AMS PERFORMANCE ATTENDS THE TEXAS MILE
Goliad, TX
October 16-18
Two weeks ago, AMS Performance headed south to run the AMS Porsche 996TT and GT-R in the bi-annual Texas Mile event. The event itself, hosted in the small town of Goliad, Texas is a land speed race open to motorcycles, street cars, race cars and land speed vehicles. The rules were simple. . . achieve top speed within a one mile stretch of a desolate airstrip in the middle of nowhere without losing control. No 60 foot time, no quarter mile time or any time as a matter of fact at this extremely laid back event. At the end of the each run, the only thing handed out was a slip recording vehicle top speed at the one mile marker.
AMS sent out two groups to the Texas Mile. The first group from AMS rolled into Goliad early Friday afternoon with the Porsche ready for registration and tech inspection where it was discovered that neither the Porsche nor the GT-R would be able to pass the 190mph mark without a roll cage or five-point harness. Despite the claim of the “No Speed Limit” rule (or lack thereof) at the event, it was going to prove difficult to test the full ability of each vehicle since both were well capable of passing the 190mph threshold. Any speed excess of 190 could result in a $100 fine and a disqualification of the car and driver. Not wanting to spoil the fun by getting disqualified in the first few days of the event, driver and AMS president, Martin Musial kept the AMS Porsche 996 just under the 190mph mark throughout several passes Friday and Saturday.
The second group from AMS rolled in late Saturday night with the AMS Nissan GT-R. Fresh off a private track event in Vegas just 30 hours prior, the car was slated to stretch its legs on Sunday morning down the Texas Mile strip. On its first test pass Martin left the line about as soft as one could. Opting not to use launch control and short shifting at 6000 rpm (7200 normally), the AMS GT-R still managed to put down a 188.6 mph pass. This would be the fastest pass for any GT-R all weekend despite not running it 100%. After returning to the AMS pit the team noticed a faint noise coming from the GT-R transmission. With the absence of a proper roll cage and the albeit small chance of transmission failure the AMS team determined it would not be a wise decision to continue to run the GT-R
The AMS Porsche 996 turbo had a much better outing on Sunday. On his final pass of the day Martin was able to post a 191.6 mph pass in the AMS 996 turbo. What was even more remarkable was the fact that it was done on a AMS/EPL tune, JIC/Cross Cat-back exhaust, Carbonetic’s clutch and AMS Billet K16 Turbochargers….that’s IT! This was the fastest recorded time ever at The Texas Mile for a Porsche using K16 framed turbo.
Overall, the event proved to be a success and a new AMS favorite. Despite occasional gusts of wind, temperatures throughout all three days hovered around 75 degrees with barely a cloud in the sky. In addition, the team determined that “Texas Hospitality” was not a myth as everyone at the event was in good spirits and more than willing to lend each other a hand if needed.
To sum it up, if you are looking for a laid back venue combined with heart-pounding, high speed thrills, we recommend that you make your way down to The Texas Mile event in spring of 2010. Entry fees were only $100 each day with an unlimited number of passes. Get there Friday to avoid the lines. It might be in the middle of nowhere, but the event draws a pleasant crowd from all walks of life and is unlike no other – so much so, that AMS is already making plans to make it back with even more turbo-charged muscle. Here’s hoping to see ya’ll there!
