Final NASA Socal race for Michele Abbate in the Crawford Performance Scion Racing tC
Posted on November 7th, 2011
Michele taking her first win in the Crawford Performance Scion Racing tC
As I headed out to Buttonwillow from Vegas, 90% of the drive was in the rain… and all I could think is, “I hope it rains all weekend at the track!”. The forecast showed sunny for Saturday and rain for Sunday and I just kept my fingers crossed. Buttonwillow is always a pretty challenging course and knowing I have only done the #1 CCW configuration I knew I had a lot to focus on. The first time I ran this configuration with the tC my best time was a 2:20.0 so that was my starting baseline to improve from.
On Saturday it was sunny all day, everyone got some good track time and the real battle was in our last time trial session. We had some very close times and I had been in the lead in the morning, but we had a new comer jump in and place first just ahead of my fastest time of a 2:17.1 with his 2:16.2. I was happy with my results, my improvement was obvious and I had beaten my competition that I was aiming for all day. The 2nd place finish felt great, but I still wanted more.
Saturday night the forecast still had rain for Sunday, and this is what I was praying for! When we woke up on Sunday it looked like the rain had come and gone. Everything was soaked and the track was swimming with puddles and surrounded by mud. Buttonwillow can be very dangerous in these conditions so we were all very aware of the situation. We decided to sit out the first session for a couple reasons.
- The times wouldn’t count, it was just a practice session
- I needed new tires and we could use the time to swap them
- Give the track some time to get cleaned up by other classes/drivers.
Once it became time for our second session, it looked as if things were clearing up. It had been sunny for a few hours and the track was drying off. I wasn’t sure if the conditions would get better or worse so I decided to change a couple of entries into two corners of the track and gave it my best. The Crawford team was very excited when I came off track, and said that I was flying out there. The times posted and I had ran a best time of 2:14.9! The car felt really great on track and I knew I went faster but the time surprised me as well!
We weren’t sure what the weather would bring but shortly after that session some winds pushed through the rain we had been anticipating. It rained in both of our last two sessions and though our times were much slower, I still placed 1st overall in all of the TT classes; kind of like when it rained at Auto Club Speedway! My prayers had been answered and I got my rain! There is nothing more exciting to me than racing in the rain, especially in a FWD! With the track being so wet, my fastest time was untouchable by any of my competitors and I had finally locked in our first win in our first season of NASA Time Trials!
This finish placed me 2nd overall in points for the season and my teammate Ariel finished 3rd overall. It has been an awesome year for the Crawford Performance Scion Racing tC’s and I cannot thank our sponsors enough for their continued support throughout year. Special thanks to Toyo Tires, K&N, TRD, Tein, NGK, Motul, and Advan wheels! Your support was greatly appreciate all year! Stay tuned for our last event, Super Lap Battle, which is happening this Wednesday, the 9th of November!
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Crawford Performance/Scion Racing Event #6 at Buttonwillow
Posted on October 30th, 2011
Michele and Chris Rado on Buttonwillow
After the long 2 month summer break from the NASA SoCal events I was ready to get back on the track! Buttonwillow’s clockwise 13 turn configuration is one of my favorites and I was ready to improve my best time, from April, of a 2:12.6 as much as possible. On Saturday, I focused mostly on my entrance and exit of the straightaway. These are two of the most important turns on any race track and if you can determine the fastest way to take them, you will be fast. I push my braking zones farther and farther and ended the day with a new personal best of a 2:11.8! This time placed me in 2nd, a great finish for our first day!
I used Sunday to experiment with different gears and speeds on the track. The ‘Bus Stop’ is my favorite turn on the track, and I focused mostly on it and ‘Magic Mountain’. Previously I had been down shifting for both of these turns, and as I pushed through them faster, I ended up carrying enough speed to pull the momentum through Bus Stop without downshifting. I tried to do the same for Magic Mountain, but I had just a little too much speed and I found myself venturing off the track! It made for some good photos but not the greatest lap time. 
