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S197 3V Apex3v's Road Race Build Thread Build Thread Profile - S197 Mustangs

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Apex3V

Heel-n-Toe Enthusiast
Very lucky man! or maybe not, cause now your "part costs" will be double haha. Not going to lie. If I didn't already have the Mustang, I would have probably ended up at some point with a 1st, or 2nd gen Miata to turn into a track toy. Hey, now you can make another build thread for the miata!
Well I’m just here to guide her on the right path and can tell you that my shoe string budget could never stretch out far enough for another car. I also really like Miata’s and can at-least live vicariously though her in a way.
 

Apex3V

Heel-n-Toe Enthusiast
Weekend Rundown's: THSCC Novice School/NASA SE Race For Pi

What a way to start off a season! back to back weekends of fun and high performance education with the very familiar @Duane Black showing me the rope's of a different discipline of auto sport's with a weekend of autocross with the Tar-heel Sports car Club. Over the winter not much changed on the car but most noteworthy is the addition of a Boss 302r abs module and some much needed maintenance items. Heading into this first weekend I really didn't know how to prepare for this different discipline and went into the event very open minded and ready to learn. In the start of the morning I did my normal business of unloading the car and swapping wheels and then got the chance to walk the course. Duane was there along side me and showed me how to walk and read the course and what to generally do/look for prior to going out. Before I would get to drive I would be in a group of other drivers who had to work the course and set cones up whenever drivers would make mistakes or just push the limits, while kind of foreign to me I did enjoy my time throughout the day chasing cones around and always having to be aware of what was going on. Being there to constantly watch also gave me a chance to see what common mistakes drivers were making and what the faster drivers were doing compared to the rest.
After working the course and being teased with other drivers having fun for long enough the time had come for me to have my own fun, the course would be changing through the day so timing wasn't a huge concern for me. One of the main reason's I came out to this event was to get a better understanding of where the point's of my car were located, how to drive with an unbalanced car, driving on cold tires, learning new courses and getting an overall better feel for what the car was doing and trying to communicate to me through my very limited points of connection. So clearly not a lot of goals for one day right....well I'll try my best to get it anyways. The course started off with a skidpad style circle that could be taken in two different directions and would dump out into a spread out solemn which converges with a large bump in the surface that lead's into another solemn into a slow and tight right hand sweeper that once pointed straight has another solemn and then the timing line. Pulling up to the start line for the first time I was pretty nervous on the inside since this was a little out of my comfort zone of knowing a lot about what lied ahead and what to expect but I knew I was ready to take this on and see where it could take me.
Once I got the go ahead I pulled out and took the circle clockwise in some attempt to better learn the right side of the car and was way off of where it actually was, I was pretty sure my car was narrower than it actually was going through the first set of solemn's and ended up with some downed cones and in the second set I didn't really have much of a rhythm, going through the sweeper I was fine but could have been faster and in the final set I was just reacting to seeing the cones instead of just driving. There was plenty to improve on and plenty to learn and I was very happy to have finally done it for the first time. The rapid fire style of this school was great for beginners to get a lot of experience because after each run you could have around six to seven minutes to debrief in the car and discuss what happened, how and where to improve and what you can work on next time out, I was very fortunate to have someone who was already familiar with my background and capabilities up to this point so that the amount I learned over the day could be maximized. One of the things that had been giving me trouble throughout the beginning of the day was that I was not looking far enough ahead so Duane used an old trick where he would tape up part of my field of view on the windshield and force me to look up and ahead or else I would just be staring at blue tape which would do me no good. This strategy paid off instantly and allowed us to work on more things along side of training me in the realm of vision.
The day was progressing nicely with little improvements happening each time out and getting more and more comfortable out on the course. During the event my only hiccup came not from when I would be driving but when I would be lending my car for a certain instructor to test out, when we were backing out a very nice driver was creating a gap for us to pull out onto the grid and he noticed a flat LR tire and quickly alerted us. I thought I had picked up a nail or something of the sort and pulled the wheel off and didn't see anything, I was stuck in a state of trying to switch to my continentals and trying to fix the issue with the toyo's and what ended up being the issue was a valve core coming loose in the wheel and allowing the slightest amount of air out gradually. the friendliness of people at these types of event's has yet to be beaten anywhere else I've gone and the willingness to help out in any way they can is truly amazing, There was a handful of people loaning out tools and air pumps to try and get this tire aired up so that my day could keep going smoothly and that I could have a good time. It is the trying moment's like this that I will always look back on whenever I encounter someone struggling in the future that will make me pay it forward and help someone else out because as a community it is what we do for each other to be able to stay together and enjoy are time doing what we love.
