Spring Mountain Impressions

[PrimeTime]

Thankfully its was a 4BW.

 

[Midcont]

I called to get my session at spring mountain about two months ago (a few weeks after getting car) and I was told they are booked a year out already. They said they would call me back with an opening but I have not heard. What is the best approach to actually confirm a session?

 

[rubberduck]

I called to get my session at spring mountain about two months ago (a few weeks after getting car) and I was told they are booked a year out already. They said they would call me back with an opening but I have not heard. What is the best approach to actually confirm a session?

Call them back every week or two.

 

[USARMYTTT]

I called to get my session at spring mountain about two months ago (a few weeks after getting car) and I was told they are booked a year out already. They said they would call me back with an opening but I have not heard. What is the best approach to actually confirm a session?

The young lady who helped me was awesome(Ashley), I told her i could be there within a 5 day class date if she had a cancellation...she called with 2 dates shortly after. Stay in touch. They all seem super cool! I am going Jun 15-16. Had the car 2 months now.

 

[Matt27]

The young lady who helped me was awesome(Ashley), I told her i could be there within a 5 day class date if she had a cancellation...she called with 2 dates shortly after. Stay in touch. They all seem super cool! I am going Jun 15-16. Had the car 2 months now.

Echoing this - everybody at the entire facility is incredibly nice, from security to food/beverage staff to the instructors.

Place is amazing and very well run. You'll find a spot.

 

[jonnywaffles11]

without further ado, I present my explorations of turn 1.

 

[pkincy]

Your group had way more fun than ours!

 

[PrimeTime]

without further ado, I present my explorations of turn 1.

Respectable, car in one piece....Heard that voice before (PDR). Great kid with stones and common wrench....Drives the s!@# out of it when it's his turn....

Thanks for sharing! Experience you have, others may not have a chance to do the same.

 

[Throat Yogurt]

without further ado, I present my explorations of turn 1.

This is amazing. I love how, when everything is going to complete shit, your brain just simply defaults to FULL GAS.

 

[jonnywaffles11]

This is amazing. I love how, when everything is going to complete shit, your brain just simply defaults to FULL GAS.

When in doubt, go flat out.

 

[LF4472]

Weight transfer is hard! Please excuse the iRacing videos (since I can't do real-on track stuff with my issues), but the answer is always full throttle!

 

[Deneed4spd]

Got back from SMR where I met @OldGoat. I played nice while I was there since @OldGoat has some serious set of pipes in him! Ha! Overall a great time. 5 BW is a serious car and very impressed how well it did on track and autox. I was part of fast group with old goat and our group ran around 1:18 to 1:21 around the track. The 4 BWs were running around 1:23-1:24 with guys with similar skill set. I think you really have to drive the 4 BWs really hard into the corners to keep up with the 5 BWs that pull ahead on straights. A lot of folks have stated 4 BWs are more nimble but you really need to know how to push corners to keep up with less nimble but faster 5 BW. Where I scratched my head was, in autox, the 5 BWs ran a sec faster than the 4 BWs even though the course was tight and only had 1 initial straight. Maybe it’s easier to drive a power fast car than to drive a slower car faster because u really need to push the corners where a lot of skill might be needed. Just my 2 cents. Oh, it did rain on one track sessions and that threw me in a wrench because I was pretty nervous braking in the rain to take on turn 2!

 

[Berserker]

I'm registered for the June 19-20 session. Anyone else going then?

 

[ClassaxV]

Got back from SMR where I met @OldGoat. I was part of fast group with old goat and our group ran around 1:18 to 1:21 around the track. The 4 BWs were running around 1:23-1:24 with guys with similar skill set. I think you really have to drive the 4 BWs really hard into the corners to keep up with the 5 BWs that pull ahead on straights. A lot of folks have stated 4 BWs are more nimble but you really need to know how to push corners to keep up with less nimble but faster 5 BW. Where I scratched my head was, in autox, the 5 BWs ran a sec faster than the 4 BWs even though the course was tight and only had 1 initial straight. Maybe it’s easier to drive a power fast car than to drive a slower car faster because u really need to push the corners where a lot of skill might be needed. Just my 2 cents.

