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Nice runs there. So jealous you have that home court advantage running that lot locally.
The Tsang's are in Carpenters old car and super fast this year. I think it'll be a battle at the top with you, Tsang's, and Zerr.
For rear spring, basically if you don't think you need less then you need more. Its the biggest lever to add rotation and front grip.
Thanks, Dallas! I appreciate it! I'm quite lucky to only be 3.5 hours away and there's absolutely no doubt that going to every event I can down there, has helped me get used to that surface and the higher speed courses they make, compared to our local events. I envy you guys that are traveling like 20+ hours to get to Lincoln and still are capable of winning. That blows my mind because with my fatigue issues I experience - that would definitely impact the way I drive during competition!
I think the car is there - I have no doubt. A lot of trial and error over these past 2 years now but with the right driver, this car definitely capable of taking it! It feels so much more balanced than what I had to deal with at last year's Nationals. Yeah - those names mentioned are definitely no slouches either.
Well, I think your last comment seals that deal. I'll be ordering another pair or two of springs to test in Mid August in Lincoln again!
HOWEVER - I'm currently running on 2019 Date code 295mm A052s that were lightly used when I snagged them. So I'm possibly wondering if they are slightly down on grip compared to the fresh '21 dated tires I have waiting for nationals. Hence, why it might feel a little more pushy, than rotatable? It's either that, or the tires in the rear I'm running have more grip than previous combinations....Time will tell.
It has been interesting to compare the '21 Nationals courses in Solostorm versus the exact same carbon copy courses we ran the last two days. The evo felt on point with everything I've done to it - especially compared to last year, but it all the mods in the world cannot make up for mistakes like this. On yesterday's course for example - I compared my 2 fastest runs of the day, vs my fastest run from the 2021 SCCA Solo nationals. On the showcase sweeper yesterday, I ended in coming in too hot, added distance, this didn't allow me to get on throttle early which is what the evo is all about. This single sector resulted in me losing approximately 4.5 tenths of a second alone. I tell a handful of my buddies to not worry so much about their setup and making constant changes. What good does that do for most people, when the biggest variable is the person behind the wheel?
Blue line was '21 Nationals
Green/red lines were my '22 Mid Divs (this past weekend) fastest runs
That nut behind the wheel is tricky to tune right...
The truth has been spoken!
Over the course of a handful of years of monitoring my datalogs I figure, on average, I'm leaving a good 6 tenths +/- out there on silly mistakes off my best run. Probably more than that with errors that I'm unaware of. This sport is definitely all about minimizing those. Gotta keep striving to get better and getting the mind in the right place!
Back in my early autoX-ing days using 2G DSM, some of my competition decided to tweak their car after every single run. When I tried the same, I quickly came to conclusion that whenever you do that, you are driving a different car on each run and you have no clue why the change in time happened. I stopped doing it and that showed great benefit on all levels. It took lots of years to actually know what is really going on over there (actually, I am still learning here) and whether something needs change. Even than, changes were minimal (with exception when something was clearly wrong, of course). There is lot more time in tweaking that nut behind the wheel than it is in adding one or two clicks of rear rebound (add your favorite change here, of course)
Over the course of a handful of years of monitoring my datalogs I figure, on average, I'm leaving a good 6 tenths +/- out there on silly mistakes off my best run. Probably more than that with errors that I'm unaware of. This sport is definitely all about minimizing those. Gotta keep striving to get better and getting the mind in the right place!
When I do course walks Im not trying to memorize a line really, mostly Im looking for the areas I think are high risk/reward to push it. And then other areas that you cant really gain time but if you mess it up you can definitely lose time. Those areas I just note "dont screw this area up"
Over the course of a handful of years of monitoring my datalogs I figure, on average, I'm leaving a good 6 tenths +/- out there on silly mistakes off my best run. Probably more than that with errors that I'm unaware of. This sport is definitely all about minimizing those. Gotta keep striving to get better and getting the mind in the right place!
The perfect run, most likely doesn't exist (unless of alien status) so leaving tenths here and there will always be the case. The mental aspect is in my opinion the hardest part of this sport... and being in the wrong head space costs seconds (for me at least) . You've been killing it this year for sure, so I'm stoked to see how Nats end up for you!
Back in my early autoX-ing days using 2G DSM, some of my competition decided to tweak their car after every single run. When I tried the same, I quickly came to conclusion that whenever you do that, you are driving a different car on each run and you have no clue why the change in time happened. I stopped doing it and that showed great benefit on all levels. It took lots of years to actually know what is really going on over there (actually, I am still learning here) and whether something needs change. Even than, changes were minimal (with exception when something was clearly wrong, of course). There is lot more time in tweaking that nut behind the wheel than it is in adding one or two clicks of rear rebound (add your favorite change here, of course)
Wise words. One needs to read - then reread this again and again. I know I've fallen victim to thinking this or that is gonna help. Some of these mods mean little if nothing to be honest.
Originally Posted by Dallas J
When I do course walks Im not trying to memorize a line really, mostly Im looking for the areas I think are high risk/reward to push it. And then other areas that you cant really gain time but if you mess it up you can definitely lose time. Those areas I just note "dont screw this area up"
Great advice, Dallas! This is noted.
Originally Posted by Hoojan
The perfect run, most likely doesn't exist (unless of alien status) so leaving tenths here and there will always be the case. The mental aspect is in my opinion the hardest part of this sport... and being in the wrong head space costs seconds (for me at least) . You've been killing it this year for sure, so I'm stoked to see how Nats end up for you!
More great advice - and spot on. As much as we all might think our runs are close to perfect - I'm guessing the majority of people are further off than they might realize!
Thanks bud - and likewise - you have also been killing it in the evo this year too! Hopefully we have some evo domination in SM, ASP and STU this Nationals....
I dont have the expert opinion on RE71RS, but its definitely got the grip right off bat, you would want to go for your FTD on your first run. Even with all the watering down I could not beat my first run I dont know the state of their tires, but i got pretty close to National Champ times in an STR Miata (0.4s closer), so I'm excited to give it another go ASAP, too bad we wont have another SCCA event until after Lincoln NE.
I did install SSB caster plates prior to the event
I dont have the expert opinion on RE71RS, but its definitely got the grip right off bat, you would want to go for your FTD on your first run. Even with all the watering down I could not beat my first run I dont know the state of their tires, but i got pretty close to National Champ times in an STR Miata (0.4s closer), so I'm excited to give it another go ASAP, too bad we wont have another SCCA event until after Lincoln NE.
I did install SSB caster plates prior to the event
I honestly feel like these are a great option compared to the A052. I still haven't read the Grassroots comparison to see what that outcome was.
In 2 weeks I plan on comparing the all A052 setup vs the A052/RE71R combo. We have another TNT at Lincoln followed up by another points event. After that it's time to relax and get the mind right for Nationals.
So, I have been out of the tire games for a while (thanks covid!) and I just realized that Bridgestone replaced Re71R (which I used to run before) with the RS version. When 71R was fading away, AO52 was proclaimed as the top dog. Can anyone provide a quick summary of where things are today to help me catch up with modern times?
From all that Im hearing, the RE71r is very crisp with great bite but low tolerance to slip angle. The A052 is basically a hoosier-like street tire in the way it feels and communicates. My driving style is keeping the rear at high slip angle so the RE71 would be terrible but the A052 is magical.
