Monkey Man

I've been thinking about making a trip down to your region, it's only like 2 hours away, and would make for a nice weekend vacation. How large are your events? We usually have about 125 cars, 8-12 in B stock. We get 5 runs unless there is bad weather. I've raced in Louisville, Lexington, and Cincinnati now. Once I get some race tires, I will probably travel more.

MannishBoy

iTrader: (1)

Here is the TRSCCA website. They typically have 50-70 cars I think.

I've only gont to one of those, but some of us Z guys got together and went to a "road cross" type event put on by the Spokes Club on 6/21 at a large childrens home that was fun, too, on actual roads. That was pretty cool, although the huge hickory trees along the course were a bit unnerving the first trip through You can check some pics of the Z's in action if you go to the past events page. Just found those, and look, here's the MannishBoy!:



I keep having conflicts on autox weekends, but I want to do more. Let us know if you come down, I'll see if we can get a Z contingent out so everybody can beat me. BTW, Carter Thompson, who is like a 3x national champion is from around here, so you may see him in his BS Z, too.

negcamber

Take a cooler with water/Gatorade and snacks. Many clubs will not have a lunch break or refreshments available on site. Drink plenty of fluids...you will be outside ALL day and dehydration will get you later in the day. Take a large umbrella...it provides instant shade and rain protection (yes, we run in the rain...if you are at a worker station and it starts to rain, you just have to stick it out). Don't forget sunblock. Wear clothing appropriate for the weather...black in summer is not the best .

On your first time out, worry less about your car set-up and more about learning the course. Take it easy on your first run...you won't set fast time of day on your first ever autox run. After you have made a couple of runs, visualize the course in your mind...run the entire course in your head to help you memorize. Ride with a veteran and have them ride with you.

Good luck and have fun!

D'oh

I'm also an AutoX beginner (been to 4, 5th will be on 19th) and here is what I remember:

1. Try to ride with someone before you race. This will give you an idea of the violence associated with full braking, turning and throttle.

2. When people say that you need to be smooth, they are talking in relative terms. You want to drive slow where you should be going slow and fast where you should be going fast. You shouldn't be pushing real hard through corners and giving up time on the straights. It's better to enter a corner too slow, and accelerate out than to enter a corner to fast and plow though.

3. Memorize the course as well as you can. You definitely have an advantage if you can be anticipating what is happening one and two turns ahead and be setting up for it, rather than fighting to remember where you are.

4. Walk the course with an experienced driver to hear what they look for and to understand what they are planning. Everyone will have different strategies, but you'll get an idea of what to look for.

5. Bring a folding chair if you plan on saying a long time. A hat and sunscreen are important as well. Dont forget the fluids either.

6. Start off slow and gradually speed up. But don't be afraid to go beyond the limits of the car (otherwise how do you know where they are?).

7. BRAKE HARD! If your not getting ABS activated, brake harder until you do. This will give you an idea of the braking limits and how close you can get to a corner before slowing.

As far as etiquette goes, just be friendly, energetic, and offer to help out as much as possible. Ask questions if you don't know what to do. Everyone I've met during races has been very friendly and patient with me.

And don't forget to have fun. Just go for personal improvement at first, and worry about being competitive once you start to feel more comfortable with the car and the entire process.

-D'oh!

Monkey Man

This is illegal in SCCA sanctioned events, and will get your times disqualified. You can ride all you want if you aren't racing that day, but you CANNOT ride the course before you race.

-Jeremy

negcamber

Technically, this is true. However for regional events, newbies are frequently cut some slack regarding this rule. It will depend on the region, but of the three I've been associated with, none hace enforced it with newbies or the veterans who are helping them out by riding with them.

It would not fly at a Divisional or National level event though.

Monkey Man

I think if you are classed as a novice, they may let it slide. However, a friend of mine did this, and he got disqualified. I would just ask someone in charge. When in doubt always ask.

-Jeremy

2003z

iTrader: (7)

atlanta region doesn't care about riding.

Blue Liquid

I'm very curious about the people who posted about leaving their spare in the car during runs. This would imply the added weight of the spare/jack somehow optimizes the weight balance of the car? I've always thought it was best to lighten the car as much as possible before the runs. On a side note, when I took my buddy in my car during fun runs, i was only a few tenths of a second slower. That was an additional 150 lbs... perhaps there is something to leaving the spare/jack inside the car?

Monkey Man

When you have a passenger, it balances the side to side weight of the car. I always drive better alone though. I leave my spare out, and drive with a quarter tank of gas. I like being able to whip the tail around when I want to. The car is 52/48 weight distribution from the factory, so it seems like leaving the spare in the car would help to make that number closer to 50/50. I haven't tried both ways, so I can't say.

-Jeremy

Buub

iTrader: (1)

Since the Z is slightly front-heavy, leaving the spare in gets you a few pounds closer to 50/50 weight balance.

2003z

iTrader: (7)

I can only speak for me, but I get slightly faster times when I leave the 'junk in the trunk'