Re: Viper/Ferrari days in the North East ?
Listen here Jon '98 GTS from San Jose--whoever you are! On a "real" racetrack like Thunderhill, I too, would take the Viper over a 360. But on a psuedo-track (streets of Willow, Texas Motorsports Ranch), I think I'd go the 360 route. A F355 would get worked over in every aspect but brakes. Brakes don't make for fast lap times unless you're talking about a long race. At Willow Springs the F355 Challenge cars would get pummelled by a Viper, but the 360 Challenge cars would in turn pummel a stock Viper. It's a moot point, though, because Challenge cars aren't street legal and aren't really even that close to their street legal versions. If you're comparing the non-legal versions, I'm sure the GTS-R would handily annihilate a Challenge car.
I wouldn't lend too much credence to beating the magazines. Car and Driver just recently went 1:34.98 in an ACR and Motor Trend got an even more absurd 1:42 in a Z06. While you were tooling around in the rain, Big Daddy Straight-line Brett Mayes was pulling 1:42s in his Integra-R (hardly a Z06) and a certain somebody launched a low 1:29 Scud on the field in an ACR with Michellin Pilots (even 275 fronts) and just headers.
I was actually at Willow Springs the day Motor Trend had the Z06 at the track and it was rather entertaining watching them attempt to get around the track. The Ford test driver was pulling 1:38s or so in the Viper and was awfully proud of himself because in his mind he thought he was getting every last ounce out of the Viper. It was all I could do to not steal Ford's Viper and give them all a lesson.
A couple of years ago, a similar thing happened when Car and Driver raced a Viper against a YZF1000 at Willow Springs. They had some Dom Deluise look alike from Cycle World tool the YZF around Willow to the tune of 1:36 and declared the Viper a faster track vehicle. Put a decent rider on that bike and it wouldn't be hard to go 1:36 in the rain! But somehow the world assumed cars are quicker than bikes thanks to his gross incompetence.
So mystery man Jon '98 GTS the moral of the story is...Steve Millen or not, I bet if you drop Bontempi in the 360 it would be a whole different story.
WAR CRAPPY JOURNALISTS......ERRRRRRRR RACERS!!!!!!!!!
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