Pics of me at Buttonwillow Raceway
12-03-05, 02:02 PM
#1
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Pics of me at Buttonwillow Raceway
Just thought I'd share some pix of my first track event at Buttonwillow Raceway. great learning experience. everyone should get out on the track once at least. Buttonwillow was a pretty technical course from what I was told. Went off the track 4 times. 2 times going in too hot at Sunset and 2 times trying to get the line down for Lost Hill. 
Spent alot of time trying to learn the lines and took a few rides with my tuner who is also a driving school instructor.
Here's a pic of the ******* BADASS oldschool Mazdaspeed full race bucket my buddy let me borrow. Came from a racecar in Japan. I can lift it with 1 finger and it's very strong for being just a shell, I think it's made of kevlar. I'm thinking about taking it off his hands.
I was getting alot of brake fade towards the end of a 30 minute session. Gonna replace my master cylinder with a 929 upgrade (15/16" to 1") only because my buddy has a few lying around and try some ATE Super blue brake fluid.
Next trackday is at Thunderhill next Sunday. Havent decided if I'll attend yet.
Spent alot of time trying to learn the lines and took a few rides with my tuner who is also a driving school instructor. Here's a pic of the ******* BADASS oldschool Mazdaspeed full race bucket my buddy let me borrow. Came from a racecar in Japan. I can lift it with 1 finger and it's very strong for being just a shell, I think it's made of kevlar. I'm thinking about taking it off his hands.
I was getting alot of brake fade towards the end of a 30 minute session. Gonna replace my master cylinder with a 929 upgrade (15/16" to 1") only because my buddy has a few lying around and try some ATE Super blue brake fluid.
Next trackday is at Thunderhill next Sunday. Havent decided if I'll attend yet.
Last edited by ilike2eatricers; 12-03-05 at 02:05 PM.
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12-03-05, 04:39 PM
#9
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this particular event was private and $160 with lunch open track, you do your own tech inspection. 30 minute sessions rotating between grip and drip. Went down with a few local rotary buddies of mine.
Next event is $140 with early bird reg at thunderhill grip only and drift on the back half of the track.
Madrx7racer, Hassell right? Event should be fun, it's a high speed course try and make it if you can. check out www.barotary.com for local track events local rotorheads will be attending.
Nader get your car running already.
Karack , Ben right? You gonna be at the event. Always nice to meet the person behind the username. We probably saw each other at 7stock and after at the gas station right after but I wasnt sure who was who.
Next event is $140 with early bird reg at thunderhill grip only and drift on the back half of the track.
Madrx7racer, Hassell right? Event should be fun, it's a high speed course try and make it if you can. check out www.barotary.com for local track events local rotorheads will be attending.
Nader get your car running already.
Karack , Ben right? You gonna be at the event. Always nice to meet the person behind the username. We probably saw each other at 7stock and after at the gas station right after but I wasnt sure who was who.
12-03-05, 06:50 PM
#10
Lives on the Forum
Your pads are the most likely cause of fade. What pads were you using. Also there are two kinds of fade. One is when the fluid boils and the pedal goes soft. The other is when the pads overheat and no longer grip well. Upgrade these first and then after that you could upgrade other things, but this will likely fix any issues.
12-03-05, 07:13 PM
#11
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My stock MC is already showing signs of leaking past the internal seals and since a free 929 MC is available to me I'm gonna try it. I already have powerslot rotors, stainless braided lines, and project mu b force pads. Also changing to ATE super blue brake fluid as I said above. I'm fairly sure it's a combination of the fluid getting too hot and the MC leaking.
Last edited by ilike2eatricers; 12-03-05 at 07:16 PM.
12-03-05, 08:33 PM
#12
haha I was about to go to that event. It's was the shockdrifting event right? Right after thanksgiving? Have you been to any of the Altamont events by NCDA? They are a lot of fun too, and so should the thunderhill one. But I wont be able to make it until the Jan event. 
12-03-05, 11:51 PM
#13
Stan, i'm pretty sure I introduced you to Ben (karack) at SS8....And my car is running...
When i get a job, pay off my debts, install the fmic I have laying around and the new TB, fix my front brakes and put on a new catback...i'll start doing track days....
When i get a job, pay off my debts, install the fmic I have laying around and the new TB, fix my front brakes and put on a new catback...i'll start doing track days....
12-04-05, 02:34 PM
#16
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Originally Posted by a_drift
haha I was about to go to that event. It's was the shockdrifting event right? Right after thanksgiving? Have you been to any of the Altamont events by NCDA? They are a lot of fun too, and so should the thunderhill one. But I wont be able to make it until the Jan event.
Originally Posted by Funkspectrum
Stan, i'm pretty sure I introduced you to Ben (karack) at SS8....And my car is running...
When i get a job, pay off my debts, install the fmic I have laying around and the new TB, fix my front brakes and put on a new catback...i'll start doing track days....
When i get a job, pay off my debts, install the fmic I have laying around and the new TB, fix my front brakes and put on a new catback...i'll start doing track days....
Originally Posted by hondahater
man I wish we had a track around here like that! I don't get into autoX and thats all we have around here besides one quarter mile track 30minutes from here but that raceway looks freakin' insane! Nice to see some sevens on it 
Originally Posted by Madrx7racer
i'm waiting on my front bumper to come in the mail to finish my FMIC.....so I prolly won't make the next one.
