Chronos

That sounds like an incredible machine brad, you must be very proud

I wouldn't have the kind of money to pay for a racer like that up front, and I would probably kill myself with such a car to begin with anyways. Thanks for the offer though and good look selling it and furthering your racing career.

P.S. Why not an FD "tube racer"?

Chronos

I'd like to say that this proves my point, but there could be other factors I'm not aware of. Maybe the "best bang for your buck" nature of the rotary plays a part in this series? Anyways, one thing's for sure, the RX-7 (or any rotary for that matter) will never run to it's full capability in a professional racing series (It's "just not fair"). The downside to this is that people don't realize how incredible the rotary engine truly is. Can you immagine a rotary engine 30 years from now with just as much funding in research and development as piston engines get? And I'm not just talking about performance and race applications here; allthough it would play a huge part in popularizing the rotary, which is a cheifly important step in bringing it to mainstream use.

Carl Byck

Paul, I'm not sure why you chose to attack me personally, but since you did, I will respond one time to your childish attack.
Point by point
As to horsepower, I did not realize you were making 75 hp(I was at 15 psi on the day you refer to), perhaps you should consider the Festiva after all (joke ).

With regard to weight , how would a stripped fully prepped race car(yours) weigh less than my STREET car with carpets removed?

As to lap times, you have stated your best lap times in your race car are 2:05 once, and 2:06s otherwise. Last time out I was consistently in the 1:59s. This puts me 5-7 seconds off the best SU times posted so far by NASA norcal region, in a STREET car that has seen the track three times. As shown in your own video posted on this forum, I put 3 seconds on you between turn 3 and 7. This was preceded by you spinning off the track in 10, and then looping it at the top of two in an effort to keep me from passing you. I've never road raced before, where does that leave you??

As to the coolant leak, yes I was concerned as anyone with a rotary would be, it turned out to be a pinhole in a coolant line(thanks for your concern fellow rotorhead).

Since you're so concerned with the well being of my car, the smoke you see on decel when you are behind me( which seems to be most of the time) is a rich fuel mixture which would be flames on a race car, but is just unburned fuel with my street exhaust.

As to reliability (futzing with my car), The car has been to the track three times. Each time it ran two sessions back to back(40minutes),(my partner runs group 3)each day...(24 sessions), without a mechanical failure.

As to "fighting against people following in my footsteps and getting discouraged" (good luck on your crusade), I ask, what exactly is discouraging about blowing away ZO6s, and 996s on the front straight, blowing away race cars in the turns (you), being seconds off the race pace... all in a street car.... and never having a mechanical failure?

To sum up, We have invested roughly the same amount of money in our cars(13000). I am faster(substantially) on the road course, the drag strip, and I'll wager, autocross(name the event). You chose a class to race in, I chose a class to race in, WHY can't Chronos, or anyone else dream of building a fast car in which to learn to drive fast?

I have fun every time I race my car or work on it. That is why I do it. Have fun, let others do the same, if someone wants to build a fast car, then let them.

It is too bad that you respond to a Festiva joke with a personal attack. As I stated earlier I will not respond to any more of your posts.

As for everyone else I apologize, but a public attack begets a public response. Carl Byck

Chronos

I was going to say that his last comment was a bit immature...let's not have any more of this please.

Mr. Stock

I don't see why you couldn't or shouldn't build a track only car. If you have the means to do so, by all means go ahead and do so.

As far as getting some driver training/experience, take a race driver training course such as the 3 day race car driving course by Skip Barber or any other schools like Bob Bondurant, etc.

Chronos

I might, but I don't think they can teach me much that I wouldn't be able to figure out on my own..."turn the steering wheel the least possible amount for the fastest turns!" - Gee, thanks!

Hehe, I'm sure it would probably help somewhat though. I think I'd definately need a smart driver to help me 1 on 1 though, not some stupid class that tells you a bunch of obvious **** like how to apex a turn.

I dunno, I learn pretty well on my own...

thx for the input guys

88GTU

This is just about the most ignorant statement I have yet seen on the race forum... If you've never been out on a track before I'm willing to bet $100 that you'll never figure out the correct line by yourself. Apexes can be anything but obvious.
-Matt

QUOTE]Originally posted by Chronos
I might, but I don't think they can teach me much that I wouldn't be able to figure out on my own..."turn the steering wheel the least possible amount for the fastest turns!" - Gee, thanks!

Hehe, I'm sure it would probably help somewhat though. I think I'd definately need a smart driver to help me 1 on 1 though, not some stupid class that tells you a bunch of obvious **** like how to apex a turn.

