STX Rules and Setup Questions

[tigermack]

3rd gear courses are whatever... that's track day stuff.

[Blue Gt]

Note my STX car is now for sale in the classifieds section. DP

[Stang70Fastback]

Originally Posted by Silver Ignition

I need to run with a new club if you guys are hitting the top of 2nd gear...

The last Chicago Region event last year had me shifting into 3rd gear twice (0:43, and 0:55). I was touching 70 MPH at the entrance to the slalom in the second instance.

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4QWCEKcpoWs"]10.30.2016 - Chicago SCCA Event #9 - YouTube[/ame]

[tigermack]

We have had some pretty crazy 3rd gear courses... here's ones that was in 3rd 5 times... lol

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uf9BaxoJrEw"]Mack: AAS LPM Crows Landing STX BRZ - YouTube[/ame]

[Silver Ignition]

ugh those are such amazing courses.


NY Region is based on Long Island so a parking lot that big is impossible to find. With the Islanders moving to Brooklyn and construction at the Nassau Coliseum we've been searching for a new venue but at the moment we're playing with 30-second courses which barely get to the middle of 2nd gear

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by Silver Ignition

ugh those are such amazing courses.

NY Region is based on Long Island so a parking lot that big is impossible to find.

That site is almost 100 miles from San Francisco proper, most people out here drive for an hour or more one way to hit cones. It doesn't make your situation any easier, but it's not a cakewalk out here for most of us. Although we certainly have it better than most.

There's a couple bigass sites out here that we can't use that are in the heart of where people live and it's kind of unbelievable (ever watch Mythbusters? >1.5 mile runways untouched most of the year).

I mean, I get why they don't want the headache... just sucks that gearheads don't have a great reputation.

[oinojo]

Originally Posted by strat61caster

That site is almost 100 miles from San Francisco proper, most people out here drive for an hour or more one way to hit cones. It doesn't make your situation any easier, but it's not a cakewalk out here for most of us. Although we certainly have it better than most.

There's a couple bigass sites out here that we can't use that are in the heart of where people live and it's kind of unbelievable (ever watch Mythbusters? >1.5 mile runways untouched most of the year).

I mean, I get why they don't want the headache... just sucks that gearheads don't have a great reputation.

A lot of east coasters and mid west people travel 2+hrs each way regularly to hit cones.

[M0nk3y]

Originally Posted by oinojo

A lot of east coasters and mid west people travel 2+hrs each way regularly to hit cones.

I'll take a 2 hour drive to Toledo and 3 hours to Wilmington (RIP) any day.


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[cjd]

Originally Posted by oinojo

A lot of east coasters and mid west people travel 2+hrs each way regularly to hit cones.

I practice with potholes... Higher risk than cones and oh so easy to find on the way to events... Or in front of my house.

[strat61caster]

Originally Posted by oinojo

A lot of east coasters and mid west people travel 2+hrs each way regularly to hit cones.

No doubt



idk just got the impression that autox was dead on Long Island and we had it easy. We definitely do, but it's not like it's in our backyard and they'll have the same fate as everyone else, hauling out to middle of nowhere to have some fun.

[BlaineWasHere]

I travel about 1.5 hours each way.


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[jwisjw]

Originally Posted by Silver Ignition

ugh those are such amazing courses.


NY Region is based on Long Island so a parking lot that big is impossible to find. With the Islanders moving to Brooklyn and construction at the Nassau Coliseum we've been searching for a new venue but at the moment we're playing with 30-second courses which barely get to the middle of 2nd gear

While it might seem amazing on video, those type of courses take away any challenge to be had from autocross. We have so many courses that are literally riding on the limiter in a 6 cone slalom (I believe 75 feet spacing is the norm out here). When going to nationals,we are not surprised by the typical east courses but are surprised with some of the west course compression.

[strat61caster]

Still very much a newbie, I'm wondering how people approach managing the tires through a run, if they do at all.

