UTCC Coverage

Well, I wasn't going to post anything but now that the issue has come out I am.

UTCC was an utter failure! Why?

NO Fastest Honda/Acura I believe you had 6 or 7 honda/acuras on track for this event out of 44 cars that turned a lap. That is 14% of the cars represented at YOUR event. 6 cars at 300 per car is 1800 dollars. Out of that 1800 (minumum) yall collected NOT ONE TROPHEY WAS GIVEN TO ANY OF THOSE CARS!!!! Nor any prise money, gift card, ANYTHING!!!!

The fastest Honda/Acura ran a 2.09.xxx at your event. In fact that car was NORMALLY ASPIRATED, not turbo'd, supercharged no nitrous. You know that car was build in the drivers YARD. Every NUT AND BOLT on that car was turned by the driver! The cage done by the driver. the engine built by the driver a week before the event AGAIN. The transmission rebuilt by the driver. If that isn't the ulimate GRASSROOTS campaign I don't know what is. He ran a 2.09 in a FRONT WHEEL DRIVE economy crap can.

Fact of the matter is that driver also brought 8 friends to this event. All 8 of those purchased a magazine subscription to see said drivers car in the magazine. 8x the 19.95 subscription fee is 179.60 that you made just off of the drivers friends.

Really you couldn't buy a 15 dollar plaque to give to the fastest honda/acura? The fastest FWD?? The fastest NA FWD???

If memory serves me correct cause I really don't even want to look through another Grassroots right now to see if I'm right buy 2 of those classes were classes you had in all of the previous years of UTCC.

Yes I am said driver of the Blue 2000 Honda Civic Si that ran a 2.09 on 2 year old tires. Yes I am very upset. I was livid at the awards banquet. I spent a ton of money to get to that event to be the fastest NA FWD car on track. Not only was I fast I was faster than a SRT4 Turbo charged FWD car. I could add up the money spent to get to the event, but everyone spent that money.

Now what really infuriates me is there isn't a MENTION of the bottom half of the guys that spent 300 on entry fees in the UTCC coverage. THAT IS BEAT UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

22 drivers not even MENTIONED....6600 dollars in entry fees WASTED....I guarentee they all feel taken advantage of.

I bet ya Half of them couldn't sleep the night before dreaming of being the fastest miata, or civic or the fastest hybrid car and not even mention of them. I feel cheated, I wonder how they feel.

The top prize went to a pro driver, where's the grassroots effort in bringing in a pro to drive the car???? Nothing agains you MIKE!! ;)

Yes we did talk to the representatives of Grassroots after the awards. It was shrugged off as if we didn't get any one to sponsor those classes. You are telling me they called Honda or Acura in Danville? Did they call any of the Tuner shops within a 2 hour drive?? Hey you want some free advertisement? Sponsor this class for 500 bucks and we'll put your name in the Magazine and on the Trophy's....really?? I talked to 3 business owners that would have jumped at that chance!

That's all for now until I can think of more ranting!!!

Chad Slagg a PB at UTCC VIR 2.09.xxx

I wasn't at this event, but I can tell you that this particular driver was the FASTEST FWD/ HONDA ACURA/ ECT spent weeks going through his car with some set backs, did what it took to get his car there and support GRASSROOTS racers and show what a grassroots racer is capable of. You would have thought he was prepping for a race weekend. The fact that nothing was said makes me think one thing... sell out. I myself drive an ACURA INTEGRA, and was shooting to make it out for the next UTCC, but after seeing this. I think I'll spend my money else where.

What were the actual classes at the event?

Unless there was a "FWD N/A Honda Class" that was advertised, i really fail to see the issue here.

When i finally make this event, i don't expect to receive a trophy for "Fastest Celica."

92CelicaHalfTrac wrote: What were the actual classes at the event? Unless there was a "FWD Honda Class" that was advertised, i really fail to see the issue here. When i finally make this event, i don't expect to receive a trophy for "Fastest Celica."

