How To Survive Your First Track Day

Track Day Racing – What you need to know

Every car enthusiast wants to drive on a race track – whether it’s a chance to hit the oval, cut a great light at the strip, or test your skills at a road course, the allure of the race track is obvious: there are no cops, no stoplights, and no minivans to pull out in front of you. It’s just you and the pavement. And maybe some walls.

Many clubs offer open track days, driver schools, and other events where you can get your car out on the race track. Some clubs require you to join up to participate, others are happy to take virtually anyone. If your club doesn’t do track days, just ask around and you’re sure to find at least one opportunity in your area.

Fair Warning: Driving on a Race Track is Dangerous

Before you sign up, there are three things you need to know:

1. The first and most important thing to remember is that no matter how great your car drives and handles on the street, it’s likely to feel like a bowl of loose oatmeal on a race track. That’s just because everything happens faster, harder, and more intensely on the track. If you took a great race car on the street, you’d feel like you were driving a torture device.  So don’t expect to set any records in your street machine, and don’t overcook the first corner.
2. This one is harder to swallow. When you get to the track you’re going to be in the beginner group. Don’t argue about it – you are a beginner, and the quickest way to a crash is to get in over your head. There’s no shame in starting in the beginner group – everyone starts there.  Check your ego at the track gate and take the instruction that is usually offered to beginners. After 20 years driving on track, I still feel fortunate when I can get an instructor to ride with me – I always learn something new.
3. Finally, you need to know that you might do everything right and still crash. Your insurance absolutely will not cover a wreck that happens at a race track under any circumstances, so follow my simple rule: “If you can’t afford to drop it in a dumpster and hitch a ride home, don’t put in on a race track.”

That’s all the bad news. Here’s the good part – driving on a race track is like opening a whole new book in your automotive experience. It makes you a better driver on the street because you learn your car’s limits and you reduce your tendency to panic. You gain confidence in your abilities and lose the need to prove anything to anyone on the road. Plus, driving fast on a race track is just about the most fun you can have in a car with your clothes on!

In addition to driving fast on the race track, many track events will include an autocross or other driving skills training, such as a wet surface braking exercise. Be sure to take advantage of these skill-builders.

Preparing for Track Day

Here are some good guidelines to get you and your car ready for the big day:

• Once you’ve signed up for the event, you need to make sure that your car is as good as you can make it. That means you’ve got good tires underneath you, balanced and inflated to their proper pressure. Modern tires don’t benefit from low pressures, so use the manufacturer’s recommended pressures – at least to start with. You want the car to be predictable in its handling.  At the same time, make sure your shocks, bushings, and steering are all ready for heavy duty use.  Double check for leaks – no one wants to slide on your oil!

• Make sure your seat is comfortable and that your seat belts are in good shape. Remove all the junk from your trunk and anything in the cabin that might come loose and roll around. They’ll inspect your car when you get to the track and make you take that stuff out anyway, so get it done before you go.

• Get a good night’s sleep before the event. Don’t go out drinking. You need to be well-rested, relaxed, and at your best. Use common sense.
• Bring some good food and drinks to the track with you. You need to stay hydrated, especially in the summer months. Plus, you want to eat something every few hours, but eat lightly and keep the grease and yuck to a minimum. Your stomach will thank you while you’re on track.

• Finally, make sure you have a helmet. All track events require you to wear a real helmet – one that is Snell-rated. You can’t get away with a beanie on a race track. Most clubs will have some loaners, but if you plan to do this more than once, you’ll want to invest in your own bucket. Look at Bell and Pyrotect for good SA-rated helmets. SA stands for Sports Applications, and these helmets are designed differently from M-rated (motorcycle) helmets – SA helmets provide more extreme impact resistance and are made of fire-resistant materials. For your first helmet, a Pyrotect will be substantially less expensive than a comparable Bell, and almost as comfortable and light.

