ARCHER PILOTS HIS T1 VIPER TO ANOTHER VICTORY AT TWS

[Rich Wesorick]

ARCHER PILOTS HIS T1 VIPER TO ANOTHER VICTORY AT TWS

May 29, 2001

ViperSpeed drivers Bobby Archer and Dr. Deborah Loth had another successful weekend as they competed in the SCCA Southwest Regional and National T1 races held at Texas World Speedway (TWS) on May 26 and 27. Archer and Loth arrived early so they could test at TWS on Friday. Over the course of Friday, Archer shared seat time with Dr. Loth in the No. 32 SuperClubs Resorts/Bobby Archer Motorsports/ViperSpeed T1 Viper and they were able to lower Loth’s lap times by over three seconds. On Saturday, Loth qualified 3rd in Archer’s No. 32 Viper for the Regional T1 race, behind two Corvette Z06’s.

As the green flag dropped for Saturday’s race, Loth bolted past the two cars in front of her and took the lead going into Turn 1. Loth drove an excellent race and was able to hold off continued attacks from the Z06’s until the very end of the race. With just two corners to go, both Z06’s were able to get around her and take the checkered flag ahead of her. The race at TWS was Dr. Loth’s fourth straight podium finish in T1 competition, and she has all but wrapped up the Regional T1 championship.

On Sunday, the Bobby Archer Motorsports/ViperSpeed team brought Dr. Loth’s brand new yellow 2001 T1 Viper GTS to the track so she could compete against Bobby in the National T1 race. Loth’s car was not quite ready when qualifying was held Sunday morning so she would have to start the race from the back (48th position). Archer, on the other hand, started from the front after winning the T1 pole. In an interesting move, Archer qualified and raced with 55mm inlet restrictors on his motor, even though the restrictors are not mandatory for the Viper until June 1st. Archer was in command of the race from the start and drove his No. 32 SuperClubs Resorts/Bobby Archer Motorsports/ViperSpeed T1 Viper to victory in the T1 class in Sunday’s National event. The victory was Archer’s fifth in as many races, and he has clearly established himself as the man to beat in T1 at the SCCA Run-Off’s. Dr. Loth also had an impressive outing in her own Viper GTS on Sunday as she moved from 48th to a 4th place finish out of nine cars in the T1 class (9th place overall).

Next up for Archer and Loth is a return trip to TWS on June 16-17 for the final race of the Southwest Region. For more information on ViperSpeed Racing, go to www.viperspeed.com. For more information on Bobby Archer Motorsports, go to www.bobbyarchermotorsports.com.

 

[Rich Wesorick]

It turns out the race report from TWS contained an error. Archer had the 55mm inlet restrictors in hand, but did NOT install them after being informed that they were not mandatory until June 1st. Hence the following sentence should be deleted from the article I sent you: "In an interesting move, Archer qualified and raced with 55mm inlet restrictors on his motor, even though the restrictors are not mandatory for the Viper until June 1st." Sorry about the error.

 

[GTS Dean]

And so - what was his best lap time?

 

[Rich Wesorick]

Dean:

Bob is correct about Bobby's qual. time. He set the T1 track record during his last trip to TWS. His best time in the race was 1:53.382. Corvette Z06 drivers Kevin Mixon and Jay Matus ran 1:54.7 and 1:54.4, respectively, in the race, but were separated from Bobby by a couple of GT2 cars. Corvette's biggest whiner (Matt Whitaker) was apparently punted by the GT2 cars on lap 3.

Oh, FWIW, the Fershtand ran a 1:50.7 in the GT1 Mustang during the race.

Rich

 

[Kid97GTS]

Interesting to compare Archer's numbers to those contained in the link below. Probably apples to oranges though, right?
http://www.viperdays.com/texas2000.html

 

[Rich Wesorick]

The ViperDays times at TWS tell you (a) the now-GT1 cars (Unlimited, Super Modified, etc.) are some pretty fast cars, and (b) ViperDays has some pretty good drivers, especially one Mr. Mumford...

 

[Tenney]

In real racing, guys don't always move over and, in fact, "aggressively" defend their positions (witness Bernoldi v. Coulthard this past weekend). In most series drivers don't get flagged unless they are being lapped - and so if a slow guy is continually blocking sometimes a little assistance is in order. If Archer were punting guys at Viper Days that would be lame, but in the venues he runs (Speedvision) that's part of the game.

That said, in equal cars, my dough would be on Paul.

 

[Rich Wesorick]

I definitely am not going to say anything bad about Mr. Mumford because I don't know him and have not seen him drive. His results are indeed impressive. I will say this - there is a HUGE difference between running a fast lap and winning a race. Archer has the car control, mental and physical stamina, and just plain old guts to pass in places most people would never even try, not to mention the fact that his car gets real wide when he's in front. Mumford may be a heck of a driver, but in equally prepared cars (does such a thing exist?), I'll take Archer in a hard fought hour-long race any day.