The first session marked me for my fastest time, which also was a new personal best and a half of a second faster than Saturday, 2:11.3! This locked in another 2nd place finish for Sunday, as well as my teammate Ariel who finished 3rd! Which was very good considering she competed with my tC, the evil twin of hers!
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Michele’s first time in a Thunder Roadster AND racing Circle Track!
Posted on October 19th, 2011
Michele Abbate getting ready to take the Thunder Roadster for the first time
On October first I received a phone call with the opportunity to test drive a Thunder Roadster at my home track the “Bullring” at Las Vegas Motor Speedway. I had never driven on a circle track, ever, in addition to never ever sittin gin a thunder roadster, but I was more than excited to give it a shot. Any seat time is good seat time and I was definitely in for a new challenge.
Once I got to the track I only had 3 minutes before the last practice session to get on track. I paid my entry and threw my suit on as quick as possible. By the time I got to the pits my class had already been gridded. I have never in my life hopped in a race car so fast. Having no idea what the switches were for, I asked my friend, who explained each one quickly. Then I shouted “Is this like a legends car!?” And he hollored “Yep! Pretty close!”. Taking a deep breathe I pushed the start button and headed on track.
I was the last car on track and I made my way onto the oval. I was focused mostly on learning how the car felt and responded, more than concentrating on the track itself. I only got to drive for 6 minutes of the 10 minute practice session and the car had ran out of gas before I ever saw the checkered flag. But for those 6 minutes I have never felt so new to something in my whole life. It was amazing, in a good way. I felt like a clean slate that was ready to absorb all the information as possible.
The tires were so sticky and I found myself having a hard time being able to trust the banking of the track. I did my best to take the lines the best of my knowledge and it seemed to be working. The first practice session ended and I came in with a smile on my face. Ideally, the car needed a few adjustments, especially my driving position; but I was so excited to had the experience.
Michele going through Tech
My race wasn’t for a couple hours. We had our drivers meeting and I began to situate everything as best as I could. I got an amazing amount of help from some other drivers: Shaun Polack, Chris Bosley, Doug Germano, Paul Licata, and Nick Degidio. As well as my dad, who came to my pits whenever he had a chance from not working on my brother’s legends car.
My goal for the race was simple: stay on the lead lap. The grid is picked by a draw and my number was good, I was off pole, though, I opted to grid last because I did not want to be in any one’s way. As a competitive driver, I know how it is to be battling for a win and having someone inexperienced on a track be in your way. With that being said, I didn’t want any more pressure on me than I already had, so I sat last on grid.
The race went great, my rolling start was fantastic, I stayed with the pack into the first turn and hand no incidents. We had one caution and one restart. Throughout the race I saw I was gaining ground on the car in front of me… I ended up making a clean pass and held it for the rest of the race. I placed 7th out of 10 and I was completely blown away. It was so encouraging and motivating to see that I could keep up with the local guys that do it all the time!
I never expected to make a pass and I was more than stoked tohave stayed on the lead lap. This was such an amazing opportunity and I truly look forward to getting into a thunder roadster again. In December the Silver State Road Course Classic will start back up (the same race I ran last year in the legends cars) and I am hoping to race the Thunder Roadster in this series!
Stay tuned!! Also Check out this quickly edited video clip from driving the Thunder Roadster!
CLICK : Michele Abbate\’s First Time in a Thunder Roadster!
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NASA So-Cal with Crawford Performance Scion tC’s hit some Rain at Round 5!
Posted on August 9th, 2011
Michele Abbate competing in the Crawford Performance Scion Racing tC
Competing at Auto Club for the second and last time of the year with the NASA organization offered our team a chance to breathe. Being as we had run at the same track in the same configuration as we did before, allowed us to know what to expect; to an extent. The only new aspect we would need to adapt to is the fact that we have now put both cars on a set of new Toyo R888 Tires. I was very excited to try these tires out because I have heard nothing but good things about them.