Sob story aside the day is still going really well with myself getting better and achieving some of the goals I had set for myself, I was finally starting to get a rhythm in the solemn's and really able to drive the car on cold tires. I killed a number of cones to get here but I was also really starting to get a good idea where the right side of my car really was and how the car actually reacted when I turned the wheel. During my final session I really hammered down and drove nicely compared to my morning self and by the end of the event I felt I was walking away from it a much more aware, educated and confident driver which was only going to translate to good things in a weeks time...
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Autox Boi
If you've read this far I already commend you because it's about to get even longer with probably even more sob stories so take this as your warning. After the awesome weekend of auto crossing It was time to shift my sights on the legendary Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta and I couldn't be any more excited! last time I was here in June I ended up with an absolutely perfect time and had been itching to come back here ever since I pulled out of the paddock for the final time. Since I had just prepared my car for the weekend prior there was very minimal work to be done to be ready for the track beside's making sure bolt's were tight and the fluid was fresh. I loaded the car up and made the trip down to get tech'd and ready for the next day's festivities. To say I was anxious would be fair as I couldn't sleep or eat much and I was really just ready to get out on track and start the process of going through the day. Getting to the track for the first day I switched tires and headed for the grid, the very first session of the weekend would be a combined DE3/DE4 with point-by passing anywhere you can. On the grid I took a moment to visualize a lap of the circuit, preform some lazy 8's and make sure everything about the car was alright from the drivers seat. I was in my state of mind to perform and I was ready, as soon as we pulled out on track an 11-12 GTCS mustang spun out nearly hitting the inside wall before even getting to the racing surface. This served as a reminder of everyone having a cold brain on a cold track and that we all need to be smart and aware. Once I got out on the track I was ready to go and built up heat quickly and started hitting my strides already. This session was extremely fun from start to finish from my seat from passing cars all around the track and really feeling how well my car was taking the 2.5 mile course compared to my last time here. This being a combined session also meant that the instructor who had helped so far down this road was now in the same grouping and that the potential to have some fun was there from the very beginning of the weekend. Though for this session we didn't get to start right along side each other I did see him lingering in my mirrors not to far back. This session I would set a new PB by dropping 2 whole seconds in the first session with a 1:45:19 which was enough to edge the hertz special by a small margin.
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Morning view session's
Fun won't stop here, this weekend was filled with indecisive weather patterns and every session kind of being up in the air for which tires to run on, Though this is proving to be a great learning tool for my future endeavors in racing. The tire choice I make in these situations could result in a huge difference in performance through different conditions and building the experience portfolio now is going to (Hopefully) make it easier in the future. Nevertheless the weather was just wet enough to consider wet tires but not enough to rule out the dry tires, knowing that if the conditions stay constant or decreases a dry line will form giving the dry tires the edge over the wet's. I learned a bit about this from my time at VIR last year and have gotten a little bit better at it since then. So sticking with the toyo's and going out on a damp track it was all about generating heat and driving the driest part's of the surface and tackling the track as it changes and feeling how the tires are reacting and adjusting from there. Sitting in the paddock for these types of situations is way more stressful than driving it is what I am discovering, I don't have much experience in the standing water but this misty stuff I've been getting used to and actually do enjoy the challenge that it presents but don't enjoy the make or break style decision on tires when sitting around.
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wet to dry
The day would stay pretty much the same weather wise staying more so on the dry side but still having short burst's of rain here and there making the track change from session to session and being semi-inconsistent. My personal performance up to this point has been very good so far and I was able to see myself run very consistent lap times and get into a rhythm. During the weekend Duane would be instructing a student per the usual but the irony here was pretty great. apparently he's only allowed to instruct students with white Ford's as this weekend made for another one in addition to the last few including me. The student was a nice lady named Ryan who is trying to build a Spec Iron car like somebody else the forum may know, she is going of the 05-09 chassis and has already made some strides at making the car eligible for the class. Seeing the class in it's ever growing state is really cool to watch as 5-6 of us are coming through the ranks and preparing ourselves for future competition and I know that when a lot of us get in there it will easily make Spec Iron the largest Thunder racing class in the Nasa SE.
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Turn 12, COMMITMENT