I'm on the standard 245/40/17 RE71R's (17x9) and upon reflecting on recent performance I'm wondering if I'm overdriving them over the course of a run. It seems like I can endlessly chuck the car into the first corner or two or three of a course, but as I continue trying to put heat into the tires the grip goes away and seems almost slippery, like the car is a bit manic to hold onto. I'll get very little wheelspin initially but as the run goes on I get progressively more and more tire squeal.

Contrasting to some of the fast guy's videos, their wheelspin is much more measured... applied more judiciously I'd say.

I know I'm wasting valuable speed by not being patient enough, but I guess I'm curious if it's not just me overdriving, and if it's agreed upon that even on a small 2nd gear ~40s course you can take 'street' tires over their happy space, which would mean I'm making two mistakes and not just one. Just to be clear here, I'm not talking about outright stupidity and drifting burnouts, but rather someone who's going a toe over the line every corner when the trick is to step back from the limit and approach it with caution where necessary. (Or at least that's the mentality, whether or not I'm successful at achieving that approach is... well I have a long way to go).

fwiw, keeping the tires at about 32-33 psi hot, last week I got the LF up to ~120F, others were between ~100 and 110, I'd say it was a 'cool' day in the 70's with the sun shining.

Knowing that taking the first portion of the course hard to get up to temp and then dialing back a notch to manage the heat isn't the mentality I would have guessed is necessary in autox, but in hindsight makes perfect sense.

I figure asking and being told 'yes/no dummy' is a much quicker development path than burning up valuable rubber trying to figure it out on my own.

[renfield90]

Originally Posted by strat61caster

Still very much a newbie, I'm wondering how people approach managing the tires through a run, if they do at all.

I'm on the standard 245/40/17 RE71R's (17x9) and upon reflecting on recent performance I'm wondering if I'm overdriving them over the course of a run. It seems like I can endlessly chuck the car into the first corner or two or three of a course, but as I continue trying to put heat into the tires the grip goes away and seems almost slippery, like the car is a bit manic to hold onto. I'll get very little wheelspin initially but as the run goes on I get progressively more and more tire squeal.

Contrasting to some of the fast guy's videos, their wheelspin is much more measured... applied more judiciously I'd say.

I know I'm wasting valuable speed by not being patient enough, but I guess I'm curious if it's not just me overdriving, and if it's agreed upon that even on a small 2nd gear ~40s course you can take 'street' tires over their happy space, which would mean I'm making two mistakes and not just one. Just to be clear here, I'm not talking about outright stupidity and drifting burnouts, but rather someone who's going a toe over the line every corner when the trick is to step back from the limit and approach it with caution where necessary. (Or at least that's the mentality, whether or not I'm successful at achieving that approach is... well I have a long way to go).

fwiw, keeping the tires at about 32-33 psi hot, last week I got the LF up to ~120F, others were between ~100 and 110, I'd say it was a 'cool' day in the 70's with the sun shining.

Knowing that taking the first portion of the course hard to get up to temp and then dialing back a notch to manage the heat isn't the mentality I would have guessed is necessary in autox, but in hindsight makes perfect sense.

I figure asking and being told 'yes/no dummy' is a much quicker development path than burning up valuable rubber trying to figure it out on my own.

Those temperatures are fine, they're actually a bit low IMO. You should be able to get them to 130-140 F before they start falling off. My probe isn't even accurate under 110 and full scale low is 100.

I would suggest lowering pressures, 32 is too high - what you may be doing is heating the tire up, which increases pressure and pushes the tire further away from its happy place (and more like a torus). GRM tested at 28ish psi, I know people running 26 psi.

Other things to consider: line choice (or lack thereof, if you're trying to use parts of the course that have gotten sandy after a few heats), and not over thinking things. If you feel stuck on a plateau, this is a good time to review your fundamentals - go fast in the fast parts, slow in the slow parts, look ahead minimum 2-3 elements, etc. If all else fails, post video, get someone fast to ride/drive in your car. You could have a setup quirk you don't realize is holding you back.