Well, I took my car to the track today

Not a drag 1/4 track.... no no, not an auto-x cone course.... ohh no... a real ROAD COURSE track !!

Don't remember the exact mileage but it was an 8 or so turn track. There were LOTS of cars and people there it the weather was PERFECT|, overcast and about 76*F.

Being as I am a complete n00b at this, I had to get a "Check-ride" and they followed me around the course. The instructor said he liked my lines and that I was one of the better drivers (of the noobies) he's seen all day .

So after that, I got about 12 laps on the big, real track and 21 laps on the smaller, inner track. Top spee on the little track was about 70 and top on the big one was about 100. The big one had a 3/8 mile straightaway BUT they cut it in half and put up chicanes which made you have to slow to about 40 in the middle of it..

The car handled REALLY well (I was keeping up with a S2000 in the corners... but he passed me in the straightaways ). Very predictable... it was like an extension of my body. Once though, at about 50mph in a S-turn, I gave it a little too much throttle and nearly spun but I just ended up kinda drifting and swinging back but regained control . Braking was AWESOME, I've never really had to brake from 100 to 40 before and I'd brake too early sometimes and loose time. IT was really cool because the turns where banked so you really stuck on the road. Exit speed of the last turn was ~80-85 mph. My left foot got tired b/c I was using the 4th pedal as a brace during cornering .

The mini-track was really fun. The road was only wide enough for 2 cars so they spaced the cars out by time (no passing or more than 2-3 cars on track at a time). The average turn speed was 35-40 mph there and the back part has some gravel/dirt on teh road so I almost lost it a couple of times... but luckily I didnt. It was about 10 turns and you never got above 65-70 on the straightaway. It was lots of fun though cuz there were a few "lane-change" type curves and you really got thrown around in the car (again, more left foot soreness action) .

Ok ok, sorry about the long post.... but it was just so much damn fun! Now I know why they say these cars were built for the track... because they ARE!!

Cliffs Notes : Me race car on track good. Me like. RX-7 good on track. Almost lost control a few times. 2 tracks there were. One small, one big, small had 70mph max and big was 100mph. Me likey much, me do again next year.

 

See there is more to life than the 1/4 mile!

 

Can't agree more Banzai... can't agree more

 

How much to track days like those usually cost?
and is there safety provided at the track while you go lapping?

for example... if you blew a tire at the end of a straightaway smooked a concrete barrier and your car burst into flames... would the safety be out as quick as say a indy race?

 

Cheers,

All depends on the club holding the event. For Example, NASA out here in Northern California has a safety crew, tow crew and two ambulances ready to go, all day long. with some of the smaller organizations, you get a tow truck, a few workers, and an ambulance. It just varies. But come on, indy races are millions of dollars to run, you've got 4-5 safety crews, probably 10 trucks, and tons of wreckers out there at a Indy car race. Kinda unrealistic.

Costs, again, depends on the club holding the event, and the track itself. For example, here in NorCal, a typical small group holding a track day (40 cars or so) during the week, you can expect 120-150 for the day. Bigger organizations for the weekends, 175-200 per weekend day, 400 for the weekend). At Laguna Seca, multiply by 1.5, the track just is that much more pricey.

It's worth it. BELIEVE ME

Want to see what it's like? http://para.noid.org/~silkworm

Sounds like a good time Dre! Get back out there soon!

Regards,

PaulC

 

Hot Lapping OWNES j00

 

We had a track day last week Monday and it was $100 for a drivers class and four 15 minute lapping sessions. One of the reasons why it was so expensive was the people who put the whole thing together shipped a car and the driver from Japan. This wasn't no ordinary track day though, it was mainly for drifting. To me drifting is way more exciting than 1/4 and autoX.


dre_2ooo- That means that your going to need a better seat. With a race seat you don't have to worry about having to brace yourself for a turn, the seat will do it for you. Which allows control your car better. If you like course lapping and you want to get a little more rush then you should try get into drifting. It's more dangerous and requires more skill, but like I said it's way more exciting. Also if you learn the basics of drifting, it'll help you with course lapping and autoX.

Peace

 

yes, i realized that a racing seat would be more supportive... maybe when I get some money

yeah, it was $60 for the day... racing from about 9am to 5pm. not bad at all. it was at MN safety center you can find the track info here www.aarrf.com

Turning, braking, acelerating, clutching, and downshifting ALL at once... ohhh yeaaahhhh

 

I took an s2000 on the freeway, but havent been to a road coarse

 

Well, they are DAMN good on the track. Or the guy just really knew what he was doing .

Trst me, out there it's MOSTLY driver. There was an NSX in our n00b group and lets say I stayed even with HIM. Why? Because he was takign turns way too fast and going sideways alot D:

 

sounds like a blast, as soon as my car done we can go together! i really want to get into that!!!

 

Took a S2000 at an autox with my stock neon on falkens. that was cool, since the kid flew by me on the highway down there.

 

neons rule at the autoX, personally i hate them, but i must say they can tear up some cones

 

hmm... what would dre say after reading a story like this?

ah yes...

 

ha ha very funny.

I knew someone would do that. Whatever. At least it's better than someone asking how to get water out of your ear


meh. depression is a BITCH

 

loads of fun indeed