Live thread | 2022 Tire Rack One Lap of America Presented by Grassroots Motorsports Magazine

In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :

Nope--what you see is all you get. We got pretty good at packing everything in after a week. 

Tom Suddard said:

In reply to Snowdoggie (Forum Supporter) :

Nope--what you see is all you get. We got pretty good at packing everything in after a week. 

I mean, how hard is it to pack 2 t shirts and 3 pair of underwear?  I saw you carrying your toothbrush all week with you. I figured there wasn't room in the frunk for it. 

it was a great week and I really hope you enjoyed it as much as your face said you did. I can't remember a time all week you weren't smiling! Let's get you in a slow car next year. 

Just wanted to jump in here and say what a fantastic teammate Tom was. 

We drove lots of miles, told lots of stories and ate lots of burgers.  Never got bored, rarely turned on the tunes.  Tom was an ace behind the wheel, carving up the road at a brisk pace even in the rain.  And he kept things organized and on point at each track.

Can't wait until next year....

PS: Since the car didn't break, the trailer volunteered that duty.  When I got home last night, one of the fenders was barely hanging on.  Mounting brackets got worked on the crappy roads and snapped. 

  "Mounting brackets got worked on the crappy roads and snapped. "

But home and safe.......yeah pleasure to briefly chat wit you at Barber.....you do this every year?

In reply to Andy Hollis :

D'awww, you were a great teammate too! Thanks for an awesome week and I'm excited to spend next year in a much worse car!

I thought we ought to celebrate some of the lesser-well-known awards given out at OneLap...

Firstly, the "Diamond Jim Brady Award for Wretched Excess"... given to the person/team who has spent the most for no material gain.  This year won by Josh Paashaus, Bill Cho, and Ed Bolian for spending any time/money/energy on a 1985 Audi 4000:

Then there's the award that I've become synonymous for, the "All Remaining Cars Award" named after the call a particular OneLap Grid worker used to call to get the final 3 run groups up to grid, given out to the team that has the fewest points for having completed all the events; i.e. "The Team that has done the Most, and has the Least to Show for it."  This year one by the "DadBod CarMod" team that drove a Corolla in place of a Mustang...

and which the DadBod CarMod team only managed to win in through the efforts (as cataloged in the SundaeCup thread) of the winners of the next award..

That being the "Mike Hedin Award for Sportsmanship", for the Team that has gone out of its way to help other teams during OneLap.  An award that Brock described as "The Most Important Award" OneLap gives out, an award he got visibly choked up about describing because of the memory of the example set by Mike Hedin;  which was given out to the whole Toyota PE Motorsports Team, and is at least the 3rd... if not 4th time they've won this award (apologies for the bad cellphone pic... they're team is too big to fit on the DSLR I had running):

You can go back and read through the last 16 pages of this thread, or you take my word for it;  but the most important currency that is OneLap is: TIME
It's something Andy hammered on; it's something Mazdeuce has discussed at length, basically anyone who's done OneLap at least once should understand implicitly and explicity:  That above all else... money, skill, tires, modifications... time spent resting, sleeping, eating, preparing can be the single biggest contributor to success at OneLap.  And day after day, despite running (at the latest) in the mid-pack, the Toyota Team was one of the last to leave the track, and they were always the one pulled over to the side for abandoned vehicles.  They gave away the most precisous commidity to anyone who needed help, and they provided it at slightest hint of needing it.

OneLap is unique (afaik) in celebrating these kinds of victories; as some of them may-or-may-not be.  And, this being the internet, I'm sure this won't change anyone's mind.  But, having now participated 8 times at OneLap, and just beginning to feel like I understand it... I thought it was valuable to highlight these teams and their accomplishments, so the everyone here can get a better idea of how the Culture of OneLap is different from most other motorsports I've experienced.  ymmv.

In reply to sleepyhead the buffalo :

To go along with that, it's really a competition against the event more than your competitors. When you spot another One Lapper on the side of the road, you stop. You do what you can to help them get back in the game, or make other arrangements. Even if that means you don't get to the hotel for another hour and change and instead of 5 hours of sleep you get 4. The sportsmanship and "no man(woman or child) left behind atmosphere makes some of those long late nights more managable knowing there are others out there ready and willing to assist.

It's just so different. Apparently some think it's for naught, or "too serious" but coming from my seat its the greatest show on earth and you get to participate. I'm risking divorce or late nights on the couch to make next year happen. It just has too. 4 years between events is too damn long.

docwyte said:

In reply to bobzilla :

I love when people talk out of their ass about people they have no idea about.  You've never met me.  You've never talked to me.  You have NO idea what experience I have.  I've done One Lap.  I've done NASA Nationals.  I've done Time Trials.  I've done track events for 25+ years.  I've done plenty of things where people get all crazy about the event and being competitive, which leads to the event being far less pleasant and fun.

Stop and think hard about those words I bolded, you chose to make assumptions about people who you know nothing about. The team who embodies the spirit of OLOA, and literally fixes any car in the paddock that needs their help.

In reply to spacecadet (Forum Supporter) :

Don't waste your time. People like this have an agenda and no amount of facts will change that 

In reply to bobzilla :

Don't miss next year's event! If you stay home, you might tell yourself, "I'll get so much done.". Instead, you'll be glued to the computer for any and all updates and get no real work done for the week anyway.

Ask me how I know! 

In reply to John Welsh :

Plans are in the works.

bobzilla said:

In reply to John Welsh :

Plans are in the works.

wait... I'm not the only one secretly scheming to SundaeCup-ify a Gen2 Prius (or maybe a CT200h?) and figuring out how to get John and JG to do OneLap in it next year?

crazy

sleepyhead the buffalo said:

bobzilla said:

In reply to John Welsh :

Plans are in the works.

wait... I'm not the only one secretly scheming to SundaeCup-ify a Gen2 Prius (or maybe a CT200h?) and figuring out how to get John and JG to do OneLap in it next year?

crazy

What is wrong with you? No. Just... good god no. 

In reply to bobzilla :

I'm hoping your, "good go, no" protest is against having a Prius join and not a protest against having me (and or JG) join. 

In reply to John Welsh :

You and JG, awesomesauce in a bottle. In a Prius just seems a step too far on the masochist scale. Like..

cushy cadillac->sporty mustang/camaro->sundae cup car with cruise->gutted sc car->burning in a lake of fire-> One Lap in a Prius.

In reply to John Welsh :

Just here to enable:

https://www.iaai.com/VehicleDetail/33484244~US

In reply to bobzilla :

Put me down for one of those factory backed Korean Cars that Tom should be lining up.

Hyundai N-Series would be nice but I'm also wondering about a Kia Ioniq 5 EV with dual motor and awd.  Anything from Genisis welcome too. 

I  hope Kia is watching my thread on this..... I am expecting a call any day now with an offer to run one of their factory backed cars.

In reply to bobzilla :

You should have written it in Press Release Style and then put it out to all the outlets.

See if Tom or David will ghost write it for you.

Really!  It is afteral, The Tire Rack One Lap of America presented by Grassroots Motorsports so there could be some win-win to a press release. 

John Welsh said:

In reply to bobzilla :

Put me down for one of those factory backed Korean Cars that Tom should be lining up.

My understanding was sekret discussions of D-series double-wishbone honda shenanigans.

Good too... 

In reply to John Welsh :

I have no idea how to write things in Press Release style. But I'd give Tom, David or JG a huge hug and adult beverage if they did.