12-05-05, 10:23 PM
#18
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HA! I wish I had a track only 4 hours away. The nearest descent road course track to my house is about a 7-8 hour drive depending on traffic and road conditions. It's a long drive on the Sunday after spending the whole day driving the wheels off the car at the track. There's Seattle and Spokane which are about equal distance. Of course there's Mission, but I don't want to go there, I've heard too many bad things.
12-07-05, 09:39 PM
#20
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Oh well, in a few years there'll be a wonderful new track about 45 minutes away from my house.
http://www.activemountainraceway.com/
I can't wait!
http://www.activemountainraceway.com/
I can't wait!
12-08-05, 05:19 PM
#21
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I'm trying my best to prep the car for thunderhill. Hopefully I'll finish everything tonight and can try some different allignment settings before Sunday.
12-08-05, 05:42 PM
#22
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wow, nice pictures, i wonder where you got them from...
http://neofreak.com/gallery/051125/iframe.html
http://neofreak.com/gallery/051125/iframe.html
12-10-05, 09:11 PM
#23
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Thread Starter
Thanks for the pix Justin.
Update:
Spent 4 hours today getting an allignment. Fixed some rear camber issues I was having. Hopefully these more aggressive settings will work out well. Also went back to stock rear sway bar and stock end links (from RB bar and mazdatrix adjustable endlinks). Car feels way more solid and it seems like all of the understeer is gone. Also adjusted the brake pedal play to accomodate the 929 MC. Brakes feel AWESOME! I didnt have time to flush the brake system with ATE super blue but we'll see how well the brakes fare.
The real test will be tomorrow at Thunderhill. Wish me luck and I'll update again tomorrow night or monday.
Update:
Spent 4 hours today getting an allignment. Fixed some rear camber issues I was having. Hopefully these more aggressive settings will work out well. Also went back to stock rear sway bar and stock end links (from RB bar and mazdatrix adjustable endlinks). Car feels way more solid and it seems like all of the understeer is gone. Also adjusted the brake pedal play to accomodate the 929 MC. Brakes feel AWESOME! I didnt have time to flush the brake system with ATE super blue but we'll see how well the brakes fare.
The real test will be tomorrow at Thunderhill. Wish me luck and I'll update again tomorrow night or monday.
12-14-05, 05:52 PM
#24
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Finally got around to write about my track experience at thunderhill.
Here's a pic of the track
Another great experience. This track was much faster and had some extreme elevation changes. The course overall seemed easier and less technical which made it more fun for me, a big change from Buttonwillow.
No worries today since they actually had race gas at the pump. 100 octane
but at $5.99/gallon 
. Oh well gotta pay to play right?
I passed an STI and some 240s (KAs and SRs) and even a mildly modded FD but had a hard time keeping up with the Work Evo's as well as the Spec Miatas 
, but most of the day they did not allow open passing because people went crazy on the first session and I think someone even lost a wheel!
New allignment was FREAKING AWESOME also. Definately a testament to how much a good allignment can make driving a car more easy and enjoyable. I'm also very glad I switched back to the stock rear sway bar and endlinks and ditched the RB unit and mazdatrix endlinks.
929 master cylinder worked awesome! Great upgrade I recommend for people with 4 pot brakes already. You will have to adjust the brake pedal travel though to compensate for the extra fluid being pushed out. Brakes felt so awesome!! Alot of hard braking on this course and didnt get any brake fade even using Valvoline dot 3&4 brake fluid. I still want to upgrade to ATE super blue though for the next event.
Still waiting for pix to me emailed to me. I'll post pix as soon as I get them. I still need alot more seat time.
Here's a pic of the track
Another great experience. This track was much faster and had some extreme elevation changes. The course overall seemed easier and less technical which made it more fun for me, a big change from Buttonwillow.
No worries today since they actually had race gas at the pump. 100 octane
but at $5.99/gallon . Oh well gotta pay to play right?I passed an STI and some 240s (KAs and SRs) and even a mildly modded FD
but had a hard time keeping up with the Work Evo's as well as the Spec Miatas , but most of the day they did not allow open passing because people went crazy on the first session and I think someone even lost a wheel!New allignment was FREAKING AWESOME also. Definately a testament to how much a good allignment can make driving a car more easy and enjoyable. I'm also very glad I switched back to the stock rear sway bar and endlinks and ditched the RB unit and mazdatrix endlinks.
929 master cylinder worked awesome! Great upgrade I recommend for people with 4 pot brakes already. You will have to adjust the brake pedal travel though to compensate for the extra fluid being pushed out. Brakes felt so awesome!! Alot of hard braking on this course and didnt get any brake fade even using Valvoline dot 3&4 brake fluid. I still want to upgrade to ATE super blue though for the next event.
Still waiting for pix to me emailed to me. I'll post pix as soon as I get them. I still need alot more seat time.
Last edited by ilike2eatricers; 12-14-05 at 05:57 PM.
12-14-05, 06:36 PM
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Regardless of the off track excursions of the first run group, B group wasn't going to have open passing anyway.
You should have run in the last group, open passing made my day a lot more fun since I couldn't pass anyone in A group with only 100rwhp. I did pass a Evo and a TurboII in the end though.
(Both in turn 2)
You should have run in the last group, open passing made my day a lot more fun since I couldn't pass anyone in A group with only 100rwhp. I did pass a Evo and a TurboII in the end though.
(Both in turn 2)