Road to National Solo2
 

As an autox neophyte, let me just say that I'm constantly in awe of the greatness shown by those of you who have attained the National status :worship: The name recognition does wonder to one's ego, though the quest to the pinnacle of grassroots motorsport is the ultimate motivation, for me at least.

With that in mind, I'm hoping that National autoxers can share your own personal journey on how you made it to the top (competitively), ie: year you started, Evo school phase level, number of runs, and etc.

I realized that seatime and patience are the main requisites. Without making autocrossing to be a full-time job instead of part-time hobby, the road seems to be precarious with no structure/plan in place. I tend to pick up some tidbits here and there, though feel that my main weakness lies in course-reading and having the lines down to the T on most common elements. Expert guidance on breaking point and driving line is not always possible, outside of Evo environment and instructor ride-along.

So how can I supplement lack of experience besides reading/once-twice-a-month autox/Evo school?

Ideally, I would like to get to National before 1)getting old 2)being tied down with family 3)RX-8 loses its dominance.

Thanks for sharing in advance!

Drive better. :) Figuring out the line to take (95% it is the shortest line) is not that hard. It's the other 5% knowing when the short line may not be faster.

Seat time really is king.

I started in '97, went to more and more events and not only ran with as many good drivers as I could, I asked them to come along also to critque. The biggest moment for me was when Nick Leverone walked up to me after a run, told me a few pointers he saw just after he saw me gaffe out on the course in a turn around... and said "Hey, if you slowed way the hell down for the pivot and just ran over the base of it, you'll be a few seconds faster."

It was right then and there where I found out that shorter line in slow sections wins.

Running with fast people really helps. Going to divisionals& tours and running against the best in the area also helps one to realize just how much work you have to do.

Other than that... not much can be done other than to remember a few courses you ran over the year and thinking what you could have done different.

I can remember most courses I've run on for the past couple years. I remember some of the mistakes I've made. After a while, elements on the course start to look similar and you can recognize them wile walking the course and know what you need to do before you get there, and how you need to exit before the next section of the course.

It really is all about seat time. Seat time is king. EVO schools will help, but sometimes it takes a few events afterwards to really 'get it'.

--kC

I agree with KC... Seat time. However make sure it is productive time. For me the thing that did it was going to all the big events I could afford, tours and pros where the best drivers were. If you just play with your local crowd you wont get pushed as hard.
I have never been to an EVO school, when I started in 93' I had a 3 time natl champ in my region and class he taught me a lot, btw he is now an EVO instructor. I just did every local event I could, practice days, local schools etc. To this day I still try to run as many events as I can. Keep in mind at your local level you can get as much bad info as good. Always consider the source when you get a tip.

:scratchhe


:D: :wavey:

Even I can help you with this part. Make your Topeka reservations now for the last week of September 2006. If you had to be good to go, do you really think it would be such a big event?

TeamRX8, how about throwing us a bone by feeding some info too?

Keep all the suggestions/words of wisdom comings! I knew that I really sucked when I'm 1sec behind Ron Bistrais ('05 FS 2nd) with me in RX8 and him in Camro, and 1.5sec behind KC at ZoomZoomLive, both driving Miata. I know that patience/speed control is something I have to learn (coming from Ron & Dave Newman at EVO 1). Just wanting to get past that learning curve much sooner rather than later, seeing how long the road really is with KC's 6yr for STX crown and 12yr for ULLLOSE on BS champ.

learn to be lucky, skill is just being able to position yourself for taking advantage of luck

You got a point there! Already saw 9/23-9/26/06 for National next year. I will definitely make it out to divisional to get a taste of National-level talent before driving halfway across the country to pad the list of bottom-feeders.

I've been doing this off 'n on since 1987 and I still suck at it... :(
So take my advice with a truckload of salt... :)

But to echo the other replies, seat time is where it's at.

Take an Evolution Phase 1 school and take notes. Spend the rest
of the year practicing what they teach you there.

Go to the big events: divisionals, National Tours, Pro Solo, Nationals.
Don't worry about how you finish, just learn something new to make
you go faster.

After you put adjustable shocks & front swaybar on the car, take the Evo Car
Setup school. It will teach you how to adjust your car when it doesn't do what
you want it to do.

Ride with good drivers to see what they are doing. Ask them to ride with you
and point out what you can do better.

