Downshifting into 1st
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Joined: Feb 2004
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From: Dry Branch
Originally Posted by clawhammer,Jul 1 2006, 12:47 PM
That last event was almost like an exception. Before I would be about 5 seconds off the pace and extremely consistent, often times to the tenth. But that event just had 5 or 6 very technical areas where my lack of experience was slowing me down.
Evolution does not have any classes near me unfortunately.
Evolution does not have any classes near me unfortunately.
Check with your local SCCA region. If they sponsor autocrosses they can sponsor an Evolution school; It's usually easy to fill the class and the sponsoring club makes a little money. If they have an autocross program you can likely get them interested in sponsoring a Phase I school.
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Joined: May 2006
Posts: 177
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From: Houston, TX
The answer is:
Rarely! But it does depend on the course. Here in Houston, we normally run fairly fast courses, but last weekend we had a pretty short, tight course. I was staying in second until another S2000 driver with a ton of autox experience told me he was downshifting at one point. I tried it and it worked, seemed to get the car rotating easier in a > 90 degree turn, but my time was actually 1/10 slower than the run before when I was in second.
I suspect that is from being slower somewhere else on the course. I'm not all that consistant in this car yet, as it was only my third event in it, and I'm coming from a wrong-wheel drive car.
I think it's probably most important to time the downshift appropriately. Make sure you are downshifting while you are braking, not afterwards when you should be on the throttle already, or else you are losing time even if you are accelerating quicker once you get it in first.
Rarely! But it does depend on the course. Here in Houston, we normally run fairly fast courses, but last weekend we had a pretty short, tight course. I was staying in second until another S2000 driver with a ton of autox experience told me he was downshifting at one point. I tried it and it worked, seemed to get the car rotating easier in a > 90 degree turn, but my time was actually 1/10 slower than the run before when I was in second.
I suspect that is from being slower somewhere else on the course. I'm not all that consistant in this car yet, as it was only my third event in it, and I'm coming from a wrong-wheel drive car.
I think it's probably most important to time the downshift appropriately. Make sure you are downshifting while you are braking, not afterwards when you should be on the throttle already, or else you are losing time even if you are accelerating quicker once you get it in first.
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