During the start of the second day I was very excited, I woke up and checked outside to see dry roads even though it was expected to have rained a lot over night. I was very eager to get to the track and get the car ready and see what the surface was like and if it would be like the morning session from the day prior. Pulling onto grid I had a wild Duane Black appear directly ahead of my car and knew that some fun was about to be had. This was another combined session but with DE4 rules so open passing around the track, they sent us out under green from the grid and it was go time. I set my sights ahead of me and wanted to work up as much heat as I could so I could get to business. Testing the grip levels on the first out lap there was lots to be had this morning with a pretty nice surface and very friendly curbs. Duane and I seemed to be in our own league this session with some very nice driving by the both of us, on the out lap I got to really see the difference in straight-line speed between us by using him for a short but efficient use of the draft and giving him a nice wake to use the following laps. Traffic was really fun for me going through as I was catching people in all the right spots on the track and getting around cars that should be seemingly faster. After getting passed some cars I ran a clean lap that shattered my previous PB from the day before with a 1:42.64 which is only a second and a half off a mid-pack SI car which was much like my performance at CMP in November in a combined session. I was driving so much better than I ever had and was taking in everything that I possibly could from all the sensory inputs and really dialing myself in. From the compression in T1 to taking T12 as flat out as I could I was really loving this race track. Once the session was over I was smiling from ear to ear much like the last time I had a session like that at CMP. I'll say it again though I've said it here plenty that HPDE IS NOT RACING, but man this is the closest I've ever been to anything like it and being able to setup and execute passes and really work on race craft is like nothing else and really makes me want to continue down the path I am heading down.
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Staying ahead of the man himself and setting up the pass on someone very instafamous
Well I hope that was fun because not I had to sit for the next 4 hours due to the track having quiet hours and my car not being very compliant with that, during this time the weather would gradually get more and more wet. I got to watch the thunder qualifying without interruption and observed the different ways they were driving compared to myself and noted them mentally. Duane got to share the experience with his fiance this weekend and took her for a ride along which looked and sounded to be like a lot of fun, our not so distant future momentum racer and co-founder of Red Hot Brake Rotors got to ride along with him as well in the same session I was driving in. This session was definitely up in the air all the way up until pulling out of grid on which tires to run and after 3 laps felt that I had chose poorly. The track kept getting slicker and slicker with no dry line forming and precipitation getting slightly heavier each moment. I was hanging on to the grip and having a good time searching for it but drew the line from fun to none when my car would move off line about 6 feet entering turn 12 and feeling like ice. That was enough for me to nope out of the session as I would rather take my car home in one piece than have kept fighting for the grip at the moment. I definitely want more time in the wet as it is a lot of fun to do but would like to have the right tire selected when it happens again. I was very happy that my lady got to ride along to further solidify her decision to get into this addiction and so I could talk her ear off about whatever happened.
Before my last session out I was spectating the DE1 session before the thunder race began and watched a very unfortunate event unfold in front of me. A beautiful red SN95 GT got loose exiting T12 and hit the inside wall destroying the LF corner of the car and deploying the airbags, both the driver and instructor walked out under there own power and my heart was aching and emotions were everywhere. You never want to see it happen but sadly it does but all we can hope for is that everyone be safe and not be unable to walk away from an incident. Seeing this took some of the wind out of my sails and really grounded me for my last session. I treated this final session as a sensory session where I just focus on everything that the car is telling me and noticing as much as I can and really working on my overall feeling at a slightly reduced speed. This session was directly following the thunder race so I got to see exactly where the racers were putting their car's on track to form the dry line and noticed most notably how much earlier they turned into the esses and after driving that way for a couple of laps I noticed I was able to pickup slightly more throttle and could carry a bit more speed.
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Brake Brake Brake
Pulling through T12 for the final time and seeing the checkered flag waving was a really sad sight to see, This weekend was filled with very many great experiences and lots of new information was obtained. I took everything in around me on the cool down lap and really soaked up the moment because with the way the nation in looking right now it may be a second before another event can happen. The entire paddock was very fortunate to have gotten this weekend in compared to many other groups who's event's would suffer a different fate of either being postponed or canceled entirely and for that I was very gracious. For now though I will be setting my sights ahead for my next scheduled event an helping prepare another car for action so that some more fun can be had and some new stories can be made.
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Now onto the next weekend...


