MoodDude

Now rule one says no lifting devices on pavement. Does this mean that we just have to put a piece of plywood under the jack? Really want to change my wheels/tires at the track and don't think I can lift up my car by hand!

TrackHoRX8

The issues I have are the No Passing, No Passengers, and the track layout. There will be slower cars which will cause frustration and unsafe situations. We should have a way to get around them on SPECIFIC passing zones. Passengers are a great way to learn. You can't learn without experiencing the correct way to drive and see the lines, smoothness, and technique of others. Having people instruct or students in cars is a learning tool. You don't know what you're doing wrong or how to improve if you don't see anything different. I want to learn from others and I want to teach others. Also, the track layout is a bit easy. By easy, I just meant that I'd like to have a couple of threshold braking zones and places to explore the handling of cars. Is there anyway to negotiate anything by chance?

screener

iTrader: (10)

Yes a piece of wood on the grass is what you would need to do.They just do not want cars worked on , on the paved surfaces.

screener

iTrader: (10)

Trust me I have the same exact thoughts as you on those certain rules.The track layout can be changed throughout the day I believe as long as it is approved.Which layout did you prefer Levent?

MoodDude

Ok,
I agree with Levent - if we can't pass, it will make it a long day for the faster cars.
As far as coarse layout - You could use turn C10 easy.
If you can drive the coarse counter clockwise than you could add the following layout:
C1 to L22 to C4 to C5 to C7 to C17 to C18 to L19 (this would be a really fun section of a left to right high speed turns to a low speed left turn!)
If you run the coarse clockwise - I can't see the transition from L19 to C18 being safe! Since you will build up so much speed on straight away L19 and have to almost come to a complete stop before C18.

MoodDude

Did you buy new brake fluid too - it is recommended that if it is over 30 days old - it has to be changed before a track day. I can't wait either.

TrackHoRX8

Remember to use a high boiling point brake fluid. At least DOT4. ATE Superblue is good stuff.

screener

iTrader: (10)

Michael I have looked at the course alot and going off when I first talked to Nita about being aloud to pass.She agreed that it would be more hazardous to have cars up other cars asses than having passing areas.She then stated she would have to ask Don and get back to me.Then followed up with the detailed graph of track with asphault width,at my request because I was wanting to see how wide the surface was for passing.I think I might have been lead on some what because I'm sure that is one of the popular questions.But back to my setup decision it all stemed from the thought of using two passing areas.Not using C10 was a direct reason for using that straight for passing, same with the other longer straight not using the esses.So since now I know we can not pass we can get creative if you guy's want .

TrackHoRX8

I liked the two drawings you had earlier. The one I drew on with the corners numbered and 2 passing zones. I like that setup.

MoodDude

Your drawing of picture 2 is what I was describing, can we see if we can get that one? If they don't let us pass, then I know when I come up to someone, I will either Pit or slow way down to let them get away. If we can drive it counter clockwise and they let us pass, we could have two passing zones, one right before the S and one right after?

screener

iTrader: (10)

Ok I will fax over the 2nd track design and see if we can change up throughout the day if we would like.

As of tonight me and Jeremy started talking about a way to place drivers in groups.What we are leaning towards is asking everyone what they want out of their on track time.Basicly setting up levels for the groups.

Level 1= Novice non aggressive 5-6/10
Never driven at speed on a track with other cars,do not want to push their cars hard, concerned with tire chunking, brakes fading, etc. in this case we will have a experienced driver quickly run through a few important things you'll want to know before your out there.

Level 2= Novice slightly aggressive 6-7/10
Have driven on a track at speed before with other cars,have some basic knowledge of how to properly enter and exit a corner,still not wanting to push hard due to being on street tires, stock brakes/fluid, etc.

Level 3= Intermediate aggressive 7-8/10
Have driven on a track at speed before with other cars often,do autocross events,car has been setup for track days, HP brakes/high temp fluid,etc.still using street tires but do not care about chunking them,looking to push their personal limits.

Level 4= Intermediate aggressive 7-8/10
This is basiclly the same as Level 3 but are using a DOT dedicated track tire.examples Kumho v700,Toyo RA-1,Falken RT615,driver has a good amount of experience and wants to push the car hard through the turns.

Level 5= Advanced aggressive 8-10/10
Lots of on track experience at speed with other cars/ lots of autocross experience,using dedicated track tires,car has been properly setup for driving at or near the limit.

Now this is just an idea but pretty close to how we will determine who will be on the track at the same time together.You will be asked to find the Level that best suits you.We can then see if you need to move up in Level or down after your first outing.

screener

iTrader: (10)

I talked to Nita today,we are more than welcome to bring coolers full of drinks and sandwiches if we would like.Just no BBQ'n,man I thought that would of been odd if we were not allowed to bring coolers and food.

