Chuckwalla Valley Raceway (CCW) oh shit moments 05.12.2012

[Adriansideways]

This last vid is much better good driving mate your getting the feel carry on like this and youre be right up with the best lap-times. Perhaps try to clip your apex slightly more but for the rest well done!

[Car54]

Originally Posted by OC3

What exactly is pinching an exit?

Once you turn in...with one decisive turn...the car takes a set, and loads up the springs however the car is setup...once the car has taken a set...you should only be focused on throttle control and unwinding the wheel. Adding anymore steering input is very upsetting to the car since the car is compressed in it's own percentages of weight transfer.

There was an awesome scene from Top Gear when Jackie Stewart is teaching Capt Slow about weight transfer and is pushing him.

Off to youtube...brb.

[Car54]

You should watch the whole thing if you haven't seen it already. The point I'm making starts at 6:40.

[DerekSelmanRacing]

Although I do see issues with the technique, this car seems awfully loose to me. What is the tire type, cold pressures (f&r) and hot pressures (f&r)?

I was instructing in a Mustang recently at BW. We dropped hot pressures from about 40 to 36 on street tires (Goodyear F1, I think) and the difference was huge. Car felt much more predictable and stuck although we were not doing lap times.

joel

[OC3]

Originally Posted by Adriansideways

This last vid is much better good driving mate your getting the feel carry on like this and youre be right up with the best lap-times. Perhaps try to clip your apex slightly more but for the rest well done!

Thanks. I think perhaps posting a video containing nothing for 'oh shit' moments made an impressions that that happens in every corner of every session at every track.

10-4 re: clip the apex more.

Originally Posted by Car54

Once you turn in...with one decisive turn...the car takes a set, and loads up the springs however the car is setup...once the car has taken a set...you should only be focused on throttle control and unwinding the wheel. Adding anymore steering input is very upsetting to the car since the car is compressed in it's own percentages of weight transfer.

There was an awesome scene from Top Gear when Jackie Stewart is teaching Capt Slow about weight transfer and is pushing him.

Off to youtube...brb.

10-4

Originally Posted by DerekSelmanRacing

Although I do see issues with the technique, this car seems awfully loose to me. What is the tire type, cold pressures (f&r) and hot pressures (f&r)?

I was instructing in a Mustang recently at BW. We dropped hot pressures from about 40 to 36 on street tires (Goodyear F1, I think) and the difference was huge. Car felt much more predictable and stuck although we were not doing lap times.

joel

R-S3. When cold in the morning, I release the pressure (cold) to 28 or 29 psi, and after a few laps, it reaches or is around 38 psi hot. And, I try to keep them 38 psi hot throughout the day, except 36 or 37 psi hot at the front corner that's doing majority of the work (i.e. at CCW configuration, the front passenger side).

[OC3]

Thought I'd post some

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[OC3]

10 moar

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[OC3]

Almost done

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[OC3]

Last batch

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[CanAutM3]

I find a square set-up makes the car nice and neutral by removing the annoying M3 understeer. However, with a neutral car you do need to balance front to rear weight transfer much more while driving.

You are developing great reflexes at catching the car. However, you should not be losing it that often...

Looking at the vids, I am getting the impression that you are too eager on the throttle with the wheel turned in. As a general principle, if you can't unwind the steering wheel, then you should not apply more throttle.

You should maybe slow down just a little to try to focus on bringing more precision to your driving line. You are missing quite a few apexes and not using the whole track at track out. When the precision is there, progressively increase the pace.

Just my impressions from the vid, tough to say without actually sitting in the car.

Your humility, open mind and eagerness to learn will make you a great driver in no time. Kudos to you.

[aus]

Are there any corner workers?

And you can see the tail step out right when you hear the throttle pick up a little mid turn.

[OC3]

Originally Posted by CanAutM3

I find a square set-up makes the car nice and neutral by removing the annoying M3 understeer. However, with a neutral car you do need to balance front to rear weight transfer much more while driving.

You are developing great reflexes at catching the car. However, you should not be losing it that often...

Looking at the vids, I am getting the impression that you are too eager on the throttle with the wheel turned in. As a general principle, if you can't unwind the steering wheel, then you should not apply more throttle.

You should maybe slow down just a little to try to focus on bringing more precision to your driving line. You are missing quite a few apexes and not using the whole track at track out. When the precision is there, progressively increase the pace.

Just my impressions from the vid, tough to say without actually sitting in the car.

Your humility, open mind and eagerness to learn will make you a great driver in no time. Kudos to you.

