Advice for Autocross Beginners

[Rttoys]

Now I’m concerned that my side panels will be too visually noisy as they have airplane numbers.

make a cardboard plate to cover the numbers and letters, with your scca number on it. “Xx NEM”

 

[jamesm]

I overthink a lot of stuff. I’m a compulsive over-planner.

I mainly want to be as prepared as possible when I show up.

 

[Rttoys]

I overthink a lot of stuff. I’m a compulsive over-planner.

I mainly want to be as prepared as possible when I show up.

I totally understand. I brought half my shop to my first autocross (trailered the goblin). I could have rebuilt the engine between runs if need be. Now, I have a “system”. And it’s simple. You should see my layout when racing my bikes though

 

[jamesm]

I’m going to trailer as well. At least for the first couple until I figure out what all I actually need.

 

[Rttoys]

I’d always trailer. You will be pushing way over the limits and anything can happen. Trailer is the way to go. And you can being a bunch of stuff, like food and drinks. Love my ice tea.

 

[jamesm]

I did get to race yesterday. Man it was fun. I only DNF'ed twice out of 6 runs so I thought that was pretty dang good. They did a fun-run after the main event so I got to run 4-5 more times. Improved my time by by nearly 7 seconds between the first clean run and the last run. I think I was 12-13 seconds behind the event leader but I tried really hard to ignore the other scores. I've got videos of all but 1 run that I'm uploading right now.

 

[JBINTX]

I did get to race yesterday. Man it was fun. I only DNF'ed twice out of 6 runs so I thought that was pretty dang good. They did a fun-run after the main event so I got to run 4-5 more times. Improved my time by by nearly 7 seconds between the first clean run and the last run. I think I was 12-13 seconds behind the event leader but I tried really hard to ignore the other scores. I've got videos of all but 1 run that I'm uploading right now.

Is that a blast or what???!!!!
Look forward to your video.
Now, you will want to start changing tire pressures and front spring dampener to get it where you want it.

 

[jamesm]

Definitely a blast. Definitely ready to go again.

I linked the videos here: https://dfkitcar.com/forum/index.ph...rack-goblin-06-ls-donor.628/page-9#post-54867

I'm probably no going to dork with my current tires. They've held up really well on the crappy roads around here so I'm looking at getting a second set for track only. I'm going to go ahead and swap the rear cobalt struts out for coilovers too.

I don't plan on making any other changes to the car until I get more track time and practice. I gotta learn to drive it like a race car and not a daily driver....

 

[ncgoblin]

Hey all. We're going to (hopefully) attend our first autocross event in May. I've been reading through all the newbie pages I can find but I wanted to ask here too.

What advice would you give to a new person that's racing for the first time? What things should I watch out for?

On the road the goblin at first feels like it will never lose traction...I had a fellow Goblin owner mention to take it easy my first AutoX run because when the back end goes it goes fast and we tend to go a bit more crazy on a track. Guess who lost control their first lap...Had a blast that day. Every Goblin owner should AutoX at least once I respect the car much more and have a very strong understanding of what happens when this light car gives.

 

[jamesm]

Yeah. They will definitely get away from you in a hurry if you aren't ready for it. I got loose a couple times and got a little drifty a couple times but never spun completely out.

 

[winddude]

take your time on the first few laps, learn to read the course, and relax. I think it's pretty common to get lost, miss gates, ask for help, or ride along with an experienced driver, or ask an experienced driver to ride along with you and help you learn the course.

 

[jamesm]

More driving questions. What are your favorite resources (websites, videos, etc.) for driving techniques?

I could push my Sumitomo tires enough that I got pretty loose so I swapped them for Toyo R888R's. Now I need to work on my driving skills. I'm already registered for the next event so I want to start studying.

 

[JBINTX]

More driving questions. What are your favorite resources (websites, videos, etc.) for driving techniques?

I could push my Sumitomo tires enough that I got pretty loose so I swapped them for Toyo R888R's. Now I need to work on my driving skills. I'm already registered for the next event so I want to start studying.

Accelerator, or brake pedal. No coasting!!!!!
Learning to look down the course and not at the cone you are negotiating was the single biggest helping hint given to me when I started.
You will definitely find some new limits in the corners with your new rubber.

 

[jamesm]

Heh. yeah. I gotta work on braking in the right spot and not riding my brakes partway through the corners.

Looking down the course was super hard for me last time. I don't think I spent enough time walking the course so I wasn't able to anticipate the next maneuver.

 

[JERMzSS]

Man I'm bummed but I won't be able to join you at Neosho Sunday. I've got some issues with my heart right now and I've been told to stay out of the heat at all cost

On a lighter note can you or do you brake with your left foot? That has always helped me and it keeps me smooth (when things go as planned lol).

Trailbraking helps alot but if you aren't use to the car rotating I'd stick to braking in a straight line.

Try to keep braking applications smooth (on and off) try to be smooth on the gas as well because this is also transferring the weight of the car. I've unhooked my power brakes and it makes it alot easier to manage.

I've always had a hard time explaining this one but here goes lol. Some turns you will have more control in them under acceleration. In this video I lost traction in the rear when I let off of the gas and it caused me to spin around. My tires were still cold but it shows you how quickly just taking alittle weight off the rear can snap on you.

I really like the Driver61 youtube channel. He really does a good job explaining how cars react in track situations. I'll link a few videos that are helpful.

The late apex will be your best friend. Our cars stop quickly and accelerate quick as well. This will take some time to master but when it clicks it works wonders for track times.

Good luck dude and again I'm sorry I'm having to back out

 

[jamesm]

No need to apologize. Health comes first. There’s always more events for us to race.

Ive only tried the left foot braking thing a couple times. That will definitely take some practice. I’ve need reading about some heel-toe braking too but my pedals are too far apart.

I appreciate the videos. I’ll give them a watch tonight.