Saturday was a hot sunny day at the track and my lap times were very consistent when compared to my previous lap times. I ran my best session in the morning when it was cool, with a 2:05.2 during practice. Being as the practice times don’t count I landed 4th place with my best time of the day as a 2:05.7. With temperatures reaches the high 90’s it was understandable to not see a huge improvement from the morning.
Sunday offered the biggest and best surprise for me. As I woke up, I thought I had heard rain, but I didn’t want to get my hopes up. As I moved the curtain away from the window I was surprised to see a huge downpour in the Fontana area. I couldn’t believe it! I was so excited. I love nothing more than racing in the rain. I had only driven one other time in the rain, and I was one of the fastest cars on the track and won in my class; rain is my element and I couldn’t wait to get to the track and run my sessions.
During the first morning session the rain was still coming down very hard. As we took our warm up lap and headed for the straight with the green flag flying, I passed 4 cars on the straight away as I flew into the oval at turn 1. I was still taking it easy because I needed to feel how the car responded in the rain. Yet I still had a blast. I came in after the session to find out I was the 3rd fastest car on the track overall, and 1st in my class #TT-E#. I was feeling confident and having the time of my life. All I could do is pray that the rain kept strong all day.
Unfortunately, as the day went on the sun came out and dried up everything wet at the track. The higher horsepower cars got their grip and confidence back and times started to set in similar to Saturday. By the end of the day I set a very similar time as well, and once again placed 4th for the TT-E class.
This was definitely an awesome event for the Crawford Performance Scion Racing tC’s because we got to experience rain, which doesn’t happen that often. The skills you can develop and learn in the rain are some of the most vital things as a driver. I’d like to thank all of our sponsors for their continued support throughout the season, including: Scion Racing, Toyo Tires, Motul, NGK, Tein, Advan, TRD, & K&N. And I look forward to our next event
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Michele persistent with podium finishes – Scion Racing/Crawford Performance in Buttonwillow CA
Posted on July 20th, 2011
Michele Abbate piloting the 2011 Scion Racing tC prepared by Crawford Performance in Buttonwillow CA
This was the first time I have ever run Buttonwillow in the #13 counterclockwise configurations. I am always excited to get on a new track and I definitely noticed a lot of challenges on this one. Fortunately, the track was the only thing that I needed to focus on adapting to; since the car ran so well at the last event there were no changes to its setup up. After the first practice session I knew that I needed to really focus if I wanted to place well.
There isn’t much time for learning a track on a Time Trial day, so I did my best to focus on the corners that I felt the weakest. By the end of the day on Saturday I was feeling good about my times since every session I continued to get a little faster. This is something I always aim to do, but it is a bit more expected when on an unfamiliar track because with each lap you should gain a little more understanding of each corner. By the end of the day I placed my best time of a 2:22.7, which placed me in 2nd for the day. I was excited to see my teammate Ariel close behind me to finish 3rd with a 2:23.1
On Sunday I was feeling confident on landing a faster lap time. Both Ariel and I set our goals to be faster and shortly after headed on the track. I knew the first session out would be the coolest temperature wise, so I was feeling a bit aggressive. As I entered one of the tightest turns of the track, I was right on the bumper of the car ahead of me. Unexpectedly, he hit his brakes mid turn and as a reaction to not rear end him I steered around him and into the dirt; causing my session to be DNF’d. Unfortunately I set my fastest time this session with a 2:21.0 but it would not count for the day’s results. My last session out I was sure to keep it clean in order to get my results up on the board but unfortunately I did not turn a faster lap than my first session.
It was a smooth weekend and I am greatful to have ran another event with the Southern California region of NASA. We left with 3 podium finishes and smiles on our faces. This event leaves us halfway done with the season and I look forward to seeing what the last half brings. I’d like to give a huge thank you to all of our sponsors for helping get on track and supporting the Scion Racing/Crawford Performance team!
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Michele Abbate makes debut on Adrenalina with the Scion Racing crew and the Crawford Performance Time Trial tCs!
