bgames

Just what the title says. I am going to Road America in 10 days and want your best technical advice about driving the track. If it makes a difference, I have about ten track days under my belt and I completed Spring Mountain Level 1.

Thanks. Jason

63Corvette

RA is a horsepower track, so bring LOTS of it.

Aardwolf

Go slow and learn the track. There are many corners that you cannot see very far into the corner due to trees and hills. You can carry a lot of speed so it's easy to get into trouble. Pay attention to the brakes, they may fade and watch the fluid temp. Have fun! I only live a few mins from there and it looks like 62° on Sat and 72° on Sunday. I was just there last weekend. I love that track time!

UstaB-GS549

Be careful going up the hill to turn 6. You have to brake before you reach the Toyota bridge. Turn 6 is blind left hand.

Take your time building speed going thru the Kink after the carrousel. It has claimed a few cars.

Any brake vibration means you cracked a rotor and it is time to get off and change it out.

Have fun.

rudyarias

Road America is the ONLY HIGH SPEED TECHNICAL road course on this continent. All the other long road courses like Watkins Glen, VIR and Miller Motorsports Park are low speed technical courses. Make sure you have brake pads like Carbotech Xps, Wilwoods or Hawks and spare rotors........ The OEM Z06 pads will go away after the fourth turn. If you are using the stock calipers, depending on how hard you brake into the turns, your brake pedal will start to get mushy after one/two laps. You may have to "pump" the pedal when braking for the remainder of your session. The pedal will become "normal" after your brakes cool down when the car sits in the paddock after each session. I manage my braking by using my engine for trail braking into 1, 3, 8, 12 and 14. Also it would not be recommended to drive your car like you did at Spring Mountain. RA is a track that you must manage your engine/trans/brake temps by shifting to a higher gear using the engine's torque as a gradual approach when accelerating at the low end of 4/5 on the straightaways and in the carousel. I maintain an average of 250/260 oil temps during my sessions, keeping your gears in third and fourth on the tail end of the straightaways will bring your oil temps into the 300 range.

xsiveone

Respect the Kink!

AU N EGL

Lets see

all of Rudy's comments.

Bring extra brake pads and brake fluid.

Have fun, listen to your instructor, be open, leave your ego at home, have more fun.

Drive home safe and report back with pictures and make sure we get a pic of YOU with on of these

TmillerC5

Here is a video I shot last weekend with MFBA guys. Might give you some help but everything said and listen to the instructors.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GnyIfDQzbo4

Have fun as it is a great track with tons of history at least what they left standing.

Tim

gtb75

I agree with everything said above - especially what Rudy said... He's a NASA instructor and definitely knows what he's talking about. As others have said, your brakes are definitely going to get a good workout at Road America! My car is currently at HP Performance Corvettes getting brake work done (rotors, pads, lines, fluid) in preparation for this event. I'm also having a Sharkbar and 6-point restraints installed after having a ride in Rudy's Z06 last fall.

I'll be up there with a bunch of friends who have attended this event for the past several years... All of them speak very highly of it! Just look for a pair of Lotus Elise's, a silver VW R32, and my Z06. See you next weekend!

96CollectorSport

I will run you through a lap at Road America and see what everyone thinks about my line.

Two words pretty much sum up RA-LATE APEX.