I made a snarky reply to the original post and deleted it. But I think 92C has a good point made non-snarkily. Just because you participated and felt you did well doesn't mean you should get a trophy. It is the Ultimate Track Car Challenge, and while they do make call outs on budget classes, it's not a budget oriented event. They don't have a Honda class - obviously you feel passionately that there should be, maybe you should line up a sponsor and work with GRM to start it. Or get a sponsor in touch with GRM if you don't want to do the work yourself.

Is your friend complaining or just you? The classes were not a mystery at the time he paid for the event. If you bring a slow car to a fast class you don't get trophy no matter how much harder you worked to go slow. Them are the breaks.

Welcome to the forum Chad. I was the one you spoke with at the UTCC that "shrugged off" your concern.

Your complaint was communicated to the rest of our staff immediately after the event. We will consider this as we plan next year's event.

Keep in mind this isn't the Ultimate Honda Challenge, or Ultimate FWD Challenge, it is the Ultimate Track Car Challenge. It is designed to bring the fastest machines throughout the land. While we appreciate and love to see home-built cars at the UTCC, this is not a budget limited event. For those looking to build a wicked track car on a budget, you may want to consider our $2012 Challenge:

http://grassrootsmotorsports.com/events/2012challenge/

92CelicaHalfTrac wrote: What were the actual classes at the event? Unless there was a "FWD N/A Honda Class" that was advertised, i really fail to see the issue here. When i finally make this event, i don't expect to receive a trophy for "Fastest Celica."

This. I am pretty sure all the classes were listed before the competition. Why would you expect to win a trophy that wasn't announced before the event?

93EXCivic wrote:

92CelicaHalfTrac wrote: What were the actual classes at the event? Unless there was a "FWD N/A Honda Class" that was advertised, i really fail to see the issue here. When i finally make this event, i don't expect to receive a trophy for "Fastest Celica."

This. I am pretty sure all the classes were listed before the competition. Why would you expect to win a trophy that wasn't announced before the event?

Because i showed up and i should get a trophy for that, dammit.

Orrrrr..... you could take the fact that you were actually picked/accepted into the competition as your "consolation prize."

Little League is that way ->

Chad,

Thanks for coming to the event. We hope you had a good time while you were there, and are sorry you're disappointed at the coverage and trophies offered. You're a regular at our events; we appreciate that, and your DIY attitude to your build. We've featured your car prominently in coverage of the event in previous years; you receive two trophies—Furious Four and Fastest Honda/Acura—and a half-page on your car in the 2011 coverage.

There were changes to the event and the coverage this year and, try as we might, we can't please everyone. We're humans in a finite world. We also can't guarantee that everyone who comes to our events will be in our magazine—see the One Lap of America story, for example. Their entry fees are much higher.

We hope to see you there again next year, beating up Doug Wind's SRT4.

A coupla things to clear up:

1) We don't receive a penny of anyone's entry fees. That money goes to the sanctioning body.

2) UTCC is a Performance Snapshot. It's an opportunity for participants to help readers understand the potential of their particular make / model of vehicle.

3) There are no rules at UTCC and no classes. It is therefore a speed party with BYO Performance instead of BYO beer.

A top 20 finish for an NA FWD homegrown track car is impressive around VIR. The performance for that car is represented on page 68 of the current issue. We make it clear, graphically, that your homegrown Honda spanks a Grand Am ST lap time. A savvy reader will pick up on that data and tear into his SI, thanks to you.

You pay entry fees and prep your machine for many other weekends and test days. The distinction here is not a trophy. It's that you are one individual who participated in something much larger than an ordinary test day. UTCC helps entertain, educate, and inspire thousands of enthusiasts -- many of whom have not yet been on track. That's a pretty cool role in my book.

Sorry that you are disappointed. Steve

From a reader perspective I will state that I don't care what little title trophy is under a car in the UTCC issue I just look at the laptime and if your NA FWD Honda is ahead of a bunch of cars I would think would be faster then I am impressed

Umm.... I have nothing to add here that will not cause a E36 M3storm. So I'll just meander that away.... >

That is a cool car. Which is why we featured it in the magazine, and also made it the April cover car on the GRM calendar a few years back.