Posted on June 13th, 2011
Be sure to check out Michele Abbate as her and her teammate Ariel Crawford of Crawford Performance make a debut on the TV show Adrenalina. The episode will feature the Scion Racing/Crawford Performance NASA Time Trial team as well as famous drifter Ken Gushi in a wild day of racing at the Toyota Speedway in Irwindale, California.
To find out what channel Adrenalina is for you, you may visit: http://www.sitv.com/get-sitv
The official episode will premiere at 9:00pm Eastern Standard Time (6:00pm Pacific Standard Time). Be sure to check it out!
You may find more information about our blogger, Michele Abbate, at the following sites:
www.AbbateMotorsports.com
www.Facebook.com/AbbateMotorsports
www.twitter.com/MSPM1chele
www.ScionRacing.com
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Willow Springs Internt’l Raceway – NASA Socal TT-E class with the Scion Racing tC’s Prepared by Crawford Performance
Posted on May 24th, 2011
Michele Abbate at the top of turn 3 of WSIR while she competes in TT-E
May 21-22nd NASA Socal Event
This pas weekend was round 3 of the NASA Socal series and I was back to compete again in the TT-E class. The weekend also hosted the first Global Time Attack event with association of NASA.
Willow Springs International Raceway was the first track that I took the 2011 Crawford Performance Scion Racing tC on, so I was excited to have a chance to improve my personal best lap time. With some changes to the car since then, I set my own goal of a 1:40, about 4 seconds faster than my previous time.
Saturday consisted of the usual first practice session and followed with the time trial sessions. I used the practice to remind myself of how the tC handled on this track and to get a good feeling of its new set up. This track has a lot to do with maintaining your momentum through the turns, and it is very important to use the brake as little as possible to do so. Our R1R Toyo tires provided great grip through the long sweepers like 2, 8, and 9. The car felt really solid and I was excited to find myself shifting into 5th gear just before turn 1 and 8. By the end of the day on Saturday I set my fastest lap of a 1:42.1 which placed me 2nd for the day’s TT-E class results.
On Sunday, I was still eager to shave off quite a bit more time. I knew I needed to improve my exit speed off of turn 9 to gain the extra mph on the straight away. In addition, I really focused on pushing the slight braking zone before turn 1 a little further each time. This allowed me to not have so much time to stay on the brakes as I continued through the turn with my straightaway speed.
As the afternoon rolled in the expected Willow Springs wind started to dominate the track. I posted my fastest lap of the weekend on the 3rd session which was a 1:41.2! Just a little shy of my goal, but still left me satisfied for the weekend. I placed 3rd in TT-E and received my two podium medals for the finishes over the weekend.
This was a really great weekend because my teammate Ariel Crawford had moved up through the HPDE ranks and was given the approval to be signed off to compete in Time Trials with me on Sunday. I am excited to have her to compete with and really look forward to what the next events have to bring. I feel we achieved a great goal as a team while still continuing our streak on the podium. I’d like to say thank you to NASA Socal for putting on another great event for its teams and drivers; as well as thank you to all of our sponsors for supporting the Crawford Performance team: Scion Racing, Motul, Toyo Tires, K&N, TRD, NGK, Advan, and Tein!
Lastly, but of course not least, I’d like to thank my parents and Anthony Philleo for taking a road trip out just to watch me race. Support is something I can never say thank you enough and I am very fortunate to have so much in my life.
Chris Rado, Mike Abbate, Judi Abbate, Michele Abbate, Anthony Philleo (Photo Credit: Chris Harrington)
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William Cannady of Will’s CarCast Interviews Michele Abbate
Posted on April 27th, 2011
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Two more Silver Medals for Abbate in Buttonwillow with the Crawford Performance Scion Racing tC!
Posted on April 18th, 2011
Michele Abbate with her two 2nd place medals from the Buttonwillow NASA Socal Event
Buttonwillow is definitely one of my favorite road course tracks to compete on. It has elevations, sweepers, tight turns, and even a nice “S” section. The first time I ever drove the green car was at Super Lap Battle in 2010 and it was also my first time on Buttonwillow. After that event I knew I’d be back at that track!