Don't ask for advice on anonymous bulletin boards! :nono: :mdrmed:

LOL, but you guys rock. I feel like this is where I belong all along :grouphug:

Looking on SCCA reveals:
1. The Tire Rack SCCA Solo National Championships
2. The eleven-event SCCA Solo National Tour
3. The seven-event SCCA ProSolo National Series

How does Divisional fit into the grand scheme of things? Are there requirements for joining National Tour/Divisional?

if you have a pulse and a driver's licence you qualify

don't forget the SCCA card and a borrowed copy of the rulebook...

And a car that passes tech....

and a helmet, which btw SA95 helmets will be illegal for SCCA use by the end of the year due to the new 2005 spec helmet debuting at the end of this month

I have not had the safety steward actually checking the SA rating on my helmet ever to this day. Is the checking something more customary on National Tours? As for car set-up, can edj chime in what wheels you are running? I saw from Nat'l photos that most people are running SSR Competition, John V/clyde on stock, and not sure about edj.

You sure about that?

SoloHelmetBulletin.pdf

D'oh :spank: , I questioned that and our local safety steward swore up and down, asked an SEB memeber and they said it was true, go figure

They are Motoforge wheels, company apparently went belly up this year and I
think they auctioned off the assets 'cause a lot of wheels became available
during the summer for relatively cheap prices. They weigh a couple of pounds
more than the SSRs but for $1000 less, I can live with that! :)

Re: Snell 95 helmets. They are still good for Solo events. Solo uses current
Snell rating plus the 2 previous ratings. So Snell 95 are good of another 5 years.

Here's a tip.

:p

If your helmet isn't being checked at tech for the rating sticker or an annual tech sticker, someone isn't doing his job.

We're not running OE wheels next year. Unless it rains.

and another


:o:

I questioned that because I swore my helmet was good through another rating and they made such a stink about it at our last event, that's what I get for following along this once :o: :rolleyes: :wallbash:

We had the same misinformation circulating amongst the SSS community here in the SE in spite of what the rulebook clearly states. Wasn't until I dug up that Tech Bulletin that I was able to shut them up. :nono:

Helmets: M or SA 95+ will be legal until 2010 when the next spec comes out (after 2005).

Not that I'm someon you should be asking, but seat time is definitely king. Do as many of the National events as you can. Divisionals are good too, but since there's less contingency money the big dogs often skip divisional events.

I learned a lot about driving, but I learned even more about competing by doing Tours this past season.

JV

what, no Photo Contest advice? :stickpoke


:D:

.

Looks like the overwhelming advice is quality seat time in great quantity, while attending National Tours, ProSolo, and Divisional to gain exposure to best of the best. Additionally, I need to stop beating myself in trying to figure out what I did wrong on my own. Stupid self-pride. Will ask for expert critique and ride-along as much as I can by identifying top competitors running consistent time. Furthering my EVO school education beyond Phase 1 to gain concentrated seat time.

Now the final question is: when is the right time to upgrade to Koni Sport SA (Yellow)? I know ULLLOSE won one National Tour on stock shock in a borrowed car. But I'm pretty sure that I'm light years behind him or anyone else for that matter reading my idiotic post. So do I get the shocks for the extended forgiveness offered by better rebound control while still learning (or leaping I hope) for '06?

I have ran 12 events so far in RX-8 (my 1st RWD), done EVO Phase 1, and won over a 350Z driver who had Evo1/2/3/Challenge on Hoosier A3S04, compared to me in Dunlop SP SSR and Tanabe front-sway. Hopefully, that meant I have *some* talent to make it happen with enough hard work and luck as TeamRX8 put it.

Thanks for offering a guiding hand! I wish there was an Apprentice program in autocross to speed up the learning process. ;dunno :scratchhe

It was a Prosolo in our car on stock shocks. We had the car about two weeks and that was the first event. It did have my exhaust, MS swaybar and an alingment. I would say the shocks are less forgiving. The softer a car is the more forgiving it will be. A stiff car will be faster but must be driven better.

Sort of related.... How do sponsor deals work? I know Kumho sends you a box full of stikers, a patch and misc. stuff. Then you put the stickers on your car at a National event, depending how you do they send you credits good towards tires.