TIP: Get a full-face helmet. You’ll need one to drive a convertible, and while they cost more than an open-face helmet, you’ll be happy for the versatility. Plus, if your track day car doesn’t have a full racing harness, a full-face offers your nose and mouth some protection against “eating the steering wheel” in a crash. Yes. I mean that literally.

Surviving the Actual Track Day

Once you’re on track, you’ll probably get about 4 sessions of 20-30 minutes each throughout the day. That might not sound like much, but it’s all most people can handle. You’ll be tired by the end of the day. Use the downtime to rest, have a bite to eat and something to drink, and talk to others about what you’re learning.  You’ll make friends and get the most out of the experience.

As a beginner, you are very likely to have an instructor. Your instructor, at a minimum, has a lot of track day experience, and most are SCCA or NASA club racers or have other competition experience. Listen carefully to what they tell you and leave your ego back in the paddock. You are there to learn and improve – and I guarantee you that your last laps will be slower than your first if you don’t listen, and faster if you do listen.

At the end of the day, don’t forget to thank your instructor and the staff workers who made the day possible.

For 20 years, my race car carried a little brass plaque that read “Racing is a sport. We do it for fun.” I’ll leave you to ponder the truth of that. Above all, don’t let your track day become stressful – if it ain’t fun, it ain’t worth doing.

OneLap Camaro Wins thanks to a Red Top Optima Battery!

We spotlighted the 1st Gen Chevy Camaro RS sponsored by Optima Batteries a couple months ago in a blog (click the link to check it out) when it was being prepared for the One Lap of America 8 day long grueling competition.  The One Lap (it used to be called the Cannonball Run) of America makes the race cars drive themselves from track to track (3500 miles total) and then expects them to race hard at the track.  That’s right, no trailers.  How did it do in its first year at the race?  Keep reading…

Here is the updated livery for the One Lap event.  Looks just like PCK Studio’s rendering/T-shirt. 

This Pro-Touring built Camaro RS won its class, which is called American Vintage.  This was its first One Lap race, so the fact that the car won its class (which competed against a 1981 Camaro that has run the event 20+ times before) is really a big deal. 

This is the Katech prepared 427ci LS7 Corvette Z06 powerplant to propels the OneLapCamaro.

The team of James Shipka and car owner David Pozzi had a pretty crazy 8 days.  At one point David became dehydrated and had 9-1-1 dialed on his cell, but James convinced him to keep on going, they were very close to taking the points lead.  Then to add to the craziness, the alternator took a dump.  Luckily, the Camaro was fitted with a Red Top Optima Battery.  It got them 25 miles on the battery power alone.  In their efforts to figure out the problem, they started the car over and over without a hitch.  Wow! 

It’s been a winning past year for the OneLap’Maro.  It also won the 2009 Goodguys Muscle Machine of the Year.  I personally dig the solid red color versus the red and silver livery.  It just looks so much cleaner, but I get the sponsor thing.  Shoot!  I’d run whatever color a sponsor wanted if I was in the same spot. 

A well purpose-built Camaro, a tenacious crew and one Red Top Optima Battery makes for a winning combination, no doubt about it.

I’d really like to attend the One Lap of America competition at one of these days.  It’s on my growing bucket list.

Hechtspeed

Calling All Hot Rodders With A Stop Watch: Part 1

Hot Rodders and a stop watch you ask?  Ya, I’ll get to that in a minute.  But first, let me introduce you to one of my favorite automotive competitions:  Time Attack or Superlap Battle.   These pictures were taken by the MotorMavens.com crew at Eastern Creek Raceway in Australia, as part of the World Time Attack Challenge, the first of its kind, pitting the best the world has to offer in Time Attack.

What exactly is Time Attack?  It’s simply taking your car around a road course as fast as you can and recording the fastest single lap time, hence the name Superlap.  There are various classes that your car might fit in.  Currently most of the vehicles that compete today are of the Japanese or European make.  Here’s where the hot rodders with the stopwatches comes in.  Time Attack has almost zero muscle cars.  Wat up wit dat? 

