First Track Day Experience

[SonnyJack]

I had my first track day experience this past weekend and I had a blast! Traveled to Dominion Raceway in Thornburg, Va. for a track version of autocross. Ran for about a mile of track distance. The weather was sunny and upper 50's by the afternoon, but I'm curious how much grip would be improved in warmer temps? I didn't feel like I lost anything under hard braking, but under heavy acceleration it was clearly evident that traction was lacking. Looking forward to HPDE next month.

I'm running RE-11's 275/30/19F & 305/30/19R

Thanks!

[SYT_Shadow]

Congratulations on your first day! This car is really fun to track, be careful as it's a terrible addiction!

[dparm]

Originally Posted by SonnyJack

I had my first track day experience this past weekend and I had a blast! Traveled to Dominion Raceway in Thornburg, Va. for a track version of autocross. Ran for about a mile of track distance. The weather was sunny and upper 50's by the afternoon, but I'm curious how much grip would be improved in warmer temps? I didn't feel like I lost anything under hard braking, but under heavy acceleration it was clearly evident that traction was lacking. Looking forward to HPDE next month.

I'm running RE-11's 275/30/19F & 305/30/19R

Thanks!

Welcome to the addiction!

Ambient air temp isn't as big of a deal as the pavement temp. As you start pushing the car harder, exploring its limits, you will start to notice how warm pavement makes a big difference.

[eatsleepboost]

I have never done a track day in any car. I am very curious as to how I would get started. How do you find where these races are done local to you, any training course, beginners only, etc?? Is there a thread where I can find this information.

Curious how you got started SonnyJack and others

[PGas32]

Originally Posted by eatsleepboost

I have never done a track day in any car. I am very curious as to how I would get started. How do you find where these races are done local to you, any training course, beginners only, etc?? Is there a thread where I can find this information.

Curious how you got started SonnyJack and others

Go to motorsportreg.com and search for Drivers Ed events near you. There are plenty of groups to choose from, but you won't go wrong with a BMWCCA or PCA event. They both offer plenty of instruction and provide skilled instructors for novices. Have a competent shop look your car over beforehand, and make sure you have plenty of life left on your brakes and tires

Oh, and it's drivers education, not racing...that's a whole 'nother ballgame

[SonnyJack]

Originally Posted by PGas32

Go to motorsportreg.com and search for Drivers Ed events near you. There are plenty of groups to choose from, but you won't go wrong with a BMWCCA or PCA event. They both offer plenty of instruction and provide skilled instructors for novices. Have a competent shop look your car over beforehand, and make sure you have plenty of life left on your brakes and tires

Oh, and it's drivers education, not racing...that's a whole 'nother ballgame

This is exatly how I found Dominion. Great site! And yes, the tech inspection was required priot to the event I attended. Wasn't difficult or time consuming. Just went to my local shop, gave them the inspection sheet, and they took care of everything. Couldn't have been easier.

[SDPLV]

Originally Posted by eatsleepboost

I have never done a track day in any car. I am very curious as to how I would get started. How do you find where these races are done local to you, any training course, beginners only, etc?? Is there a thread where I can find this information.

Curious how you got started SonnyJack and others

I was just about to ask this same thing and start a new thread. Glad someone else asked first. Subscribed!

[dparm]

Originally Posted by eatsleepboost

I have never done a track day in any car. I am very curious as to how I would get started. How do you find where these races are done local to you, any training course, beginners only, etc?? Is there a thread where I can find this information.

Curious how you got started SonnyJack and others

It's not racing. Sorry to be pedantic, but these are not timed/competitive events with people jockeying for position and points.

Using the term "racing" while at one of these HPDEs (high-performance driver education) will get you yelled at because it's a red flag that you have the wrong mentality and could be a liability. Howso? Because when you see a car ahead of you on the track or someone coming up from behind, and you think you are "racing", you might make an error in judgment and do something that results in an accident or off-track excursion. I see this in beginners a few times each season, and they usually end up getting asked to leave because they drive aggressively and erratically thinking that they have something to prove. And to be clear, I even see this in intermediate and advanced groups: I'll catch up to someone, they get flustered or annoyed, try to dive a little bit deeper into the braking zone to lose me, then almost end up in the grass. In other words, don't be the guy in this Mustang:

The point of an HPDE is to focus on learning your car's limits and to improve your own skills, not to outrun some other guy.

