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Old 05-27-2012, 06:10 PM   #1
san rensho
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Join Date: May 2011
Location: Miami florida
Posts: 1,591
Second DE, the good, the bad and the ugly.

I did my second DE at Homestead this weekend. Hooked on Driving ran the event. Pretty cheap at $300. It was a blast, but not without its moments.

My car is dead stock. I have 1 deg of camber in the fronts and and about 2 deg of camber in the rear. Close to 0 toe front and .27 deg rear. Bridgestone SO2-A tires.

First the good. I'm finally starting to get the understeer dialed out. I went with lower tire pressure in the rears and by the final session, 35f/32r hot was giving me just a bit of oversteer at the limit. Oversteer at the limit feels a lot better than the push, push, push I was getting before. The back end was coming around very slowly and predictably and there was no major drama. I just stayed on the gas, countersteered and the car would straighten right up.

Last time at Homestead, the brakes had started to go. I had the expensive OEM Brembo pads and in the last session, they started gunking up the rotors and causing vibration, and I ate up about about 3/4 of the pads during the day. For this session, I got a set of Mintex pads, the cheapest OEM pads, (about $110 from Pelican) and I also installed the GT 2,3? brake duct upgrade (the $30 mod, not the $300 mod). The coefficient of friction on the Mintex is GF, better than the Brebmo's FF. The set up was fantastic. The Mintex pads weren't even worn to the bevel and I never had any fade or chatter. I was easily getting up on a lot of guys on the brakes.

Now for the bad.

The Homestead road course is mainly on the infield of the Asscar track. It uses both Nascar straights, but not the banking. I get to the event and theres an announcement that the course has been changed. Theres construction on the road course, so now part of the course includes the Asscar (18 deg?) turn 3/4 banking. My heart drops. Long banking is the death of 986 motors, leading to oil starvation and well, you know. I have no oiling mods and at that point I'm thinking, don't take the chance. Go home. Lose the $300 and live to track another day. But I'm there and I'm itchy so I decide to at least go on the track, see what its like and then decide what to do.

It was a total non issue. At 90 mph, the banking had very little compression and the lateral G's were like a freeway on ramp taken at a moderate to fast speed, so I was pretty sure I wasn't doing damage to the motor.

Now for the bad. HOD is cheap, but they don't enforce the rules very well. Its supposed to be strict point by rules, but that was not to be. Circulating, I'm on the tail of an Audi that I'm always catching in the corners, but he has more horsepower and can move away slowly on the straights and he won't point me by.. After filling his mirrors for a couple of laps in the corners without a point by, he gets up on another slower car and they both point me by, thank you, about halfway down a straight leading to a left hand hairpin . So I go to the inside but neither will lift to let me by. I'm at the inside next to both of them as we approach the brake zone so I have to hit the brakes hard and let them both go ahead, coming to almost an a complete stop. Bastards.

And now the ugly. The last session turns out to be a free for all. Turn 1 at Homestead (not running the banking) is a fast right hander and is crucial to doing fast laps. In my low HP car I should be able to take it at full throttle without lifting, but I haven't had the cojones to do it yet. Since now the approach to 1 is after coming off the banking (on the modified course) at well over 100 mph, its a great opportunity to test how fast I can get into 1. So one lap I go in on an even throttle at 4800 rpm,, in 4th, a speed I know I can make. No drama. Next lap I go up to 5k, again no problem. At this point, I'm going around 100MPH. Next lap I'm approaching at 5200 rpm when all of a sudden, theres a guy going in fast on my inside, right next to me, at the approach to 1. Remember this a strict point by session, and this guy is now pulling up next to me right at the turn in to the fastest turn on the course at over 100mph, I back off slightly and stay to the middle of the corner to give him room and the SOB goes past me on the inside! SOB.

Yes, the guy was an idiot, but I didn't panic and stayed on the track. Thats racing, even though it wasn't supposed to be a race. Can't wait till the next Hooked on Driving event,
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2000 Boxster 2.7l red/black

Previous cars

1973 Opel Manta
1969(?) Fiat 850 Convertible
1979 Lancia Beta Coupe
1981 Alfa Romeo GTV 6
1985 Alfa Romeo Graduate
1985 Porsche 944
1989 Porsche 944
1981 Triumph TR7
1989 (?) Alfa Romeo Milano
1993 Saab 9000

Last edited by san rensho; 05-27-2012 at 06:13 PM.
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