First trip to the track coming up

[samd1351]

I meant motorcycle when I said bike!

I knew what you meant. We always reffered to motorcycles/dirt bikes/atc as "bike"

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[NightmareMoon]

Most decent motorcycle shops will have at least a handful of SA rated helmets, if you would prefer to try one on with glasses before you buy. That’s how I ended up with my current helmet.

 

[GTP]

Summit Racing carries all the helmets. You could even order several styles and sizes and then return all but the one that fits you best.

My strongest piece of advice is to practice braking HARD but EARLY. Yes, you will be too slow entering the corner, but that is how to safely feel out how deep you can go. It can be very bad if you overshoot the brake point, and then that track insurance will kick in. (It is still an expensive wreck because there is a 10% deductible.)

Otherwise, it is fun to roll on the throttle exiting towards the turn "track out". And the risk is much lower than missing the brake zone. Be especially respectful of turns that have barriers close to the track.

Try to look up the track because the speeds are much higher than you are used to.

You can set your gauge display to show the most important data, and give it a glance each time on the main straightaway.

 

[imyopusha]

^^^ What he said on the brake points- do it early. In fact, it would be a great idea to not go 100% your first day. I'd recommend a few laps at 60-70%. Get the feel of where you need to brake. You can either figure out the apex, follow others' lines or follow the tire marks. I'd take a progressive approach to how much to exert based on your confidence. Don't worry if slower cars are passing you. On the Nuerburgring I had Renault Meganes passing my ZL1 constantly. I'm sure the Ferraris I've passed could have cared less I was passing them. Most importantly, leave your ego at the door and be focused, coachable and enjoy. You will have SUCH a good time if you can do that. You'll know when you are getting better at driving. Your tires (more wear) and brakes (less heat) will, too. The better you get, the better it gets. You'll have to let us know how it goes.

 

[samd1351]

My plan is to go out and set the track record, do a big smokey burnout ala Ken Block, and just kidding. This car is not a dedicated race car. It's a fun car making a trip to the track. I figured if I could do about 70-75% of what I think I'm capable of I'd be thrilled.

The question is, if this turns out to be an absolute blast, do I look to trade to up to a GT350?!

 

[imyopusha]

My plan is to go out and set the track record, do a big smokey burnout ala Ken Block, and just kidding. This car is not a dedicated race car. It's a fun car making a trip to the track. I figured if I could do about 70-75% of what I think I'm capable of I'd be thrilled.

The question is, if this turns out to be an absolute blast, do I look to trade to up to a GT350?!

Uh, okay...

It will be an absolute blast. You will become addicted, that's why you pretty much never see track junkies get into drag racing. It's like going from skiing double black diamonds to bunny trails.

A GT350 is far from a dedicated race car. Your current car can become a track car with very little money invested. Brake fluid, racing brake pads and a diff cooler and you can put some serious amount of laps on your car and your powertrain will LOL at you. A dedicated track car will likely have gutted interior, upgraded cooling system across the board, completely upgraded braking system, aero, etc. Do you REALLY want to do that to a GT350? It has about 66 HP more than my GT stock, yet costs about $20k more. You could give your car a serious track-makeover for 20k that would beat the GT350 and be hardened for repeated laps and sessions. AND- you'd have cash for tires, which is never ending.

 

[bnightstar]

A dedicated track car will likely have gutted interior, upgraded cooling system across the board, completely upgraded braking system, aero, etc. Do you REALLY want to do that to a GT350? It has about 66 HP more than my GT stock, yet costs about $20k more. You could give your car a serious track-makeover for 20k that would beat the GT350 and be hardened for repeated laps and sessions. AND- you'd have cash for tires, which is never ending.

http://blog.wiseco.com/the-pauls-engineering-gt-350-is-an-850hp-record-breaking-time-attack-monster

Just an illustration of what a dedicated time attack track car really looks like.

 

[samd1351]

http://blog.wiseco.com/the-pauls-engineering-gt-350-is-an-850hp-record-breaking-time-attack-monster

Just an illustration of what a dedicated time attack track car really looks like.

Ok, maybe not THAT dedicated!

 

[bnightstar]

Ok, maybe not THAT dedicated!

Otherwise at first just invest your money in track time and tires, fluids, breaks my GT is way more capable on the track than me so at this point in time I don't see a reason in trying to improve it.

 

[Silver Bullitt]

So much good information has been provided here already. There are some run-off areas there, but there is also a lot of concrete. You don't need to push it hard until you feel comfortable. In Novice, they will have a paced single file session where you will get several laps around the track (not at speed) so you won't be going out blind on your first trip. Listen to the instructors and ask questions. They are very helpful. Just make sure and follow track etiquette. No shame in being passed by others. Talk to the other drivers. There will be other people just as nervous as you the first time out. It's really pretty tame and egos and expectations should be checked at the gate.

 

[NightmareMoon]

The question is, if this turns out to be an absolute blast, do I look to trade to up to a GT350?!

If you can afford a GT350, Why don’t you have one already?

