I really didn't notice any real wear on the car other than maybe lost a 1/32 of rubber, tank of mixed gas, some spacing gaps, maybe burn the clutch a few times, killed some bugs on my front bumper, got a bruised ego when I got passed by a Honda Accord (I don't think it was stock), helmet got a bit smelly, maybe my air filter needs a changing from all the dust clouds from people spinning out, I think I have a crack on my air intake pipe and engine cover, and I think that's about it.

I think most of my wear and tear came from trying to keep up with you on the freeway back home. I don't think caravans cruise at 90 to 100. I gave up before the mountains and cruised it at 75. Don't have SHO be the leader of the caravan.

 

Yeah dude... that Accord was a sleeper. It was hella fast!!!

hmm... I don think I was going that fast but I noticed that we lost you guys somewhere.... bwahahaha...

 

Hey Iris,

I just hit Willow Springs a couple of weeks ago for the first time with TracQuest. How did you like that track? It was a very quick track--just as fast as Thunderhill if not a bit faster. I drove both my Z and my friend's Elise, and absolutely fell in love with the Elise! Our Z's feel like tanks compared to that car! The one problem I had with my Z was the brakes. Even though I have the Brembo set up with Nismo pads, the pads felt like putty after just a couple of laps. How did your brakes hold up on that track?

 

Damn! I probably wouldn't follow you guys either at 90, if I get a ticket before age 25 my insurance is going to suck for life... luckily I've avoided getting any MV's in the 7 years I've been driving. So in 2 years I'm going to get a huge break in insurance if I can keep up my good record.

I drive like a grandma on city streets and just go with the flow on freeways.

In any case, that's why I want to learn how to drive on the track... screw risking getting caught on city streets.

 

I remembered the days when caravans rode around 70-80... 90-100... must be still excited from the track

 

+1 SHO, there's no denying you drive like a madman. The only thought that goes through my head when i'm caravaning with SHO is, "I hope i'm not the only one who gets a ticket."

 

I'm SO jealous, an ELISE??? I did Willow about a year ago with Driving Concepts and I really liked it, only 9 turns to remember, pretty straightforward lines, and I figured out Turn 9 pretty fast so I was happy. (One of my best memories in my entire lifetime will be the fact that I kept up with a Modena (admittedly, a shltty driver) from Turns 2-6 until he hit the back straight).

But it was my first track so I was pretty cautious. Plus I did it when I had an auto Z (Brick), which totally sucked, and is why I traded it in at the beginning of this year for an manual tranny, which I then had to learn how to drive.

Wow, your brakes gave in that fast? Mine held up, but I think we only did 3 20 minute sessions (can't remember now). My brakes turned to nothing at Cal Speedway though, that was scary. I'm nervous about Buttonwillow, isn't that tough on brakes?

Wired, the stickers are on my car. They're subtle though (about 2 x 1 inches, just the track configuration) and on the driver's side rear window. Yeah, there's a ricer inside me.

 

Here's Buttonwillow and Willow Springs.

 

It's the braking zones for turn 1 and turn 3 that did it. Going from 125 on the straight down to 80 for turn 1 really heats up the brakes, and then going from 110 down to 85 for turn 3 on hot pads was when I really felt it. I need to get some air ducts for my brakes and upgrade my pads to Endless CC-X.

 

To avoid the putty and squishy pedals you might want to change to SS lines and use some high grade braking fluid.

 

I'm using Nismo SS lines and Motul Racing Fluid.

 

I used Stop Tech SS lines and Motul Racing Fluid and didn't really encounter any mushy pedal, but I was getting increased braking distance from my Hawk HPS at Buttonwillow.

Then again I couldn't really stomp on the brakes too much since I would catch up to slower drivers too fast.

 

how many laps do you think i could get in on the stock non-brembos?

 

I may drive a slightly faster than the regular traffic but hey, I do not drive like a madman! no worries Rafael, I think cops *usually* gives ticket to the person who's leading the pack.

So... are you coming out??

 

At buttonwillow, I started to feel my brakes fade toward the end of the day... but they were find during. I guess I wasn't going fast enough to use that much brakes?? Dunno. I don quite remember how many 30 min sessions that day... I wasn't counting. Come to think of it... the last 3 sessions, I went on straight for 1.5 hrs. No wonder I was so exhausted.

 

are you guys still taking reservations?

i'm tempted in going with you all.

 

Subscribed. I'm debating between this and this:

SoCal-SERCA at the Streets of Willow Springs 10/14/05 (Fri.)

All drivers & cars welcome and the event is priced as follows:

SERCA & NNA = $125 (Paypal $130)

All others = $145 (Paypal $150)

Online registration is at:

http://www.gfos.net/serca/2005/streets/reg.php

Never mind the "notices/errors" on this page, it still works fine. Just remember to fill out the entire form, & you should get a confirmation page with reminder of payment information.

All vehicles welcome but please note that any topless cars must have adequate roll-over protection *above* the head. The 350Z roadster for one, does not have the required protection, we must regret to inform.

If you have any questions please contact me at southwest@serca.org .

Please feel free to forward this to any interested party not on this mailing list.

Thanks & hope to see some new faces there!

Carlos Gutierrez, Southwest Region Exec.

SoCal-SERCA

This is the comment about the above event that I got: "SERCA is one of the best groups I've been out with and this event will be the best opportunity for beginners because of the track/instructors."

I know there will be some NNA guys at this run and I've been itching to go to the track for sometime now. Maybe I'll do both. Anyways, I posted the above incase any of you wanted to look at something earlier. If people are interested, I'll start up a separate thread.

 

I'm sure there's plenty of spots left, go to their website and fax in the form

 

Don forget to put the "3FIVEZEROZ" next to your name to get the group discount.


That sounds interesting and am very tempted... but it's on a weekday! Can't do it unless it's on a weekend....

 

Streets is like what i call, a big Auto-X course.. its basically a 2nd and 3rd gear track.

Buttonwillow configuration 13 CW, i love it... you'll be able to get into redline 3rd and maybe even in 4th in some of the straights. its an AWESOME TRACK...

I've never done Big Willow.. i heard that it's scary . heh. :P

ill try to sign up. it will be cold in december.. turbos will be spool happy