Redstar Raceway (Delmas) - Open Car Track days

[Fish Eagle]

Originally Posted by CWP68

Great, should be a very good Friday

You were conspicuous by your absence, pity you couldn't make it.
It was a "good Friday"

[CWP68]

Sorry I couldn't make it. Was looking forward to going round the other way.

[LostSalad]

Think Red Star will still be CCW when we run it for Michelin Cup? Good practice session for you lot in that case

[Fish Eagle]

Originally Posted by LostSalad

Think Red Star will still be CCW when we run it for Michelin Cup? Good practice session for you lot in that case

Not so sure about that. Michelin Cup is in July, and it could be clockwise again by then.

[FT_86_SM_GP]

A little late on this review, but here it goes....

Redstar Raceway on "Good Friday" (25/3/2016)

Redstar is probably one of the best (cleanest, efficient and most STRICTEST) race tracks iv been to

Please note, you have to have the following:

1) Helmet
2) Gloves
3) LONG SLEEVE top
4) LONG pants
5) Closed shoes.

THEY WILL NOT ALLOW YOU ON TRACK with short pants and a t shirt,
even if its over 30 deg cel on that day,
I learnt this lesson the hard way, and missed out on a session because of this,

Fortunately Redtar will lend you thick and heavy biker jackets, and biker racing suits etc if you forget yours.

Very accommodating management team.



Damn, the biker jacket I borrowed felt like it weighed 10kg
So much for my weight reduction (Removing seats)

Lesson learn't, the next time I am at Redstar I will not dress up like I am attending a primary school sports day

Driving on Redstar Anti Clockwise was an incredible experience,

The turns/corners on Redstar are technical, and you have to take your time to learn them to get some decent lap times in,

The cars where mixed with bikes for the day,
(Class A , B and C were bikes, and Class D were cars).
(Not many cars on the day)

Expect to get approx 5 sessions in for a track day (of 20mins each),

I unfortunately got 2 sessions due to arriving late (9:30am),
wearing shorts and t shirts(didn't allow me on until I borrow cloths) and had to leave after 3pm to catch a movie (Batman Vs Superman - interesting movie)

Unfortunately I did not get allot of valuable data,
As my Harry's lap timer app did not register going anti clockwise.
NB. You have to make an adjustment to your app when you change from clockwise to anti clockwise. (Refer to Freedoms post).

From my GoPro video footage, I think I was averaging 2m31/ 2m32/ 2m33 second laps.

I had my tyre pressure on 2.2bar cold.

My objective for the day was to experience the track, get comfortable with the track and learn as much as possible,
I did not get to lap times that I would be happy and proud with, but I won't stop practicing until I do, looking forward to the next Redstar Track day outing

Here's a lap:

[ame="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=upWKoeV2_Fo"]Redstar Raceway Anti Clockwise - 25/03/2016 - Toyota 86 - YouTube[/ame]

[ShaunWRX]

Originally Posted by FT_86_SM_GP

Damn, the biker jacket I borrowed felt like it weighed 10kg
So much for my weight reduction (Removing seats)

How did the car feel with that 1st stage weight reduction?

[Fish Eagle]

Some photos from 25th March thanks to Gerrit Erasmus of Beam Productions.

[Fish Eagle]

For my friends who enjoy Red Star, I eventually got down to doing some comparative calcs based on the Historic Events on 28/11/2015 and 12/03/2016.
The November event was clockwise, and the March event counter-clockwise.

For my comparison I matched up drivers with the same car in both events, and took their qualifying times.
I took a sample of the top and mid-range historic saloons, plus a few Lotus 7s (total of 28 cars).

Here's what I got...

DATE......................28/11/15................12/03/16
DIRECTION............. Clockwise........... Counter-clockwise
CARS FASTER............................................ 5
CARS SLOWER..........................................23
AVG LAP TIME...........2m21.8s..................2m24.1s
DIFFERENCE........................................ ...+2.3s

Which makes 100% sense relative to my lap times where my PB counter-clockwise is 2.4s slower than clockwise (2m21.7 vs 2m19.3).
I thought I was going senile because I couldn't get down to my clockwise times, but I've been chasing a ghost...

[Fish Eagle]

Upcoming events for road cars at Red Star...

24 April 2016 - ScoobyFest
https://www.facebook.com/events/176593862718789/

25 June 2016 - Petrolheads for Pets
https://www.facebook.com/petrolheadsforpets/?fref=ts

16 July 2016 - Michelin Cup Challenge, round 6
http://michelincup.co.za/Home/Calendar

I'm going to all of them, can't wait!!

If you've never taken your car onto a racetrack before, and you'd like to put your toe in the water, then the Petrolheads event will be the one for you. It's non-competitive, there'll be classes based on driver experience, and there'll be seasoned drivers available to help novices.

Consider the following:
- all the traffic is going in the same direction
- all going roughly at the same speed
- the road is mega-wide, because you can use it all and it's like 3+ cars wide
- no taxis
- no pedestrians
- no drunks
- no hard kerbs
- no intersections
- no trees, signs, or sidewalks
- no speed limits
- no speed traps
- no traffic cops
- no potholes
- no robots
- no jumping red lights
- no distractions
- ambulance and paramedics out next to the track on standby
- fire engine manned and on standby
- experienced track controller and marshals watching you.
- if the poop hits the fan they'll see it immediately, and be there for you.
- the others around you are (mostly) experienced and competent drivers
- they're all respectful
- full of cameraderie
- share the same interests
- and inevitably become friends

And there's only one person who decides how fast you go, and how much risk you take - that's YOU

[86 South Africa]

April is out.... but thinking I must try and make the Petrolheads event for some good 'ol track fun... and see if I can remember which turn goes left and which one goes right!

[Fish Eagle]

Who all's going to ScoobyFest on Sunday?
Time to put some STI's to bed

[JouMaSeHoes]

I'm there!

[LostSalad]

I'm there as well! This is my first time doing the circuit counter-clockwise... so the first thing I need to get to bed is my lack of confidence. I'm definitely going to be doing some mental prep...

Sigh, because of reasons, I'm feeling less blazé about getting out on track. Of course there are risks when tracking your car. Let's just say they've lately had a chance to be a bit more vocal in my head. So I'm still totally down for getting out on track, but I want to make double-triple sure that I'm managing the risks effectively :/

My car recently went in for a 30,000km service. Does anyone know if changing brake fluid is part of the service schedule? They did the clutch line (which is separate), but I have no idea if I actually still have RBF in the system.

I also should still have plenty pad life left (I think I've only done 1 or 2 track days on my current set). But can someone please bring along an Allen Key set and show me the trick of measuring thickness without opening the caliper

I just had a realisation that I'm responsible for my own safety, and while I've been trying my best to do due diligence... I'm still a rookie and wouldn't mind a second pair of eyes. Is there anywhere that offers HPDE inspection? Checking for stuff that's taking stress and might fail?

[JouMaSeHoes]

Its always good to be aware of the risks, and to take due precautions, BUT, as FishEagle always says, "Our cars are not made of glass..."

FE has done around over 3000 TRACK km in his SC 86, which is an absolute testament to both the 86, and the benefits of an appropriate maintenance cycle.

I'm sure he'll post something a bit later, but he does oil changes every 7500km, and changes/checks his brake fluid more frequently. Nothing elaborate.

Stay confident, because indecision is the killer.