It’s been more than six weeks since the last Enduro Elite race, and Daniel Demaras was anxious to get back behind the wheel of the No. 822 DriveTeq BMW 128i. With races coming up at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park (September 6th and 7th) followed by a round at Shannonville Motorsports Park (September 27th and 28th) the “Back To School” track day was a great opportunity for some seat time and coaching.
Track days are always bizarre events, with a wide variety of vehicles sharing the circuit that would never race against each other. Fortunately, most of the cars at the ‘Back 2 School’ event were practicing for the upcoming Enduro Elite race with comparable lap times. There were at least 5 BMW 128i lapping the circuit.
The speed and performance envelope of the BMW 128i race cars were very similar. But experience and driver skill can also vary dramatically. Some rookie racers were taking their first laps around the track, considering a full-season of endurance racing in 2026.
In the hands of some racers, the same BMW can be 5 seconds quicker or slower.
As Daniel Demaras climbed into the driver’s seat, he knew that along with nailing the braking points and hitting the apexes, he’d have to keep an eye out behind him for the Porsche 911 race cars that can blow the doors of his BMW. These cars are on a different level.
The track official break the drivers into three groups based on their experience and lap times. Demaras was placed in the advanced driver group by virtue of his Class A racing license and three years in Formula 1200. That had him sharing the track with a Ferrari 488 GT3 race car, and a full-on NASCAR Truck Series entrant. Crazy!
Working with Tim from DataTeq really helped Daniel extract more lap time from the race car. Numbers don’t lie, and with multiple on-board cameras, the team could help pinpoint areas where Demaras could improve. Maybe that’s why the track day was called ‘Back 2 School’.
I wish my name sake success in racing 💪
Yes, Daniel D has been hungry to get back to racing after a long summer break. He just has to stay hungry for 1 more week.
Well…keep us updated and good luck on racing
Thanks, Daniel! We appreciate the positive thoughts from you.
How cool is that! Cool colors on the Beemers.
Yes… most are “inspired” by famous cars or famous paintings . So some look familiar without us knowing why.
Totally cool.
Jakson Pollock’s “Lavender Mist” would look great on a Beemer.
I don’t know, bro. Maybe it’s the Google images, but that painting isn’t as lavender as I expected.
It’s the photography. I’ve seen the painting in the National Museum. It definitely has a lavender ground.
Good. Im glad you said that. I was worried I was going colour blind.
Damn! Wish to experience all that speed and sound
In a couple days, hopefully we’ll post some on board video from the test day. It’s very immersive.