In all seriousness, PP GTs driven well are faster than average drivers in GT350s, and both cars need similar mods if you’re tracking them regularly (camber plates, square wheels and suitable tires, brake pads, etc). To get the few things that really matter that the GT350 has that the PP doesn’t, you can mod the GT for a lot less than a GT350 costs.

 

[samd1351]

So much good information has been provided here already. There are some run-off areas there, but there is also a lot of concrete. You don't need to push it hard until you feel comfortable. In Novice, they will have a paced single file session where you will get several laps around the track (not at speed) so you won't be going out blind on your first trip. Listen to the instructors and ask questions. They are very helpful. Just make sure and follow track etiquette. No shame in being passed by others. Talk to the other drivers. There will be other people just as nervous as you the first time out. It's really pretty tame and egos and expectations should be checked at the gate.

My plan is to just go and have fun. I have no problem asking questions, esp the the "stupid" questions (see below). I have no problem being passed.

1) I've been to HPT a couple of times before. All for NHRA events. My wife was part of a group that ran TAFC, Souther Star racing. Jerry Gulley was the driver. I took my boys out there when the oldest was about 13 or 14. Tricked him into getting his picture taken with the Monster Energy girls! But I've never been to an event such as this. Is there a place for spectators to watch? One of the guys from my office is talking about coming out to watch. Ugh. My wife may or may not go, depending on weather, facilites and will she be able to see/watch?

2) Will the instructor ride with me the whole time? Not that it matters. If he/she is helpful at all, I'm all for them riding along.

3) Looking at the schedule, it looks like I'm on track for 20 minutes, come off for de-brief/driver mtg, then back on track. How long are the driver instructions after each run? Will I have to watch others on the track or hang with the wife between the time the driver instruction is over and my next session starts? Or would I be better off just bringing a lawn chair for between sessions?

4) The only tool I'm taking with me is a tire pressure gauge. I've got an hour drive out to the track. What should the air pressure be? Is 32 psi good after an hour drive out? I'll have probably an hour to an hour and half between arrival and first trip out. Trying to figure out if I need to air up or down a little.

Thank you everyone for all of the advise. I have not had the time to do the brake fluid/diff fluid change due to a variety of reasons, so for this trip, the car will go as is. Since I'm not going to go all out, I think I'll be fine for one night. After this though, if all goes well, I'll definitely get all of the fluids changed out. And probably a braided clutch line. and then maybe some new wheels/tires. Goals for Friday night are 1) Have fun, 2) Not Crash! 3) Not pee down my leg! I'm so geeked up for this. I keep checking FedEx for when my helmet will arrive. Hopefully this is as much fun as I'm hyping it up to be in my mind.

As far as trading up the GT350, being able to afford one isn't an issue. I didn't get one to start with as I wasn't sure what direction I wanted to go. I didn't want to over-reach, if you will. I've read where the GT350 can be a harsher ride for a daily driver, and that's not what I was after, as my wife has been currently driving the car for the last two weeks while my youngest car shops. I wantd to make sure she was comfortable in the car for longish trips. I might just let her keep this one and in a couple of years jump to the 350.

Hopefully I'll be back with good news on Saturday. If you see me out there, please stop by and say hey.

 

[Silver Bullitt]

There are plenty of spectator areas. You can watch from the grandstands which face the long straightaway, but IMO, the best place to watch is over by the bridge. Cars come in from a 90* right hander into a long left turn down a short shoot into a quick right/left before the long straight. It's probably the most technical part of the track. Most spinouts that I've seen occur in that long left hander.

There will be no instructors riding with you. I started out at 30 psi in my summer tires as they will pick up 4-5 psi depending on how hard and long you run. You don't have to run the whole 20 minutes if you don't want to or if temps get up. It's supposed to be mid 90's Saturday.

You will have a driver meeting prior to getting on the track and a debrief after each session. They will announce these over the loud speakers, but sometimes it's a little hard to hear. Typically, the intermediate and advanced sessions will run between your sessions, so you've got time to go back and get a water or soda and watch the other groups run.

They also usually have an open paced track tour session about midway through if time permits where you can take passengers, so it's a good time to get your wife out on the track. It'll be the best $150 you spend in a long time. Enjoy!

 

[Silver Bullitt]

One other thing, they typically have a professional photographer taking pics. They'll email you info for getting access to the pics. They usually do a great job of getting some good track shots.

 

[JohnD]

My plan is to go out and set the track record, do a big smokey burnout ala Ken Block, and just kidding. This car is not a dedicated race car. It's a fun car making a trip to the track. I figured if I could do about 70-75% of what I think I'm capable of I'd be thrilled.

The question is, if this turns out to be an absolute blast, do I look to trade to up to a GT350?!

GT350's like to go boom a lot, the kind of boom that costs you a very expensive engine. The flat plane crank has tons of vibration issues. Ford no longer races flat plane crank engines in their Mustangs, they're running cross plane cranks. You know, like the crank in the engine in your Mustang GT. They don't go boom that often.

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