ULLOSE mentioned something about Mazda sponsorship. What else is out there?

Those aren't sponsorships, they're contingency programs. They all work pretty much the same way. You enroll in the program, put the required decals on your can and run the equipment. Enrolling in some of the programs is easier than others. For instance, with Kumho, you fill out a form and fax/mail it back to them. For the Mazda Motorsports program, you need to also send them event results showing you driving a Mazda or give them an estimated completion date for a car that you are building. When you qualify for an award at an event, you have the Chief of Impound sign a form which you then send in. Some time later, you get a check, or whatever else, back in the mail.

What the awards are and how well you have to do vary from company to company. For the most part, the contingencies are only for Tours and Pros (and the Championships/Finale), but some will pay for Divisionals too (such as MINI). Most of the tire companies have some kind of program. Mazda, BMW, MINI and Subaru all had programs this year. What and how much these programs pay and what will qualify you for an award varies greatly. Hoosier gives two tires to class winners at Tours and Pros while Kumho gives money to up to the top three in class and Hankook gives "Hankook Dollars" good only for buying Hankook tires. Mazda gives money to up to the top two in class while Subaru gives money to the first Subaru in class (or something like that). You just have to be enrolled in the programs and meeting the requirements of those programs (decals, equipment, etc).

Sponsorships are a whole different thing.

Looking at the NT registration form, there is a section for tire. I'm wondering if running Dunlop SSR will be a problem already during the sign-up process. I'm well aware that SSR is not legal due to lack of rim diameters and sizes available per Rule 13.3. Though I will not be competitive by any means as a 1st timer on NT, as all of you are painfully familiar with my newbiness based on my questions in this forum.

So do I have a real or theoretical problem? Assuming my fellow BS won't protest about my tire, can I run what I have already? Or I need to spend the dough to get legal and overkilled tire at my current skill level?

If you don't mind your times showing up as DNF for Sat and DNF for Sunday, then run BS. They're not legal for stock. You've known for a while they weren't legal. Had plenty of time to get a new set (or even used) of legal tires.

Just the facts here. If everyone wanted to 'bend' the rules a little, what good would the rules then be? I know it's not what you wanted to hear... but it's not a local event either.

--kC

Just leave that part blank. You can always change it at check in time. You may decide that you want to get a set of new or used good tires by then or maybe someone will want to codrive with you and help with tires.

Sigh... So DNF is the result of tech inspection at the start?

The form asks for the tire brand, but no specifics. Well, let's see if things pan out with me running Dunlop SSR on the street in the Golden State, and picking up new/used V710 for serious competition then. (waiting for that job offer call for relocation) :angel:

The only way you will be given a DSQ, wont be a DNF, is if someone protests you. The tech guys do not check to see if you are legal, they only do safety. Cars show up all the time that are not legal and there is nothing done. At the SD tour a BS M3 driver asked me what he can do about another M3 which he thought was not legal. The other car was lowered, crossdrilled brakes and big wheels. When the guy with all the bling was DFL way back, the other BMW guy decided he did not need to do anything so his times stood.

Hypothetically, if someone in your class showed up at a NT / Pro in B Stock with say, a short shifter installed, and they beat you - would you protest them?

John V

only if they called me a SOB :p:

:cwm27: inside joke ...


.

:mdrmed:

I've been called that enough that it probably wouldn't affect me.

Hypothetically speaking of course.

I doubt it at a tour.... Maybe at a Pro if I needed the points.... Natls oh baby the paper is alread filled out. How do you spell your last name? :cwm27:

I don't think I would ever have to. There is always some sucker out there that can be talked into doing it, just look at FL. :angel:

All true. Sorry.

What I meant to convey it as, if you wouldn't mind the 'possibility' of being DSQd. Not that it would actually happen unless somone filed papers. Sorry about that.

But any other events, you should try to be legal. If there's something illegal on someones car, something should be said beforehand so they can attempt to have it fixed beforehand (sorta like we're doing now?... or natinoals until after they've already run?). I'm still of the inclination you have plenty of time to remedy the illegalty of it, and you're already know they're against the rules.

Also what happens, is you get people after the event seeing what tires you had, and then not knowing or understanding fully.. goes out and buys them thinking they're legal because they were used at a tour... failing to do their own homework in checking if they were legal. Some people don't stay on top of that stuff.

