Another autocross, another win

[SVT SE-R]

So my only competition was my girlfriend in her Z28 on sucky Kumho street tires, a win is a win, right?

I drove my truck at the NASA-Virginia autocross Sunday at Virginia Motorsports Park. This was my second time on R-compound tires (285/30/18 Kumho Ecsta V700s), and I was hoping to find a good setting for the rear tire pressures. The back end felt kind of "skatey" the last time when mashing the gas (even in a straight line). I was running 42 psi in the rear before.

Anyway, I think I settled with 38 psi. The back end was much more stable. Despite that it was freakin' cold and the heat would go away from the tires between runs.

There was also a "Classic" Lightning and 2G Lightning ... but they were both towing. The guy with the 2G Lightning said before I ran, "Is it OK if I giggle while you're out there?" I said, "Sure! I think everybody else is anyway!"

I'm thinking of trying a bigger front swaybar (only thing -- other than shocks -- I can change suspension-wise in stock). I'm taking a phase of the Evolution Autocross School next month, and I'm going to wait to hear some opinions of the instructors.

If you want to look at the results, you can see them here: http://www.nasaracing.net/autox/13jan02/ .

 

[roger]

...I'm taking a phase of the Evolution Autocross School next month, and I'm going to wait to hear some opinions of the instructors.

Congrats on the win! Please let me/us know about the Evolution School. I'm signed up for a Phase I & Phase II in April (Salina, KS).

I've heard a bunch of good things about them, I'm wondering how they'll accept a 5,000 lb pick-em-up-twuck <g>.

Good Luck!

 

[SVT SE-R]

Re: Re: Another autocross, another win

Congrats on the win! Please let me/us know about the Evolution School. I'm signed up for a Phase I & Phase II in April (Salina, KS).

Did the Phase II this weekend. It was pretty cool and worth the $$$, IMO (even considering two of the instructors are friends of mine and they rode with me for free in the past on fun runs ).

The instruction was similar to the Phase I (look ahead, look ahead, look ahead), but it was more a mental game. In the Phase I, the course didn't change throughout the day. In the Phase II, we had one course walk in the morning and ran it 7-8 times after that. Then they tweaked the course a few times throughout the day but didn't allow us to walk it at all before running again. A couple sessions, we ran the course sort of backwards of what we ran previously.

All told, I got about 22 runs in the school, which was probably around 30 seconds per run.

Oh and everybody likes the Lightning until they have to constantly chase cones that you hit. The course was pretty tight, and I was thumping cones all day. One of the instructors rode with me on a run later in the day and cured my problem, though (duh -- like, easy on the gas pedal, dude!). There was a big cheer when I finally got a cone-free run!

Still waiting on the sway bars, so I didn't have them on for testing. Hopefully I'll get them in time for Sunday's autocross.

 

[roger]

Re: Re: Re: Another autocross, another win

Did the Phase II this weekend. It was pretty cool and worth the $$$, IMO (even considering two of the instructors are friends of mine and they rode with me for free in the past on fun runs ).

The instruction was similar to the Phase I (look ahead, look ahead, look ahead), but it was more a mental game. In the Phase I, the course didn't change throughout the day. In the Phase II, we had one course walk in the morning and ran it 7-8 times after that. Then they tweaked the course a few times throughout the day but didn't allow us to walk it at all before running again. A couple sessions, we ran the course sort of backwards of what we ran previously.

All told, I got about 22 runs in the school, which was probably around 30 seconds per run.

Oh and everybody likes the Lightning until they have to constantly chase cones that you hit. The course was pretty tight, and I was thumping cones all day. One of the instructors rode with me on a run later in the day and cured my problem, though (duh -- like, easy on the gas pedal, dude!). There was a big cheer when I finally got a cone-free run!

Thanks for the info. Bondurant preaches the 'look ahead' mantra also. I'll probably jinx myself for saying this, but I only hit about 3 cones all year. I use 2nd gear exclusively (4.10 gears) and left-foot brake/simultaneous gas to keep the tail pointed where I need it.

This year will really be a test for me...got two modded Z28's in my class (one comes trailered, and looks like it could/should compete in CP instead of ESP. You know the drill; no interior, full cage, 16" x 10" wheels, etc...). I don't think I stand a snowball's chance in you-know-what, but like Chris Berman says "That's why they play the game" <g>

Last year I got alot of snickers when I'd pull into the paddock. I'd just grin and play the moonshine hillbilly part, preferring to let my heat times do my talking for me. That would normally put them redfaced (especially the time I beat the local Factory Five rep). The corvette/camaro/firebird guys would take it pretty much ok, but the beemers; wow they took it HARD. They made it really hard to keep a straight face.

But the best time of all was when 2 Mustang Cobra-owning friends and myself showed up unannounced at the Porsche club autocross at a local casino. They looked like they couldn't believe it that we had the nerve to show up and compete against them, but we gave it a shot anyway--fastest porsche that day came in 4th <g>...our cheap-a$$ Fords earned a lot of respect that day

Now, having said that, did I beat them all, all the time? Hell no. But I beat enough of them, enough of the time, that by the end of the season they weren't snickering anymore <g>

The offseason has got me stir crazy...can't wait for the last week of march for the season to start!

 

[SVT SE-R]

Re: Re: Re: Re: Another autocross, another win

I use 2nd gear exclusively (4.10 gears) and left-foot brake/simultaneous gas to keep the tail pointed where I need it.

I tried left-foot braking for awhile but I think it hurt me -- I used the brakes too much when just lifting off the throttle would accomplish the same thing. It works for some people though!

I do use it once in awhile just as a quick stab to try and transfer weight if it's a slow, slow turn like a 180.

But the best time of all was when 2 Mustang Cobra-owning friends and myself showed up unannounced at the Porsche club autocross at a local casino. They looked like they couldn't believe it that we had the nerve to show up and compete against them, but we gave it a shot anyway--fastest porsche that day came in 4th <g>...our cheap-a$$ Fords earned a lot of respect that day

I haven't been to an autocross hosted by the local PCA chapter, but I hear they're the same way. They got pissed when some Subaru Imprezas waxed most of them at an autocross last year. They grumbled about having their autox's as Porsche-only, but I think they realized that 75% of their turnout is non-Porsches.