So I finally went and participated in my first SCCA Solo event and had a great time!
There were a lot of nice people who put up with me not knowing how the grid works and everything
I think I ended up being 102nd out of 131, I need lots more practice, the guys on race tires were over 10 seconds faster then me, so I know I can do a lot better, I'm on kumho XS tires right now..
I don't know how much you can tell from the video, but feel free to give me pointers, I obviously need help

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Looks like you got pretty late in the slalom, other than that I had a tough time seeing what was going on in the video. Your first year or two of autocross is going to be all about practice though. Get rides with as many other people as possible, find the instructors in your region and have them ride with you, and go to any schools they do in your region!

Also, welcome to the addiction

 

I'm going to be the autox noob buddy today.

1st off, congrats! Great job. Just getting though a hectic day successfully your first time out is a win. Wanting to go back is a double win.

Best way to get better is to take a school. My region puts one on every year before the first event. Lots of runs with an instructor - invaluable experience and advice. I attended three years in a row.

Top 3 things they will tell you, aka the common newb bible:

Look ahead. It's one of the toughest things to get someone to do, but the most important. Most newer people keep their eyes down, and try to get the car between the cones their at. Looking ahead means you get between the cones your at - at the right spot, speed and angle to make the next set of cones.

Slow in fast out. Cars can brake way better than they can accelerate. The trick to being fast is to get on the gas early. You can't do that if you're going into the turns too hard. I don't have audio on my work computer to tell what you are doing in the car, but I will say that 99% of the students I have had charge into most corners way too hard, upset the heck out of the car mid turn, and come out like a turtle.

Brake harder, later. Works with the above very well. As I tell people, keep it floored until you see Jesus, then wail 'em. Don't slam, but squeeze the heck out of your brakes. They work really well. You'll be shocked. No newb I've ever driven with gets the brakes enough.

Other than that, ride with good drivers, have good drivers ride with you. Try things, and note what works, what doesn't, and why. Keep note how close you are to other people in similar cars, so you can track your progress. Read, watch, and learn as much as possible. Have patience, it's a hard thing to learn.

And most important - have fun. If you lose focus of why you went your first time, step back and reassess the situation.

 

I didn't feel that I was going fast enough to wail on the brakes, I could be remembering it wrong, but I think for the most part I just lifted (varying degrees) or tapped the brakes before getting back on the throttle through the turn. The whole course was in 2nd gear

I know there were a few corners where I was going too slow, or not having the throttle open far enough coming out (being cautious) ..

The slalom felt like i was turning too wide, maybe if I'd turned in a little sooner (looked like I blew by it a little to me too) I could have gone faster ..

oh about the audio.. I had the radio with the announcer on so I could hear my times, its kinda loud (the cam was next to the speakers lol) so not sure if you can hear any engine noise.

I'll definitely look for a solo school, great idea! thanks!

I should buy me some cones and practice the slalom somewhere deserted

 

Burglar has it right: Look ahead look ahead look ahead! You should always be looking 3 or more elements ahead of the one you're driving through/toward. An instructor once gave me a great quote and I'll pass it along:

As I go around the course I like to ask myself "Am I at full throttle? If not, why?" If you're not at full throttle, you should be braking or giving the car maintenance throttle while turning.

This is especially true for our cars, we really don't engine brake very well and our normal brakes kick ***. You can engage the ABS stopping from 20mph in a straight line on dry pavement if you want to. Definitely go to a solo or performance driving school, they're completely worth it. The Porsche club out here puts on a school every month (and that's where the quote is from) and among their stations is a braking exercise. They make you get up to 60mph then slam on the brakes and stop in one of two lanes to either side so that you're forced to steer while in ABS. You'll be amazed how much you can still do while in ABS.

And I can't say this enough: Get rides! A, it's really fun to get a ride in a Z06 vette around an autocross course and B, 10 seconds doesn't sound like very much, but the top people in most regions are battling by .1's if not .01's of a second and the amount of work it takes to knock 1 second off an experienced autocrosser's time is astronomical.

