Entry Speed

[msiert]

Wow......alot of replys...........my #$%& lap top took a crap on me last weekend. So I have to beg, borrow and steel to get any lap top time in my house.

Quote:

Originally Posted by genericwood I recently picked up a Traqmate system and look forward to using it. You may want to consider a data acquisition system. You can share data with others and compare laps. You could also put a "hot shoe" in your car and then compare your laps. And you already have the bullet camera and data storage to link to it. Erik

[60sRacer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by msiert ...The Autronic has data acquistion. If I get some wheel sensor's I could do a whole bunch of stuff. Kinda getting into that stuff ever since I installed a a/f monitor last winter

[Mound Dawg]

Just a few pointers, probably most of which have been covered

1. Braking- difficult to tell when you're actually doing this but I noticed that right at the start you're off the power BEFORE the Mini ahead of you has his brakes on. It doesn't look like you're braking hard at all and even then you're arriving at the corner going too slowly. Which leads to-

2. Insufficient entry speed. As someone else has pointed out, your tyres will squeal like little piggies if you're pushing them. Can't tell if they were or not but I doubt it. From the video this looks like a great little circuit, there are huge runoff areas so if you do get it wrong you'll end up on the grass at worst

3. Corner entry- you seem pretty smooth, but be aware that yanking the wheel around unsettles the car and reduces potential cornering speeds. Can't see your hands but this doesn't look too bad.

4. *****footing on the throttle mid corner. Unless you're balancing a slide with the throttle you shouldn't apply power in a corner if you then have to take it off. Like sawing at the steering wheel, on/off power application just unsettles the car and reduces your chances of getting around safely. Put your foot down and keep it down.

5. Use all the circuit. You're miles away from the apex on several corners and nowhere near the kerb on the exit either. If they've put stripey kerbs on the circuit it's impolite not to use them!

Finally, don't get a datalogger. It won't tell you a thing unless you compare it to an expert's run in your car. Instead, get an experienced driver to accompany you for a few laps and give you some pointers. We run an instructor at our trackday and everyone says it's the best thing they ever did.

Then go out and practice until it hurts.

Oh, and find a way to heel and toe. Even if it involves fitting new pedals.

Go get 'em!

[60sRacer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mound Dawg ....... Then go out and practice until it hurts.......

[msiert]

Got done with day one at the track.

The first part of the morning was spent doing the same things I have done before so I ask for an instructor. My instructor is in his mid 70's but is in better shape then I am with many years racing and instructing.

He spent the afternoon with me working on the line, down shifting and braking. Of the three the line, position and smoothness was his biggest pushes. After the sessions he would sit down with me with a course map and review what I was doing.

My first ride with him really was tough, he was jawing at me so much that I lost my focus and took a hot early apex at turn 3 and ran right off the track.

Going back to the track tomorrow for more leasons...............better hit the sack I'll have a full report later

[Nicola]

Go get them Murray - Learn your lessons well so you can represent the "dark side" Spiders well!!

[Mound Dawg]

Quote:

Originally Posted by msiert I lost my focus and took a hot early apex at turn 3 and ran right off the track.

[msiert]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mound Dawg *****footing on the throttle mid corner. Unless you're balancing a slide with the throttle you shouldn't apply power in a corner if you then have to take it off. Like sawing at the steering wheel, on/off power application just unsettles the car and reduces your chances of getting around safely. Put your foot down and keep it down.

[John M]

Ya know....some corners you were doing better, but there was that one double right hander that you just kept blowing time after time by hanging way to far inside (early apexing) and kept exiting out way wide. Each time you had to drop the gas to keep from running wide off the track. One thing I learned from George is to map the course literally. I take that map and draw the line I want to run. I commit that to memory as best possible before hitting the track and then go out there and try to run it. You should do the same if you are not already. Keep working ole pal! You have an entire year to practice!!!

Best Regards,
John M

[msiert]

Quote:

Originally Posted by John M Ya know....some corners you were doing better, but there was that one double right hander that you just kept blowing time after time by hanging way to far inside (early apexing) and kept exiting out way wide. Each time you had to drop the gas to keep from running wide off the track. Best Regards, John M

[60sRacer]

Much Better Murray!

The first car you were following was right on the line - and you did a good job of keeping right on with him to the pass. You just had enough power to make the pass, but most of that was because you hadn't anticipated the pass. You were late getting on the power and did not get into the pass 'till he waived. You should have been even with him by the time he finished the corner and relaxed enough to waive! He already was inside and left the outside for you - power on earlier in the corner and you would have slid right by hitting the outside apex as you went by.

