Roadstergal
06-06-2004, 11:04 PM
It rained all night long. I was hoping it would rain itself out before the track day, and thank goodness, it did. I took my dry tires down and rode on the wet ones, though, just in case.
The first run was terrible. There are four groups, A, B, C, D, grouped by experience, and as this was my first non-novice day, I was in group D. People were running horrible lines, were all over the place, not pointing to pass, ignoring blue flags. I didn't get a single clear lap in. I was frustrated and irate, and my instructor (Pierce) was, too. He talked to the chief instructor and got me bumped a group into C.
The next two runs were terrific. People were about equally fast, knew the line, were paying attention to other cars on the track, etc. I got to practive my line and smooth transitions, which I could really stand to get better at.
It started to sprinkle as I got in line for the last run. By the time we began, it was a downpour. Tom hopped in to instruct, as Pierce was off looking for a raincoat. Driving in the rain was an interesting experience. I wanted to push it a little, and Tom cautioned me to be very smooth, as anything other than a straight line would not be easy. I found that in the rain, loss of grip is extraordinarily abrupt, and you have no warning. I spun coming out of turn 8 - terminal oversteer - and Tom told me to come in so he could fetch Karl, who he thought could help me push it more intelligently. I like working with Karl, and got no more spins in as he showed me how to push it smoothly and carefully.
All in all, an excellent day; the two dry runs got me comfy with the track again, and the wet run let me face one of my discomforts/fears - driving in the wet. Muy fun.
After the dry runs:
<img src=http://forums.bimmerevolution.com/album_pic.php?pic_id=295>
Dirt all over the wheels after the spin.
<img src=http://forums.bimmerevolution.com/album_pic.php?pic_id=296>
The first run was terrible. There are four groups, A, B, C, D, grouped by experience, and as this was my first non-novice day, I was in group D. People were running horrible lines, were all over the place, not pointing to pass, ignoring blue flags. I didn't get a single clear lap in. I was frustrated and irate, and my instructor (Pierce) was, too. He talked to the chief instructor and got me bumped a group into C.
The next two runs were terrific. People were about equally fast, knew the line, were paying attention to other cars on the track, etc. I got to practive my line and smooth transitions, which I could really stand to get better at.
It started to sprinkle as I got in line for the last run. By the time we began, it was a downpour. Tom hopped in to instruct, as Pierce was off looking for a raincoat. Driving in the rain was an interesting experience. I wanted to push it a little, and Tom cautioned me to be very smooth, as anything other than a straight line would not be easy. I found that in the rain, loss of grip is extraordinarily abrupt, and you have no warning. I spun coming out of turn 8 - terminal oversteer - and Tom told me to come in so he could fetch Karl, who he thought could help me push it more intelligently. I like working with Karl, and got no more spins in as he showed me how to push it smoothly and carefully.
All in all, an excellent day; the two dry runs got me comfy with the track again, and the wet run let me face one of my discomforts/fears - driving in the wet. Muy fun.
After the dry runs:
<img src=http://forums.bimmerevolution.com/album_pic.php?pic_id=295>
Dirt all over the wheels after the spin.
<img src=http://forums.bimmerevolution.com/album_pic.php?pic_id=296>