Track Days at NCCAR

[THEmailman]

Hey everyone!

I am not sure how familiar people are but there is a track in Roanoke Rapids, NC (along I-95, fairly close to VA) called the North Carolina Center for Automotive Research, NCCAR for short. They have member days but since the program just started it is really an open track day until they get more members. I went last weekend and for $250 for one day, you get open track time from 9am until 5pm (1 hour lunch break with food provided). There were only 4 other cars there and the track is 2 miles long so there is plenty of time for you to get A LOT of open time in.

The track itself is not even 10 years old and has a lot of grip, even in the rain. It doesn't have a dedicated pit lane but they make up for it well. I would almost call the track a larger autocross, as by the time you get done with one turn, you're essentially already at the next. The track is all about weight balance and throttle control and when you put it all together is really a fun time!

The operations manager is a friendly guy and is looking to expand the track day program and I would love to see some more 86's there! Ultimately I would love to get an 86 only day together every now and again but for now I wanted to let everyone who might be interested know that there are two open dates left this year, one on October 25th and the other on November 2nd. If anyone has any questions or is interested let me know; either PM or post here.

Website here: http://nccar.us/facilities/road-course/

[White64Goat]

1/2 mile straightaway............good brakes a necessity. Which direction do they usually run in, clockwise or counter? Their site says bi-directional. Are there barriers to prevent runoff into trees? Do they provide instructors for newbies or is this a solo type deal?

[THEmailman]

Originally Posted by White64Goat

1/2 mile straightaway............good brakes a necessity. Which direction do they usually run in, clockwise or counter? Their site says bi-directional. Are there barriers to prevent runoff into trees? Do they provide instructors for newbies or is this a solo type deal?

The track is mainly run clockwise but they do do it counter-clockwise as well. Brakes are always good to have but going clockwise you go from 110 (driver/setup dependent) down to 70's. The turn onto the straight is a tight hairpin at about 40mph. Counterclockwise you'll have to slow down much more. The course is much harder on tires.

There are some barriers to prevent runoff into the trees but only is the common spots where they would expect it to happen (off the straight and exiting T1), There are a few barriers to prevent you from crossing over the track if you spun in certain sections but otherwise there is plenty of grass runoff and really few spots to get yourself in trouble. I went off once and came to a nice stop off the track and was able to reenter easily.

There are no instructors that they provide but some of the people who show up are instructors or have racing experience and I am sure they would be willing to help. As I said, I would love to get a large group together and get instructors but for now this is all solo driving.

[kanundrum]

We have Gripfest here 2 times a year, its an amazing course. We would love to do a few weekends of private events. See you folks at Gripfest

[kanundrum]

See You Folks this weekend