 
Sounds like you had a great time. I feel like I am never going to get my mustang on track. Last year I broke a rib towards the end of the season, and missed the last two track days. Now the first two of the year are canceled with the third I signed up for in the balance. Plus I race karts full season, and they have been canceled as well. So it's great to see some people getting out. Waiting on the next update!
 

Apex3V

Heel-n-Toe Enthusiast
Sounds like you had a great time. I feel like I am never going to get my mustang on track. Last year I broke a rib towards the end of the season, and missed the last two track days. Now the first two of the year are canceled with the third I signed up for in the balance. Plus I race karts full season, and they have been canceled as well. So it's great to see some people getting out. Waiting on the next update!
Well with the whole covid-19 stuff there are a lot of uncertainties looming around upcoming events. If you keep trying I’m sure your car will end up on a track somewhere soon. And atleast you’re getting the racing fix in another way ;)
 

Apex3V

Heel-n-Toe Enthusiast
I posted earlier elsewhere, but I'll post it again here...View attachment 13809


I think you'll need to find a real racer to coach you fron here in... i dont think theres much else I can do for you. Comp school is calling soon, you've learned and come a long way this past year....
Don’t sell yourself short, there is still way more to be learned, maybe 3v swap the hertz car and get in on the fun 👀
 

Apex3V

Heel-n-Toe Enthusiast
Weekend Rundown: NASA MA VIR North Private Event

With the global pandemic of covid-19, many of us have had to adjust to many changes in our lives. Many of those changes have been way bigger and worse than losing track time and coming this far under the circumstances is great. Across the country our high performance community has been feeling the effects of quarantine and isolation from many of our friends and family in a time where that is all most of us want. A sign of good things to come is limited participant track events popping up regionally and giving the fortunate few in these events some speed therapy. Before this event popped up I had registered for the annual NASA spring event at CMP which inevitably got cancelled due to covid-19 leaving plans understandingly canceled. about a week and a half later I received an email from NASA MA for a private event on the VIR North course, I quickly jumped as this event could check a lot of boxes for me and would be some much needed normalcy. prior to this event the car went through some major changes, I installed a set of Spec Iron MCS Coilovers, changed the design, switched seats and made a cool-shirt system, so this event would be a good opportunity to shake down the car and see what changes have been made. Setting up the car before the event I took the advice of the Spec iron guys and found a good general baseline to point me in the right direction and then be able to adjust from there. after installing the struts only one thing remains to be mostly competition legal which is a full rollcage and the amenities that go with it.