The second car actually had enough power to pull away down the straight. But you were too early braking for the turn and fell behind as he took a good line.

The turn you were having trouble with was because you took the wrong line exiting turn #1!! You were outside on exiting as you should, but you essentially flattened the ess and went straight thru. You should have continued turning out of #1 to get to the right side of the track. Then make a proper entry to the apex of #2. The ess is there to slow you down, and you must cross the track. Exiting #2 do NOT power all the way across the track s you are already on the entry of #3. You should exit #2 mid track as the entry lane for the fast right sweep of #3. Trailing throttle and a late apex at the exit of #3 because of the decreasing radius, and get on the throttle as early as possible exiting this onto the straight segment before the fast left sweep of #4 onto that straight.

Is that quick enough? The middle of #1 is where you set up the entire run thru #4 exit. Think ahead.

Notice how well the track is set up - the proper apex is EXACTLY at the inside stripped curb, and the full speed exit is EXACTLY at the outside stripes!! You should be at full throttle at every striped curb!

Super job Murray. Keep up, and keep posting the videos.

I'd love to see you add an LED or other bright red light that parallels the brake lights - tap right off the switch on the brake pedal. Run it so that this light is in the camera's FOV! Then we can kibbitz on your braking.

Do a "Murray" and put another brake switch on the throttle and mount a green light right next to the red one! All we need is a full throttle light....

Robert

[60sRacer]

One more thing - your upshifts are as lazy as Chevy Chase's Family Vacation. Get in the gear and back on the throttle. Alfa's will upshift just fine. If you are not on full throttle you are being passed by someone who is! This is a race track, not a freeway on ramp.

Also - press harder in practice. This is when you should get really scared. There is no cost then. Learn where the edge is in practice, then you can dance juuuuust along the edge in competition. Find a way to get an adrenalin overdose in practice. You will get a load of it in a simple race and you need to get the experience of driving well jacked that hard.

Robert

[msiert]

Thanks Robert,

This is a bad video to see the HP. My Spider is faster then the 2 944's in the video. I like playing with them by letting them get a good lead then catching them. The silver 944 is a strip down racer but is not a turbo. The black one is a street rat.

I was very lazy on the throttle, shifting way under the red line (in the long straight I was shifting to 5th at 5,000 rpm) like you recommended and I was up shifting when I could have carried the gear further, I was more concern with being consistent in hitting the apex's and braking then trying to go fast. I keep thinking that I need to save the engine for Kentucky Covention in 2011 to beat JouhnM and Budsy. But I found that when I was hitting the apex's better not trying to go fast............I was faster.

At least I am awear of what I'm doing wrong. There was quite a few corners I held the car in when I should have let it run out. The biggest thing I notice in watching the video is I'm not getting on the throttle soon enogh to get out of the corner. The instructor was big on slow in fast out..............I got the slow in down.

But your right everything will change as I pick up speed, braking points run outs etc. I never got over 130F with my tire temps (Hoosiers R6's think I'll get A6's when they wear out) and the street/track pads only rated up to 900F never faded.

Ohh the stock rear shocks did great felt better planted then the Koni Yellows I had before.

I like your idea on the lights it would be nice to see them in the video to show when I'm braking and at full throttle.

[turbolarespider]

Murray
Can I suggest one more thing to your training schedule. Autocrossing.

Yes, it's not a lot of runs for a day, not as fast, I've heard all the trakies excuses.

But it's also seat time. One where you can really practice the art of limit braking, and really get an understanding of the corner structure that everyone here is telling you- braking, turn in, apex, exit.

The fact that a typcial autocross course has twice as many corners as your track does really gets you ideas on how to corner.

From what I see, time and work is what you need. An instructor will help, of course, but just working on the car, knowing how it will react, even on the wrong line, goes a LONG way.

I just don't know if anyone autocrosses near you.

What would be nice is to hook up with you at an event that's not an convention. If you are in Detroit, ever, shoot me a line, and we'll see if there's an event we can work together at (and I'm sure the rest of the folk here would be happy to do so as well- start posting locations...). It's one thing to tell you something- it's another to show you.

Eric

[60sRacer]

Quote:

Originally Posted by msiert ...I was more concern with being consistent in hitting the apex's and braking then trying to go fast. .....But I found that when I was hitting the apex's better not trying to go fast............I was faster.