April 7, 2017: Watkins Glen Green Grand Prix
 

Details for the 2017 Green Grand Prix were posted yesterday, at www.GreenGrandPrix.com

[EDIT - MARCH 13] I just got an email from GGP organizer Bob Gillespie. He'd like to have more EcoModder drivers in this year's event. So would I!

If you're considering going this year, please contact me and the Green Grand Prix. [EDIT]

When you register, be sure to state "Team Ecomodder" under "School or Business Name". Our combined efforts help gain recognition for Ecomodder. Ecomodders have been driving in this event since at least 2010 if not earlier.

This year's event is Friday, April 7. For this year, the afternoon time-speed-distance rally on state/local roads has been replaced by an Autocross event in the Watkins Glen North Paddock area.

Bob's email below, and my comments, concentrate on the Autocross event because it is new to the GGP. HOWEVER, remember that the two hour, roughly 100 mile fuel economy/TSD rally event on the Watkins Glen track will probably get most of your attention. I doubt that the Autocross event will score for fuel economy, in part because it is a very short run, something like one minute in duration - possibly run several times per car.

I received this email from Bob Gillespie, the event organizer, yesterday evening:

You’ll see that we have our usual fuel economy event on the track from 10 AM - 12 noon.
Then we decided that we need to change things up and do an autocross in the afternoon. [Okay Ecomodders, this means many of us need to start reading up on what Autocross is.]

In an effort to start focusing on electric cars and hybrids, plug-ins, we decided we would promote these cars in the Autocross.

The good news is that we value our Ecomodder friends and so long-time Ecomodder entrants and new Ecomodders of special merit can enter the Autocross too.

This Autocross can just be for fun, you run around a short course of pylons individually. We will have an award for ecomodders. What we don’t want is a bunch of college kids with high-horsepower tire spinners crashing around...
If people either don’t want to enter, or are disallowed because of the nature of their car, they can attend afternoon talks.

We will have a talk on Formula e, among other topics. We are trying to get someone from one of the Teams to speak, like Andretti, Jaguar, or Audi. Maybe someone from the race organizers in Brooklyn. [EDIT] I think this series can serve to push electric vehicle technology that will carry over to passenger cars. Since they race on city streets all over the World, it will also help create a market for EVs. [/EDIT]

Ecomodders, about the new Autocross event
I found this article on Autocross. I'm sure many of you know more than what's in this article but... this is what I have for now. SCCA article: Road Racing vs Autocrossing
You need to read or scroll down to the section headed "Autocrossing".

The GGP web site Rules page lists eight classes for the Autocross event, and Ecomodders is one of the classes.

You'll see that aside from the "Ecomodder" class, every class in Autocross is some type of Hybrid or EV. That is, aside from Ecomoders, no "conventional" gas/diesel vehicles will run in the Autocross. Thank you, Bob Gillespie!

I don't know how Autocross is scored; my guess is that the shortest time through the course wins. The article I linked above indicates that you usually get a few tries running the course, and a run may be only a minute or so in duration. One car runs at a time. My guess is that the number of cars present and the time needed for each run, will determine how many attempts we each get, at driving the course.

Dang, they have a "plug in hybrid" category in the Autocross!

That would be pretty fun in the Volt, which has (what seems to me to be) quick acceleration for a plug-in family car. It's heavy but the weight is fairly low slung so it handles pretty well. Wish I wasn't already taking a vacation in April!

Here are some notes from Bob about the Autocross event.

"What they [the SCCA] are most concerned about is preventing cars from collision with stationary objects.
We will maintain the legal distance of 20 ft. from such objects. You will basically run at about 20- 25 mph around cones.

Only one car will be on the short parking lot slalom - type course at a time.

Hope this helps!
Bob"


Here's a repost of the link I gave earlier, with an article with some information on Autocross:
SCCA article: Road Racing vs Autocrossing
You need to get down to the section headed "Autocrossing".

You poor unfortunate soul! :)

Oh man.
Third time is a charm.
I will make this event this year COME HELL OR HIGH WATER!!!!!!!!

Thanks for the information! I like me some auto-X.
As soon as I get back from Florida, I can get my pile running.


-ryan s.

Cool! Which one gives you the best mpg, Tank of Justice II?
In the GGP, cars in the get classed by fuel type, # of cylinders, whether they are hybrid or not, and whether modified. Based on that, you might end up competing in a class by yourself. Even so, any mpg score that's not piggish, will be well respected.

And I'm sure it will be a treat to see one of these large cars running in the autocross. You might win there too!

On greengrandprix.com, you can see the full roster of cars that ran last year, and how they did. I don't remember any large V8 sedans last year. Ecomodder Steve Kiel has been running a Mustang, but I'm pretty sure it's a V6.

I'll be running Tank III. TOJ2 is going to the scrapyard soon.
I mean, before the motor died in the Tank I was pulling 25 mpg over a tank of gas. Almost 30 on the highway.
Modified V8 class here I come!

-ryan s.

Autocross favors nimble handling and good power to weight rather than smoking tires. Check rules for low profile soft compound tires.

When you register, be sure to state "Team Ecomodder" under "School or Business Name". Our combined efforts help gain recognition for Ecomodder. Ecomodders have been driving in this event since at least 2010 if not earlier.

If you've already registered and didn't mention Ecomodder on your registration form, please contact Bob Gillespie of the Green Grand Prix and make sure he knows.

Thanks!

How has this had such little attention?! Do we have any confirmed people going outside of who has posted here?

To be clear, I'm 100% in. Super pumped. Thinking of getting a cabin this year.