Arriving at the track in the morning was a happy and surreal experience, I was glad to be back at the track but the lack of people was startling to me, on any given nasa weekend the paddock is about at full capacity and seeing it as empty as it was just didn't feel the same. that aside seeing racecars and track cars made me feel great and ready to go. there were some serious cars at this event with the fastest being an IMSA Prototype Challenge car here for testing!! along with a stock car and gt3 porche. being starstruck by speed machines aside there was a handful of mustangs and most of them being s197's. Getting ready for the first session I didn't know what to expect fully from the car or track but I was prepared to tackle it and learn as much as I can. Pulling out the pits and onto the straight I began an assertive 20 minute session trying to gather as much information as I could from the car about the track and the tires and both felt great, the car had lots of grip compared to my last outing and I could gather that the characteristics of the car had changed. after 20 minutes I felt and heard scrubbing on the RF tire so I brought the car in the pits, turns out a bunch of stuff was happening at once. The RF fender liner came loose and was scrubbing the tire, a line on the rear end was dragging the ground behind the diff and the trunk latches were undone.
Well none of this was ideal...
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lots of stuff not right, lovely view of the morning session
After removing the liner and fixing the hose issue I was ready to go back out, This event was my first time trying a new learning tool I got from Ross Bentley's SpeedSecrets book (per @Duane Black recommendation) which was his track debrief form. This form was great for me since I was able to pinpoint where exactly I needed to improve on and allowed me to set more attainable and realistic goals for each session I went out and not waste any of the valuable time. I also went to spectate at other points of the track to see what other drivers were doing and where they were placing the car and what the results would be. Each session I was getting better and better on this layout but not quite mastering one part of the track but rather gradually improving each lap the same. This layout had some fun challenges in the middle portion that utilized some of the autox schooling I had gotten earlier this year.It was challenging me to stay at the limits and get comfortable with a fast direction change and to stay committed to the throttle/brake.
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Approaching uphill t7
As the day progressed and I got more comfortable I had the opportunity to try different things with the car, on the approach to T7 I worked primarily on entry speed and trying to use the hill to slow me down similar to how the brake zone is on the backstretch. I was able to carry more speed through the left hand turn in the middle section and able to take more throttle for longer. I was trying to learn a good way to release the brakes to create rotation at turn 1 but could not find the proper way to do so this weekend. The car didn't like to trail brake nearly as much as it used to and would under steer rather than rotate as I intended. Honestly from what everyone has said about coil over's and its affects on the car I found it kind of underwhelming, It made a notable difference in the cars handling and the car felt very composed and stable and made the grip feel greater and more consistent but part of me missed some of the characteristics of the stock struts. I had enjoyed how the car felt when it took a set on stock struts and how I could get the car to rotate how I wanted it too, before my next event I will likely be making a sway bar change to see which setup suits my driving style better.
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Nascar bend
As the track heated up the time's slipped away which was fine as I got to get well acquainted with the new setup and try new things on my own terms. I enjoyed the format of this event with the on-off green track but part of it seemed less like an "Event" and more as a testing day. I've gotten so used to having designated times and having a schedule to follow that having the leisure to pull on and off at will made me feel less productive in my hunt to learn more. I found it hard to maximize my time this way since I wasn't exactly prepared for this format but still did what I could and would normally do during a weekend.
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entering the paddock
I had a great time at this event, it felt good to warm up my mind for the track again and get back into a rhythm, I got to spend the day with my miata protege and give her some insight on what to be doing on track. Our next event will be her first driving and I can't even begin to explain how excited I am to be apart of this. Fingers are crossed that she can have an instructor ride along so she can get the most out of her weekend and really get the same experience I got. I have a short break to get the car buttoned up for the next event and really cant wait to share it with everyone here once it happens!!!


Now onto the next weekend...
 

Apex3V

Heel-n-Toe Enthusiast
Weekend Rundown: NASA SE Turn 7 Girl Memorial "Flatten the Curve" Road Atlanta