Margie

Not everybody gets a trophy. The event isn't designed that way.

DaveEstey wrote: Not everybody gets a trophy. The event isn't designed that way.

WHAT!!!?!?!?!???!??!?! Well I'm NEVER coming to one of your [insert expletive here] events again! I DESERVE A TROPHY DAMNIT! *

• Is obviously an attempt at sarcasm. Please don't shoot this hostage.

I earned my trophies by beating bob senseless in the WW shootouts...... How NASA rules figured a s/c'd saturn was in the same class as a swift gti is beyond me though......

yeah... that one always blew my mind. I guess because they were both FWD?

Don't pile on to the guy.

The UTCC's purpose did not change. But some of the procedure varied from prior years. As a returning participant, Chad's expectations are not unreasonable. We had a wide range of trophies in the past. ...And our spotters guide included EVERY car including the DNF's -- not just assorted highlights.

But we also had people complain that last year's article was too long or poo-poo the concept because it's not really a fair competition. This year it's all about the lap times. We tried.

You'z guys get your own GRM message board so that YOU can generate content YOUR way. Other magazine message boards suck ass. Start a build thread on how to build a Grand Am beating, crazy fast NA Civic and use your UTCC lap time and standing as validation.

That's what UTCC is really all about. Validation.

I kinda liked the mini-blurb on every single UTCC competitor, even the DNF's. I would like to see that come back.

The trophies (outside of fastest non-pro) didn't mean anything to me. Although a "fastest AMC" would guarantee you an entry!

I think the only people complaining about the UTCC coverage were the same folks that think "Grassroots" equals not actually spending any money on your car ever.

Javelin wrote: I kinda liked the mini-blurb on every single UTCC competitor, even the DNF's. I would like to see that come back. The trophies (outside of fastest non-pro) didn't mean anything to me. Although a "fastest AMC" would guarantee you an entry!

and Fastest Korean Car too. wait... no... no it wouldn't. I'm too cheap.

Really I'm not upset I didn't get a trophy although it would have been nice to put at my friends shop who closed up shop for the day and brought his 5 employees out to support me. I'm upset because of the lack of recognition.

Let me explain....Not everyone of your readers has a vette they want to run a 1.54 time at vir. Not everyone of your readers has a civic they want to beat a vette at a road course. But most of your readers are interested in different platforms of an Ultimate Track Car. RWD, AWD, FWD, NA, Turbo. I think it would have been fair to cover those platforms.

Had I known/understood there was nothing in place for a NA FWD vehicle I would not have come out. I had a hondachallenge legal engine that I tore apart and rebuilt for this event. You have no idea the amount of time and preperation I put into the car the month leading to this event. Yes racing wheel to wheel is a HOOT, more strategy than anything but I wanted to be the Third time winner of the FASTEST FWD NA Vehicle. Grassroots had had that class since the UTCC has been run (if memory serves me correctly).

Trust me I would have left my engine so that I could have raced that weekend.

My goal for the weekend was a sub 210 in a fwd pos beat to hizzy civic.

It is the time and the money that upset me most as I feel I wasted both preparing for this event.

I would have like to have seen an article outlining the different platforms of the Ultimate Track Car. I mean I bested my time by almost 2 seconds from the prior year, don't you think your readers would like to know how to do that??

I don't have the money to drop coin to go racing anymore. I instruct instead to get seat time or pick and choose which weekends I get to race. It is more about the friends and the comrodery which draws me to the track, that and I want to roll every (beat) car on track!

chad

dculberson wrote: I think the only people complaining about the UTCC coverage were the same folks that think "Grassroots" equals not actually spending any money on your car ever.

DING! The UTCC is actually may favorite GRM event, the one I'm most likely to attend as a competitor in the future, and the article I look most forward to.

Edit:

i like cars

Me and my pithy wit will be over in the corner drinking the hater-aide.