My First Track Day....Video Link Inside

[Boxster586]

Originally Posted by san rensho

Ok. I apologize. I saw those spec race cars and said, no way this guy is this fast, especially on a first track day when its usually forbidden to pass in the corners.

So like I said before, great driving, you were hitting the apexes very well and then getting back on the gas. Once or twice you started to skid but were able to recover with no drama. Good work.

Thanks bud. I didn't post the video where I came out of turn 13 too fast (after the bridge) and drove in the grass for a short bit

I was in the novice group and there were only two passing zone. The one after the bridge is the easiest place to pass so that's where I made the passes.

At BIR, you are a novice for the first two track days and then you MAY move up to the intermediate group IF you'd like.

My shifting still sucks. At times, I did not shift until I've already entered the corners. I also need to learn/practice heel toe shifting!

[MikenOH]

Originally Posted by Boxster586

Thanks bud. I didn't post the video where I came out of turn 13 too fast (after the bridge) and drove in the grass for a short bit

I was in the novice group and there were only two passing zone. The one after the bridge is the easiest place to pass so that's where I made the passes.

At BIR, you are a novice for the first two track days and then you MAY move up to the intermediate group IF you'd like.

My shifting still sucks. At times, I did not shift until I've already entered the corners. I also need to learn/practice heel toe shifting!

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Just as a suggestion regarding the video, I use it to check my lines, where I am on the turn in and how smooth my steering inputs are.

If you turn the camera on your self occasionally, or move it back between the seats--I have mine mounted on the roll bar--you can record your steering inputs and get a feel for how smooth you are. Smooth steering inputs--same for brakes and gas--make a big difference on how settled the car is at any one moment, especially in the curves.

Finally, think about a data logger (smartphone), GPS receiver and a program to record track data--I use Race Chrono. You can compare your lap times and actually retrace your lap to see where you were on the course, what your speed was and where your breaking point was; I went back through a session and compared laps with similar times but found different lines through a curve/sector and found out just how much more time I was loosing or gaining by taking a particular line. A great educational tool.

[Boxster586]

MikenOH,

That is SUPER advice. I will do that for my August 6 track day.

Thank you.

[MikenOH]

The data logger setup was a cheap investment:
1 MOT Q9c that I no longer used as a phone
1 Qstarz 818xt gps receiver--$70
1 Race Chrono software----free


The GPS receiver and phone communicate via a bluetooth connection; supposedly there are OBDII readers out there that will work with the Porsche ECM to pull in engine data to this mix.

To do the data overlay on the video I bought a program on line for $25--race render--which is a simple plug and play setup to match your video with the track data; very simple to synchronize and I highly recommend it.

Putting all that technical stuff aside, it's critical to remember that we're all out there for fun, not making our living at this so we need to be courteous drivers--giving and taking point overs when needed and not letting our egos get in the way of having of having a good time.

[Boxster586]

Originally Posted by MikenOH

The data logger setup was a cheap investment:
1 MOT Q9c that I no longer used as a phone
1 Qstarz 818xt gps receiver--$70
1 Race Chrono software----free


The GPS receiver and phone communicate via a bluetooth connection; supposedly there are OBDII readers out there that will work with the Porsche ECM to pull in engine data to this mix.

To do the data overlay on the video I bought a program on line for $25--race render--which is a simple plug and play setup to match your video with the track data; very simple to synchronize and I highly recommend it.

Putting all that technical stuff aside, it's critical to remember that we're all out there for fun, not making our living at this so we need to be courteous drivers--giving and taking point overs when needed and not letting our egos get in the way of having of having a good time.

Thanks again Mike. I'll likely have more questions for you when I begin this process but why is the Qstarz 818xt gps receiver needed? If my Android phone already has navigation, do I still need the receiver?

[MikenOH]

Originally Posted by Boxster586

Thanks again Mike. I'll likely have more questions for you when I begin this process but why is the Qstarz 818xt gps receiver needed? If my Android phone already has navigation, do I still need the receiver?

To get an accurate position on where you are on the track at a given point in time, you need to get numerous position reports/second because of the speeds involved.

818xt is capable of providing position reports at 10Hz--10 reports/ second. I usually have mine locked at 5hz--5 reports/second because of limitations on my phone. Your generic android phone GPS usually runs at 1Hz--1 position report/second.

At 60mph, you're covering 88 feet/second; with a GPS running 1 position report/second going down the interstate this is no big deal--accurate enough for your purposes. On a race track at twice that speed--say 180'/second--your position reports can be off by nearly 60 yards at those speeds, which will compromise your track data as far as how fast you were going at what point on the track.
If you look at some youtube posters using an iPhone/harry's lap timer--assuming they are just using the phone's internal gps--this lag in speed vs. the video is very apparent; you know the guy is accelerating but the indicated speed seems to move slowly--then boom, it's +20mph faster than it was a second ago.

So, to put it simply, because of the speeds on the track, you need something faster than 1hz reporting if you want accurate speeds at a given location. 10 Hz would be great but a 5hz gps device seems to work fine for me.

Hope this helps; BTW Qstarz also sells a complete data logger--does the function of the RC software--besides records position reports-- for about $170.
Here's a link to Qstarz:
Shop QSTARZ | QSTARZ Q1000eX GPS Lap Timer

[Topless]

Originally Posted by MikenOH

To get an accurate position on where you are on the track at a given point in time, you need to get numerous position reports/second because of the speeds involved.

818xt is capable of providing position reports at 10Hz--10 reports/ second. I usually have mine locked at 5hz--5 reports/second because of limitations on my phone. Your generic android phone GPS usually runs at 1Hz--1 position report/second.

At 60mph, you're covering 88 feet/second; with a GPS running 1 position report/second going down the interstate this is no big deal--accurate enough for your purposes. On a race track at twice that speed--say 180'/second--your position reports can be off by nearly 60 yards at those speeds, which will compromise your track data as far as how fast you were going at what point on the track.
If you look at some youtube posters using an iPhone/harry's lap timer--assuming they are just using the phone's internal gps--this lag in speed vs. the video is very apparent; you know the guy is accelerating but the indicated speed seems to move slowly--then boom, it's +20mph faster than it was a second ago.

So, to put it simply, because of the speeds on the track, you need something faster than 1hz reporting if you want accurate speeds at a given location. 10 Hz would be great but a 5hz gps device seems to work fine for me.

Hope this helps; BTW Qstarz also sells a complete data logger--does the function of the RC software--besides records position reports-- for about $170.
Here's a link to Qstarz:
Shop QSTARZ | QSTARZ Q1000eX GPS Lap Timer

A quick clarification on this...
I am a fan of RaceChrono software and use a 5hz Qstarz GPS receiver with it but... You can still get very high positional accuracy and lap times within 5/100s of a second using a 1hz external receiver and Harry's software (internal phone GPS receivers are very low resolution). We run a pair of matched Spec Boxsters and I use RC while my brother runs Harry's Laptimer. Harry's uses interpolation to give highly accurate sector times and positional data. The timing and data results are very close between the two GPS products. I still prefer RaceChrono for lap analysis but both systems work very well and both are within 5/100ths of our transponder lap times. It's not quite as simple as just comparing GPS sample rate in Hz.