 

[Tenney]

Hour-long race, Rich? C'mon, this is the VCA site. There's only one criteria to judge who has the superior talent and that would be an autocross. And I'd still take Paul. If Archer had Caldwell heads it'd be closer. If Paul was using FRANK's duck tape on his fornication valve - well, you're right - no two cars are truly equal. And so the ultimate decision would have to come down to a Treynor supervised bake-off. And if Archer has the wider car maybe this mean it is also the best fed. Does this make him the better baker? Can two ovens be truly equal? The mind boggles. (many smiling faces here).

 

[Rich Wesorick]

Tenney:

Fornication valve?? **** , that must be why I could only turn 1:45's at Mid-Ohio - where can I get one? And how did Baker (as in "Freddy") get into this discussion?

My money is on Archer in the bake-off - you know he'll be working the judges for rules changes that favor his oven. And can you "rub" in a bake-off?

Glad to see you and I are both taking this discussion very lightly...

Question from me the uninformed - Has or does Paul M. doing any SCCA or other racing? I've heard the guy is one heck of a driver and I'd love to have him out there flying the ol' Viper flag in SCCA T1, World Challenge, Motorola Cup, etc. We need more guys taking it to the next level. ILL's Ron Adee is another terrific driver I'd like to see make the jump.

 

[David Jenkins]

PMUM has run at Road America a couple of times. I'm hoping we can come back there and run again this year. Is the cat from Ill. going to be there? The '01 is significantly faster than the old car. I'm trying to line up some finacial support with sponsors to help absorb some cost. If anyone is interested in putting their company name on the car, let us know. Financial commitment is resonable for the exposure. We don't offer any trips to the Jamaica though! (no comments from you Adelbrakes!) If we can lock the deal, we'll be there. PMUM would make an impact in T1 or M-cup for sure. I'd love to see someone step up and give this guy a ride. They won't be dissapointed. The guy has got physical stamina, ask Whoadie's sista', not too sure about his mental state sometimes. As far as passing goes, the only reason he doesn't put the nose inside more on corners, is because he's not allowed to. Believe me, he knows how to pass and make the car wide. For now, we'll take the liscense plates off, take off the street tires and give it a go. dj

 

[brett]

I think this is a good thread... In my opinion just because a guy drives on TV it doesn't make him a better driver than a guy who "plays" around in his spare time with the rest of us.

I've seen Mumford race competitively and he wins. I've seen him miss drivers meetings (that's what he does) and start from the back of the pack...and he wins. As far as making the car "wide", I've also seen Paul make his two wheel racer plenty wide. If your not afraid to put a knee on the ground at 160 mph in turn 8 at Willow Springs I'm sure rubbing another car in a race isn't at the top of your list of phobias.

I know Paul fairly well and I seriously think he would stand a good chance of winning some Speedvision and ALMS races in a competitive car. I'm not sure someone "needs" to go on TV to do something they like to do. I'm sure everybody would like to see the local guy go against the "big boys", I think it would be great veiwing as well. If you take Archer's qualifying time and compare it to Mumford's "time trial" it's a decent indicator that he can drive with these guys. Matter of fact I've heard that Bobby and Paul have been seen running hot laps on the same track before, and I'm guessing there was a little friendly competition at that time...but everybody knows Paul "cheats"............not!

Enough with the Mumford infomercial...he's got enough self esteem (read ego) already.We know Archer is a good race car driver, he wins. I think there are a few guys at the track at times I'm there that could compete at that level. But then it wouldn't be a hobby anymore and the money it takes to run with that crowd isn't worth it to them. Most all of them would lose money compared to thier "day job" even if they had the race season of a lifetime. That all being said, "Good luck on your year Bobby".

Mumford, I still think with minimal track time half of your peers could beat you...they just run out of funds. Dam* You!


WAR TALENT!

 

[GTS Dean]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Kid97GTS:
Interesting to compare Archer's numbers to those contained in the link below. Probably apples to oranges though, right?
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Well, probably. I know that my car is 100% street- and emissions-legal, running EMI suspension. Mumdog had the stock suspension, Hennessey headers, Borla exhaust, a roll bar and race seat. Both of us were on Hoosiers. I have a wife and 4 kids to feed and no money for ventilated blocks. Mumdog has no kids, plenty of money for toys & track time and can afford to run 3rd gear on the rev limiter all the way around the backside of the track.

What are the limitations/allowances on a T1 Viper, Rich? I also know that nobody wants to carry lead by showing all they've got when they're running the Pro ranks.

 

[JBenko]

Excellent thread ! I think there is a real interesting scenario to be had at the next VOI (Detroit). Imagine DC bringing a dozen or so bone stock ACRs and putting on a Fastest Timed Lap event. Who would be the worlds fastest Viper pilot ? Would it be one of the ORECA jocks, or is it possible that one of Skips crowd could rise to the challenge ? How about one further, outfit the cars with cages and let's get it on T1 style ! My $.02 is that the fastest timed lap would not be a French driver...

As to the Archer / Mumford thing - in a timed lap in equal cars it would be Archer, but by a slim margin. In a wheel to wheel, hands down, no doubt about it, I'll take all bets, end of story, Bobby wins.

