Road Racing for the first time, any tips?

[COBRA427]

Scottj :

The way you drive, that sawzall is a good investment.

[mrmustang]

Jamo hit the nail on the head with his post. Safety is paramount, tech your car before you get to the track, fix whatever might be questionable. SNELL helmet (full face) a must, do not buy one online, get it fit locally, and as others have already said, get rid of the drag radials, they are not for road racing.Purchase a set of Z rated street tires for now, they will last you longer than you will be on the track that day/weekend.


Road racing is not about how fast you can make it around the road course, but how smooth and consistent you can do it lap after lap.

This is what I have told my students in the past:

This is not a race!!!!! This is an open track HPDE event.


Pretend you are driving on ice, make small input changes at a time, think ahead and do everything in slow motion. Again consistency is what you are looking for right now as a newbie, the faster lap times will come later as you gain more experience.

Since this is your first time out on a road course, do not expect to be perfect, if you get yourself in to a spin, remember this phrase "when in a spin, two feet in". Clutch & brakes, forget about the accelerator pedal when spinning.

Finally, when you go to your orientation class, pay attention, listen to everything the instructor is telling you. Do not think you know better than they do because you don't.


Have fun, take pictures, come back and tells us how you did.


Bill S.

[Jimbocobra]

To All:
Thanks. Had the car looked over and found some loose bolts on the half shaft. We tightened everything. I am putting in some Nitto NT05 street tires on the rear and pulled the drag radials off, added oil to the engine, packed tools and aforementioned supplies. I'll take it easy and learn as I go. I appreciate all of the suggestions. You have all already helped tremendously.