I did not do so well at yesterday's AutoX. My attention was very diffused. Several people were showing up to watch, and I had told them to show up around 11am counting on the fact that my category, ESP, never, never runs in the first heat. Well, yea, I was in the first heat -- first car away at 10am. So, I was half racing and half watching from the staging area so I could wave my friends over when they arrived. I couldn't get into the right mindset. I was without focus, which manifested itself into me driving timidly.
The course, itself, was a fast, wide-open course (a 'Vette-friendly course). I, on the other hand, took the widely-spaced slaloms too slowly, braked too early entering into the increasing radius sweepers, and braked for too long into the sweepers. So, the course layout, here's what it looked like (generally):
The first two turns were killer 120 degree turns. You had to crawl through those. The first slalom was fast. It was a widely spaced slalom, and I should have been digging deeper into the throttle, but my lines were not being smooth, and I was jerking the wheel back and forth to navigate through.
The next section was the big increasing radius sweeper. I was braking too early and for too long coming in to the sweeper causing me to have to regain speed by giving Emily more gas through the turn. That resulted in me exiting the turn with a lot of understeer and not carrying a lot of speed into the next section, a huge straightaway.
So, apparently, someone wanted a drag-racing element in the course, because the straightaway required a throw to 3rd gear. I never made the throw, though; rather, I just backed off of second. I did not want to have to deal with trying to get Emily back into 2nd gear coming up to the tight turn at the end of the straight.
More open followed the straight, an easily navigable Chicago box, another sweeper, another open slalom, one final sweeper, and the finish.
Bah! I did not do well. Plus, the strain of autocrossing further exasperated Emily's front wheel bearings' problems. Now, they are really bad and loudly demanding to be replaced.
Bah!
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Comments
i didn't realize they were going bad (the bearings). perhaps you should buy an upgraded unit...an rx-8, perhaps?
i didn't realize they were going bad (the bearings). perhaps you should buy an upgraded unit...an rx-8, maybe?
There was an RX-8 at the autocross. And, there was a WRX STi and an EVO VIII. First time for any of those cars. The RX-8 driver was a sissy, though, and kept it in 2nd through the whole course. Why have a 9500 red line to just sit at 4500? The STi and EVO, though, were taking the course at a much quicker pace. The STi posted a best time of 56.6; and the EVO, 55.9s.