Here’s the R-Magic prepared Mazda RX-7, one of the fastest Unlimited Time Attack cars in Japan.  Time Attack began in Japan in the late 1980′s.  It was a chance for top Speed Shops (they’re referred to as Tuning Shops, not Speed Shops, but I have to talk the hot rodder talk haha) in Japan to build the fastest street cars and compete against each other for the fastest lap times at the various Japanese circuits.

I want to discuss the potential for muscle cars to compete in Time Attack in Part 2.  Part 1 is to introduce you to Time Attack and give you a glimpse of how the big boys go fast.  There are different classes that cover cars from mild to wild states of tune.  The wild is what gets me pysched!  The Unlimited or Pro class (depending on what organization you talk to) is where the fun is at, well, fun and $$$. 

As any car nut will admit, it’s not cheap to go fast.  I’m all about the “Do-It-Yourself” mods, but when you wanna go faster than anyone IN THE WORLD in any kind of racing, its gonna cost you some money.  The faster you wanna go, the more its gonna cost ya.  The Unlimited Superlap cars are some of the most advanced builds around.  I showed you a wind tunnel test months back of THE fastest Unlimited class vehicle, the Cyber-EVO Mitsubishi Evolution. The name of the game in Time Attack is Grip, Aerodynamics, and putting the power down (AKA grip, see a theme here?).

This pic above by MotorMavens shows the blue Cusco-Tomei Subaru WRX STi Unlimited class car compared to the Club Class Mitsubishi Evolution.  Notice the Subaru’s lower ride height, huge rear GT wing, front carbon splitter vs the mostly stock bodied, higher riding (notice the daylight under the car) Evo.  The Subaru’s track width and body have been widened as well.

Are there any Reno Air Racing fans out there?  These Time Attack machines remind me a lot of the Reno Unlimited Gold racers, such as the P-51 Mustang, Bearcat and Sea Fury.  The idea is the same, take a factory hopped up sedan (or Warbird) and have almost free reign on modifications.  The Reno Racers double and triple the horsepower with boost (or displacement), clip wings, cut down canopies and smooth surfaces to improve aerodynamics and remove lots of uneccessary weight.  Sounds a lot like what the Time Attack cars, right?

Here’s a quick summary of the Unlimited Time Attack class rules to give you an idea:

All Vehicles must be available for purchase from a major manufacturer currently/previously as a factory OEM vehicle.  No Open Wheel vehicles, Clubman or Kit cars allowed, as determined by the Promoter.

Body kits are allowed.  The use of Carbon and FRP is allowed.  Headlights may be replaced with air intakes.

Engine modifications are open except no nitrous.  Transmission, Driveline, Suspension, Brake, Wheels, Interior modifications are open.

All vehicles must use tires off the approved list (street tires).  All vehicles must run Unleaded Fuel, E85 is allowed.

All Vehicles must be equipped with an Approved Roll Cage and Approved 5 Point Harness as a minimum.

 

You can see in these pictures that aerodynamic development with big downforce is the goal.  Here is the Japanese Superlap “King”, the Cyber-Evo Mitsubishi Evolution.  I hear this car is owned by a Dentist.  Just the front end alone is a work of engineering geek art.  3 layers of carbon canards, carbon front splitter, carbon air intake “headlight”, wide forged aluminum wheels with sticky 265/35/18 street tires under widened fenders (made out of…you guessed it, Carbon Fiber).

 This is the Hi-Octane R34 Skyline GT-R Time Attack machine.  Dig this HUGE under body panel/front splitter.  The Skyline is Japan’s Supercar with its all wheel drive, turbo inline 6.  This car is rockin’ about 600-700 horsepower. 

That should give you all a look at Time Attack and some of the top cars from around the world.  Next time I wanna explore the potential your Muscle Cars and Hot Rods have for time attack competitions.  Here’s one example I found just to give you some inspiration.  This is literally the only American car built for Time Attack I could find in a quick Google search.  A Fox body Mustang is the perfect choice….anyway, more on that in Part 2.

Anybody out there interested in this type of competition against the clock?  Let us know in a comment below.

