You gotta lift

"WRXforScience" (WRXforScience) 01/31/2018 at 20:36 • Filed to: Track Day, BMW M3, BRZ

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I really like the SCCA Club Trials program that my region started a couple of years ago and this past weekend we had our first 2 events of the season (Saturday and Sunday counted as separate events for points).

The idea is that you strap a transponder onto your car and go out to set your best time competing against cars in your class (we combine 3 or so autox classes into single classes and then have them compete with pax indexes to reduce the number of classes and increase competition).

Other cars are on course, but the majority aren’t in your class and since you’re just going for a single good lap you aren’t directly competing, and you only pass with a point-by in a designated passing zone (one of the straights) to keep everything safe.

Over the course of 2 days and 12 sessions (so much seat time!) I only had 2 people who weren’t courteous on track. The worst by far was this guy in the M3. My BRZ has all of 178whp, it’s faster in a straight line than a Miata but that’s about it (they still have to lift to let me by before the end of most of the straights). However, on Sunday I put on fresh tires and was the 2nd or 3rd fastest car on track.

When you drive a slow car fast, the worst thing that can happen is to get stuck behind a slow guy in a fast car with an ego. If I lose momentum, not only is the lap I’m on ruined, the next lap is going to be slower too. With 20min sessions and 1.5min laps, a whole session is at most 10-12 laps at speed.

Here’s the scenario: M3 guy didn’t run Saturday and his first two sessions on Sunday were very slow (you get gridded by your lap times to minimize passing) and I had to quit early during the 3rd session due to fuel starve issues. I dropped from 2nd in grid to 6th with the M3 in 4th. He drops out during the warm-up lap and I don’t see him again until I run him down halfway through the session.

I catch him just before he catches some lapped traffic. I tuck in behind him and we start making our way around the slower guys. There are a couple of opportunities for him to let me by, he doesn’t but none of the gaps are too big and we’re still dealing with the guys in the back of the pack so whatever, no worries. We get past the last of the lapped traffic and I don’t get my point-by, I fill his mirror and do my best to make him realize that I’m faster and waiting for the pass. He decides to drag race down the straights and keep me behind him, I’m not happy.

We get to a fast corner and he over-slows, I have to dive inside and slam on my brakes to miss him. After the corner is a passing zone and he doesn’t even consider giving a point-by. I catch him in the corners, he skips one more passing zone, and finally on the main straight he gives me the point-by... but he doesn’t lift. In fact, he continues to accelerate and starts to pull ahead until he has to brake (early, again) for the next turn.

Once I’m in front, I start to pull a gap and he never catches me from behind. The flaggers did try to blue flag him, but by the time they got the message I had already passed him.

His E46 M3 was gutted and on Hoosiers while my BRZ has a full interior (it’s my daily) and I was running RE71's. Thankfully, I didn’t get stuck behind him in any of the later sessions (he got an earful in grid from the stewards). Please don’t be one of these guys.

feather-throttle-not-hair > WRXforScience 01/31/2018 at 21:22

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I’m having flashbacks to Lemons. I am very frequently in this position considering my sunbird has all of 105 horsepower. It also has really nice sticky tires, something that’s weirdly ignored by about half the field.

Thankfully, its not a track day, so sometimes i do manage to get by on the corners. Every now and then i’ll manage to go right around the outside on people which makes me feel like a huge badass, though in reality the difference in grip between the two cars in that situation is enormous and i have nothing to be proud of.

Sad confession: Sometimes they lift on the straightaway and i still can’t pass them. My car is that slow

WRXforScience > feather-throttle-not-hair 01/31/2018 at 21:28

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I got black flagged in the next session when I passed a Golf R in a corner after he refused to give me a point-by in 3 passing zones in a row (his laps were 8-9s slower than mine).

I deserved the black flag, but it felt good for a hot minute.

AestheticsInMotion > WRXforScience 01/31/2018 at 21:55

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Yuck. When I tested an ND I vividly recall a Camaro that just would not let me pass. I’ll admit a small amount of satisfaction when a few laps later he went off the course and tore his fancy lip off

WRXforScience > AestheticsInMotion 01/31/2018 at 22:11

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Karma is the best revenge. I get a sick satisfaction whenever that happens, I prefer there to be no damage so I can really enjoy them spinning off looking dumb while I drive by.

Highlander-Datsuns are Forever > WRXforScience 01/31/2018 at 22:17

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That guy is driving the M3 so bad it literally hurts me.

WRXforScience > Highlander-Datsuns are Forever 01/31/2018 at 22:26

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His lines weren’t terrible, but he definitely wasn’t getting everything out of that M3. I wouldn’t have had any problems with his driving if he just gave me a point-by in any of the 7 passing opportunities he ignored.

Wagon Guy drives a Boostang > WRXforScience 02/01/2018 at 00:24

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Nice laps! At least once the jackass let you by.

I know the guy in the green Mustang (#19). He said someone tried to protest his lap times because he didn’t have a tow hook on the front bumper.

WRXforScience > Wagon Guy drives a Boostang 02/01/2018 at 00:36

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That’s Jim Bunch, one of my friends. He always has the biggest smile after a race, even though he usually ends up at the back.

A bunch of us set new personal bests, the conditions were great. I managed a 1:24.7 during the second session (my previous best was a 1:26.6, so I wasn’t expecting getting into the 1:25's let alone the 1:24's).

There were 27 people in the Club Trials over the 2 days (about 21 on track at a time), and I only had issues with 2 of them. Nearly everyone involved was great.

Wagon Guy drives a Boostang > WRXforScience 02/01/2018 at 00:46

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Jim’s a great guy. I keep trying to get him down to Austin for an autocross. (This Sunday at CotA! http://spokes.org)

Once of these days I’m going to get up north for a track day at either Cresson or Eagles Canyon.

WRXforScience > Wagon Guy drives a Boostang 02/01/2018 at 00:51

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We had a group go up to Oklahoma last year (we showed up with almost a dozen Texas Region guys and they usually have about 50 people at an event). Maybe this year we’ll organize a trip down there (we have 4 active autocross clubs locally and now the Club Trials program, so there aren’t too many open weekends on the Calendar).

CaptDale - is secretly British > WRXforScience 02/02/2018 at 13:14

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Sorry about the ass.

Ugh, I really need to go to a track

WRXforScience > CaptDale - is secretly British 02/02/2018 at 13:35

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My recommendation is to start with autox to learn car control, then sign up for a HPDE or PDX type event that includes an instructor and class time (if you’ve done at least a dozen autox events you’ll be at a much better starting point and will get much more out of your first trackday).

Be humble, start by working on just being able to tell the difference between good and bad lines, keeping an eye on your mirrors, and being aware of the flaggers.

That M3 driver is an experienced track driver, he should know better. His performance and attitude is what happens when you simply throw parts, money, or fast cars at your times instead of learning and improving as a driver.

No one gets upset with slow drivers, they get upset with the guys who obstruct, impede, and make the day more dangerous.

CaptDale - is secretly British > WRXforScience 02/02/2018 at 13:37

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Thank you for the recommendation. I will think about that.