At this point I don't think it's a secret that I love Road Atlanta and the fact that I've had enough opportunity's to come here and drive really makes me happy. This track always take's a bit more to prepare for mentally for myself and I really spend a lot of time visualizing and transporting myself to this track anticipating an event. For this weekend I spent more time preparing my team-mates car than my own, we wrapped the car black and changed some necessary things and tried to ensure it would be able to endure a weekend in the heat. My car only got a realignment, bob's rear-end expansion tank, stock sway bars and some new rear pads as I'm wanting the car to drive a certain way and got a tip that switching the bars could help me get where I want to. Coming into the weekend the weather was much nicer than the march event with sunshine and some clouds here and there and a decent amount of heat but nothing unbearable.
To start this weekend off I requested an observation for advancement from DE3 to DE4 and a wild @Duane Black would appear and fill the need for this. The groundwork was laid out before the session with the quote "If I pass you, you fail" and this is a very welcome challenge coming from the keeper of the hertz special. We had spoken endlessly about the drills that NASA Great Lakes had for DE4 and how great of an experience and exercise it was so any opportunity we would get during the weekend to try it we would. Obviously he was trying to implement some of his new found experience on me during this session of advancement by driving defensively against me on the first lap and really trying to make me work for it, sadly for him I've got the power on the straights so his challenge was put on easy once I could break away. This won't be the last of this drill during this weekend between us but I had my challenge set and I had to beat it...and I did. I was driving the track about how I was in my last outing but forgot just how much speed you can carry though some of the corners here and that took me some time to work up to again.
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Sticker placing ceremony
Well there it is, the ladder has been climbed and my room for advancement in HPDE has been used up, Now its time to get even faster! After this session the moment I'd been waiting on would finally get to happen and that is my miata girl getting her first ever session on track! She would have gotten an event in at CMP if Covid-19 hadn't taken place but anyway...exciting things happen regardless. I staked out a place to watch during the session and see how things went and from watching there was plenty of room for improvement but great groundwork already laid for a great start learning how to drive fast. Unfortunately for her she is in a 1.6L miata so the power compared to the other car's in her group left a lot to be desired but once she can make the most out of what she has she'll be a better driver because of it.
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Double vision
Next up for me was a combined 3/4 session because of delays with broken race car's (this trend only continues more throughout the weekend) and when approaching the grid I had a very nice surprise waiting for me. It was none other than one of the spec iron racers who's been guiding me through building the car and giving me advice who was getting ready to shake down his car during his session after some changes with an open spot in-front of him which I gladly took. If any of you can recall the first time I had really even been around some Spec Iron cars was at CMP in November of last year so anything is welcome and especially from the veteran's of the class. Coming out of grid I build heat for the out lap and take the green and just assumed he would pull some voodoo and get passed me or something but that wasn't the case to my surprise, I was actually holding my own and keeping my distance from a racer and this paid massive benefits to my confidence level's. I was able to get through the DE traffic a little bit better that session and created a bit of a gap before he would bring it in but those couple of laps made me feel incredible and over the top with joy. Now I'm just hoping it can be that easy to keep him behind me in sprint races down the road 😅
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Staying in-front of the ironman!!!
So far for me this event has been a grand-slam in only the first 2 sessions so I could't wait to see what the rest of the weekend would present to me. Sadly for the miata the slave cylinder for the clutch was bad (Apparently they always will go bad) and luckily the Spec Miata group was more than willing to help source parts to fix the issue and help her weekend go as good as it possibly could. I helped get it off but had a session in the middle of it so she would have to finish the remainder and she did so quickly and made me feel like maybe I had rubbed off a little bit on her. The session brought lots of traffic and usually I welcome this as it generally for me is more fun to pass car's but for me it just wasn't doing it on the thrill factor. To me a big part of the thrill from getting passed car's is the challenge presented to me but that just hasn't been enough. I am starting to see where racing is going to be extremely fun because of the close quarters action and with the equalizer that is the spec class to make it even more challenging to pass (Hopefully) and really using your head to figure out a way to get in-front and go fast. even with my burning passion for wanting to race this session was fun as I found @Spencer Terry in his blue beauty and had a good time messing around once I could get near him.
The last session of the day I would get to do something I hadn't gotten to do before which was grid behind my original NASA instructor from a year and a half ago at roebling road which was really exciting. He had moved from instructing to racing in his NB Miata with a very different power plant that is classed in super touring. For about 2 laps he led me and I stayed with him until I finally got to pass him approaching t10 where I could really get to the brakes deep and thus completing a symbolic pass of the student passing the teacher. He had taught me so much about being smooth and really focusing on that before really hammering on speed and that approach has helped me greatly. during this session I would also lay down my fastest time ever here with a 1:39.95 which was 4 tenth's off the next days pole and faster than anyone's best lap(Spec iron) in the next days race which again made me feel great.