 

[David Jenkins]

Mumford cheats? hhhmmmm......does that mean I cheat too? I hope so. How the heck do we cheat? I'd be more than willing to pull a valve cover, intake, oil pan or what ever you want. Ain't no cheatin' goin' on here. Period. You guys just don't get it.
Case in point. Sold the old silver car. PMUM takes it to the wood at Button and goes 16 seconds a lap quicker then the guy who owns it...go figure.
To take stock ACR's and give it a thrashing would be cool. The problem is stock ACR's don't do the job either. I can pick the car up a couple seconds a lap be tweaking the stock car, easy!
Everyone, including me, is putting too much into this. Both PMUM and Bobby know how to work it. The thing is that not enough people have experienced the Mumdog way since he's not on tv. Let's get it on!dj

 

[Kid97GTS]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by JBenko:


As to the Archer / Mumford thing - in a timed lap in equal cars it would be Archer, but by a slim margin. In a wheel to wheel, hands down, no doubt about it, I'll take all bets, end of story, Bobby wins.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Hmmmm, JBenko looks like you are from Minnesota, no chance that you work with Bobby is there......

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As far as letting the Viper crowd take a stab at the title of King of the Time Trial in equally prepped ACR's, sure Mumdodge or Archer might take the crown, but throw a couple orange cones on the course or strap a set of CDI headers to the ACRs' bumpers, and watch out for Driving School!

 

[PMUM]

Boy this got ugly quick! These debates are akin to the Superman vs. Batman debates. Nobody knows who'd win and I reckon nobody really cares too much either. As for why I don't race SCCA, ALMS, Motorola, Speedvision, etc.--they aren't any more FUN than TCCRA, NASA or especially Viperdays.

We all know that 99% of getting a 'ride' is predicated on either having a bunch of dough to blow, daddy having a bunch of dough to blow, or being a 14 year old shifter kart legend. At some point while racing motorcycles semi-pro I realized that after spending a ton of cAsh to win a few championships I really didn't have too much other than a big plaque or trophy to show for it. Fun to do once, but winning more doesn't make it any better.

If you don't have any 'wares' to hawk, racing Motorola, guaranteed, is less fun than a weekend at ViperDays (unless Pemberton is gravytraining the RV toilet). Way too much work and nothing to show for it at the end of the weekend. There are always tons of 'local guys' who can lay the wood to the 'pros'; that's no secret. Would I drive somebody's race car in a 'big' race? Sure. Would I cut up my $90K ACR to win a trophy and gas money? Hell no!

It all boils down to priorities. Bobby has a career in racing. Racing is my hobby. Hobbies are meant to be fun; careers are meant to be successful. Everybody that's been to the track with all of us (esp. in SoCal) know that we have fun first and foremost--bench racing is secondary. Let's see...race Motorola Cup for a year---or drive to work in a Ferrari? Hmmmmm.

Being that there's a bit of bad blood between Bobby and I, I'll refrain from the trash-talk this time.

 

[brett]

Hey PMUM...didn't I just say most of that 4 posts ago? Come up with your own material.

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WAR BOUNCING FROGS!

 

[Frank Parise]

Paul, I hope you can attend the VCA Wsetern Rendevous in Monterey on June 22-24. Everyone does the autocross in the same factory stock 2001 GTS provided by Dodge. You can even go head to head with the coneheads from No. Cal. The top 2 drivers will compete against Team Viper later in the year. This will be an opportunity, perhaps, to be considered as a factory driver. What do you have to lose?

As for the 45-60 minute sprint races, Bobby would be tough to bet against. Running in T-1 is like Bobby shooting fish in a barrel. He's a wily veteran!

It would be sweet if Paul joined the rest of us crazies and caged his car for Viper Days. We need someone to keep DeLaO on his toes.

 

[K Adelberg]

Ya know, I have seen Archer drive and have driven against Mumford. I have seen Archer bump his way to the front positions several times. I know rubbing is racing, but sort of a bully way to do it. My money is on Mumford! Put Mumford in a front running car and I hate to say it, but see ya ARCHER!

WAR Pinoches in stock Vipers!!!!!!

 

[David Jenkins]

How much power do the T1 motors make? I've read last years spec. sheets on the motors. You can't do too much to the T1's the way I read it. Mumford's 1:48 was run in Ole' Silver. I'm sure these posts will build a flame! Also guys, look at the results from Vegas in '99. We were 7th out of 72 cars overall. We outran a lot of guys in unlimited with the old street prepared car. Check out some of the names of the guys PMUM layed the beat down on!dj

 

[Rich Wesorick]

Dean:

A T1 car is supposed to be a "stock" configuration, with a cage installed and real DOT race rubber (Archer runs Hoosiers). The motor, exhaust, tranny, and unfortunately brakes (except for pads), are all stock. The key is suspension, and tuning thereof... I forget what minimum weight is, but I think its 3380 or so with driver.

Others may be able to contribute more on this.

Rich

 

[JBenko]

1. Bobby's in Texas not Minnesota, so no I do not work for him

2. Hands down, no doubt about it, I'll take all bets, end of story, Superman kicks Batmans butt

3. Hands down, no doubt about it, I'll take all bets, end of story, in a race of any distance both Bobby and Paul could cross the finish line, sit down, and probably have lunch before I would finally finish. They are both good, real good ...