Something new....Formula Mazda...
09-20-2007, 11:27 PM
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Something new....Formula Mazda...
I get to drove a Star Formula Mazda tomorrow...
...I'll let you know how slow I can go in it...
....but it feels like the night before Christmas
...I'll let you know how slow I can go in it...
....but it feels like the night before Christmas
09-20-2007, 11:31 PM
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I hate you already.
09-21-2007, 12:10 AM
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Very fun... what year?
Bryan Watts has a nice one for sale, one of the older pro Mazda cars. A 1998 I think
Bryan Watts has a nice one for sale, one of the older pro Mazda cars. A 1998 I think
09-21-2007, 12:24 AM
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I did the Russell droving school 3 years ago. The last session of the last day we got to use the Mazdas from the advanced class, with a very low rev limit. Those cars are a blast.
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09-21-2007, 12:47 PM
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You will be ruined. Have fun and see if they will crank in full downforce - that makes these things much easier to drive - reduces the 'dead spot' as you loose mechanical grip before aero grip comes in.
09-21-2007, 03:01 PM
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Tape some padding/spacers on the back of your helmet. That way, when you go full throttle, you won't have to strain to hold your head upright - just rest it against the HANS or bulkhead behind you.
09-23-2007, 10:20 PM
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HO…..LEE…..S**T!!!!!!!
I have taken a hit from the crack pipe to end all crack pipes!!! And it was good, damn good. The last two days have been consumed by planning, plotting, lusting, obsessing to figure out how I get another hit.
The short story is I brought 20 folks that I work with to the local track for some karting, autocross and some hot laps. During the day one of the local racing teams was running a program with their Formula Mazda’s and I got seven laps. After getting my check ride with an instructor in my car, they strapped me into the finest work of art I have seen sitting on pavement.
Now, before I describe anything further I need to set the expectations. I have been tracking my car since May 2006. Before that …zip. I have about 20 track days. So there is no way I would be in a position to explore the limits of this car. My goal was not to embarrass myself, get around the track a little quicker than I would in my car…and of course not puke before I stepped into it.
So…on with our story. I get strapped into this oversized go-kart (and I mean that in only a positive way!!). My first sensation is being EXTREMELY low to the ground and being reclined in a position that, at first, feels unnatural but then quickly evolves into a feeling of sleekness. You feel as though your position is adding to the aerodynamics of the car as you would naturally do as a kid leaning forward on your bike.
The cockpit is small and narrow. EVERYTHING is within a palms distance from your hands. The wheel is small but in the perfect position.
So the briefing begins…
“Flip this switch down to engage the ignition system…two taps on the pedal…and push the black button”…comes this voice from outside my helmet.
Next the sequential…”pull it back smartly to up shift, push it forward very smartly to downshift…you will almost have to bang it to get it to downshift”….”got it”, I say thinking (shouldn’t there be a 1 hour lesson on how to start this…please tell me I am getting out in a minute for the real lesson…)
At this point a couple of other instructions in getting into and out of neutral…left foot braking would be better…if you can blip the throttle on the downshifts that would be nice but not necessary…don’t touch the clutch once you are going….blah, blah, blah…..Suddenly the voice that was imparting these golden chunks of racing wisdom…was gone…then I hear the words..”Start her up…” no turning back now…switch down…two pumps, hit the button…
HO…LEE….S**T!!!
That noise… the trembling through the vehicle. Not a deep rumble…but the sound of something that is literally inches behind your head and you know, no… you can feel, its potential to launch you into another world. My guess is the guys get a big kick outta watching the eyes of the newbies when we hit that button…
So clutch in…wait for the guy to come back around the front and wave me forward…I see the wave…
I give the engine a little pop, start to let out the clutch…
and in true HWFMR form………………………. I STALL!!!!!!!!!
Crap…I want to crawl into a corner…I hear the words “This ain’t a normal clutch..you can’t ride it...its either in or out, goose it, let it drop and hang on…”
Anyways back through the starting sequence (have to wait for them to hook the external battery back up).
This time I am either going to get this thing going without a stall…or die trying in a cloud of burnt rubber and ripped up Armco.
I am still here…so I did make it…needless to say you feel like someone has just rear ended you when you launch.
Now since I was a newbie in this thinly veiled ground based fighter jet… I had to follow a spec miata for two laps. I am very familiar with the track so the line is not the issue. My first sensations were of speed, noise, speed, wind, speed…well you get the picture.
Then my first turn…
HO…LEE…S**T!!!
