A new direction for me in 2014

[DaleTx]

Bill… I think it’s great that you and Ron have raised the issue of safety for pro-touring cars running on road courses. I started out driving my pro-touring car on road courses by joining a local sports car club, and then entering HPDE (high performance driver education) events. The car club that I joined requires that first time drivers complete 2 hours of classroom training before being allowed to drive on the road course… then they are limited to 85 MPH on the track.

Also... they are required to have a certified instructor ride along for the first couple of events. When a driver has gained experience, and prove they can drive safely on the track, then they are issued a certificate of completion for driver education and allowed to “Solo” on the road course. I have been running with this club for several years and have never seen anyone get hurt or have a bad accident. I would recommend for those interested to get on the track, to seek out a local sports car club and run some HPDE events to get the basics.

Most of the guys that are regulars at the HPDE events typically have installed 4 point roll bars, and 5 point seat belts at a minimum, and wear extra protective gear. I plan to make more safety improvements on my car before next season from what I have learned here recently. Thanks again for raising the safety awareness level.

How to put on a safe event is a tough issue for sure. It seems like there might need to be different classes based on car set up, safety features, and driver experience. It's a great sport and I hope to see it continue to grow. I look forward to seeing what you come up with for rules.

[ironworks]

Bill, I'm glad to see you stand up and do the right thing even if it does not put money in your pocket. I have been saying this for a while that Pro-touring was going to end up being a feeder circuit into real racing arenas. All these cars are getting lighter and lighter and people are getting more and more horsepower. But when the rulebook will allow you to race a track at race speeds in a long sleeve shirt and an open face helmet at some point this is going to haunt someone.

The guys with AC and power windows are the first to point out a guy that has the same horsepower and 300 less lbs as that is not a street car. Well the guy drove it here on the highway and I guess he is just tougher then you because he says he does not need AC. But it is still a street car, just like a rigid chopper is still a motorcycle even if it is hard to drive.

These events need to be fun. Most people are not going to be able to compete with some of these people who compete in these events. Some are national autocross champions a few times over. Not to say the next champion cannot be born, but some of these guys and girls are really really good, Let's be realistic.

Something to consider is doing events that are designed for different skill levels and you cannot move up until you master the lower slower events and have a capable car.

As an example I have been looking at doing some desert racing with a friend and customer of mine. I went and helped pit crew a few weeks ago and had a great time and would love to just jump right in and race the Best In The Desert races or Baja 1000 right off but first off you have to have a safe and capable car like this.



But just like Pro-touring in order to do that your going to take all the family function out of it. Or in this case the street car out of it. I still want to be able to take it to the sand and use it with my family for fun on the weekends. But the springs are set up for speed through the whoopps which makes it no fun unless your hauling ass. Plus climbing over the door bars and straping into 5 point harness's gets old but you have to wear it or risk banging your head on the roll cage and getting metal plates in your head like Kenny Davis. So like Greg said then you end up having multiple cars one for going down the highway and one for Going warp speed at Laguna. The problem is most of us cannot afford both, Heck we can barely afford one.

I think so great ideas would be to also just get out of our street cars and spend some weekends driving other stuff. Like setting up large groups that go to go kart schools, or other events where the car is provided and the environment is controlled. Use these things to gain skills to move up the ladder. You will never be a good driver if you can only drive one thing. You have to learn to adapt.

[71RS/SS396]

Originally Posted by Matt.A

We talk a lot about putting in cone chicanes and taking steps to keep speeds down in an attempt to keep things safer, as I think we should, but the one thing I'm more curious about is how well labelled the tracks are in regard to braking zones. None of the events I've attended have had any cones laid out for braking distances, which is something you tend to find at most other track events and every driving school I've ever attended. In my opinion every one of the pro touring events should have clear braking distance indicators because the majority of drivers have never driven the track and won't be able to memorize each corner after 5 parade laps. There are points and bragging rights associated with setting a fast time. Everyone wants to get the most out of their car that they feel they're capable of. I've never seen anyone drive without making a mistake at some point during the weekend, and that goes back to why safety has been a big concern, but I say there is more to track safety than just safety equipment and we should work creating the safest overall environment that provides the largest margin for error so that drivers hopefully never even come close to having to rely on their safety equipment.

Matt, I think RTTC is at unique location and that's why there's no brake markers (not that there shouldn't be). I've been to every other ASCS event and it's been at a real road course except RTTH which has no road course part of the event so there's been brake markers.

[Matt@BOS]

Originally Posted by 71RS/SS396

Matt, I think RTTC is at unique location and that's why there's no brake markers (not that there shouldn't be). I've been to every other ASCS event and it's been at a real road course except RTTH which has no road course part of the event so there's been brake markers.

I figured some of them had to, but I wasn't sure. RTTC didn't, which surprised me a little, but I figured it was a bit of an anomaly since it was set up on an old air field. What surprised me though was that all of the cones around the 2.3 mile track at Spring Mountain were removed when we ran Optima. If you were to go there on any given day they would have all of the "helper" reference points set up unless they were running part of their level three advanced class. I certainly hope that won't be the norm at the USCA events but I had to start wondering.