Where should newbs to racing go?
 

Hey all, I live in New York (around the albany area), and I am wondering where to start out if I want to maybe take my rx8 to the track for a day to test out the high speeds. I would be interested in doing the training but the problem is, I hear that many tracks can be $2k a day and higher.

Does any one have any experience with going to the track in New York (as to maybe which one is good), or how to go about starting to get my feet wet with racing? I feel the need to push the gas more and let her loose, all while not wanting to get a speeding ticket either :fingersx:.

Look for local autocross events.

I concur. Autocross is a cheap, fun way to get behind the wheel and become familar with your car's limits.

You'll be lucky to hit 25MPH in autocross. Not really the place you want to race if want to let her loose. I don't know about tracks in the NY area but down in Cali some tracks have track days for under $300. That's really affordable, in my opinion.

...or do this! Logitech G27 6SPD 3 Pedal steering wheel setup, Old passenger seat from my 1987 Mazda 626 GT Turbo, TV, PS3, GT5, some wood form hardware store and basic tools.

Custom budget racing sim. I can race on all of the most popular race tracks in the world! :lol:

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I regularly see 60+ mph in autocross. Not sure where you think you never see more than 25 mph.

A lot of clubs also do high speed autocrosses on tracks, in which you can see 120+ dependent of the track. I wouldn't recommend this for newcomers though since you usually wouldn't have an instructor. Most track days will provide you with an instructor your first time out. If you decide to do a track day, make sure you have an instructor.

Beginner autocross courses. We are talking about someone who's new and would like to get into racing. It wouldn't make any sense for a new auto-crosser to jump into high speed course inexperienced.

Yeah, I may even decide to wait a while. Im 22 now, and I wanted to kind of "go for it" and try it out before i get older and maybe lose the urge to race it. But lots of people older than me love racing, so I'm sure I'll still want to. I mind as well bide my time and save the cash for a more awesome day at the track when I have more funds to spend :)

Where you autocross at can matter greatly, as well as the course designer.

NE SCCA could just barely hit 60mph with a stock 8 on their regular course. Renegade Miata on the same old airport runways was more like 50mph (tighter courses usually). Running at NHMS, it was more like 30-40, as it got much tighter. I've seen plenty of videos where the courses are quite open, and others where they are crazy tight.


But completely agree. Going for autocross at least 4-5 times can really improve your driving.

I highly recommend auto cross too. Ive done it a couple time and am hooked. You could also check out HPDE events. They typically cost $200-500 depending on what club you run with. And you drive your own car.

The $2k a day thing you are talking about is probably a racing school. Chances are you will not be in your car for those events. They provide a car for you.

Check out this link for more info. http://www.goaheadtakethewheel.com/

I highly recomend Sports Car Driving Association. I have instructed with them so I may be a bit biased but I think they put on a great program to TEACH you how to drive safetly on the track at speed.
http://www.scda1.com/

COM is another great group for instruction and HPDE (High Performance Driving Events) and time attacks or Time Trials. In Time Trials aka Time Attacks you run against the clock not wheel to wheel so it lets you get your feet wet but without racing side by side! I grew up with this group back in the 80's and 90's. I haven't done an event with them in over 15 years but I bet it still Rocks for what your looking for.
http://www.comscc.org/

Last but not least in our area is EMRA. I have less experience with them but they are very similar to COM. I suggest checking them out as well.
http://www.emraracing.org/

NASA I think does some stuff up this way at Lime Rock but I am not sure on the details

SCCA is Wheel to Wheel racing but wait a bit for that...


Those three should get you what your looking for. Check out the events and then post up what tracks your interested in and I can give you some more advice.

I will also echo what the others said... you WILL do much better if you get into Autocrossing. It teaches you a LOT about what your car can and can't do. Doesn't help a ton in high speed corners but it gives you an idea of the limits of the car and more importantly teaches you depth perception and reaction time. Speed is relative and you can get the same rush in Autocross as you can on the track. Its just for a much shorter period of time. 5min all day vs. a few hrs. Lots of Autocross stuff here in the North East.

Good luck and let us know what you do!
Stephen

rhd???

Look for track days with some form of tuition\instructors if you want to get a grasp of what driving on a track feels. Of course wheel to wheel racing is a completely different animal.

Be smart and plan your expenses... it's not just the track day fee that costs. Brakes, tires, tear and wear, oh-shit situations etc all have a cost. Don't track your car if you can't afford to lose it either.

^+1

Sign up for some HPDE trackdays and have fun.

I wasted 5-6 years in autocross before I got into racing. I'm probably going to catch hell for that statement. I went on to a road course after a couple years of autocross. I didn't do well.
Get into a road racing driving school. I attended Skip Barber. There are others. Video games and autocross don't give you the feel of the vehicle dynamics in high speed driving and cornering, nor how to handle situations that are out of control.
After that, look into NASA and other car marque clubs for lapping days.
You want to know what tracks are in your area? www.trackpedia.com is your friend.
Track days aren't racing either. Your not competing against anyone but yourself. When you start comparing times or finishing positions, that's racing. There's a reason they call them High Performance Driving Experience (or Schools).

HPDE (High Performance Drivng Event) Track days - not autocrossing - is the answer for your wants. You'll get the feel for the car at speed over long distances and through varied conditions of twisties and straights. Cones are artificial barriers, race tracks are like driving on a road you own the whole width of to do what works best to go fast.

In the northeast (NH to NJ, and everywhere in between) there are a wealth of clubs to got to the track with. Don't be afraid of the idea of going on the track. You only go as fast as you want ... from 40-50-60 and on up esp. when you start. You'll always have an intructor in the car with you to guide you, help you with whatever you want to try and learn.