That's exactly it though, the challenge of a road course, is maintaining corner speed. 95% of us over brake for corners compare to what the bike... I mean.... ur... ah.... CAR can actually turn in and hold. This is a good thing as it's a function of our survival instinct. Once we start to get with groups that have overcome this tendency it starts to become a huge differentiator because now you're coming off the apex with more steam than a lot of vehicles can make up for with HP alone. It's why a skilled driver in a 4 can catch a 5 going into turn 1 on the brakes or seemingly walk away from the much more powerful car going uphill coming out of Turn 2. At a certain point, it becomes a function of the limits of the mechanical grip, and suddenly more HP doesn't really buy you anything but slippage and smoke. My recent trip to COTA in the 4 showed me just how capable the car is vs how capable I am not but Im just by the end of the day I was lapping within 2 seconds of my best time on a bike at 2:19,23 in this unprepped STREET CAR. For Context NASCARs get around COTA in the 2:14-10 range and IMSA cars in the 2:08-04's range. Of course where the skill vs equipment gap starts to get huge. IE better tires aren't going to get me a second or 2 quicker, maybe a couple of tenths, where as a pro driver might pick up those 2 seconds easily. But the car is stupid capable.

On the AutoX in my group I beat out the nearest 5 by just .32 of a sec for the overall win. If you watch his run vs mine He is struggling to put the power down the entire time but he managed the back end like a PRO! Had he been in a 4 I'm sure he would have beaten me easily. In the 4 you still have to be agressive it just turns and hooks better.

 

[Hi Ho Silver]

I attended Spring Mountain last year as an original C8 owner but never heard from Cadillac after buying the BW. My dealer said only anniversary edition owners get the subsidized invite. Fact or fiction? Are most of you just paying the full cost?

 

[KatyTxCT5V]

Fiction, all BW original owners can get subsidized. Call Spring Mountain and give them your vin to register, if you are the original owner.

 

[Bourbonp]

That is not true… all BW owners are eligible at no cost. It is amazing that some dealers have no clue about this… My dealer in Montreal also was not aware of it. I had to tell them…

 

[OldGoat]

Got back from SMR where I met @OldGoat. I played nice while I was there since @OldGoat has some serious set of pipes in him! Ha! Overall a great time. 5 BW is a serious car and very impressed how well it did on track and autox. I was part of fast group with old goat and our group ran around 1:18 to 1:21 around the track. The 4 BWs were running around 1:23-1:24 with guys with similar skill set. I think you really have to drive the 4 BWs really hard into the corners to keep up with the 5 BWs that pull ahead on straights. A lot of folks have stated 4 BWs are more nimble but you really need to know how to push corners to keep up with less nimble but faster 5 BW. Where I scratched my head was, in autox, the 5 BWs ran a sec faster than the 4 BWs even though the course was tight and only had 1 initial straight. Maybe it’s easier to drive a power fast car than to drive a slower car faster because u really need to push the corners where a lot of skill might be needed. Just my 2 cents. Oh, it did rain on one track sessions and that threw me in a wrench because I was pretty nervous braking in the rain to take on turn 2!

Had a great time, what an absolute blast. @Deneed4spd showed some skills and I agree about slight rain shower making our laps a little unnerving. This being my first ever track time, that I ended up in the fastest group was a little ego boost I may have possibly chirped here to @Deneed4spd about his consolation speech. Neither of us won the autocross, but he did have a better time. This is me eating crow, congrats Pete. The faster couple of guys than us had previous track experience. In my defense my car popped a warning about low brake pads and was switched just prior to my autocross laps. Tire pressure was around 28 with zero warmup laps. Tire pressure grows to mid to high 30s after a few laps.
I'm done whining. Overall met some great people and, was an event that I will not soon forget.
At the end of day 1 instructors offer to take you as passenger. Do it, you will be amazed how capable these cars really are and, that you don't know how much you don't know about competition driving.

 

[OldGoat]

I attended Spring Mountain last year as an original C8 owner but never heard from Cadillac after buying the BW. My dealer said only anniversary edition owners get the subsidized invite. Fact or fiction? Are most of you just paying the full cost?

Bullshit, all Blackwing first owners within first year of purchase.

 

[KatyTxCT5V]

I'm done whining.

Need some cheese and crackers to go with the ing… kidding my friend!

You said it best, these beasts are amazing and very few will ever get them to their limits. I’m grateful that these fine ass ICE beasts were released and that I could get one in this day and age.