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A Certain Shade of Green
Next day in the morning the confidence was up, the track was cool and I was ready to get after it again after some analysis the night before for both the stang and miata. during my first session I was doing great and really starting to flirt with the limits and getting the car to talk to me how I wanted it to, switching the sway bars back to the stock one's did wonders for the handling of this car as the amount of under steer I had from the event prior was now gone. The car was now behaving like it had before and I was now able to trail brake how I wanted and get the car rotated like I was able to before. I was pushing harder and harder each lap finding speed and really learning about the limit's. In the middle of the session I had a bit of an oops that I feel absolutely awful about and I wish I had prevented from happening If I'd have known what would happen. Going through the esses I was being trailed by the above mentioned blue beauty and got off line and went though the grass and kicked up a bunch of rocks and got debris all over my left side tires. The rocks that were kicked up pelted the boss sadly and busted the windshield pretty badly and the stuff on my tire's resulted in a spin in T5 that fortunately landed me on the curb right past the apex curbing. I really felt bad about destroying the windshield and ending his weekend early from a bit of carelessness from myself and really cant convey that enough, the takeaways from this for me though were first and foremost to become more considerate of the car's around me since I'm not driving for any merit and second that going off track like that will likely pick up some stuff on the tires so maybe going through the next corner business as usual should be re-evaluated. I would get black flagged for my spin and the car was good to go back on track and I just drove the remainder of the session as I normally would and mentally blocking the situation as to not dwell on it in the car and to just learn and move on.
This session would be the only one of the first half of the day with the next one not coming until after lunch so there was plenty of time to mingle in the paddock and see some familiar face's and see some new one's. I had a great discussion with another spec iron guy about a future proposition that I really hope happens that could advance my driving and racing career that hopefully I can write on at a later time assuming it happens. The miata was running great and her pace was getting quicker and quicker as her instructor (as I should know) was guiding her down the right path. I should also mention that the cool shirt system I made was great throughout the weekend end proved it's worth with use and I cant recommend it enough for those who don't already have it, when getting to grid early it makes it 1000x more bearable sitting in the heat when you have the ice water cooling you off before you go out (especially when session's keep getting delayed for incidents).
Lunch is over and it's time to drive! It was finally time to do the drill I had gotten to hear so much about from Mid-o and I couldn't wait. The hardest thing for me about this drill would be resisting the urge to use all the power to make my moves. Starting with the out lap I just wanted heat in the brakes and tires before I went for it, we cooperated well but not perfect (mainly me,sir lead foot) I wanted to get used to being near car's at inconvenient spots and really start learning how to run close to somebody. one thing I hadn't anticipated discovering during this was when my reference point's got covered by his car, I was forced to use other objects to index what I was doing and go off perception versus repetition which was great for my education. Both of us can improve greatly about how we drive with car's being near each other but this is why we do these things which is to learn, One thing he did much better than I was using his car defensively on the line and placing it where I couldn't easily get around and forcing me to learn to drive in the less than Ideal area's and how that would affect me. I really want to do more drill's like this and cant wait for the chance to do more of it, the session ended slightly early with a camaro blowing it's motor approaching t10 and creating a huge cloud and uncertainty cresting the hill.
My last session of the day would be to work on consistently driving at the limit and trying to run consistently in the same time slot during the entire session since I could greatly improve on that, all was going well and my goal was being achieved thus far until after 3 laps a red flag comes out and halt's us for 10 minutes until a black flag bring's us in to end the session. Not the way I wanted to end a weekend but it's understandable and from what I saw and heard my weekend ended way better than another unfortunate driver. supposedly in t2 an s197 flipped over and is what brought the red out and seeing the car on the flat bed confirmed this. The driver was okay thankfully but served as a reminder to the rest of us of would could be...
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Duane and I
I would let my car cool off before getting it ready for the drive back and got to watch the lady take the miata around for her final session which was really special for me. Duane had coached her all weekend and taught her some really good fundamental things and it really showed at the end of the day. her pace was so much faster from where she had started the day and really made me proud to watch and see the potential that she truly has. Her and I are lucky to get taught by one of the best and to really have good foundations to start with in this sport and have so much room to grow out and develop. This weekend was great for plenty of reasons for both of us and even the hertz driver with lots of good education and development happening across all of us. It's weekend's like these that make me love what we do and the fact the we have the opportunities to do this and meet the great people that we get to and experience what this community has to offer. this weekend created a lot of positive reinforcement and really got me excited to eventually begin competing and learning even more from there on and seeing where that will take me, from the way Duane has helped out the Red Hot Brake Rotor's team it's probably about time he become's a member lol. great times were had what more can I add?
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Now onto the next weekend...
 