Knowing that my first time on Buttonwillow I landed my fastest lap on my last session out with a 2:14.6 I wanted to set my personal goal to improve by 2 about seconds. Given the fact that I had been on the track before, I knew it was time to learn where I could shave some time off.
On Saturday I started the day off with my first session in the cold with a 2:18 and ended the day at a 2:14.2 Even though I improved my time by .4 I was still not satisfied. I placed 2nd in the TT-E class and I knew the time was out there but I wasn’t quite sure where I was leaving it. I worked on my lines in my head and looked forward to one more day to attack my goal of a 2:12.
On Sunday I consistently ran low 2:14’s throughout the day. As the day came to an end Ariel and I decided we would swap cars for the last session to try something new. As soon as I took the first couple turns onto the track I could instantly feel a difference in the car. Not sure if I liked it yet, I spent the first couple laps getting the hang of the new feel. After about the 4th lap I felt comfortable to go all out.
The blue tC felt very different compared to the green car but in a way that was working with me. I felt like I was making some real good time while on track; I even got the car to rotate a few times during my session. Once the session ended I felt like if I hadn’t improved my time then I wouldn’t know what could! It was at the TT meeting that I found out I ran my fastest time of a 2:12.6! Exactly two seconds faster than my previous personal record!
Michele in the hot pits with her teammate Ariel Crawford's blue Scion tC.
I was so excited and satisfied that I had met my personal goal for the weekend! For the second time that weekend I placed 2nd in TT-E and brought another podium finish home. I really look forward to improving both of our cars to get the best set up and faster times on track. Now we’ve got about a 6 week break to dial the cars in and make some changes for the Willow Springs event on May 21-22! Hope to see you all out there!
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Back to AZ after 5 long months… and at a new track!
Posted on March 23rd, 2011
Michele racing down one of the longest straights of Arizona Motorsports Park in Arizona
Back in October of 2010, I made a post about my last race weekend in Arizona… it consisted of a 1 day NASA AZ/UMS time attack event and the remaining time was spent swapping my motor due to a spun rod bearing…. followed by a 5 hour drive at 3am straight to UNLV for class at 8am…. lol.
Well the new(er) motor is still in the Protege and I finally went back to AZ for another shot at running on the reopened Arizona Motorsports Park!
This was a 1 day event with NASA AZ and included a UMS Tuning Time Attack Series race. This track was definitely something new for me. It’s about 2.5 miles and consists mostly of long straights and sweeping turns; something myself and the MSP haven’t spent a lot of time on.
I was excited to try something new and looked forward to fair competition since most of the drivers at the event have only been on the track once, if not at all. Eladio from H1 Performance tuned my alignment set up for the track, so that the car would handling right with high speeds and sweeping turns (big thanks again and as always to H1Racing.com)!
It took me a few sessions to learn the course itself being as I had only seen it on you tube videos. Finally getting into the rhythm of things, I was sort of ready for the Time Attack sessions. After earning my NASA Time Trials license, I had the option of running either TT or HPDE 4, and I decided to go with HPDE because it was a new track, I had no log book, and well… it’s a little less expensive to run in HPDE than in TT.
Thanks to the UMS Tuning Time Attack series I at least got 2 laps that were timed, and my fastest was a 1:59.2 placing me in 3rd out of 7 cars. I was really happy with this finish, especially since I am running the same street tires that I’ve had since April 2010.
The MSP behaved well for the most part, except for the gear trouble I have been having for about a year now as well… it seems to be falling out of third more often each day. So! If anyone knows of a lightly used Mazda Protege transmission, let me know! 
In the mean time, stayed tuned for the next two events, which are coming up quickly… April 2nd for the Modified Magazine Tuner Shootout at Firebird in AZ and the NASA Socal event with the Scion Racing/Crawford Performance 2011 tC at Buttonwillow!
Thanks for reading everyone
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