Check out motorsportsreg.com for events and dates across all the clubs (most anyway) as they use this clearinghouse to register people for their events rather than doing it club by club individually.

Don't wait!!!!!!!! Start while you are young like you are!!! You'll either love it or not, but the only way to find if you get the bug is to try it! The RX-8 is the perfect car to use, it's totally at home on the track. It *could* open up a lifetime of pleasurable drivng experiences for you you'll -in fact you *could* become addicted!.

It's not as expensive as yout think (thousands), but it does cost money. Figure $200-300 day entry fee, gas@8-10 mpg on track, a little oil, and a helmet. Of course, when you get better, you'll need some appropriate brake pads and tires, but stock is no problem to start. There's little to no pressure on you, you'll be in a run group of fellow newbies who are all learning and experiencing the idea of being on track for the 1st few times liek yourself. It's fun, it's not hard, it's very exciting.

The NE Porsche Club welcomes any make car with no membership required, BMW and Audi Clubs need at least one of their memberships to go to their events, then there are others mentioned above which are for profit track schools.

sblethen and alnielsen

I want to start a thread for NEWBs who ask questions like this.

I need your help. There's too much Bullshit on this forum making hard to find out who the real deals are.

First. There are different types of racing. Autocross is racing. It's fun. You will learn alot. And it's cheap. I like what seblethen wrote. He runs SCCA (And I'm going to join him soon - Steve send me the dates for Watkins) I run NASA. Chocolate and Vanilla. I have not had great luck at specialty clubs (Gonna catch hell for that, but that was my experience- PCA, BMW, etc. But it IS track time). And track racing is HUGELY expensive.

My background quickly. Bought car. Met RX8 friends. Started autocrossing. Got good. Wanted more. Started HPDEs. Got good. Wanted more. Started Time Trialing. Got good. Wanted more. Got competition license. Getting good and gonna find someplace to beat Seblethen,,,,,lol. Notice a theme?

My best suggestion. READ THE RULES for SCCA and NASA. DON"T buy stuff that won't work for NASA PT Class or SCCA STL. I made this mistake and spent a lot of money on stuff that I had to change.
Here's the order of my priorties for a newb, as best I recall. Basic requirements for track:

Decent tires (Star Specs are great),
Upgraded brakes and brake fluid
Good Helmet
Everything loose out of the car!!!!!
Work on your driving technique and lines.
Work on OFF lines. What does the car do. Everyone else will think you're nuts! Yeah, well what happens when you're there?
Suspension upgrades
More aggressive pads
SAFETY equipment
Computer equipment - I love the RaceKeeper. Traqmates are very popular. As you get more time in, no one else is in the car with you. This is how you teach yourself and share with your mentors.
Read the rules. Read the rules. DON"T buy stuff that won't work forNASA PT Class or SCCA STL. I made this mistake and spent a lot of money on stuff that I had to change.
In almost every venture I've done in my life it's about reviewing the basics frequently.
SAFETY equipment- don't skimp. It's your LIFE!

That should be food for thought....and argument.

Funny Steve, we think alot alike.

On my phone so this is short... If you choose SCCA Skip STL and do ITR unless you desire to be on TV midpack... Lots of reasons why anyone can chat offline if they want, this isnt really the right thread. I have been wih SCCA a long time and can help anyone with any questions. I will be the first to say our club can be confusing!

Steve, I really wasn't suggesting running STL so much as setting up the car for it. I bought so many things along the way that I had to sell off. Just sold my struts because they had an external cannister that did no performance improvement but I had to take points for. Newbs (this is the voice of experience) tend to buy things without leaving options open for the future.

Besides, I like being on TV! :wavey:

Reread the first post.
He doesn't want to race. He just wants to take his car out on the track and have a good time.
And the best way to get on TV, unless you have access to lots of money, is to become a corner worker. I got more tv time there than in the race car (0 time).

I understand. I am talking with several other people who similarly want to do the track and are asking me questions. I was hoping, with your help, to answer general newb questions. They go out, spend lots of money on the wrong things and get lost. ReRead MY post. You start out simply and get better and want more. So, nevermind, I'll spend my time elsewhere.


It was a joke dude!

Climbing back into silence. Adios!

??

Never seen such a thing as a "beginner" autoX course. Everyone runs the same course; top speeds will depend on the lot and the car, but are generally between 50-70mph.

No aggression was meant on my part and none was perceived. We just need to identify what the individual wants and work with that.

www.goaheadandtakethewheel.com has a good set of articles for beginners to figure out
a.) what they ACTUALLY really do want to do
b.) how to get into that avenue of motorsports

and just as an aside NASA-NE region (your area) does more tracks than Lime Rock - their 2012 schedule has New Jersey Motorsports Park, Watkins Glen and Pocono according to this:
http://www.nasane.com/events.html

I'm a NASA fan because of their ladder type system, but that said there are likely some other decent HPDE type driving clubs in your area as well that you could also run with to get additional experience and seat time.

Lol, hell yessss!

Wow!!!! Is all I can say to all this confusing talk to this new guy with a car he want to have some fun with.

All this NASA talk of what you can and can't do / put on your car / levels and ladders and racing and such seems just a 'tad' bit overboard. Virtually any standard everyday Club HPDE (BMW, PORSCHE, AUDI, SCDA, etc) have no such rules and regulations as youall are speaking of .. just have a safe and maintained car (any car) and a helemt and pay your fee and go .. or alternatively any modification whatsoever that are not disallowed .. and these are mostly safety things - no levels/classes for entry.. no hassle and you get excellent instructors .

Some people just want to have fun .. not make a life choice that you're going to be a professional racer before you even get on the track. Let the guy walk before he plans a trip to the nationals with his car meeting every rule in the NASA rule book.

Or at least that's my 2c worth.