Bill Pemberton

0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
8,425
8,356
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Blair, Nebraska
So is the jump to Time Trials your next move , as it appears you are quite ready for that! Of course you could go to Door to Door with a NASA school and approval, though many find the TT road a great midway step, since it prepares you to pass anywhere without the full concern of actual racing. Very nice write up and a 1:39 time is super solid!! Glad to hear your lady had a great time also, and as a former Spec Miata racer I can not think of a better car to learn in. Momentum is the key to speed in all cars, and the Miata teaches that to the max since it's lack of hp means one has to keep the little beastie on a roll. Nothing better than being at the track with a partner who loves driving as well, sounds like you found a real keeper, ha!!!

Look forward to the next outing the two of you participate in!
 

Apex3V

Heel-n-Toe Enthusiast
So is the jump to Time Trials your next move , as it appears you are quite ready for that! Of course you could go to Door to Door with a NASA school and approval, though many find the TT road a great midway step, since it prepares you to pass anywhere without the full concern of actual racing. Very nice write up and a 1:39 time is super solid!! Glad to hear your lady had a great time also, and as a former Spec Miata racer I can not think of a better car to learn in. Momentum is the key to speed in all cars, and the Miata teaches that to the max since it's lack of hp means one has to keep the little beastie on a roll. Nothing better than being at the track with a partner who loves driving as well, sounds like you found a real keeper, ha!!!

Look forward to the next outing the two of you participate in!
Thanks bill, I love her dearly and am extremely happy she likes the same things I do. Many racers have suggested I go to time trials once I reach this point and you suggesting that reminded me of that. In my head I tell myself I don’t like going just to run a time since I want to be around the cars but they say it helps you mentally prepare for the competition side of things and the pace is much greater. I will be evaluating my path but I’m definitely not gonna rule it out cause it could be a lot of fun and I’d hate to miss out on something from misperceptions I may have.
 

Bill Pemberton

0ld Ford Automotive Racing Terror
8,425
8,356
Exp. Type
Time Attack
Exp. Level
20+ Years
Blair, Nebraska
There is truth that it does mentally prepare you for actual door to door racing, but it equally puts you on track with others that have a Competition License and that does ramp up intensity. It also gives you a bit of actual racing sense since chasing someone in your own class, feeling you are catching them, and then seeing proof from scoring validates your improvement. The other thing that I feel happens is you get a heightened sense of the drivers ahead/behind of you, and instead of waiting patiently for passing zones ( with some groups ) you start looking for areas where others are making errors, opening passing zones you can capitalize on. This is a key area to winning races once you begin to actually road race. I spent a full year doing this before I raced in SCCA Spec Miata, because we were building the car and it was not fully compeleted. The seat time and the closer proximity to other racers helped my comfort zone as well as helping me focus on other competitor's driving styles. Up to now your main focus has been on improving your skill, and that will always continue, but now your other focus will be directed on what others are doing. You will find faster lines from those that are quicker, you will spot openings others may see, and you will learn more about your own limitations while pushing your strengths. Think of Time Trials as a year of Prep School before going to College, and I think you will accelerate your comfort zone, instead of working to learn so much immediately in jumping right into folks inches off your door panels.

Been married to a wonderful woman for close to 43 years who used to race for awhile and she understands and supports my passion. You will find 90% of your friends envious you have a lovely lady on your arm who wants to drive fast too -------- it makes life even more enjoyable.

Congrats!
 
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