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first track day

5K views 36 replies 3 participants last post by  kawaigng 
#1 ·
I am going to text drive at the reno fernley raceway's road course wh a instructor at 26th. And that is my first track day. My purpose is to get the competition lience. do you guys have any experince or is there have anything I should be caution?
 
#2 ·
kawaigng said:
I am going to text drive at the reno fernley raceway's road course wh a instructor at 26th. And that is my first track day. My purpose is to get the competition lience. do you guys have any experince or is there have anything I should be caution?
what school does he instruct for?


clear everything out of your mind that you know, or think you know about how to drive a car, and listen to everything he says.

are you doing this in your car?
 
#5 ·
Always late apex!
Do all your braking in a straight line!
If you're a racer, you count on the guy/gal in front of you doing the right thing.
im scepticle after reading the above, off there website. i realize its a school for new people, its not good to state the above, and train bad habbits.

but hay, thats just my opinion.


just remember, the line is KEY!

radius = speed

slow in, fast out

if you spin, both feet in (thats brake and clutch)

and most importantly, BE PREDICTABLE! dont try stupid/crazy/silly/unnecesary things on a hot race track.

the brake is your friend. the easiest way to remember the aptimal line is to find visual ques for your turn in and track out points, if they are correct, you should HAVE to run into the corect apex, as aposed to looking for it every time you turn the car into a corner. you want to be playing "connect the dots" around the track. start off very conservative, if you go try to be a hot shot first time out you will ball up your car. SLOWLY push back your brake points. dont think, well hay, i was way overslowed for turn 3 last time round, im going to push my brakeing marker back 20 feet and cary more speed. try pushing it back a foot, or two feet at a time.

have the mindset to learn, not show off and prove an instructor wrong. i dont think you would, you dont seem like that kinda guy too me, but if your paying for the class you should try to get as much knoledge out of it as you can.

and tell me what you learned, i would be intarested to hear what they tought you.
 
#8 ·
Nose Nuggets said:
just watched the video on there site. the track looks cool. its alot of long chicaines and not to many slow corners. seems to be at least some elivation change. the track is REALLY wide! its asphalt in every direction.

I did saw that video, I am thinking in those easy turns which after the pit. I may use 3rd gear to apporach and use late apex at the first time, rpm about 5500 to 6200 I guest. the first left turn after those easy turns, I may brake and keep 3rd gear about 4300rpm or less to turn in and accellerate at late apex, then brake down to 2nd (try not to get too much oversteer if happen) for the turn in for the 2nd left turn, i may have to up to third gear (may be shif up advance before car turning limited) before the eixt point and may slide a bit. then go to the left side and prepare the next right turn, I will early brake and use later apex and thrid gear in the first apporach. after those turns are some easy turns and then is a 90 degree right turn which I may use third gear at the first time, the straight line after that I may able to speed up to 4th gear then brake down to 2nd keep wide at turn in use late apex for that hairpin, the last turn I may use third gear and not going to steal that exit lane at the first time.
That s only what I plan in my mind and I hope I can find out the correct line, brake point accellerate point, apex, exit point, turn in point, speed and shifting after 4 or 5 laps.

DO you think my plan is going to be alright for the first appoarch? thank you very very much. And I will always use late apex and early break point.
 
#9 ·
kawaigng said:
I did saw that video, I am thinking in those easy turns which after the pit. I may use 3rd gear to apporach and use late apex at the first time, rpm about 5500 to 6200 I guest. the first left turn after those easy turns, I may brake and keep 3rd gear about 4300rpm or less to turn in and accellerate at late apex, then brake down to 2nd (try not to get too much oversteer if happen) for the turn in for the 2nd left turn, i may have to up to third gear (may be shif up advance before car turning limited) before the eixt point and may slide a bit. then go to the left side and prepare the next right turn, I will early brake and use later apex and thrid gear in the first apporach. after those turns are some easy turns and then is a 90 degree right turn which I may use third gear at the first time, the straight line after that I may able to speed up to 4th gear then brake down to 2nd keep wide at turn in use late apex for that hairpin, the last turn I may use third gear and not going to steal that exit lane at the first time.
That s only what I plan in my mind and I hope I can find out the correct line, brake point accellerate point, apex, exit point, turn in point, speed and shifting after 4 or 5 laps.

