Indy cars driver, Colton Herta, is very much in the
news of late and I have covered him in numerous posts to this blog but it’s a
pure coincidence that he just happened to be referenced in this penultimate
post to the National Auto Sports Association (NASA) publication, Speed News. However,
there is a lot more to cover this time then just references to Colton. In
particular, rereading this post I was reminded of a recent email from my good
friend and colleague, Robert Rosen. “Think about where and how to go off the
track if necessary,” Robert wrote. Particularly if you show up for your first
track experience in a bright red powerful car!
And this is very good point to make to every reader who
is being encouraged to take their car to the track. As you get into the post
below you will read of how, our SoCal NASA region’s chief instructor, told this
one particular group of first-timers, “Yes, you will drop two wheels on
occasion and perhaps even have all four wheels off the track, but ultimately,
you have to learn the track before you begin to add just ‘a mile per hour in
the corner, every time.’”
To say Margo and I have stayed firmly on the racing
line the whole time would not only be misleading but totally miss the point.
Sessions on track with NASA are only 20 minutes long and there are just four
sessions each day. However, it is that very first session where you take in
your surroundings, look for the flag marshals and most important of all, think
about where you might overcook a mid-turn or turn exit and where your “off” exit
might take you.
Fortunately, for the tracks where SoCal ran its events,
all but one were fairly safe in terms of offs. Buttonwillow was perhaps the
safest as the only concrete paralleling the main street and only for the brief
period is when you cross the start / finish line. Willow Springs International
Raceway, or Big Willow as it’s better known, has similar concrete alongside the
main straight but the exit from turn 9 can be a problem, depending on where your
“off” happens to start. As for the roval at the Auto Cloud Speedway in Fontana
it is concrete everywhere, even surrounding portions of the infield.
All of which is to say, before you can go fast and
before you even begin thinking about taking additional, albeit small,
increments of speed know where you are at all times and be prepared to “eat the
dirt,” literally!
Below is that post to the Speed News where the topic is all about going faster:
“Work up to it. That’s probably the biggest thing … If
you just go out and you’re smashing the wall, it’s not going to be fast. If you
can pick up a mile per hour in the corner every time, that’s going to be big,
and by the end of the session you’ll be quite quick.” This was a quote by
rookie Indy phenom, Colton Herta of Valencia, Calif. The youngest ever winner
of an Indy race. At just 18 years old, he won the Indy Classic at Circuit of
The Americas! Just a few weeks earlier, he had won his class in a BMW M8 GTE at
the Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona — and got his Rolex watch.
When I read Herta’s remark, it reminded me of the words
of the NASA’s chief instructor down in the SoCal Region. Yes, you will drop two
wheels on occasion and perhaps even have all four wheels off the track, but
ultimately, you have to learn the track before you begin to add just “a mile
per hour in the corner, every time.”
I have to admit, when working with my instructors the
first few years at NASA, I’ve learned that becoming humble is a natural
outcome. The HPDE program is probably better expressed as Humility Preferred Driver Event.
Most important of all – it’s all about working up to it. No driver ever shows
up for his first HPDE event knowing everything, even if he demonstrates a level
of race pace right out the gate.
By now though, you have made good progress through the
first levels of HPDE, and as Herta advised, you have added a couple of mph per
corner and watched as you carved seconds off your lap times. You have had your
car’s brakes upgraded — big brake kits are now commonplace among HPDE drivers —
and you have had your first outing on R compound tires. You have a real racing
seat and you have installed the correct harness setup, and all your fluids have
been upgraded to handle the additional heat that comes with speed. Even your
power steering fluid has been upgraded!
You are now ready to join the ranks of the HPDE3. You
have worked up to where you can be considered a candidate. Your instructor has
signed off on you, and you completed your check ride without incident. So, I
will let you in on a little secret: HPDE3 drivers are really good. For many
participants at NASA events, it’s not about becoming a racer and it may not
even be about Time Trial. There will be those highly experienced drivers with
well set up cars that are happy to circle the track in HPDE3, so be prepared.
Watch who is on track in HPDE3 for an event or two and get to know their skill
levels.
Depending on to which NASA region you belong to, there
will be slightly different requirements for transitioning to HPDE3, but if it’s
been a while since you dropped four wheels and it’s been observed by the
instructors that you communicate well with those around you, then, in all
likelihood, you will progress to HPDE3.
However, here is another little secret I can share: Not
all HPDE3 programs are the same across all regions. Make sure you listen to the
group leader. There is a thing about point-by’s. In some regions, they are
mandatory whereas in others they are appreciated, but aren’t mandatory.
Furthermore, HPDE3 doesn’t start out with open passing because the participants
are still reigned in until the NASA leadership sees competent driving and good
communication taking place. The number of passing zones will increase to where
it is almost open, except in corners for the most part.
HPDE covers a wide variety of skill levels and
experience, and not everyone showing up for NASA events have the intention of
pursuing anything more than HPDE3. I count myself as one of those drivers, and
anyone can continue “working up to it” and stay in HPDE3. It’s fun, safe, and
we are all rewarded with a sense of accomplishment each time we pass that
checkered flag with our car in good shape, with the doors intact, plenty of
rubber left for another couple of sessions and a gleam in our eye.
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