der Bayerische July/August 2021 - 22

Now that's a serious lookin' track car,
photo by Fraser Dachille.
Preparing for Your Advanced Group Track Day
What You Need to Know
(or perhaps just be reminded of)
By Juan Ramone | Photos by Fraser Dachille
S
o, you're getting ready for your
Advanced Group track day.
Psyched! See our schedule on
the NCC website here or on motorsportreg
here. Here are a few things
that would be good to know (or be
reminded of) BEFORE heading out to
the track:
Before track day (use this
section as a checklist)
You should already have a four(or
more) point harness, a HANS
device, a roll bar or cage, a helmet that
meets current motorsports standards,
and tires that are appropriate for track
day (200 treadwear or lower). If you
don't, then now would be a good time.
Now is a good time to upgrade
your brakes calipers, brake pads, and
brake fluid (high-temperature DOT-4).
See www.tirerack.com and www.bimmerworld.com.
Now
is an appropriate time to
upgrade your suspension and get a
competition alignment. Don't make
changes just because you can. Make
changes because you understand how
your car is behaving, how you want it
22
to behave differently, and how to
achieve that. Make one change at a
time so you can gauge its effect. See
" The Habits of Highly Effective
Autocrossers " articles in the
following issues of der Bayerische:
May-June 2019, July-August 2019,
March-April 2020.
Make sure that a professional
mechanic has inspected the car using
the club's pre-event technical inspection
form to make sure the car is safe.
Bring the completed tech form with
you to the track day.
Get a good night's sleep for two
nights before the event. Why two
nights? If you're like me, you'll be so
revved up the night before the event
that it may be difficult to get a good
night's sleep the night before.
Read whatever info the registrar
emails to you, including the " supplementals " .
If
you've never been on this
track before, then watch a video (try
Youtube) of a good driver driving a
lap. Ask the organizer to suggest a
video.
During track day (use this
section as a checklist)
Wear a long-sleeved shirt, long
pants, and closed-toe shoes. Bring
your glasses and/or sunglasses. And
a tire pressure gauge, torque wrench,
jack, jack stands, and basic tools.
Check your lugs' torque before
you begin your track session ONLY
WHEN THE LUGS ARE COOL
ENOUGH TO TOUCH.
Arrive early, empty everything
out of your car (including floor mats),
take the completed tech form to
the tech inspectors, and go to
registration.
Have a good breakfast (but not
too much) at least 30 minutes before
going onto the track. Your brain
needs the fuel. Same thing during
the lunch break.
Channel your mother: stay
hydrated, use sunscreen, wear a hat.
Set your tire pressures before
your first track session, keeping in
mind that your tires will heat up substantially
(as much as 10 psi) during
the session. Check and adjust your
hot tire pressures immediately after
each session; a typical target tire
pressure (hot) for a dry track is about
39 psi.
Turn traction control OFF so the
computer doesn't fight you excessively.
Leave stability control ON
until you and the car have warmed up.
Leave Sport mode OFF (the throttle
response is too aggressive.) Turn off
any computer aides that you don't
want intervening (like lane assist or
automated emergency braking)
during high-performance driving.
While you have stability control
turned on, stay out of the banking on
the Karussel turn on Summit Point's
Shenandoah Circuit. Banked turns
tend to drive stability control systems
bonkers (not good).
Remember the three primary
rules of track day. 1) Be safe. Help us
keep you and your car safe. If you
have an instructor, do as your instructor
says. If you and your instructor
don't see eye-to-eye, then talk to the
Chief Instructor. 2) Learn something.
3) Have fun.
derBayerische

https://www.nccbmwcca.org/driving-events/high-performance-driving-schools/ https://ncc.motorsportreg.com/calendar/ https://db.nccbmwcca.org/ https://db.nccbmwcca.org/2019/2019_0708.pdf https://db.nccbmwcca.org/2019/2019_0506.pdf https://www.nxtbook.com/mercury/derBayerische/derBayerische_MarApr2020/index.php https://www.bimmerworld.com/ https://www.tirerack.com/ https://www.bimmerworld.com/

der Bayerische July/August 2021

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