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The
Track Day.
Firstly, Aaron of SpeedVentures emailed and said that it will be a nice weather weekend without a lot of drivers. Secondly, an old buddy of mine, Dominic (from the days of buying parts from him), wanted to know when I will be at Willow Springs. Thirdly, my track buddy Andy wanted to drive at Willow Springs. All three reasons compelled me to sign up at the last minute. For $160, off I went.
The last time I was out here was back in July 2006. That's right. That was my first official time trial with NASA. Gosh, has it been 2 months already? At the last event, Ralph Warren showed me some moves on the track. I haven't really had a chance to use those moves. I decided to try out some of his suggestions. For more see the report below.
The event wasn't that crowded. There were 4 groups and I signed up for the advanced group. Surprisingly the advanced group is the most crowded although I didn't notice much traffic in my group. There were however some race cars that zoomed by every now and then...LoL!
Andy brought a friend along, Brendon, who is a first-timer at this track. For a first-timer, I think he did very well. His first BL was 2:14, second BL was 2:09 and third BL was 2:05. This can only mean one thing...he was carrying more speed on the track! Good job, Brendon!! See, even a first-timer can have fun on the track! |
Things to test out and report from this event:
- 1:40.050!!!
- The Magic Flying Projectile.
- Alternator Temperature Data Acquisition.
1:40.050!!!
I have been lamenting not being able to break under 1:40 at Willow Springs big track. But guess what? I tried a new line, some different gearings and a few tricks here and there....and swoosh...I managed a 1:40.050. The car has not been upgraded, except for the replaced alternator. Same car, same tires, just a slightly more daring and adventurous driver.
The sad reality is I didn't insert my CF card into the G2X for this session. It was a bummer. So I have nothing to analyze or compare in terms of data. NOTHING!!
Here's the last analysis:
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My BL (me + Ralph) |
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Ralph's BL (me + Ralph) |
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Difference |
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1:46.571 |
1:42.222 |
-4.349 |
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Minus the difference. |
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That means I should do.... |
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1:42:488 |
1:42:488-4.349 |
1:38.139 |
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My NEW BL at WSIR |
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My goal is still |
1:40.050 |
1:38.139 |
The
verdict? Technically, I improved 2.438 seconds. But my goal is still 1:38.139, which is strictly under 1:40. This time round, I touched 1:40. Well, it's good for now...but not good enough. To be competitive in NASA TTD class, I need to break under 1:40. I am talking about X < 1:40 not X <= 1:40.
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The Magic Flying Projectile. |
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So what on earth is the Magic Flying Projectile?
In the afternoon session, I decided to take Dominic out for a ride since this is his first time as a track spectator. The afternoon session isn't really about getting the best time anymore. Like I mentioned the best session to grab a BL is in the morning, not in the afternoon.
We had some fun exchanging some lines with the other drivers in this advanced-intermediate group. But it comes with a price. What price might that be? A broken windshield.
No, it's not a bumper to bumper contact. Not even close. It's a rock to windshield contact. The size of the spider crack is about 3 inches wide. What exactly happened? While approaching Turn 6, a high speed turn, the second car (the automobile brand of which I shall refrain from stating) in front of me dropped two wheels on the left. The driver being rather "untrained" and unprofessional, tried to pull the car back onto the track. I recall looking at my rear view mirror for oncoming cars and looking ahead for an exit line to avoid the mess. During which, I heard a large thud on my side of the windshield.
Then and there, I knew the track day has ended for me. The car was driven home safely though. |
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verdict? I was disappointed to say the least. But I am not blaming this on the driver who went off. Attending a track event means one has to expect the unexpected, and this includes the MFP. |
Alternator Temperature Data Acquisition.
This is a continuation from the last track report, where I presented some preliminary data on the benefits of cooling the alternator from street/highway driving.
Here's the official track data set from this event. Once again, I did this with the duct and without the duct and in the morning session, when the weather was a bit cooler.
Click for a larger picture
The
verdict? Not that it's absolutely crucial...but a simple duct can do wonders. :-)
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