After the Formula D Diary debacle of last month with none of our drivers landing on the podium, we're back at an all-new track, Raceway Park in Englishtown, N.J., for a fresh start. For Chapter Three, the same eight drifters are back to tell us every little detail that went down in the Northeast. From repaired mechanical problems to new ones brewing, a two-way tie for First between Chris Forsberg and Samuel Hubinette for overall points chase, and last year's champ, Tanner Foust, trailing slightly, will the third time be the charm for our drifters?
Ken Gushi
Still working out the kinks that come with competing in a completely new ride, Ken left Atlanta without any points, a burned clutch, and the added burden of proving himself and his Scion. With most of the bugs worked out, the Gush is looking to turn things around.
This weekend proved to be a turning point for the RS-R Scion tC. Not only did we keep the car in running condition for the entire event, we also survived an extra day of abuse during practice on Thursday. Englishtown is a new track for Formula Drift series, so I had to familiarize myself with the track layout. Entry speeds for most of the Top 16 drivers were between 73 and 78 mph. Our 4.6:1 final drive put us right at the edge of this, meaning I was topping out at 71 mph, without enough wheel speed to drift the car at high speeds. A 4.3 final would've raised the top speed, but we decided to stick with the 4.6, because I was already comfortable with the set up. I was also afraid that the car wouldn't have the power to spin Fourth gear with the 4.3:1 final drive. Still, I managed to qualified 13th in the Top 32 qualify session with a score of 87.13 at about 71 mph. I was a little disappointed since I thought I would qualify higher, but knew the slower speeds were what did it. After qualifying, we swapped the final drive to a 4.3:1 for the next practice session, and my techs Gary and Koji-san decided to bump up the tire pressure from 70psi to 90psi, turn up boost, and remove the rear wing to cut drag. My runs were getting better and my lines were getting further to the outside clipping point. The tC has about 380 hp, but with the changes made, it felt a hell of a lot faster.
As qualifying began on Saturday, I noticed many of the drivers initiating at much higher speeds than before. My lines were better, but my speeds were too low. I ended up qualifying 18th Place with a score of 89.75. Was I holding back? I remind myself that this is only the first year for the tC, and we are still in the process of adapting. That said, it is very disappointing to find myself out of the Top 16 seeded group, no matter what the reason. We're slowly working out all the tC's bugs, but I know we still have a little way to go. I wanted to bring home a trophy to my dad for Father's Day, but I guess I'll just have to win one for him at the next event, in Vegas.
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