Hi Fellow S2K Drivers. I've been instructing HPDEs for NASA Mid-Atlantic for over 10 years, both in-car with students and in the classroom. I thought I'd put some thoughts down for you all that may save you some time and money while increasing your potential for having a “great day at the track”. This is not intended to be a “how to go fast on the track” narrative but just some advice to maximize your learning and fun on the track. So here goes:My Golden Rule: Remember every item in your track car is part of a system. For example, changing street pads to aggressive track pads requires stickier tires than you can buy for !the street. Without matching the pads to the tires, in this example, aggressive track pads will bite harder and stop your brake disk faster than the street tires can maintain traction and cause your street tires to lock-up prematurely (or set off you anti lock braking sensor) probably resulting in poorer braking distances than with the original equipment. With this in mind, consider any changes you make to your track car as part of a system that may require additional changes to work optimally.

First Time Novice Advice:

1. For your car: Prep your HPDE car with fresh fluids including hi-temp brake fluid, new hi-performance STREET brake pads and street tires in good condition. Tighten your lug nuts to the proper torque and make sure your interior and trunk are empty, including the removal of floor mats (you don't want those to roll up under your peddles!). Make sure you don't have any leaking fluids and start with a full tank of gas. Don't be in a hurry to add “speed modifications” at this stage and instead think of reliability and safety.
2. Drivers attitude: We all believe we're raw talent just waiting for opportunity. That's true but until you master “track-driving” skills which are very different from “street” driving, and understand that you have things to learn, your talent will be wasted. Learn the basics from your instructors. Learning is dependent on communication between you and your instructor. Learn the basic terminology and if you don't understand something that your instructor says LET HIM/HER KNOW IMMEDIATELY. Ask them to rephrase it until you understand. Your way of learning is important so let the instructor know before you get on track if you want hand gestures with verbal instruction. Some students find them helpful, others find them distracting. Let your instructor know if their communication is too much, too little or working just right. The point is that communication with understanding allows you, the student, to implement what the instructor is teaching you. No communication, no learning. Don't be afraid to find and talk to your instructor outside of the track session. It's a great way to clear misunderstandings and get feedback on your progress.
3. The best way to impress your instructor is not with raw talent or speed... it's being able to understand and implement an instruction given. To really impress them, do it consistently!

Intermediate/Advanced Advice:

1. For your car: If you're considering car modifications start with safety and brake/chassis mods first. Upgrading braking system allows you to accelerate for a longer period before applying brakes which lowers lap times. But remember brakes and tires belong to the same system. Don't make large changes in one without modifying the other. And remember also, that brakes need a bunch of air to stay cool under track conditions; stainless braided brake lines and ducting! Setting up the shocks, springs, and other chassis items allows you to manage weight transfer better which also lowers lap times. With all that new-found track speed safety equipment becomes essential. 3-point lap belts won't do if your pulling g's in a corner. The steering wheel is for steering and to sense other chassis inputs... if you're Hanging ON for DEAR LIFE, your tight fist on the wheel will negate much chassis feed back and may result in understeer and/or oversteer! OK, so you'll get a harness bar and harness, right? Not so fast, Grasshopper. Remember, everything is part of a system! For a harness to be properly fitted a racing seat with the proper location slots for the harness is probably required. OK, harness, harness bar and seats, right? Well, maybe. Think of it this way. If I'm strapped in my 5-point harness my body is unable to swivel from the waist. So what, you say. Well, in a roll-over your body will be strapped upright and your head probably won't support the 2800 pound s2000. Lucky for you the S2000 has some minimal rollover protection in the hoops behind the seats. But if your head and helmet are above the hoopes you may want to reconsider not adding additional protection. See how all the system stuff works? OK, I know you're itching to add POWER!! Well, you're going to anyway so now is the time to start planning for it. More power usually means faster speeds requiring better brakes (check, you've done that), and better safety equipment (check, you've done that, too) so just remember, once you start down this path things get really expensive really quickly and may (and probably will) come at the price of reliability. It's no fun coming to a weekend event and breaking on Saturday morning (been there and done that, not fun). More power may need changes to driveline and chassis set-up. You know, everything is part of a system.
2. Shorten your maintenance intervals and check/replace items under stress more frequently. For me, wheel studs, wheel bearings and valve springs come to mind. I learned this the hard way. I sheared all five left-rear wheel studs in Turn-5 VIR resulting in a spectacular spin and watching my left wheel and tire roll into a creek... if it had happened 3 turns later I would have been in the climbing esses at over 110 mph and had a very terrible day! After a few years of “wheels on and off” for brake bleeding, etc. the bolts had stressed and finally “catastrophic failure”. Lesson learned, ARP studs replaced yearly!
3. Driver attitude: By now you've had many different instructors and maybe a few different tracks and I'm sure you've had one instructor tell you to do one thing and another instructor tell you to do something different for the same track situation. Learn them all. It's just another way to accomplish the same objective. As your skills mature, you'll pick and choose which method you employ based on your car, track conditions, traffic, and goal.
4. If you've been driving “solo” for a while get an instructor or some track driver you respect as a driver to hop in the right seat for a session. Have him/her analyze your driving to determine if you're picking up a bad habit you may not be aware of. You can't fix something you don't know your doing. And by the way, the guy you're always running with may not tell you. They're reluctant to give up their advantage (been there, done that, hee hee!).
5. Hopefully, you've recognized other drivers and cars on track that you “duel” with. Use that and analyze when they seem to be better than you and when they seem to fall back. What are they doing differently? What's working for them? What's working for you? Are they getting to the throttle quicker than you out of a turn? Why? What are they doing that you aren't?

