South Lynchburg from Candlers Mountain range at mid afternoon on Jan 21 2009 . COLD …! The airport is on the left and downtown is around the corner on the right. The Peaks of Otter and Flat Top Mountains of the Blue Ridge Mountain range can be seen to the west
VIR Lodge “Motel 5 & 6 “. Early January view from the 3rd floor balcony of VIR’s Lodge overlooking Turns 5 & 6. A wonderful place to stay at VIR. Normally my view is back this way from the flag station at Turn 6.
St Pete 07 GP Turn 5. The St Pete Grand Prix is a super race event held early in the year in a WARM local … just in time for all us northern types who NEED to up their vitiam D intake. A lot of fun.
Roebling Road Turn 6. The flagging oasis of Roebling Road Race … one of two flag stations that has shade. Drivers … DO NOT launch yoursevles Driver’s Left around this turn … it ain’t purty.
Roebling Road’s Front Straight. Early Saturday am Flag Meeting is going on. This was one of the SeDiv’s July 4th Double Nationals. This evevt is one of the most fun gotta do events. Worker break every day at 3pm for thunderstorms!
Summit Point Turn 10. The “other” gravel trap. Get this turn right and you can take a nap getting down the front straight to Turn 1. Get it wrong and the best thing that could happen is you get “fished” out of the gravel … the worst …. do you remember the “junkyard”?
Summit Point Turn 5. About as fun as a flagger can have without takin’ their clothes off. After drivers open their eyes after going thru Turn 4 without planting themselves in the tire wall, it’s STAND ON THE BRAKES they may still have and jerk it left! A great turn ….
Summit Point Turn 3. YEE HA!!! A lot of stuff happens here … sometimes even on purpose! The gravel trap captures many cars on errant paths, others use it as the “Showroom Line” … those may be greeted at Turn 4 with a Black Flag. The guys and gals of EV know the gravel trap as well as the drivers.
Summit Point Turn 7 from the stands across from the station. Turns 5, 6 7, and Turn 8 can be seen. A great place to watch racin’ from.
Summit Point Turn 2. This station is a GREAT place to blue flag from … if the bushes are trimmed. The flags can be shown “intimately” to drivers who reward good flagging with their waves. The “action” here can be very hetic at times, then other times …. “Car number ## pulled off in the first access road”.
Summit Point Turn 8 … from the “Tub”. This shot is for all the Summit Point SCCA flaggers … who never get to use the tub. All the flagging “work” is done from ground level, it’s easier to chase cars from the ground!
Summit Point Turn 8 from the infield side. The stands from which Summit Point T8 Pano 01 was shot can be seen across track. Saturday lunch time … the free lunches tend to clear all the flaggers from the turn.
Summit Point Turn 8. A pano from the stands showing from Turn 5, 7, 8 and up the hill thru Turn 9. A fall Friday afternoon before the race wars break out.
Summit Point’s Turn 1 … the big ~170° with two access roads. The Captain and Communicator staffed the “Tub. Flagging is done from DR upstream to the Tub. Safety folk person the “Pump house” access road, inside DR point, outside DL point when available.
Summit Point … the front stretch – from Start/Finish into Turn 1 … the breaking zone from Heck!!!
VIR Turn 3. Viewing the front straight, Turn 2 to Turn 5 makes up for being in view of the Control Tower. Flags are hard to see from the track, but CAN be seen if the drivers “want” to. Off courses downstream of Turn 3, into the tire walls give the Pagoda folk a treat.
VIR Turn 17. “Hog Pen” … and it will appear so if cars go off DL in the wet! The flag station provives a good view from Turn 14 to Pit-In.
VIR Turn 14 … in the early evening … HOT! … the drivers will find the flaggers lurking in the minimal shadows offered, but we’ll jump out when needed.
VIR Turn 14 … in the early afternoon … cool … the flags are highlighted in the sun. Drivers are warned of trouble downstream, around the blind turn.
VIR Turn 14. This is the second roller coaster complex. When I first saw it I said Laguna Seca!!! … but then VIR has an advantage over Laguna Seca … it’s only 65 miles from my house! A blind turn coming off the lonnggg backstretch. YeeHa!!!!
VIR Turn 12. This Station provides the opportunity to watch cars go into Turn 11 and make the long trip to the Station, where the driveers ALWAYS wave.
Turn 12 at VIR. VERY, VERY high speeds here, the crest of the backstretch where the front end lifts just before the back end does. Entrance to the South Paddock Course “infield” portion.
VIR’s Oak Tree turn, Turn 11! Actually multiple turns ending in screachin, dirt raisin and leading to the loooooooooooooonnngggg back straight. Drivers think that flaggers here have their backs turned on them, but it’s just that they have screwed themselves into the ground … they’ll unwind after the session. A GREAT place to go eye-to-eye with drivers/flaggers.
Turns 10 and 11 through 12 at VIR. This is the “right foot lockdown complex”. At times the Station just prior to “Oak Tree” is staffed, sometimes the South Paddock Start Stand may be staffed … but always count on someone being at “Oak Tree”. The South Paddock Start Stand may also be used as a “Black Flag” Station.
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Turn 10 at VIR. This turn is a roller coaster (the first of two) and “blind” for those going fast enough. It’s very important for drivers to monitor the flagger here due to the diminished sight line around Turn 10.
<Click on the pic to open a new window with the interactive pano>