I dunno, I learn pretty well on my own...

thx for the input guys [/QUOTE]

Mr. Stock

Agreed.
Although I must say that you can't learn much if you take the Skip Barber's Advanced Driver Training(It's a 3 day course that I took more than 10 years ago), I am sure you will learn a lot by taking their 3 day racing school even if you are a legend in your own mind.

I have signed up for the 3 day racing course because I want to learn how to drive better. I am think I am a pretty good driver but there is always room for improvement.

Remember, that many of the professional race car drivers, Juan Montoya just to name one, are graduates of the program.

Mr. Stock

Then, read this book

DamonB

You may be a fabulous naturally talented driver, but classes always help tremendously. Think of it as having a coach. Natural talent determines the start of your learning curve, but without instruction you will either never grow or you will progress at a slower rate then you are capable of. A good coach will identify your strengths and your flaws so you can spend your time correcting your worst mistakes first and then spend the rest of your life trying to fix the rest and turn the perfect lap. All top athletes train with experienced and knowledgable coaches, I still don't understand why many race drivers feel they don't need them.

Not taking shots at you by any means, but competition driving is a cerebral exercise; not a physical one. To go fast and not make mistakes takes brains and logic more than anything. For me that's been the fun; finding out I didn't know as much as I thought and at the same time celebrating progress while working on my short comings. The three day schools are the real deal; they're intense.

Chronos

I think you guys are right about having a coach to point out my mistakes and learn from them at a faster pace...the only problem I foresaw with the 3 day driving school is that it's a class, and you have to learn at the same pace as the class. I would much much prefer a 1 on 1 type of coaching.

Thx for the input though, and sorry I wasn't clear in my statement (at all), heh

BTW, I'm amazed at DamonB's responce...usually people tend to look down on other people that feel they might have natural talent.

Chronos

Also, thx for the links and recommendations on the Skip Barber race school and book. I'll check it out!

r0t0rhead

iTrader: (12)

If you are serious about driving a real racecar then check out the Diasio 962R thread- you won't find a better built car for the money- and you'll also find out what you're capabilities are very quickly. BTW I do have a Nat'l/Pro license-17 years-and have driven every type of race car from Fv's to hillclimb specials & Trans-AM Corvettes-currently racing RX7's and still looking for the right sponsor deal-that's what gets you further more than ability. Just ask Dale Jr.

SleepR1

Hey Chronos, what makes you think you have natural talent? You haven't been on the track yet? Do you autocross, and set the FTD (fastest time of the day)? Do you continually beat your friends at the local go kart tracks? What evidence are you using to say you've got natural talent?

If it Grand Prix diving were easy, Michael Schumacher would NOT make 40 million per year!

Curious--85% of drivers on the public roads "think" they're better than the other drivers on the road, yet 95% of collisions out on the public roads are caused by DRIVER ERROR (driver inattention, screw-up, whatever)!

Explain that to me...

The short answer is--we're all legends in our own minds--a little of that "beautiful mind" working in each of our pscyhes?

Truth is we all need a little humbling.

This is why I autocross twice per year. So the guy in the Mini Cooper S can show me that my FD Rx7 ain't all that (or perhaps it's me that ain't all that)

SleepR1

Oh yes...MONEY...DAMN...

It's a real shame that there are no American drivers in F1. I was watching the F3000 race on Speed Channel. No American F3000 drivers either.

We need to start our kids early on with road racing, so we could send a few of our finest natural talents through the F1 development ladder!

Get those kids off the circle tracks and drag strips.

Get the little tykes road racing before they can even run! That's the way to develop natural road racing talent in our country!

Chronos

seriously! I would love to be a F1 racer some day...btw, CART is VERY similar to F1, and aren't the Andrettis American??

SleepR1, in responce to your above question about why I think I have natural talent...For one thing, I've been involved with speed ever since I was very young, with everything from dirt bikes to jet skis. I would say I'm a pretty good dirt bike rider (I have a 2001 CR 250R for trail riding) and there's a lot more margin for error traveling at full speed down a windy dirt mountain trail where you don't know what's around the next corner than on a controlled environment like a race track...I feel very confortable behind the wheel of a car and I always am able to remain completely calm while driving hard or when something unexpectly happens...like a mustang VEERING into my lane while we were RIGHT next to each other on the freeway (I noticed massive body roll in his car and instinctively checked the lane to the right of me for a car just before veering completely with him into it avoiding a severe collision...) I think if I can handle jack *** mustang drivers I can probably handle **** happening on the track (GT racing anyways) I think to race F1, you have to have natural extremely quick responces to handle variables at those speeds, which I couldn't know that I had until I actually did it, or worked my way up to it.