This thing is POINT and freakin’ SHOOT!!! I see the Miata hanging on for dear life in the corners (being driven by an instructor)…for me it was a like Sunday drive. I feel the G-forces, but am relaxed since you are literally ONE with the car. The shifter was as advertised…relatively easy on the upshifts…but I could never seem to bang it hard enough to downshift in a way that told the car “I am in charge”.
Two laps and my pace car peels of into pit lane…ok, its time to see what this thing will do…I put my foot to the floor…it hadn’t been there yet…
(artistic pause)
HO…LEE….F***K!!!!!!!!!!
The space time continuum is folding in front of me…my vision narrows…it feels like someone has lit a rocket in the back of this thing. EVERYTHING starts happening REAL FAST…I feel my helmet lifting from my head from the aero effects…I am shifting 3..4..5...I hit the brake point into Turn 1…feels like a parachute has just been deployed, I am thinking ‘brakes alone can’t do this’. I start following my line…brake, turn, gas, shift, brake, downshift, turn…and so it goes. Some of the other thoughts that go through my mind…it is not a hard car to drive…but it is a difficult car to drive hard, there is too much there to tap into. I find myself with no desire to seek its limits or mine, I have no desire to see what it is really capable of…but I am driving faster than I have ever experienced on a track…
…and it is good…
Before I know it, the checkered flag is out…and my 10 minute affair is over. I pit, shut the engine down and extricate myself from this body-cast doubling as a race car.
“So what do you think?” comes the question from the racing team owner…knowing he has just bagged some future business based on the look on my face.
I am literally speechless…looking for a witty response…there is none...my answer is simply and understatedly ”Wow…..”.
Now all I can think about is when can I get my next hit. I wish I had of driven it harder, I wish I had seen the shift light once (yup…I didn’t…there is a engine rev sound that feels unnatural to go beyond…I am such a wimp…) I wish, I wish, I wish...
So did I notice any oversteer? - nope, understeer? – nada, did I have any clue that the aero bits were at full down force? – your joking right?…I could not tell you a damn thing about the set-up of the car from what I felt, it turned as much as I asked it to, accelerated more than I needed, and stopped quicker than I thought possible
Am I ruined?….you bet.
Next time…I am going to see that freakin’ shift light….
I have taken a hit from the crack pipe to end all crack pipes!!! And it was good, damn good. The last two days have been consumed by planning, plotting, lusting, obsessing to figure out how I get another hit.
The short story is I brought 20 folks that I work with to the local track for some karting, autocross and some hot laps. During the day one of the local racing teams was running a program with their Formula Mazda’s and I got seven laps. After getting my check ride with an instructor in my car, they strapped me into the finest work of art I have seen sitting on pavement.
Now, before I describe anything further I need to set the expectations. I have been tracking my car since May 2006. Before that …zip. I have about 20 track days. So there is no way I would be in a position to explore the limits of this car. My goal was not to embarrass myself, get around the track a little quicker than I would in my car…and of course not puke before I stepped into it.
So…on with our story. I get strapped into this oversized go-kart (and I mean that in only a positive way!!). My first sensation is being EXTREMELY low to the ground and being reclined in a position that, at first, feels unnatural but then quickly evolves into a feeling of sleekness. You feel as though your position is adding to the aerodynamics of the car as you would naturally do as a kid leaning forward on your bike.
The cockpit is small and narrow. EVERYTHING is within a palms distance from your hands. The wheel is small but in the perfect position.
So the briefing begins…
“Flip this switch down to engage the ignition system…two taps on the pedal…and push the black button”…comes this voice from outside my helmet.
Next the sequential…”pull it back smartly to up shift, push it forward very smartly to downshift…you will almost have to bang it to get it to downshift”….”got it”, I say thinking (shouldn’t there be a 1 hour lesson on how to start this…please tell me I am getting out in a minute for the real lesson…)
At this point a couple of other instructions in getting into and out of neutral…left foot braking would be better…if you can blip the throttle on the downshifts that would be nice but not necessary…don’t touch the clutch once you are going….blah, blah, blah…..Suddenly the voice that was imparting these golden chunks of racing wisdom…was gone…then I hear the words..”Start her up…” no turning back now…switch down…two pumps, hit the button…
HO…LEE….S**T!!!
That noise… the trembling through the vehicle. Not a deep rumble…but the sound of something that is literally inches behind your head and you know, no… you can feel, its potential to launch you into another world. My guess is the guys get a big kick outta watching the eyes of the newbies when we hit that button…
So clutch in…wait for the guy to come back around the front and wave me forward…I see the wave…
I give the engine a little pop, start to let out the clutch…
and in true HWFMR form………………………. I STALL!!!!!!!!!