DO you think my plan is going to be alright for the first appoarch? thank you very very much. And I will always use late apex and early break point.
for the first couple terns you will have to feel it out. dont worry to much about what rpm your at, just remember gears. you dont want to be downshfting while your turning, even if it is a double apex hairpin. you wont get oversteer in your car if its stock. you never want to slide on the exit. getting the car pointed on tur in is fast, if your sliding on the exit your just scrubbing speed. DONT LATE APEX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! apex where your SUPOSED to. late apexing is new newbs, people who are scared to use the whole track. if its a 90 degree turn, you will most likly be in second, but considering how wide the track is, you might be at the bottom of third.

the things i quoted in the above post where things i thought where WRONG with there course. i would sugest trying to apex in the corect spot instead of late apexing every turn for the sake of safty. it will build a bad habbit, you probably already have enough of those, you dont need any more to try and break later.

dont go there and try to drive like you belong in course #4. and dont be sad or disapointed if they want you in class 1 or 2. you have NO profesional instruction at all, and although the things they want to teach in class one and two might seem silly or obvious, you WILL learn something.

if you watch the video again, you can see cones in the corners, 3 per corner (4 for the double apex turns). these are the "dots" i was talking about you connecting. these are the turn in, apex, and track out markers th the instructors will put out for you. do not rely on them, use them as a guideline. hopefully they will have some braking cones out there as well.


good luck, have fun, and dont get frustrated, learn from your mistakes. :)

after you do that class, and you save up some more dough, come out to seca and ill get you a discount on a skippy driving school.
 
#10 ·
Nose Nuggets said:
for the first couple terns you will have to feel it out. dont worry to much about what rpm your at, just remember gears. you dont want to be downshfting while your turning, even if it is a double apex hairpin. you wont get oversteer in your car if its stock. you never want to slide on the exit. getting the car pointed on tur in is fast, if your sliding on the exit your just scrubbing speed. DONT LATE APEX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! apex where your SUPOSED to. late apexing is new newbs, people who are scared to use the whole track. if its a 90 degree turn, you will most likly be in second, but considering how wide the track is, you might be at the bottom of third.

the things i quoted in the above post where things i thought where WRONG with there course. i would sugest trying to apex in the corect spot instead of late apexing every turn for the sake of safty. it will build a bad habbit, you probably already have enough of those, you dont need any more to try and break later.

dont go there and try to drive like you belong in course #4. and dont be sad or disapointed if they want you in class 1 or 2. you have NO profesional instruction at all, and although the things they want to teach in class one and two might seem silly or obvious, you WILL learn something.

if you watch the video again, you can see cones in the corners, 3 per corner (4 for the double apex turns). these are the "dots" i was talking about you connecting. these are the turn in, apex, and track out markers th the instructors will put out for you. do not rely on them, use them as a guideline. hopefully they will have some braking cones out there as well.


good luck, have fun, and dont get frustrated, learn from your mistakes. :)

after you do that class, and you save up some more dough, come out to seca and ill get you a discount on a skippy driving school.

THX a lot, I do think I dont have to do any thing specieal or stupid at all time. I think I sould be relax and do every they want. I will put my focus in the drving line, apex and the weight transfer.
 
#12 ·
I have to reschedule the schedule. I have a question, now I am using a 225/45/17 tires. the rear tires are having 44psi of air and roll over is fine, but the front i am using 50 psi ( max presure) and it still like 1/8 inch roll over to the side, sould i add air or just leave it like that?
 