Turn 1
We start at the start finish line you will carry a ton of speed coming into turn 1 (around 140 mph), to save the car and keep engine temps down shift into 5th at or a little after the start finish line, since you are new to RA start braking for turn 1 somewhere between the 5 and 4 marker. Some people will do a 5 to 3 shift, some will use 4 then 3 to get a little extra engine braking. Anyway you will take turn 1 somewhere around 70 mph. Late apex (sorry I don't have a turn in point probably because it's so damn fast.) track out.
Turn 2 (turn 2 isn't really a turn)
I try to center my car under the "point" on the Briggs and Straton sign to get me in position for turn 3.
Turn 3
Some people will shift from 3 to 4 between turns 1 and 3 it depends on how much speed you carry out of 1. If you do shift to 4th you will have to downshift to 3rd before 3. Turn in at turn 3 is just before the new asphalt (you will see some black tire marks there) it makes for a good turn in point. Again late apex, then track out.
Turn 4 (not really a turn)
Turn 4 is under the Sargento bridge and you really don't have to turn for it. From 3 to 5 is another place you will get into 5th gear and carry a ton of speed. A good place to check your gauges.
Turn 5
I line up on the left side of the track and aim for the farm house in the distance. This will give you a strait line for braking, the braking zone is downhill and you are carrying a lot of speed. Turn 5 is the slowest turn on the track so you are going from about 135 to 45. You can do a 5 to 3 or 5 to 4 and 4 to 3, I do the later. To brake in a strait line into 5 you start out on the left side of the track and end up on the right, if you do this right you will end up next to the rumble strips on the right hand side. I turn in 3 to 6 feet from the end of the rumble strip. (again late apex and track out)
Turn 6
Carry 3rd gear up the hill to turn 6 as said before brake before the Toyota bridge, again I don't have a turn in point, but again late apex. Be careful turn 6 can be slippery especially at the end of the day (shadows creep across the track and make the turn slick.) Exiting 6 you will still be in 3rd,
Turn 7
Carry 3rd to turn 7, look for the line on the track you will see where pretty much people before have turned in, there are tire marks layed down, (this was actually the hardest turn for me to get down, so as with the kink just work your speed up here.) Exiting 7 you will be up in the rev's. So some people will throw a quick 3 to 4 shift in before 8 others will let 'er spin, if you do upshift you will
Turn 8
Another downhill braking zone so be aware, turn in is just before the new asphalt, and will set you up for another late apex. Track out and head for the turn 9 (the carousel).
Turn 9 -Carousel-
Short shift from 3 to 4 before the carousel and put your left side tires to the left of the center line of the track. The carousel is long and it takes a while to get around it but as you start to see the apex rumble strip start to slowly turn the wheel in and try to hit the black and yellow rumble strips around the middle to end of the strip. This will shoot you toward the exit and down to the kink. (The nice thing about taking 9 in 4th gear is you can carry 4th all the way through the kink)
Turn 10 is the exit of the carousel.
Turn 11 the dreaded kink.
Come into the kink on the left side of the track and work your speed up. Turn in for the kink is somewhere around the last (#1) brake marker(there is also a white mark on the track) some like to turn in a little before, some at little after. I perfer at or a little after. (One quick thing now if feel that you are going to fast in the kink DO NOT HIT YOUR BRAKES! Carry your momentum and ride it out if you hit the brakes the back end will come around so fast you won't even have time to say oh $hit!) Exit the kink and breath, now some people will run 4th all the way to 12 (I do) Others will shift to 5th. See what works best for you.
Turn 13 really isn't a turn just one of the Kettle Bottoms.
Turn 12
To set up for turn 12 you want to be on the far right side of the track this will give you more braking room coming into 12. Make sure you are strait before you start to brake at 12 it's easy to do because there is a bend just before the braking zone. Go from 4th to 3rd and get ready to turn. Turn 12 is probably the latest apex turn at the track. I turn in a little before the new asphalt. Late apex and track out to turn 13. Carry 3rd gear all the way to 14.
Turn 13
Get over to the far right hand side of the track coming into 13, turn in is at the end of the yellow and black rumble strip on the right hand side of the track, apex is about the middle to end of the yellow and black rumble strip and exit is toward the access road coming onto the track after the exit rumble strip. You are going to be going across the track to get to you turn in.
Turn 14
If you look carefully you will see 3 pieces of ashpalt missing from the left edge of the track, just after the black asphalt they just put down, you will make a strait line from the access road to your tun in so you will kind of cut from the right to left side of the track to get to your turn in. Late apex and get ready for a LONG strait, your 3 to 4 shift will be on the hill, now is a good time to check your gauges. Then shift to 5th and your lap will start over.

There is one lap at RA, I'm sure some of us have a couple of differant ideas but I think most will agree with this as a good lap. But we'll see.

96CollectorSport

Which event are you running? The Milwaukee Porsche Club?
If so I will be up there with a couple of fellow Vette owners.

gtb75

Windy City BMW.

Great summary of a lap at RA! I agree with pretty much everything you said, but also wanted to add that the NASA guys suggested I enter the carousel under the letter "p" on the Snap On bridge - then center the car over the seam in the pavement through the turn until the exit.

xsiveone

Oh yeah.. Don't turn in early at the Kink. If you do, you'll run out of track. Also, don't lift or brake when you're in the middle of the corner of the Kink. People tend to do that if they come in too hot or turn in too early because they realize that they're going to run out of track.

BTW.. T7 is good practice IMO for the Kink. I approach both turns the same way.

I was looking at the onboard video taken at the Speedseekers event. I was looking for something like that. Anyway.. With the Billy Mitchell bridge gone, it looks bizarre to me.

0Randy@DRM

If you go under a bridge, stop the car and call for help

Randy

davidfarmer

http://www.davidfarmerstuff.com/vide...o-long-512.wmv

skip to the 2:45 area. Sorry for the huge file, but I don't have the files handy to shrink it down.

Sad thing was, this was the fastest car in practice UNTIL this happened.

bgames

gtb75,

I'll look for you at the track. I'll be with a Black M3 and a black Carrera 4S, and I drive a Z16. I'm having all the necessary brake work done, but I haven't got a harness bar or harness so its the stock seat belts for me.

Thanks to everyone else for the advice. Keep it coming.

Jason

waunavet

The 'kink' is dangerous to the uninformed. Be sure you have brakes to spare.

AU N EGL

Rember to post some pics and write up your experiance at RA.

bgames

96CollectorSport:

This one doesn't make sense to me. Isn't 12 a right turn? If so, do I really want to be on the far right side of the track coming into 12?

Z06 Whisperer

I think Jason will not have to worry about the kink driving with Windy City, right? Actually I think being up there for the first time with the bend in will maybe not bother you as much as those who are used to driving without it. And for me at least it seems to take at least a day 'till you even learn the layout of a new track. I like 96CollectorSport's description--I still can't find those missing pavement bits at turn 14 though

Most of all enjoy--they have some really good instructors!

HA HA! Hey I have to tell you that the diff cooler worked fine so far--of course the air temps were only up to like 50F, but still no dreaded hot tranny fluid light--so thanks. But I have to tease you and tell you the best part was when I turned the cooler on in grid--it would psych out the person in the car beside me almost as much as a mirrored face visor would or something!