Jeff Curtis

Okay, I'm going for it...my first PCA Club Race will be at Mid-America in July...as the track is 21miles from the doorstep of my Mother's home and I like MAM...drove it last June.

I have a 1991 C2 with stock engine/trans. rollcage, upgraded but not "RACE" suspension...so I may have my butt handed to me, no worries, just wanna finish with nice bodywork still in place. <img border="0" title="" alt="[Wink]" src="wink.gif" />

I understand that they are splitting "D" class now and it's "D" and "D Prepared".

Okay, I have BIG Reds up front and 17" wheels...while I understand that 17" wheels are okay, the BIG Reds should put me in "Prepared" class??

I thought that BIG Reds would put me from "E" to "D"...I really don't know.

I'm quite certain that some of you could clear this up for me...I need to make class decals, etc.

ALSO, are they really that strict on making people run 10" numbers?? I have several sets of 8" and wonder if that will fly?

Stand by, if you're a "Club Race Guru" - I have more questions!

Carrera51

Jeff:
Stock C2s now run in E. Your brakes will bump you to D "prepared" because your car's stock class is E. The 17" wheels won't bump you a class.

I run up a class as well because of the big reds on my car.

Eric in Chicago

Jeff,
As Mark stated, you start out in E and move from there. D is not really split into 2 classes. You would become a D prepared car because of the brakes. Depending on the tracks your going to run, E and D will be on the track at the same time. So, it may not matter to you which class you run in. I was faced with the same problem. I have a D car but have the big reds, I was moved up to C prepared. I will get smoked in C with the likes of 3.8 RS's and 993 TT but in my first season, I, like you just want to survive and am not thinking of the podium! Bottom line, you will have a blast racing with someone in you group.
If the tracks you will race on split the groups with D being the lowest class (D,C,B,GT4, GTC) It might get a little hairy as there will be some fast cars driving around you!! I have seen 39 car fields made up of just E and F cars (MidOhio) Check out PCA race website for past year results and how the classes line up at tracks you would run. Good Luck!!

Carrera51

Jeff:
Eric brings up a good point. At the Summit Point race, D runs in group 2 which contains C, B, GT4, and I think GT3S, group 3 contains E,F, and GT5s. For confirmation, check the results on the PCA site to see where how the cars are grouped at the tracks you will be racing on.

Manny Alban

Running with faster cars isn't as scary as you think. At this past Watkins Glen club race, I ran the sprint with GT-3 and GT-4 as well as B and C class cars (plus throw in a couple GTC-3 and GT-2R cars in running exhibition). Club racing grids you according to you lap times after your first session. When you enter the track for practice, you essentially running with drivers who have similiar lap times. If and when the leaders lap you, you just drive you line, check your mirrors and keep on racing.

Yeah, you may get toasted with a semi-stock suspension, but the one and only race I've ever won, I was running a stock suspension with the exception of yellow Koni shocks. Now that I've got a monoball, RSR type suspension, the best I've placed is second Here's more food for thought, at the Watkins Glen enduro, D class cars placed higher than C class. What does that mean? Just go out and have fun. Your race is with the car in front of you and the one diretly behind you. After watching the other races at the Glen, the best racing wasn't at the front, but mid pack when you had 3-5 cars dueling for position. Nothing more boring that watching the leader go by with a ten second lead.

JC in NY

Just in case there is still confusion, here are some clarifications.

1. There are no official "Prepared" stock classes. There is only B,C,D,E, etc. "Prepared" is a term that simply means you bump up a class because of some mods to the original class specs.

2. The groupings in PCA club racing are not always the same from race to race, or from sprint to enduro. For example in one race C,D,E may all run together but in another race it may be D,E,F in the same group. The groups are determined *before* the event starts and the groups are not altered once the race weekend starts.

Jeff Curtis

Thanks for the help guys, "D" class it is!

I just want to finish, bodywork intact, really.

I ran my first sprint race in my Formula Toyota this past weekend at Summmit Point and had the time of my life!!

I started 7th on grid and wound up 2nd overall after three laps...I was really getting PSYCHED when the 4th place guy passed the guy I was dicing with for 2nd/3rd and then started on ME.

I gave him way as he's a buddy of mine and has a bumper similar to that on the front of a Legends car (his car is a Thunder Roadster, made by 600 Racing, same company that makes Legends) and I just knew he was gonna bump draft me...okay, so I got a bit intimidated being that I was driving my "new" car...I let him by and we started having fun messing w/each other.

I could pull him like crazy on any straight but he had good rubber and "game" for the turns...I was running on OLD Hoosier R45s that were on the car when it was sold to me...and the car had been sitting for about a year...that, coupled with an off the previous day had me a bit "squimmish" through the turns.

WELL, I knew we only had a few laps left, so I went to pass on the front straight and he moved over to block and gave me the "L" sign with his hand - okay, that was funny, as we have this "L" thing going on that stands for LOSER!!

He moved back over to let me fly by in 5th and I took the inside of turn 1...NOT a good idea as this was the same move I pulled during Saturday qualifying, on the same car and went off track, ripping the front nose from my car...my beautifully painted car!!! <img border="0" alt="[grrrrrrr]" title="" src="graemlins/cussing.gif" />

SO, I didn't learn my lesson from the previous day, but was soon to get it drilled into my head as I dumped it off again in the mud.

This time I didn't have a front splitter, so the front end was not as low...it stayed on and I drove back on the track and took it easy for half a lap as all the mud dripped from my car. <img border="0" title="" alt="[Eek!]" src="eek.gif" />

Then I got back into action with cooled down old-assed Hoosiers and went for it, passed a few cars and saw the checkered flag...10th overall in a field of 40-something cars!

Not bad for my first sprint race I figured...but 2nd would've been SWEETER!

I only hope I don't get fooled by the "RED Mist" when I do the PCA race, I can't afford to rip the front end off my 964 AGAIN! <img border="0" alt="[hiha]" title="" src="graemlins/roflmao.gif" />

Thanks again guys. <img border="0" alt="[cheers]" title="" src="graemlins/beerchug.gif" />