The Solo schools they do out here, they let an instructor drive your car around with you as a passenger once or twice and man will it blow your mind. The first time an instructor did that with my car they knocked 8 seconds off my time and it was incredible how much faster and harder they were everywhere. And that 8 seconds was with him braking early for a turn around where he got surprised by how awesome our brakes are

 

My first suggestion would be to turn off the radio..lol....too distracting...

 

lol... its really loud because the cam is mounted right next to the speakers... I don't even remember hearing it until I got to the finish line..
I was having a hard time finding out how I did in the morning or if I hit cones or anything.. having immediate feedback on how I did was worth it to me.

about riding with other people... we only get 6 runs, will they mind having another 200lbs in the car?

 

I know its the end of the season this year, but next season try WCMC maybe... last one of theirs I went to, we go 15 runs in, so its easier to get somone to ride along

 

I've heard nothing but good things about the WCMC autocross events, I've been meaning to go but they always seemed to coincide with midwestern council track events.. but WCMC has a lot of events at maywood park, only a couple miles from my house, very convenient I'll definitely try to be there, 6 runs were kind of disappointing to me.

 

6 - 75 second runs?!?!? I'm so jealous. 4 - 45 second runs is common for us.

 

The biggest problem I can see is that there's no one in the passenger seat. Get an experienced autocrosser to ride with you as often as they're willing and give pointers -- they'll be much more able to offer useful suggestions than anyone on the internet watching a video will be.

 

After watching the video I was going to tell you that following your eyes, you were just looking from cone to cone, gate to gate. But it seems that everyone else has covered it already.

When you are walking the course, look ahead as you will while you are driving it. When you are in the car, before, during, and after the run, tell yourself out loud "LOOK AHEAD" trust me it will help, your steering imputs will be much smoother and by looking ahead you will know where your brakeing poings will be long before you get there, also by looking ahead you will be able to get back on the gas much earlier.

Here watch this video and see how I progressed each run with The first run being a 48.0, followed by a 47.2, 45.9 and finishing with a 45.5 Putting me 23rd out of 176 drivers.

http://vimeo.com/7017778

 

how did you mount the camera?

but man...that looked like a lot of fun.

 

I have a Motorsports Hero and it has a suction cup that mounts to any hard surface.

 

wow, not what I expected. Seems cheap too.

 

Wow awesome video topgear8, thanks for sharing!
you're right, I was looking from gate to gate, that's how I walked the course...
"ok after this gate, I want to set up here so I'll be in the right spot for that gate"

I appreciate all the input I guess we have a bit of a concensus..
1. ride along with others
2. get people to ride with me
3. look ahead

and something I noticed in yours and a few other videos posted here in the last week (at least) my steering inputs aren't like yours.. so maybe i'm not being aggressive enough, not driving close enough to the limit.

BigBacon.. if you're asking about my camera mount, it's copied from the DIY forum here, it uses the child seat bolts behind the rear seats, there are little plastic latches, combined with some cheap aluminum from home depot makes for a very solid mount.
https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.p...Y+camera+mount

and yeah.. it was GREAT, I can't wait to go back for more.

 

Should have called me up. I could have helped you through the process of getting setup for the race and given you pointers on the track.
The first event of the season for Chicago SCCA is a driving school. In March, look at the regions website for registration info. The class room session will help you through registration, car prep, tech and all the pre-race procedure. For the track session, you will be observed by instructors that have your car or something similar and will provide you with tips on dropping your times.

 

I don't have your number Al
really the only thing that was different from what I'm "used to" (started in april with track events lol) was how the grid was set up, everything is really straightforward and logical..

as for dropping my times, I'll take all the help I can get, I'll keep posting on Evolv where I'm going to be, you (and anyone else) is welcome to ride-along..
and I'll definitely take any rides if you happen to be competing too. You guys all have a LOT of experience, why not benefit from it..

ps. why o why wasn't I doing this the second I got my license so much wasted time..