Thunder Hill

[1MOREMOD]

Originally Posted by PrimeBMW

A bunch of us will drive down this fall. They just started pushing dirt this week for a large addition to the west. They hope to be done early 2014........I will have to head back down for to try out the new track!!

cool im still looking for trailer. featherlights seem little pricey we will see if i sort that out by spring.

[radiantm3]

Originally Posted by USCTrojanMan29

PCA Golden Gate chapter has a 2-day HPDE event at TH this Saturday and Sunday. I'm gonna be up there with my new 18s and NT01s.

PCA GGC drivers are a bunch of pansies based on my experience at their 3 day laguna seca event last year. I was in the intermediate group and almost every porsche on the track was driving miss daisy. I asked if I could move up to the advanced group because they weren't giving point-by's and they just told me I was fine where I was. By the 3rd day there were lots of complaints that the BMW's were driving "way too aggressively" which wasn't the case at all. They just had a bunch of beginner drivers in the intermediate group. They don't seem to like other makes running in their club. It was a very strange event.

Edit: Obviously I'm still pretty bitter about that event and I'm sure there are probably a lot of very fast drivers there, but sticking beginner drivers in an intermediate group and saying our pace is too fast (while not letting us move up) doesn't leave the best impression.

[1MOREMOD]

im not a fan of any of those including BMWCCA. low amount of track time. overly cautious instructors.

[radiantm3]

Originally Posted by 1MOREMOD

im not a fan of any of those including BMWCCA. low amount of track time. overly cautious instructors.

Yea great for instruction though. Its worth nothing that our group was without instructors. Just a point-by group.

[1MOREMOD]

Originally Posted by radiantm3

Yea great for instruction though. Its worth nothing that our group was without instructors. Just a point-by group.

i thought the instructors were poor as well compared to the guys i was used to.

[OC3]

Originally Posted by radiantm3

If that were the case I wouldn't be passing MP4-12C's and a few GTR's left and right. It is a very straight forward track, but there are still tough corners to go fast through. You just have a lot of breathing room in between.

Which corner(s) do you find the trickiest?

[radiantm3]

Originally Posted by OC3

Which corner(s) do you find the trickiest?

All the fast ones and the cork screw.

[OC3]

Originally Posted by radiantm3

All the fast ones and the cork screw.

I was expecting to hear T9... Isn't that where Wayne Rainey died?

[radiantm3]

Originally Posted by OC3

I was expecting to hear T9... Isn't that where Wayne Rainey died?

I've actually got 9 down pretty good. Love that corner. 6 and 8 scare me the most. I'm pretty slow in those because of fear. And I know I can go faster in 3 and 4 but haven't gotten my entry down yet.

[OC3]

Originally Posted by radiantm3

I've actually got 9 down pretty good. Love that corner. 6 and 8 scare me the most. I'm pretty slow in those because of fear. And I know I can go faster in 3 and 4 but haven't gotten my entry down yet.

Cool (T9).

I've run there only once, but I recall T6 as being pretty straightforward? A tight, near-90 degree turn...

[radiantm3]

Originally Posted by OC3

Cool (T9).

I've run there only once, but I recall T6 as being pretty straightforward? A tight, near-90 degree turn...

It's a fast corner with camber in your favor..and a wall right on the inside track. I've seen lots of cars oversteer right into it. I just know I'm going much slower than I could be through there. Most people in my run groups seem to go slow through there as well.

[OC3]

Originally Posted by radiantm3

It's a fast corner with camber in your favor..

Yeah

Originally Posted by radiantm3

and a wall right on the inside track. I've seen lots of cars oversteer right into it.

Ahhh. That's ("oversteer right into it") after they drop a wheel or two on the outside part of the track, yeah?

[radiantm3]

Originally Posted by OC3

Yeah




Ahhh. That's ("oversteer right into it") after they drop a wheel or two on the outside part of the track, yeah?

Yea. I've had to correct steering a few times on the exit of that corner. Always a little nerve racking.

[OC3]

Originally Posted by radiantm3

Yea. I've had to correct steering a few times on the exit of that corner. Always a little nerve racking.

Not sure why. You have good car control.

Cars that run into the inside wall are hook-spinning* by, once they drop a wheel or two on the outside, they stay on the throttle and desperately swing the steering wheel left to get back onto the track. And, when the car does, it finds grip and launches to the inside wall.

It'd be better to either ride it out and gently get back on the track, or stay on the throttle and counter-steer into the slide until the trajectory of the car comes back onto the track, then straighten out.