#13 ·
kawaigng said:
I have to reschedule the schedule. I have a question, now I am using a 225/45/17 tires. the rear tires are having 44psi of air and roll over is fine, but the front i am using 50 psi ( max presure) and it still like 1/8 inch roll over to the side, sould i add air or just leave it like that?
drop the psi at LEAST 5 lbs. if your tires are at max psi coold, then a few laps in you will be 3-5 psi over the limit of the tire, and thats not good. especally when you start driving agresivly.

plus a slighty lower psi will give you a larger contact patch.
 
#14 ·
Nose Nuggets said:
drop the psi at LEAST 5 lbs. if your tires are at max psi coold, then a few laps in you will be 3-5 psi over the limit of the tire, and thats not good. especally when you start driving agresivly.

plus a slighty lower psi will give you a larger contact patch.
but the tires will roll to the side if I drop the psi, wont that effect the rebond? I use to have 44psi on front and it have 1/4 inch over?
 
#15 ·
you need to find a happy medium. its a street tire.

tire presure does not effect the rebound on your shocks, if thats what you where asking.

the alternative is to fill up your tires with nitrogen if you can. it expands less then compressed air. i still wouldent fill a tire to its max psi.
 
#16 ·
Nose Nuggets said:
you need to find a happy medium. its a street tire.

tire presure does not effect the rebound on your shocks, if thats what you where asking.

the alternative is to fill up your tires with nitrogen if you can. it expands less then compressed air. i still wouldent fill a tire to its max psi.
Sorry, make you confuse, but i am not mean the shock, iwas want to say to tire side to side rebond. I wish I can use the nitrogen instead of the netural air.
 
#24 ·
hahah yeah

its who you know, not what you know, or how good of a driver you are.


there is no such thing as a scout, someone trying to find young driving talen so they can throw money at you

you have to be/have something people want

you have to be a really good driver

you have to be able to market yourself.

its very, very hard. your only competing against another 698723 kids who want to drive race cars.

there is no money in racing. be prepared to spend a lot of money to get yourself known.


what REALLY sucks about entry level racing is the lack of viewers. even if your car is one giant advertisement, or if it has 100 small advertisements, weather your pole or DFL, only the people AT the race are going to see it. no entry level nasa, or SCCA is televised.

the only real direct benafit you can get to your sponcers is tickets to the race, which will most likly come out of your pocket.

its a loosing battle. there is no money in racing, except for the money all the famos people left there.

there is a very famous race car saying.

"how do you make a small fortune racing? start with a big one"
 
#25 · (Edited)
Nose Nuggets said:
hahah yeah

its who you know, not what you know, or how good of a driver you are.


there is no such thing as a scout, someone trying to find young driving talen so they can throw money at you

you have to be/have something people want

you have to be a really good driver

you have to be able to market yourself.

its very, very hard. your only competing against another 698723 kids who want to drive race cars.

there is no money in racing. be prepared to spend a lot of money to get yourself known.


what REALLY sucks about entry level racing is the lack of viewers. even if your car is one giant advertisement, or if it has 100 small advertisements, weather your pole or DFL, only the people AT the race are going to see it. no entry level nasa, or SCCA is televised.

the only real direct benafit you can get to your sponcers is tickets to the race, which will most likly come out of your pocket.

its a loosing battle. there is no money in racing, except for the money all the famos people left there.

there is a very famous race car saying.

"how do you make a small fortune racing? start with a big one"

I understamd that, here is lots of people like me and lots of them are better than me. So I think is hard to have some sponser before I win some event. And auto sport do need lots of money....... but actually I am lucky than other people, because my best friend own a shop( car repair) so I dont have to pay too much for the labor, most of the time are free, so I told him if I have a chance to race, print me some sticker and I will put that on my car. his shop name Inspeed.

So i bet there isnt have too much things I can do beside saving money, or you can tell me something I can do, please? THX a lot.

I am getting 26, do you mind tell me hod old you are? And teach me something about offline passing?
 
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