Audible Mayhem

iTrader: (48)

yeah thats cool as hell. glad we can bring food and drinks. anyone with suggestions on how we should organize the runs. we were talking for a while and figure that we will group people with the same as posted above kinda people in groups. then we will let the fastest one go first and space them out a few seconds. not sure exactly on the exact amount of seconds yet. that way it would be really hard to catch up with someone in front of you. (same driving ability, close to being as fast car) shouldnt have any problems. we want the day to go by really smoothly and no one running up on peoples asses. we were thinking about 10 minutes of hard driving time (5 or 6 llaps at full speed) and then 5 minutes (cool down lap , coming back into pit and next cars line up) that would give a total of 15 minute sessions. that would give us all 5 or 6 full sessions IF everyone ran all day and nobody wanted to take a session off


any suggestions??

rich harris

iTrader: (13)

Looks like alot of "FUN" which I could go but thats ok i'll be out of town that weekend....will keep an eye out on this thread for up date...

screener

iTrader: (10)

CJ had a good idea! If we want to do fastest lap time award.I do not trust someone with a stopwatch when money is up for grabs. A .10 of a second off by a push of a button can cost someone money.Now what we can do is who ever wants in the fastest lap comp.(DOT tires only) can put up an equal amount of money so we can puchase an actual in car lap timer with transmitting beacon and all for a total of $249+ shipping.Then the person who records the fastest lap time keeps the timing equipment.Sounds like an idea to think about guy's.Here is a link to the lap timer I have found to be the best deal.
http://www.aimsports.com/products/tg/index.html

Audible Mayhem

iTrader: (48)

sounds like a good idea there eric.


hey rich, if everything goes smoothly, we will be trying to do this every few months. it should be lots of fun. we will see how it all pans out....

TrackHoRX8

We need to use PAX times. You all have modified cars. I'm at a disadvantage. Great idea though.

MoodDude

Guys - about the timing equipment - my insurance will be void if I participate in a timed race (and I am sure most everyone elses would be too). My insurance is good for going to the track to learn to drive my car, but no competition. Any thoughts on this, since a fast time lap sounds like fun - but I think a trophy would be better than cash (bragging rights last longer).
And I think Levent is leading you on - he has the best modification on his car that you can do - R-compond tires, plus he is a pretty bad-a** driver - I have riden with him.

Audiblemayham, Having everything organized before we get ther is a great idea. It would be great if 2 or 3 of the experienced guys could tech the cars before we start to make sure everyone has a fun and safe day. Maybe we could meet for breakfast before the track opens and tech the cars and have a drivers meeting to ensure everyone knows the runles? Then, I would like to have a morning yellow flag time for everyone to drive around the coarse 2x before we start. And would like 20 min for each group, with one cool down lap at the end, then 5 min transition time to the next group. Since group changes takes time away from driving the longer we can let each group go the more track time we will all get. Yet, anymore than 20 min is going to be hard since I don't carry water in my car for me to drink and it will be hot!
As far as the groups - we do need track marshals - and probably the experienced guys could help out on this. This means at least one experienced guy would have to run in a lower group.
As far as spacing out the cars - if we have a tower, the marshal could flag the people to go when the car in front reaches a certain point. This would space the cars out the best instead of just timing it.

This is the format we ran at a private track day I went to at Talladega and worked really well.

Beddow - does the track have flags and cones? (I am assuming we will need cones to set the coarse up since there are so many different layouts you can chose on this track)

Glad to see everyone else is as excited as I am!

TrackHoRX8

You're giving away all my secrets.

I can put together a tech sheet to make sure we cover all the important stuff. I'll post it here once the weekend is over as I'm travelling right now.

Here are some things to keep in mind:
Clean out the car of all loose items including the spare tire.
Battery should be secured
Floor Mats removed.
Wheel bolts torqued correctly, none broken or missing
Good rubber on tires.
No broken or cracked windshields - should also tape up front lights to protect against thrown rocks
Helmet
Safety belts in good shape.
Muffler/exhaust secured and no brackets broken (nobody is going to want to run over the muffler you leave on the track)
No fluid leaks
Oil, coolant, brake fluid, clutch fluid all at good levels.
Cameras are mounted or bolted into the car securely.


If anyone has a laser or probe pyrometer, it would be really cool to have it on hand and see how hot the tires, brakes, and exhaust manifolds get. It'll surprise you. It's also a really good indicator for setting pressures and suspension adjustments. I promise you that you'll be smelling brakes. By the end of the day, some people are going to decide that they or their car is tired and will sit out a session.

MoodDude

Levent - I have a pyrometer, camber/caster guage and toe plates I planned on bringing to the event. Don't have a brake temperature sensor although - yet Jeff Gordon does in town - and he said that I could borrow anything I needed.

Oh - and to give more of Levent's secrets away - he has an aggressive camber set up on his car and he removes enough stuff from the inside that I bet his car weighs about 2700#! His car is a total momentum car, thus he doesn't need any torque (since RX-8's don't have any).