Professor Helmüt Tester

Prepare for a rant:

Short throw shifters have caused the destruction of more engines, clutches and gearboxes than most of us would care to count. They are a pox on the racing world, foisted off on us by 'street weenie tuners' who are better suited to design and sell undercar neon light kits and big, silly looking wings. Put one in your race car and you'll probably get what you deserve.

Face it...it's not going to lower your lap times, it doesn't give you a 'better feel' for shifting. It's just one of those countless doodads for sale that fall in the category I call "stupid stuff that sounds cool to hear about".

No, I don't have a grudge to bear. I've never blown up anything with a short shifter. I've just witnessed the results, from in-car and from along the rail. You're just going to catch the wrong gear at some point....there is no question that it will happen. How much damage depends on how well-trained your left foot is, and how much of a "zinger" your driveline can take.

Just because something is available doesn't mean it's a smart thing to put into your race car.

I have a 5 race cars (yes...well...I'm in therapy...), and if I ever caught anyone even walking close to on of my cars with a short shift kit, I'd club them to death like a baby fur seal.

Just in case you misinterpreted my message above, I'll sum it up: Short shift kits suck.

But, that's just my opinion.

forklift

I like my short shift. Damn it.

mitch236

????
Was that supposed to be a slam against Tim? I think most of us have shift kits. I like both of mine.

M758

I don't think it was slam on Tim, Just on short shifters themselves.

I don't have short shifter and have never seen the need for one.

trumperZ06

Nice post guys. Interesting comments about a student learning more when... riding with the instructor rather than being "instructed".

I find for the group 2 students who are ready to move up to group 3... it really helps them to ride with an instructor. Telling them to brake hard initially, then ease off the brakes at corner entry is one thing, showing them... really gets the point across! Then to be taking the same line at speed... drives home the saying... smooth is fast! You may be doing things "quickly"... but keeping the car "settled" in transition (maintanance throttle), then putting the power down... drives home your instucting.

I'm reluctant to take group 1 and newer group 2 students out... until I'm comfortable in signing them off. I find they often try minicing brake points and such, which can get them in trouble.

CC... Kudos to you! You did well in learning from Fishman without getting in "over your head" !

Jim Child

I always take my students for rides. I think its one of the most valuable instructional tools I have. Its often easier to demonstrate something when I'm behind the wheel of my own car, than trying to explain it from the right seat. My rides with my early instructors definitely enabled me to come up to speed in my car much more quickly than would otherwise have been possible. When I take students out for rides in my car I always carefully explain what their takaways from the ride should be that they can duplicate in their car like line, technique, etc. I also warn them not to try to duplicate my cornering speeds and braking points if I think they and their cars are not up to it. If I don't trust the student to heed my warning, then I'll take them out in one of the slower run groups and dial it back several notches.

Regarding short shifters, I would never have one in my car. Mainly I don't see the need for one. My car shifts just fine as it is. Also, I've driven a couple of cars equipped with them and had difficulty consistently getting the desired gears. There is no way that a short shifter is going to improve your lap times, but a missed shift will always slow you down.

macnewma

CC-

Sorry I couldn't make it out to Putnam this weekend. Just too much stuff to do. It sounds like it was very good for you. In my experience, the context provided by riding for a few laps with a fast instructor is very valuable.

Tim, I think that if you meet these guys half way and utilize the great instruction that most of PCA DEs have to offer plus add in your dedication to the DAS, you will become a good driver.

You might take the advice that Fishman provides in trying out a slower, less forgiving car. With your obvious means, picking a nice example of a 87-89 Carrera for a season (and then passing it on to me for mere pennies ) would be great for you. You could even mix it with 2-3 Carrera DEs, then take the TT to the track.

Hopefully we will meet up next year as I plan to spend more time at the track. I would love to see your 600hp+ beast.

Max

Larry Herman

As I live and breathe! That is all any of us "low character" people have been trying to tell you for a very long time. Maybe you'll realize that all of those who tried to change your perceptions aren't all bad. And when you put in the track time and learn how to drive properly, your DAS information will really be of value.

Premier Motorsp

Helmut is almost right:

Short shifters do totally suck -- unless Porsche made them.

Chris Cervelli
Premier Motorsports

mikew968

It was a great weekend at Putnam!!! CC's TT was amazingly fast...here, there and gone. I ran in A group and he came by quickly. I also rode with Dave Schardt and that was a WILD ride. He was dicing with a preped M3?? and I guess that was as close to racing as I have ever been.

Jim C rode with me once and helped me do a 1:25 in a 968 with stock suspension and MPSC's. I had a lot of trouble getting the pressures right with the cold mornings.

All in all the weekend couldnn't have been much better


Mike

ngoldrich

I agree completely with the benefit of getting a ride in a car with a top-notch instructor/driver. No matter what your level of driving expertise is, you will learn a lot. Everyone’s style is a little different. I have been racing, driving, and instructing for around 15 years from club to pro and still learn a lot and try new things almost every time I am on the track. One very good case in point - prior to last year, for the previous 6 years I had raced prototypes - LMP/SR1/Canam/WSC as well as some GTS IMSA cars & shifter karts. I started to feel like I was picking up some bad driving habits by accentuating some of the power strengths of those cars. So last year I decided to get an E-Stock turbo 944 and run it all year to make sure I was and could still do the basics in more of a momentum car - and yes and E-stock 3000 lb car with 247 HP is a momentum car compared to my last WSC that was 1850 lbs and 847 HP (all frame of reference).

I was used to purpose built race cars with 2000 lb springs so stiff there was virtually no roll or pitch. Boy was I surprised when I got in a stock class car. The first session was pretty scary because I was not used to all the movement. I seemed to be driving fairly well, but still way off what I knew the pace was for the pole time in E-stock.

So where is this meandering leading you ask?

The first time I drove the stock car I was passed by a very fast and very well driven 968. I had never seen the car or driver before since I had not run PCA events in a while (I was running in other sanctioning bodies). So I went up to the driver afterwards, and introduced myself and we started talking. I asked him for a ride in his car so I could see what he was doing. That was one of the best rides in my life! After that session I saw how much roll, weight transfer, etc those cars would take. The very next session, I dropped my times to what would have been 2nd row starting. It took about 4 events of fine-tuning my style and I was running verry fast times. Yeah a legend in my own mind, I know…

But the moral of the story was, that this other very good driver, and very nice guy, immediately brought me up to speed. Now granted, everyone’s propensity to learn is different, but IMO it will always help no matter what your level.

By the way, the name of this good driver - Gary Grigsby.

So thanks Gary, you showed me a lot.

By the way, after a fun learning season, I am back to the high horsepower cars. But last season made me even that much faster in this car. Because even though it has a lot of power, it needs to be driven with momentum to be fast around the whole track!

Long winded, but thought you might enjoy.

Thx,
Norm

JackOlsen

A side note for ColorChange: you've got skills as a photographer.

924RACR

So, Norm, you givin' rides?

joey bagadonuts

No kidding! Next time I see you at Mid Ohio, Norm, expect some company in the passenger compartment.

ngoldrich

Vaughan, if I had a second seat installed I would be happy to do so. At VIR, in November, I think I will actually bolt in a second seat. I normally dont leave it in since it is extra weight...

Norm