Turns out, turn 7 (where I had the most slides) is a turn with decreasing radius (hard to see in that angular map I posted). In the afternoon sessions, I started turning in later and stopped sliding. Same with turn 16 - stopped getting squirrly once I started turning in later.

And, this ties into (per The_HACK) looking further down the track (i.e. the trackout you want to get to) which hasn't yet become second nature. If I do that consistently, I would be turning into the correct point in the apex, at the right time, won't need to correct/pinch the apex and would get farther out to trackout (use all the track).

But, yeah, perhaps I should slow down a bit. Driving in MDM makes you sort of fearless and let's you push things. Those who're familiar with Big Willow's turn 9... I felt invincible there in MDM, lulz.

Originally Posted by aus

Are there any corner workers?

Yeah, there were corner workers. In the spin/off footage at turn 7, you see 2 Porsches coming into the scene around a flag station - there's a corner worker waving a flag.

Originally Posted by aus

And you can see the tail step out right when you hear the throttle pick up a little mid turn.

Yeah. I got on the throttle before unwinding the steering wheel, which in part were caused by turning in too early (as stated above).

I gotta get in the habit of looking further out at where I want to wind up at (track out), turn in where I can unwind quicker, and (per video Jackie Stewart video posted by Car54) don't get on the gas 'til I know I can go full throttle and not reign it in in mid-throttle.

So many things to work on!

[wwjd15]

I see the king of MDM slowly becoming master of DSC off

[OC3]

Originally Posted by wwjd15

I see the king of MDM slowly becoming master of DSC off

Thanks Ricky!

[aus]

I read an article where even race at drivers now rely on electronic aids to go fast now. When they downsidt, they just bang on the paddle repeatedly since it won't over rev and same with the throttle on exit because traction control will control your exit throttle.

I have trouble with squeezing the throttle on track out too. One instructor said you're just curling your toes to add a tiny bit of throttle.
OP, you have to let HACK ride shotgun with you some day. He'll help smooth things out and look up. But he maybe a big wig now and not ride shotgun anymore.

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[OC3]

Originally Posted by aus

I read an article where even race at drivers now rely on electronic aids to go fast now. When they downsidt, they just bang on the paddle repeatedly since it won't over rev and same with the throttle on exit because traction control will control your exit throttle..

I guess on some levels, nothin' wrong w/ using technology to your advantage.

Originally Posted by aus

I have trouble with squeezing the throttle on track out too. One instructor said you're just curling your toes to add a tiny bit of throttle.
OP, you have to let HACK ride shotgun with you some day. He'll help smooth things out and look up. But he maybe a big wig now and not ride shotgun anymore.

.

Re: Hack, yeah but too bad I can't do weekday track events...

[Car54]

There's no tower or tree or light pole or hill to remind yourself to look at.

Best advice for looking ahead I've heard and relayed is to practice it on the street.

Say you're taking one of these 1/2 mile long bends or a super long exit ramp. Force (and I mean force) yourself to pick up your eyes and look way out...like as far as you can see. Put everything under a straight line extended out from your roundel logo and don't let your eyes focus on anything below it. You'll be amazed how little you have to look down and how you can drive around a 1/2 mile bend with a single input on the steering wheel.

In the meantime, brush up on your soft eyes exercises.

Courtesy of Tarheel BMW CCA
http://www.tarheelbmwcca.org/track.html

Soft Eyes Practice

Begin the exercise by staring with "hard eyes" looking directly AT the central dot of the center spiral. Everything stops moving....
Now, "soften" your eyes, looking AT nothing, but seeing the whole. The spirals begin to whirl. Practice stopping and restarting the movement until you can "see" every spiral
spinning at the same time. Now you know the eye muscles to use to enable you to "look at nothing, but see everything"!

[The HACK]

Originally Posted by OC3

Re: Hack, yeah but too bad I can't do weekday track events...

I'm in talks with Spring Mountain in Pahrump for a weekend event later this year.

[JC919]

M3s like oppo, give the car what it wants.

[chili cheese]

OC3, what group were you running with here?

[chili cheese]

Originally Posted by The HACK

I'm in talks with Spring Mountain in Pahrump for a weekend event later this year.

Yes yes yes! We're waiting!

OC3 you need the BMWCCA Driving School to help fix these issues.

[OC3]

Originally Posted by The HACK

I'm in talks with Spring Mountain in Pahrump for a weekend event later this year.

I'll be there.

Originally Posted by JC919

M3s like oppo, give the car what it wants.

oppo?

Originally Posted by chili cheese

OC3, what group were you running with here?

Star Car Sports. The same guys who own the track.