stripethree

A great weekend at the track.

In green (beginner) group again and spent Saturday on the Jefferson Circuit doing car control exercises in the morning and lapping the track in the afternoon. I drove the first few laps on the JC in the afternoon and then pulled into the puts to let me instructor drive. Whoa. Didn’t know the car could do that. I was even more amazed when I rode along in his 944. Amazing. Jeff needs to learn to drive better. Also had some interesting experiences in a live track situation with a waving yellow getting thrown right and front of me when a CRX spun. Nothing like doing triple digits and then having to slow down to avoid something you can’t see around the corner without stopping too fast so the cars behind you don’t end up in your hatch. And this is fun? Absolutely.

Sunday was eye opening. I had seen some pieces of video of the track, but not the whole deal. The morning started with a ride along with my instructor to gain some familiarity with the track. Whoa. There are two characteristics of just about every corner apex on the Shenandoah Circuit: blind and late. We got to the Carousel… yeah, a 20 degree banked turn. Nuts. Who designed this course?

The first session was slow, which was fine. I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t nervous. This track, at first glance, scared the crap out of me. It was less intimidating once I got a chance to negotiate it myself, with some help from the passenger seat. The first session was all in third gear and I don’t think I saw anyone pass, just a long line of green group drivers trying to figure out how to navigate this demon of a track. Even through the second session I would still get lost in the last turns coming into the straight, which would cost me speed. By the third session I was getting better and better at not only remembering where I was, but also holding closer to the lines I should have been taking. Fourth session, as with VIR, I think I was a little worn and got a little sloppy. I felt like I was able to recognize what I was doing wrong in some spots, especially compared to the previous session which went so well. Even after four sessions, it was a little unnerving going through the Carousel. Not so much entering it, but staying on the throttle somewhat all the way through the turn and slingshot-ing out into the next turn. And it was bumpy. Wow.

I learned a great deal this time around, including some live action flag experiences. Even got tagged with a blue/yellow stripe (meaning let the car behind you pass) in my last session. Ooops. As with VIR I got along great with my instructor and was able to learn a lot. It was a lot to take in, that’s for sure, a very busy course. The only downside is I won’t get to run it again anytime soon. I browsed through pictures of my car taken by Sideline and they looked fantastic. That plus the discount they give to folks that bought at VIR sealed the deal, so I should have a picture CD on the way in a couple weeks. In the meantime, I might be able to get some pictures from the other track junkies. Speaking of the track junkies, it was a damn good time hanging out during the down time with the usual suspects and some folks I had not met before. Grilled food, sarcasm, and ridiculous looking hand motions to simulate sections of the track were the fare of the day.

Here’s pics that I took while in the paddock area as well as from Sideline Sports Photography. I do have lots of video, here’s a sample with a couple laps from my second session. It’s 4:30 long and is about 21.56 mB to download. Enjoy!