TDE @ MSR October 23-24

[MoonieGT]

Any going to this event? I'm going along with two others who are not on the board... The website doesn't specify but Rick said they are probably running the 1.7 CW.

[POS Racing]

Link??

[MoonieGT]

http://www.thedriversedge.net/02_tracks.htm

[Electro]

Enjoy - I have ridden the CW configuration, but never driven it... alot of fun that direction.

[MoonieGT]

I saw in another thread that Electro might come out as a spectator, anyone else? Looks like Saturday might be a little wet but Sunday should be clear...

[Electro]

Hope you guys had a good time. Saturday was a bust and I didn't want to get out in the weather. Sunday was makeup day for all the chores Saturday had waiting.

[ckearns]

I was out there running in blue. Saturday was horrid but was a good low speed skills review for car control since there was zero grip. Sunday was a blast. I've got some video from Sunday afternoon uploading and it'll be ready in a couple of hours.

The changes I made to the alignment were exactly what I was after. Rotation was great, the on power push was mostly eliminated, and the car was very balanced and stable and responded well to inputs. Both instructors I had in the car commented on how well it felt through rattlesnake.

Chris

[MoonieGT]

It was a good weekend, but Saturday was wet. My first session was dryish, but the next three were all in the rain. The first rain session was very tough. I think my senses were a bit overwhelmed and I was just nervous. The second session was about 200% better. I settled down and really started to pay attention to what the car was telling me. Having harnesses made all the difference in the world in the rain. Being strapped in tightly allowed me to feel the smallest slides and correct the car before it went wrong. Horseshoe and Buzzard Neck just had ZERO grip (at least in my car). Every rain session there was a train of three Evo's that would go flying by... AWD+Rain=Good Idea. The rain really was a great training tool and I actually did get a lot better at driving in the rain, but I'm not a master by any means.

And then there was Sunday :). Sunday was perfect weather. I had a blast. I havn't had a chance to watch much of the video footage I took, but from what I've seen so far my best laps were in the 1:38's (on 15x7 wheels with 195 S-drives, Koni Str.t, stock sways). I've been to MSR once on the 3.1; this was my first time to run the 1.7 CW. It was more fun than I thought it would be. I was thinking I'd miss all the additional track from the 3.1 (and I did a little), but the 1.7 CW is a good layout for sure.

Moving forward I really want stickier rubber and coilovers/sway bars...

[ken o]

You can really learn car control quickly in the wet.
Going CW those are tough turns in the wet or dry. Being down hill turns they are even harder in the wet. Going CCW Ricochet is tough in the wet.

[MoonieGT]

Chris: You were in the white NA with the gear stripes right? That was a good looking car. I think we talked some at the event (I was the guy who lost his voice :) ). I was also in blue in the Emerald Green '99. I also talked to a guy in a white NC2 with had a hard top. Is he on the board?

[ckearns]

Chris: You were in the white NA with the gear stripes right? That was a good looking car. I think we talked some at the event (I was the guy who lost his voice :) ). I was also in blue in the Emerald Green '99. I also talked to a guy in a white NC2 with had a hard top. Is he on the board?

That's me! I recall seeing you in grid, but we never met up on track.

I think the guy in the NC is Bailey - not sure if he's on the board or not. I spoke to him for a bit on Friday evening and he said that he'd just picked the car up recently. Very good looking car.

Chris

[Bailey]

Haha I am on here! Just lurk mainly!

Was good meeting everyone! And was fun mixing it up with you guys out on the track! I was doing a lot of slipping and sliding through horseshoe in the rain as well.. Didn't make for a good day of learning the track clock wise and raining, but I had fun.. Pulled a nice spin in the rain

But Sunday was great, wasn't as bad as I expected once I got the line down and back into some sort of a groove!

[ckearns]

... and the video just finished uploading and compiling ...



Best lap was a 1:37.03 (first lap in the video). Some other really good sectors, but I was catching traffic each of the remaining laps. When I passed the Porsche after he got loose coming out of rattle snake, he put his elbow on the door sill and was drumming his fingers on the roof of the car waiting for me to build a head of steam. I laughed a little bit. :)

Theoretical best from data of 1:35.97. Lots of time left on the table at big and little bend and a bit at ricochet.

Chris

[ckearns]

bleh. i'm an idiot. i clicked a button and the video is being redone in a higher quality. It'll run another 15-20 minutes before it's ready.

[Nails]

Nice driving Chris. Looks like fun in the other direction. Did you lift or tap brakes going into ricochet?

[MoonieGT]

I discovered by the end that I could go through ricochet with no lift. Just had to work up to it :)

[ckearns]

Yeah. Tapped the brakes to bleed off some speed and then right back on the power for turn in. I was gradually working up my entry speed throughout the day. I think my best speed at the apex was 73-74 and everything was still stable and felt solid on track out. It's a fast corner, but I don't think it's a flat out corner on street tires. Or it is and I'm still a wuss.

The complex at the top of the hill was an absolute rush though. Same deal there - little dab of brake to get speed down and then back on the power for turn in and accelerate all the way through.

Rattle snake is much more fun this way too.

Chris

[MoonieGT]

I'm ready for stickier tires and coilovers/sway bars. I found that the horse shoe/buzzard neck complex and rattlesnake had me thinking about dipping to second gear. Problem was that if I went to second I'd need to grab third mid-corner. I could do that now because my grip > power, but I know that you're not *supposed* to shift mid-corner so I decided not to develop that habbit now. I think with better tires and suspension I'll be able to carry more speed a negate the desire to drop to second.