Photos by Mark Pakula at MotorMavens.com.  Click the link to see more photos of the World Time Attack competitors.

Mustang photo from Speedhunters.com

Hechtspeed

Binary Engineering’s Evo – The Ultimate DIY

Are you a “do-it-yourselfer” (DIY) hot rodder?  Do you wrench on your own cars?  Well, this is a DIY’er to the max.  I came across pictures of Jared Drinkwater’s Mitsubishi Evolution on NASIOC.com, a Subaru enthusiasts forum of all places.  I’m a huge fan of the Mitsubish Evo for sure, but I was blown away at Jared’s engineering and build skills.  Jared is like the ultimate do-it-yourselfer.  He is a Mechanical Engineer by day, by night he engineers parts for his Evo, which he races on road courses.  Jared makes his own aero parts, race seat rails, fire extinguisher mounts, rebuilt his own engine (with a stroker kit and bigger turbo) and more.  Dig these pics of his ride and Binary Eng parts you can buy for your own Evo.

Jared’s “Binary Engineering” Mitsubishi Evolution in his new race livery.  Of course, he designed and applied these decals on his own.  Dig the front aero package, designed and built by Jared using lots of aluminum sheet and carbon fiber.

This was the stock front bumper.  Jared has added a tow hook (just in case he needs help getting out of a sticky situation on the track), aluminum airdam with a carbon splitter and carbon canards.  Aggressive, functional and homebuilt.  I dig!

Scope out the rear diffuser.  Again, aluminum and carbon fiber, a theme to most work on the Evo.

Carbon fiber canard with foam core.  Cool!  I love this stuff, having grown up around my dad working with fiberglass and carbon fiber.  There is a lot of work involved in composite material fabrication.

Wow!  Not sure exactly what Jared is doing here, I mean, obviously he’s doing some work with aerodynamics, maybe figuring out what angle to set the rear wing?  Jared, fill us in here buddy…

I love this engine bay with its military aircraft theme.  Very cool army green valve cover with the new displacement (2.3L) and engine code (4G63) making up the military call out #.  Cool idea!

How much power does it make with the stroker setup and bigger turbo?  Here’s the dyno sheet, click the image to see it bigger.  That’s 500hp and 450tq.  Wow!

Here’s Jared on the track doing his thing, carving corners.  With the 265 wide sticky meats and 500hp, I’m sure this thing is a blast to drive.  Check Jared’s site for videos of it on the track.

Binary Engineering Website

I hope you liked this do-it-yourself Mitsubishi Evolution.  I wanted to show you guys that the new kids on the block with their “tuner” Japanese cars are continuing the hot rodding tradition of going fast on a  budget.

Tell us what you think?  Wanna see more?

Hechtspeed

8 Days. 3,500 Miles. 0 Excuses. 1 Lap. 1 Fast Camaro.

8 Days. 3,500 Miles. 0 Excuses. 1 Lap. 1 Fast Camaro.

This can only be the formula for One Lap of America, a brutal competition and that may be THE ultimate test of a street car’s performance and reliability as well as teamwork and driver skill.

Optima Batteries, Hellwig Products and ISIS Wiring are supporting the “1 Lap Camaro” team in this 8 day, 3,500 mile battle where teams rally around the country competing at some of USA’s top race tracks.

Dig this PCKStudio rendering of the 1 lap Camaro over the race track locations.  Man that is cool!  I think you’ll be able to get that logo on a tshirt.

The 1 Lap Camaro seen here is a highly modded 1967 Camaro RS running an LS7 427ci Z06 engine tweaked by the well known Katech Performance crew who preps the engines for the C5R and C6R endurance Corvettes that race and win at Daytona and LeMans.

This is a rad Pro-Touring style Camaro real track focus. Dig the front splitter, low ride height, big and wide wheels with grippy rubber.  This thing means business. Keep your eye’s peeled on pro-touring.com forums as well for updates during the 8 day competition.

For all the gritty details of the build and specs of this road racing street Camaro, check out the 1LapCamaro website.

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