Quote:
Originally Posted by chili cheese
Aus, what would you say the fun factor is at Buttonwillow? Does it blow AAA away?
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I live 30 minutes away from California, er, AAA Speedway but have done far more laps at Buttonwillow since my folks live 35 minutes away from Buttonwillow and I never have to pay for hotel room. Either way, I've spent a ton of time and laps on both tracks.
They each have their allure. And they have one thing in common. They both eat up brakes like crazy. You wouldn't think it at Buttonwillow, since on paper it appears slow...er. There's no giant mile long straight. But there's THREE places where you're pressing the brake as hard as you were going from the oval to the infield at Buttonwillow, vs. two at California Speedway. Obviously, if you like "speed," there are very few places in United States where you can achieve the same sort of speed like California Speedway.
My perspective is a little skewed, of course. My very first track event is at Buttonwillow so I'm very fond of that place. In my opinion, it's the second most technical track on the West Coast, just slightly behind Sears Point (in that Sears Point has more elevation changes) and ever so slightly ahead of Thunderhill. It's technical in that there's maybe 2 places where your hands aren't moving one way or another. And the fastest portion of the track isn't on a straight away (well, the "straight" after the exit of the esses isn't really that long). It's phenomenal in that once you get the rhythm of the track, it's about as rewarding as any track you'll ever come across...But finding that rhythm is not easy, since the track has combinations of increasing and decreasing radius tracks, turns that follow each other immediately without straights, high speed stuff, low speed stuff, on camber turns and off camber turns, and even some blind turns.
It is also what I called "the great equalizer," since this is a track where you will be as likely to be eaten up by a miata or a Z06. A car with POWER and handling will do great, but only in the hands of the right driver. This is where DRIVER really shines.
The fact that it's a two day school will also make it 100X more rewarding on the learning and driving part.