Crap…I want to crawl into a corner…I hear the words “This ain’t a normal clutch..you can’t ride it...its either in or out, goose it, let it drop and hang on…”
Anyways back through the starting sequence (have to wait for them to hook the external battery back up).
This time I am either going to get this thing going without a stall…or die trying in a cloud of burnt rubber and ripped up Armco.
I am still here…so I did make it…needless to say you feel like someone has just rear ended you when you launch.
Now since I was a newbie in this thinly veiled ground based fighter jet… I had to follow a spec miata for two laps. I am very familiar with the track so the line is not the issue. My first sensations were of speed, noise, speed, wind, speed…well you get the picture.
Then my first turn…
HO…LEE…S**T!!!
This thing is POINT and freakin’ SHOOT!!! I see the Miata hanging on for dear life in the corners (being driven by an instructor)…for me it was a like Sunday drive. I feel the G-forces, but am relaxed since you are literally ONE with the car. The shifter was as advertised…relatively easy on the upshifts…but I could never seem to bang it hard enough to downshift in a way that told the car “I am in charge”.
Two laps and my pace car peels of into pit lane…ok, its time to see what this thing will do…I put my foot to the floor…it hadn’t been there yet…
(artistic pause)
HO…LEE….F***K!!!!!!!!!!
The space time continuum is folding in front of me…my vision narrows…it feels like someone has lit a rocket in the back of this thing. EVERYTHING starts happening REAL FAST…I feel my helmet lifting from my head from the aero effects…I am shifting 3..4..5...I hit the brake point into Turn 1…feels like a parachute has just been deployed, I am thinking ‘brakes alone can’t do this’. I start following my line…brake, turn, gas, shift, brake, downshift, turn…and so it goes. Some of the other thoughts that go through my mind…it is not a hard car to drive…but it is a difficult car to drive hard, there is too much there to tap into. I find myself with no desire to seek its limits or mine, I have no desire to see what it is really capable of…but I am driving faster than I have ever experienced on a track…
…and it is good…
Before I know it, the checkered flag is out…and my 10 minute affair is over. I pit, shut the engine down and extricate myself from this body-cast doubling as a race car.
“So what do you think?” comes the question from the racing team owner…knowing he has just bagged some future business based on the look on my face.
I am literally speechless…looking for a witty response…there is none...my answer is simply and understatedly ”Wow…..”.
Now all I can think about is when can I get my next hit. I wish I had of driven it harder, I wish I had seen the shift light once (yup…I didn’t…there is a engine rev sound that feels unnatural to go beyond…I am such a wimp…) I wish, I wish, I wish...
So did I notice any oversteer? - nope, understeer? – nada, did I have any clue that the aero bits were at full down force? – your joking right?…I could not tell you a damn thing about the set-up of the car from what I felt, it turned as much as I asked it to, accelerated more than I needed, and stopped quicker than I thought possible
Am I ruined?….you bet.
Next time…I am going to see that freakin’ shift light….
09-23-2007, 10:39 PM
#15
Lifetime Rennlist Member
I told you that this would be your ruin. LOL
Here is what you can run that is the same or similar...
You can run that car as a Formula Atlantic in SCCA (but it is not competitive as an FA)
CSR/DSR is pretty similar in speeds and grip.
FC (Formula Continental) is the same feeling, albeit a bit slower and a bit less grip.
FM (Formula Mazda - club car or old pro) is also similar but a bit slower.
Now that you know what a real race car can do, come out and play.
Here is an interesting observation about these cars (what you drove and all those listed above)...
On any given track, you will probably find one corner at which the production race cars (Porsche, Corvette, etc on slicks) will brake. You will upshift at that same place on the track. It is a real eye opener to realize that difference.
Here is what you can run that is the same or similar...
You can run that car as a Formula Atlantic in SCCA (but it is not competitive as an FA)
CSR/DSR is pretty similar in speeds and grip.
FC (Formula Continental) is the same feeling, albeit a bit slower and a bit less grip.
FM (Formula Mazda - club car or old pro) is also similar but a bit slower.
Now that you know what a real race car can do, come out and play.
Here is an interesting observation about these cars (what you drove and all those listed above)...
On any given track, you will probably find one corner at which the production race cars (Porsche, Corvette, etc on slicks) will brake. You will upshift at that same place on the track. It is a real eye opener to realize that difference.