As I said at the beginning, this wasn't a How to Go Fast piece. I hope it gave the folks who want to do their first HPDE the right incentive and for the others, I hope it makes your track time less expensive (probably not!) and more fruitful. Let me know how you feel about it... I have thick skin so be blunt! OK, have fun and be safe out there!!
--Ralph

 

Great advice but i would like to mention one more thing in a general sense.

It's not a race - the person holding you up may not realise they are doing it and may have a lot more power in a straight line than you in your S2000 (which happens a lot). Don't get frustrated / angry *euro beat intensifies* and tailgate trying to get their attention. Create your own space. Slow down and give yourself room to move. I tend to give slower drivers/cars 1/4 of a lap. if i consistently close in on them then i will ask the organisers to move to a quicker group. Don't expect other people to cater to you. Respect the differences and work around them.

You will drive better and quicker when you can focus on yourself and not others (unless you find your dueling partner).

 

I will occasional go out in the slower groups, giving ride-alongs and such, what absolutely infuriates me is getting stuck behind a slow car for a full lap because the driver AND the instructor aren't watching their mirrors.

That instructor is supposed to be the extra set of eyes for that driver / student.

It's a thankless job, I know.


/rant

 

Track day insurance is also a good idea.

 

Not sure I agree with the brake pad/tire advice. Lots of guys including myself run a race pad with a street tire, in fact for an intermediate and beyond driver I recommend it. A track pad with a Street tire won't increase stopping distance. Yes maybe in the instances where you actually lock the tire stopping distance may increase, but you would have to be running a super aggressive pad or an all-season tire. I am going to even say that with the S2000 even if your riding ABS the car is stopping nearly as fast as it physically can given the tire compound.

Sure depending on the pad compound a race pad may have more bite, but that isn't always the case. Mostly a race pad is functional at the higher temperature demands of the track and offers more consistent stopping throughout the session.

Would i I recommend a race pad for a beginner, no your right a Street pad is just fine. Beyond that point though if someone is starting to push the limits of the brakes for a 20min session an aggressive Street pad isn't going to cut it. I would recommend swapping to a entry or even mid-level race pad. Pair it with an RS4 and it will work just fine.

 

Hi Bgoetz, You're right, and I apologize if what I stated came across as a "NEVER" statement. I was merely trying to illustrate that tires and pads work together as a system. Yes you can run race pads with street tires but you have to understand the relationship. Finding the right combination of pad compound and tire compound is what it's all about. Additionally, I was also trying to keep a Novice from investing in expensive track pads (just because he's going to the track) without understanding the relationship. Your comments gave me the opportunity to clarify my point. Thanks!!