ronbo56

Anybody else going up to the Glen next week?

Phokaioglaukos

I'll be at the Glen in a rental 944S2 from Paddock. Stop by and say hello. It'll be my first time in a 944, first time on Hoosiers (and there are showers forecast), first time with NASA and first time racing. You are warned!

ronbo56

I can't wait. I'm being evaluated for my license on Friday so if all goes well I'll be racing for the first time, too (Cup, not SC). I've run a few events on Hoosiers, they really make a difference over my Victoracers - which themselves were a vast improvement over street tires.

Showers, great. I've never run my car in the rain. Well, what better time to break out the Hoosier Wets (still with sticker) than a comp school.

Best,

Ron
Gold 1986 944 NA
whatever # they give me

Phokaioglaukos

Ron, I'll race you for last place.

joey bagadonuts

Looking forward to a recap, Chris/Ron! (if you have a moment)

As for NASA vs others, I'm inclined to believe that's a case-by-case issue. Each local organization plays a little differently. Our PCA instructors' group ... well, it runs pretty fast and close. And point by's aren't always required.

I went to a local NASA event at Road America and they were not allowing corner passes for anyone except the TT drivers in HPDE4 on Saturday. They may have opened it up on Sunday but, say you blasted by the instructor between T5 and T6 (a non-passing zone) in his Miata. In that case, you were subjected to severe penalties like running the next session in HPDE3 (ask me how I know). Windy City BMW is similarly strict but Badger Bimmers, Wisconsin, is a bit more relaxed. And the local Audi club is renowned for its instruction.

You really need to get the scoop on your local organizations to determine which group will best suit your needs. $0.02


This sounds like an excellent option. As others have mentioned, race craft is not taught in DE's. A three day comp school sounds ideal.

ronbo56

Bring it!

Sean F

I'll be there on Friday shaking out the new engine and then racing in GTS over the weekend. Can't wait...should be a blast. I'll keep my eyes peeled for you guys during the race

sparks259

i'll be there.
nasa/pca instructor.
#259 green sc trac car

Gary R.

Have to assume they will have a set of Hoosier Wets for you to use, they give fantastic grip (if you can call it that) in the wet..

Phokaioglaukos

Rain is forecast, so I'll call Ken tomorrow to remind him that he offered to let me use his rain tires if it rains.

Having NO Hoosier experience, how are the R6s on a wet track but when there is no standing water? What is the dividing line of track conditions between rains and R6s?

Gary R.

Wet track and R6's equal a thrill ride, it's the sudden stops at the end that are bad. Wets need to be kept "wet" to keep them cool but I have run them on "semi-dry" tracks. You want to look for sections with water to cool them in situations like that or they will eventually chunk apart (or so i'm told).

SundayDriver

Hoosier DOTs are very hard (compared to soft slicks and real rain tires). As such, it does not take much water to make it real exciting. As a contrast, I run 160 Goodyears (pretty much as soft as you can get for road racing) and they work well with a light rain as long as they had heat to start with. Once you can see the rain splashing, it starts to get wicked - Hoosier DOTs will be worse.

Darren

I've been racing with NASA Mid-Atlantic for a few years, and recently started instructing for them. It's been a great experience -- I love the people in PCA and NASA and they are very different groups. I've been racing in NASA Honda Challenge, where the competitors are known to frequently help other competitors on major repairs between races. I think this attitude goes well beyond the Honda series, we want to beat each other on the track! Other than that we're all friends.

Any experience with NASA has to be looked at from the point of view of the region, because there is a lot of variation. NASA MA allows passing in HPDE3 & 4 with a signal, anywhere on the course, including turns. I think passing in the turns in DE is totally appropriate at a certain level of experience, and is safer than not because it lessens traffic.

The pace of the NASA MA instructor group, however, doesn't hold a candle to Reisentoter PCA's instructor group

KRA993tt

I've been running primarily with NASA SE all this year HPDE3/4 . We run with passing allowed anywhere with a point. Great group of drivers with many different car types. While the rules may vary a bit from region to region it has been nice to watch the racers and learn. The word race does not have a negative connotation with NASA HPDE. Being able to practice passing and being passed in turns has helped me with that next level of situational awareness as well as being comfortable with other cars inside or outside. It sure keeps traffic moving .

aben8057

I'll be at WG in my black 951 on the 13th running in the HPDE 2 group. Hope to see you guys up there...