Anyhow, I viewed your video from March just now and you're nailing T6. If anything, T5 is much faster (but, there's more run-off to the right )...


*(Credit: borrowed some lingos/phrases from Billy Johnson's article on motoiq.com)

[USCTrojanMan29]

Originally Posted by radiantm3

PCA GGC drivers are a bunch of pansies based on my experience at their 3 day laguna seca event last year. I was in the intermediate group and almost every porsche on the track was driving miss daisy. I asked if I could move up to the advanced group because they weren't giving point-by's and they just told me I was fine where I was. By the 3rd day there were lots of complaints that the BMW's were driving "way too aggressively" which wasn't the case at all. They just had a bunch of beginner drivers in the intermediate group. They don't seem to like other makes running in their club. It was a very strange event.

Edit: Obviously I'm still pretty bitter about that event and I'm sure there are probably a lot of very fast drivers there, but sticking beginner drivers in an intermediate group and saying our pace is too fast (while not letting us move up) doesn't leave the best impression.

That's really interesting...I ran with them back in May at Buttonwillow and found them to be faster than guys in the BMW CCA groups. But I can see how some of them don't do point-bys because of the egos of having an expensive car. You should have just registered in the advanced group as it's not easy to move up groups in PCA events.

[radiantm3]

Originally Posted by USCTrojanMan29

That's really interesting...I ran with them back in May at Buttonwillow and found them to be faster than guys in the BMW CCA groups. But I can see how some of them don't do point-bys because of the egos of having an expensive car. You should have just registered in the advanced group as it's not easy to move up groups in PCA events.

BMWCCA tends to run at a slow page as well. I've done open passing a few times and it's hit or miss for me. I had guys get their front wheels near my back wheels on the inside entry of turn 1 at thunderhill preparing to pass me but looked as if they might get side by side through it. Totally threw me off my line and I went off into the dirt. Just not quite comfortable with really impatient time trial guys who need to get 1 foot away from my car on a corner entry. I tend to stay in point by groups so there's a bigger chance of me driving my car home at the end of the day.

I think it just proves that I'm not ready nor am I an advanced driver.

[USCTrojanMan29]

Originally Posted by radiantm3

BMWCCA tends to run at a slow page as well. I've done open passing a few times and it's hit or miss for me. I had guys get their front wheels near my back wheels on the inside entry of turn 1 at thunderhill preparing to pass me but looked as if they might get side by side through it. Totally threw me off my line and I went off into the dirt. Just not quite comfortable with really impatient time trial guys who need to get 1 foot away from my car on a corner entry. I tend to stay in point by groups so there's a bigger chance of me driving my car home at the end of the day.

I think it just proves that I'm not ready nor am I an advanced driver.

You know, even when I'm ready for the advanced group I will probably stick around in the highest intermediate group where point-bys are required. I'm not a give fan of open passing as all it takes it that one guy who thinks he's racing for money/pride/whatever to cause some serious damage. I'm a mid-intermediate level now and when I do polish my skills more then I'll take a step back in terms of speed and turn off traction/stability control and really learn how to drive the car.

[Z K]

Originally Posted by radiantm3

I've actually got 9 down pretty good. Love that corner. 6 and 8 scare me the most. I'm pretty slow in those because of fear. And I know I can go faster in 3 and 4 but haven't gotten my entry down yet.

I hate turn 9. It throws you outward and feels like you're going to go off. I always slow down in that section.

Here is me hanging on T8a in 2001. 2nd time at Laguna back then.

[USCTrojanMan29]

So this was my first time out at Thunderhill as well as on 18s with NT01s. First session I was just getting comfortable with the track, especially turns 5 and 9. My PCA instructor timed me on my final 5th session of the day when it was 98 degrees and I ran a 2:12 with only a little traffic (in the student group). I got signed off to the intermediate group so I'm hoping to run a 2:10 or lower in the morning sessions driving solo tomorrow. As for the NT01s....WOW, talk about grip for hours. I went in too hot into turn 11 and 14 a few times and the instructor hold me the NT01s came in handy.

[USCTrojanMan29]

Ran a 2:09 in my first session. I recorded my session on my Iphone via Harry's Track map but how do you dump the video onto a PC?

[radiantm3]

Nice! Bypass or Cyclone?

[USCTrojanMan29]

Originally Posted by radiantm3

Nice! Bypass or Cyclone?

We had the Cyclone configuration...here's the video from my fastest lap on Sunday (2:08.5). I still need to work on finding the right placement for the Iphone.