You mentioned that you might be coming up here to Devens tour. That's another 3 months away to procure legal tires. Do I 'really' give a crap? No. They're not fast tires. But I feel everyone should be legal as much as possible, knowing the rules.

-kC

LOL. Good one.

We don't have the short-shifter, dumbass. :spank: It was a hypothetical situation. :)

What if it was the difference between $300 contingency money and $100 contingency money?

To late... Now we know to check your car for sure.

Then I find the guy in 4th place that will go from zero to $100 and get him to file the protest. Also by getting someone else to do the protest I can still sit in on the appeals board. :FIREdevil I knew being on the SEB would pay off one day. :lach:

Thanks for the talk to set me straight on "the right thing to do" in spite of crappiness on Dunlop for Natl level. Hoping to make Atwater if the relocation happens. Two-hour drive from San Jose with SO sounds so much better than 5+ from NJ to Devens by myself. I'm sure I'll get to see you eventually at THE Natl, kc.

Just spend the money and get the good tires. It will be worth it. Every time I have cheaped out, which I continue to be stupid and do, I have in the end regretted it. When you have a good setup, it gives you a better measure of how you really rank relative to the other drivers.

That said, the only protest I could see happening since those tires are so overmatched is if it rained, and then the tires might actually be better. Of course, at that level, most folks are going to have the good rain tires as well.

you don't how relieved it makes me to see that you recognized it for what it is :worship: :worship: :worship:

Well, Ft. Myers was my first National Tour event. Had I done well, I would have been protested for not having my engine cover(accidentally left it in Jacksonville) and I guess an aftermarket oil cap. Not sure about the cap though. It was a learning experience, and now I definitely know what to bring and what to expect. Pretty much everyone in BS knew it was my first National event, they were all very cool. Next time, I will be better prepared.

you probably would only get a handslap warning on the cover (except at Nat'l Championships) since it only weighs 2 lb, the oil cap is fine

When there is a will, there is a way!
Bottom fodder, here I come!

:bigok:

Both front & rear Koni on the car, used V710 on the way, looks like I'm all set to attend my very 1st National Tour in Devens, MA. A few questions:

Friday nite tech/reg is not needed if I pre-register thru scca.com, correct?

On Sat, late check-in/tech is 7-8am, concurrent with course walk opening. Is this too much of a rush?

Regarding stickers/graphics/car #/class, what are the guidelines? DIY will be fine
assuming 8'' for # and 4'' for class, or professional looking one is neceesary?

This is the last year that Snell SA95 is ok for SOLO, right? Does National Tour
have loaner available, just in case I have co-driver?

Where can I get last minute help with my driving before being taken to the cleaner
by kC/John V/clyde?

Late check-in and tech on Saturday is something you only want to do if you have absolutely no other choice and can't get there in time on Friday.

Numbers and class letters have to meet the requirements in the rule book and be legible. The other stuff that you need, you can get at tech. i can't remember if it's $2 or $3 for the full batch.

No loaners unless the host region has them. Unless the rule changes before then, Snell 95 will be good until Snell 10 is the standard. Current and two previous.

:rollingla

Here are a couple helpful tips for your first national event:

I'd highly recommend getting there Thursday night/Friday morning early. Then, assumming they have it, you can run the Cone Clinic Friday morning. After that you can spend the rest of the day running the practice course. It's usually $10 for 6 runs so plan on doing about $30 worth :D: Seriously, as this thread has said over and over again, seat time is key and getting used to the lot surface and being practiced can do nothing but help you at the event on Saturday and Sunday. After practice you can then register about 5pm and start walking the course. I'd do it about 3-4 times that evening.

Come Saturday morning, get there early. Make sure you know what group you run and work in. Pre-grid your car if possible. They should have the grid spots up either late Friday or Saturday morning.

In your grid you are going to want to have at least your helment, air gauge, air tank (if you have one), sunscreen, and smaller cooler with iced down water.

After that is all square, go walk the course again in the morning. Take the course map with you and note important cones/sections.

When it's time for you to work, make sure to check in as early as possible so you don't feel rushed to get up there. You must check in. Don't assume since you are at a corner station they know your out there.

Tune your radio to the station they are broadcasting on and listen for annoucements.

Also, event sticker packs run $3.

Good luck and have a good time.