SOLD OUT !!!! ATTS 2014 - May 24th Beginner Friendly Track Day

[stray kat]

Anyone from the Hamilton area want to drive up together?

[Tunermax]

Your names are on the list, I just haven't had the time to update the list above. Was out of town most of the week.

Jeeeeze Joe what's the hold up

[wparsons]

Is it Saturday yet??

[SinglemaltWSKY]

Is it Saturday yet??

SOON. Packing the truck now, charging the GoPro's.

[haikara2308]

I just checked the weather forecast, seems like its going to be sunny all day tomorrow and will be like 22 degrees in the afternoon

[mikewolf]

What time does it wrap up?

[miatagirl77]

Track closes at 5pm

[wparsons]

Such a great day, thanks to everyone that organized and helped make it happen!

[Shane]

At the drivers meet, the presenter mentioned a killer deal on tires, something like 40% off... Anyone know where to find the info on this?

[JoeT]

At the drivers meet, the presenter mentioned a killer deal on tires, something like 40% off... Anyone know where to find the info on this?

Shane,

We will be sending out an email with the details, please stay tuned.

[lineofcontrol]

Thanks to all the organizers and instructors for a safe and fun day at an amazing track.

Def got the itch now....

[chmod755]

New member here! Saturday was my first SPDA event and I had a great time! I was driving the white 07 STI. The track was pretty technical for a newbie like myself but lots of fun. Thanks to all the organizers and volunteers! Looking forward to future events!

I realize I still have a LOT to learn to improve my driving skill (braking, gear changes, driving better lines)... any tips?

[wparsons]

I can't speak for everyone, but my passenger seat is ALWAYS open for anyone that wants to tag along for a session, and I'm sure that almost everyone with some experience will feel the same way (assuming they have a passenger seat).

Seeing the track from the passenger seat is a GREAT way to see the line without worrying about braking, turning, etc.

I realize I still have a LOT to learn to improve my driving skill (braking, gear changes, driving better lines)... any tips?

My advice would be to simplify things. With most cars, you can run the whole track in third and remove the whole gear change part right out of the equation.

First thing is you need to know what line you want to be driving, and what reference points you'll need for it. Watching video or being a passenger is great for this. Once you know the line you want, you'll want to pick out reference points, on nice lapping days (like on Saturday) they put out cones to mark turn in, apex and turn exit. They don't always line up with where the curbing is, and that's 100% ok!

To begin with, just worry about turn in and the apex. Start your braking earlier than needed so you're not rushed at the turn in point. If you get the turn in and apex right, then the turn exit will happen almost automatically.

Once you're nailing that, then you can work on adjusting braking points, work on when to get on the throttle, etc. It's VERY hard to correct multiple things at once though, so keeping it as simple as possible is key.

As for shifting, there's at least one corner where downshifting to 2nd actually costs me about 5km/h by the next corner vs leaving it in third, so it's not always faster to be dropping a gear.

[miatagirl77]

You can also ask a coach to drive your car with you in the pax seat. That way, you can see how hard they brake, where they turn in, when they accelerate. The main reason we have the beginner track day is to introduce new people to the track, so any of the coaches will be more than happy to take you for a ride-along, or drive your car. Just have to ask us!

[chmod755]

You're right, miatagirl77. I should have asked an instructor to drive my car. I was trying to juggle driving, getting the driving line down, learning the new track, and faster drivers coming right behind me and letting them by! Lots going on..

Thanks for the tips, wparsons. I'll try to keep it simple and focus on a couple of things. There were several laps that I ran the whole thing in 3rd gear because I realized there would be no benefit to going to 2nd or 4th.

[Tunermax]

......

Great advice! I am a beginner to the track, but here's my piece, One thing that we are probably all guilty of forgetting is to look ahead. Look where you want to exit the turn, and the rest will happen automatically. I find myself rediscovering this hidden "trick" every time I go out lol. I am driving poorly and overthinking, then remember, oh yeah, just look ahead, and BAM everything just literally falls together subconscieously.

Your brain will actually self-react to how much you need to slow down, when you need to slow down, and where to turn to get where you want to be if you simply look there.

[wparsons]

There were several laps that I ran the whole thing in 3rd gear because I realized there would be no benefit to going to 2nd or 4th.

I spent a whole weekend with my car in third at the OTA school I was playing with where 2nd helps and where it doesn't at this day, most of the time it's actually detrimental. The only corner I saw a consistent benefit was the furthest south hairpin, running in 2nd I could get a bit more rotation out of it with the throttle. Once I get my alignment sorted out (too much rear camber, not enough front) that'll likely change though.

[ShaneG]

There were several laps that I ran the whole thing in 3rd gear because I realized there would be no benefit to going to 2nd or 4th.

Absolutely nothing wrong with that! Focus on learning the line and being smooth. Shift points, heel and toe and a multitude of other things will come but are useless until you know the race line and are being smooth.

[LaszloT]

I spent a whole weekend with my car in third at the OTA school I was playing with where 2nd helps and where it doesn't at this day, most of the time it's actually detrimental. The only corner I saw a consistent benefit was the furthest south hairpin, running in 2nd I could get a bit more rotation out of it with the throttle. Once I get my alignment sorted out (too much rear camber, not enough front) that'll likely change though.

It's a 3rd gear track for my '04 WRX too, with a few seconds in 4th on the 2 long straights. Explored shifting to 2nd for the tightest hairpins, but it felt slower interrupting power for that brief period and then shifting back to 3rd came at an inopportune time.

With practice as you get through the bends faster, you're overall pace steps up an shifting to 2nd becomes even less important and so I focused on refining my lines so I didn't need 2nd.

I love the new chicanes at both ends of the pit straight. Any REAL racing circuit has proper chicanes like these!

[chmod755]

Thanks for the tips, everyone. From watching some of the videos posted up, I'm amazed at how smooth and fluidly some people drive! This is was definitely a good experience for me. I hope to meet some of you in person and learn a few things!