mile cars in the world on the same day at the same facility using the same timing equipment. At the end of the day we had the fastest time recorded and we have V Box data to verify the performance of our car.

Anyone that has doubts about the numbers posted for our car from this weekend will be at a loss for words once this fall's Texas Mile takes place, I personally guarantee this and I hope to see you guys there.

 

[Hennessey Performance]

This is unreal and very sad. And it should not ever happen again. You should speak to Randy Wong about this. It may not be too late to notify the proper authorities about the idiot with the guns and who hired him.

Next time you go to a Florida mile event, hire an off-duty sheriff or highway patrolman to take with you to keep the ass-clowns away. I will gladly chip in on their fee.

Who hired the "mall cop" packing all of the heat? That person's name needs to be known right here and now.

John

Matt,
In the course of running events and a website, sometimes you have to make executive decisions on what kind of crowd is appropriate for your members. The pro wrestling analogy is apropos given what I saw yesterday. Never in my life, under any circumstance, and certainly not at what is supposed to be a good time, have I seen what I saw yesterday.

When it looked like PPR was going to have the fastest time of the day, what looked like 30 people rolled into Ray's rig area shoving cameras into Ray's face to watch johnny discuss whatever he had to discuss with Ray. That's a bit paparrazi/TMZ for my tastes in the first place, but I digress. I get it, that's the shtick for some people. Internet videos with a bit of trash talking and so on. What bothered me was the fact that the centerpiece of the circus was the "security guard" they brought with them brandishing two pistols and an assault rifle with his finger on the trigger. And yes, it was brandishing. When your weapon is tucked into your shirt and you're raising your shirt to show it off, that's brandishing. Especially when you're doing it to vaguely look intimidating. I mean, besides the whole assault rifle thing. At a runway. For a car event.

We're all grown men here, so let's not try attempt to say that was anything but part of the show for the Internet. We carry handguns carefully concealed in the ghetto. We don't wander around with AR-15s with ACOG scopes out. That was purely for show. We're out there having a good time, and Ray's 18 month old son is standing next to him while a very poorly trained security guard (brandishing weapons makes you poorly trained. If you're really there for a security reason, just do your job discreetly) has an assault rifle hanging around his next with his finger on the trigger aimed at what we'll call toddler height. I don't even know what to say about that. For all I know the guy could pick off gnats at 1000 yards, but you get judged by your conduct.

When Ray asks him to please leave he says "There's nothing in the chamber." Well then why is it out? It was beyond reckless, it was stupid, it was not cool, it was not funny, and I can tell you after Ray laid down the fastest time of the day, we weren't rushing back to the cars to grab a bunch of .45's and run up putting cameras in people's face to make an internet video. Back to the WWE bit, those fans are who gets impressed by that kind of stuff. Me? Color me extraordinarily unimpressed. I guarantee nobody at SVT or FRPP was impressed when word of that got back.

I literally can't believe that whole scenario, but it's one of those things where you have to ask yourself, as a rational adult, if these are people you want around the crowd you're trying to entertain. I can't speak for the yahoos that ran yesterday's event, but if a guy shows up with an assault rifle and two visible handguns, I don't care why he's there, you're not getting on the property. This is not Basra or Kandahar. It's a runway in Miami with a bunch of wealthy guys running their cars.

Johnny seems like a nice enough guy. The car runs great, it's strong, and it's a super fast Ford GT. But whole thing was b.s. Ray is a diplomat. I am not. I have no tolerance for people that can't accurately assess that a place with small children and wives and guys trying to have a good time isn't an appropriate place to be having a conversation about whether or not you've got 7.62 loaded in the chamber. Life is too short for stupid stuff like that, and you pull that stunt with the wrong guy someday, and life could end up being REALLY too short for someone, and REALLY long for the guy that winds up in a cell for the next 25. Wrong venue, wrong conduct, wrong crowd.