Anyways, when it comes to actually driving the car fast, I have a good sense and feel of the vehicle, the ability to analyze the situation while it's happening (as to learn new techniques or improve on them), and an ability to learn quickly and fix my mistakes and apapt to new situations.

These are the reasons why I think I'd be a good track/race dirver, not why I am am a good driver. Is it wrong to feel that these qualities would benefit me and possibly change my learning curve from an average person that doesn't possess the same qualities? And is it wrong to possibly seek higher than normal or faster learning methods to improve my driving at a faster pace???

I'm sorry if I'm coming off mildly or extremely egotistical or obnoxious here...but that's just my rationale. I'm aware that there are tons of kids (and adults) out there that think they're incredibly good drivers for no reason, I wouldn't like to consider myself one of them. I also don't really care whether or not people think or care that I'm a good driver, I usually keep my thoughts to myself. If I feel that I'm doing the best possible job given the circumstances, that's good enough for me. I only made the comment because it had to do with possible learning methods, that I will certainly take...also, I'm not saying that I wouldn't possibly be able to master the techniques and theory explained in the classes w/o them, but I probably would do so faster with coaching and aid...that's the point, as I see it, with help - To reach your full potential faster.

It seems to me that you're a pretty ok guy SleepR1, and I don't think you were making a personal attack against me. Just stating a standard that I, just so happen, to agree with. However, I also beleive that many people have a predispotion against others that feel they have natural talent *cough cough 88GTU*, even if it's substantiated with personal experiences they've had and a mind for racing.

Chronos

Thank you very much for your suggestion on the Diasio 962R, It seems like an excellent car to learn with...However, the main purpose behind the Track only FD is to build the fastest possible GT car using the rotary's superior power/weight and power/size characteristics and the FD's well designed chasis (over the FC).

Just out of curiousity though, why do you think the Diasio is so superior? What characteristics does it have that make it the best to learn with? It might be worth holding off on the ultimate FD racer for a while if I could learn the rules and dynamics of racing faster in another car, and then build the perfect racer after...after all, the rotary's true potential is only most apparent in the high hp range, where it can put out high hp numbers that can only be matched by bigger piston engines, requiring bigger frames and bodies...

Thanks in advance for the suggestion and info!

88GTU

You can think you have all the natural talent in the world but its your comments that scare me. In previous posts you have stated that you were too good for professional instruction, smarter than most other people on the track, and a good driver. The problem lies in that I have to share a track with someone that thinks that they are better than everyone else, without any experiance to back it up. In my limited track experiance this leads to problems and often wrecks. We all share the same playing field and a better than thou attitude is not just egotisitical but can kill me or my friends. I have always found that those drivers that do the best, learn the most, and get the fastest lap times are those that start off admiting that they know nothing about track driving and listen to every intructor and experianced driver they talk to. Its always best to be humble when diving into a new endeavour.
-Matt

DamonB

SleepR1 and I are not ganging up on you, it's just that you honestly have no idea what's coming until you hit the track. You don't know it yet but there are guys who live in your city and drive cars half as fast and yet are going to kick your tail. Not because you are a bad driver (you are and don't know it yet ), but because you are ignorant at this point as to what it really takes to make ANY car fast around a course. Driving fast has very little to do with HOW you turn the wheel, it has to do with WHY you turn the wheel.

The best drivers tend to be the ones most readily to understand their weaknesses. I also tend to find that the good ones walk softly and carry a big stick as they say. Your statement above about not caring sums it all up as well. I am very competitive locally and ran my first national event this past season. I finished dead last in my class; I was not even competitive with those guys. But you know what? Even if I was dead last I would still do it every weekend. I race because I love it, I work hard at it because I am competitive. You have to keep both in check.

Mr. Stock

Well, DFL is better than DNF




DNF=did not finish
For those not familiar with DFL, DFL=dead f'king last

DamonB

So when are YOU going to run a National Tour event??? I will be back this year and I will not be last!

Mr. Stock

You mean you will not be DFL?

Seriously, I admire your efforts in racing. The only thing I can hope to do is participate in OTC in 2004

88GTU

Why not 2003? You mean I'll be all alone out there again? :-)
-Matt

Mr. Stock

My car is still in NY and it won't get to CA for proabably another month or two. And it's not running just yet.

Lou Young was a participant in 2002.

88GTU

You've got till April!
and regarding Lou... I know, we stopped by his pit a couple times to say hi. They seemed pretty wrapped up with overheating issues all week.
-Matt