Again, sorry to come off as harsh about this, but it's a key point that sometimes isn't explained very clearly. I am 100% in favor of people participating in HPDEs and am glad to hear you've taken an interest in it!

[eatsleepboost]

Great clarification guys. Just what I was looking for thanks. I also kept seeing hpde but didn't know what that meant.

[Estoril Blue]

Originally Posted by dparm

......

In other words, don't be the guy in this Mustang:[/u]

Actually - don't be either driver. The comic driving the car behind was being very clever - right up to the point where the Mustang slid off track - and the car behind began following him.

[dparm]

Originally Posted by Estoril Blue

Actually - don't be either driver. The comic driving the car behind was being very clever - right up to the point where the Mustang slid off track - and the car behind began following him.

True. I always cringe when I see him start to drive TOWARDS the Mustang that just went into the grass. Rookie mistake and one of the first things I learned when I went for instruction....basically the same idea of "look where you want to go".

[eatsleepboost]

Yea I have done some motorcycle training and the look where you want to go is the biggest thing they stress.

[WarrantyTracker]

SonnyJack, you owe it to yourself to check out some of the events run by Founders Region PCA and BMW NCC CCA at Summit Point. Just plan on registering early if you want to get in.

Your tires are good and known for being very grippy and extremely responsive. On an E92 M3, the cooler temps are not a big difference traction-wise from warmer track surfaces. The ones you're using can get a tad slippery over the course of a session on hot days. I don't use them on my E92 because I wear them out too quickly, but that's a budget thing.

[ricardofors68]

Tomorrow is my 1st hpde and I'll be checking myself for these things, great points made here.

[Candide13]

Originally Posted by dparm

True. I always cringe when I see him start to drive TOWARDS the Mustang that just went into the grass. Rookie mistake and one of the first things I learned when I went for instruction....basically the same idea of "look where you want to go".

I think he was alright; he was going slowly at that stage and didn't want to miss anything about his nemesis's off..I read somewhere that these are brothers, btw. Easily one of the most entertaining track videos..

More instructive is that prior to the off the Mustang missed every apex by a country mile..

[SonnyJack]

Originally Posted by WarrantyTracker

SonnyJack, you owe it to yourself to check out some of the events run by Founders Region PCA and BMW NCC CCA at Summit Point. Just plan on registering early if you want to get in.

Your tires are good and known for being very grippy and extremely responsive. On an E92 M3, the cooler temps are not a big difference traction-wise from warmer track surfaces. The ones you're using can get a tad slippery over the course of a session on hot days. I don't use them on my E92 because I wear them out too quickly, but that's a budget thing.

Much appreciated! Exactly what I was looking for!

I had originally figured I would go to Summit Point, but that's 3+hours for me and Dominion is only 1.5 hours. Perhaps as I progress I'll venture out further.

Thanks again!

[dnoble37]

I'm glad I stumbled into this thread. I didnt realize thornburg is so close to me. I recently moved to VA. Looking at Motorsport reg I could get to thornburg or Garysburg nc without too much trouble. Maybe later in the year I'll run into you. I've been autocrossing for a while. I have the itch to get on track.

[SonnyJack]

Originally Posted by dnoble37

I'm glad I stumbled into this thread. I didnt realize thornburg is so close to me. I recently moved to VA. Looking at Motorsport reg I could get to thornburg or Garysburg nc without too much trouble. Maybe later in the year I'll run into you. I've been autocrossing for a while. I have the itch to get on track.

Outstanding! Several of the guys I ran with at Dominion had been autocrossing for years and said the track version was much more fun. Primarily due to the racing surface and having no "cone duty."