Thats who I was thinking of! Don't ask me why I thought it was rotary...

BTW Chuck, what is the policy on ride alongs with other people if you're not a novice anymore yet you still suck? My friend <cough, cough> wanted me to ask

 

Two novices can't ride together. Otherwise there is no restriction.

 

Are you sure that's not an SCCA rule? I've never seen that in our rulebook.

*** edit ***
I just went and looked at our new 2003 rule book. You're right. It does say that. That's new and it's BS. Someone who is a novice instructor is gonna have enough driving experience that it won't make a difference if he rides along with you. I just wrote that in my planner too. I'll bring it up next month. Man, we're gonna have a long meeting. I hope Lil500 stays open late.

FYI - we've been going to Lil500 ahter our meetings let out. We usually have about 10 people show up to race bumper to bumper for a change.

 

Taken from the MSCC Rulebok 2003, Revised 12/12/02, page 4:

[code]

1.7 Novice Class

In addition to classes outlined elsewhere and for the purpose of teaching safe, competitive
driving, the club allows novice drivers to train in a Novice class. Trophies (maximum of 5)
will be awarded for best drivers in this class, but competition points will not. Any
entrant who has driven in less than three autocrosses may opt to drive in the Novice class.
Any driver who wins first place in the Novice Class will no longer be eligible to drive in that
class. Individuals designated as Novice Instructors by the Executive Board may
accompany novices during their timed runs. However, no Novice Instructor may
accompany a novice until the Novice Instructor has completed his or her timed competition
runs for the day. Event chairmen will allow Novice Instructors to complete their timed
competition runs early in the day. A minimum of two drivers is required to compromise
a Novice Class.
[/code]

EDIT: You would find it while I was typing it in

 

har har har!

 

I will admit all this would have been nice for the Novices... Only coaching I got was a little from chuck and some coaching from the guy that does the Novice Walkthrough. That and Gran Turismo

 

I am very eager to go. I am a novice but I have heard about this track a lot from others and want to get into this type of racing. How receptive is everyone about new comers and what does everyone recommend I do to prepare more.

 

Your participation is definately welcome. Just to give me an idea of your driving ability, how much driving experience do you have? Go Kart tracks every other week, 18 years old, 40 years old, always driven sports cars, had 3 collisions in the past 2 years, never get over 45 MPH, what...? If your level of driving experience/ability is low then I'd suggest using a very conservative driving style at Gainesville, just because of the speeds that are involved. Usually we see top speeds of less than 45 MPH month to month. We'll get close to 90 at GIR. Otherwise you should do just fine. Just start slow to get a feel of how far you can push your car in the corners. Then get progressively faster as the day goes on.

As far as preparation goes, just be sure that your car battery is secured, your fluids are topped off, your brake pads aren't 1/16th of an inch away from metal on metal, and all your lug nuts are present. Since this is your first time out, you could probably bring a Lambo Diablo out and still run slower than an Escort GT. That's how much driving technique comes into play. So any mods you could do to your car won't help too much. They would help some. Don't get me wrong. But see if this is something you want to do again before you go through too much trouble. About the best preparation you could do is to, like Eric said, brush up on your Gran Turismo skills. I prefer Need For Speed - Porsche Unleashed. If you have steering wheels and pedals hooked up to your PC these games can actually help alot if the physics of the game are realistic enough. Porsche Unleashed is extremely accurate.

But most of all, just be sure not to take yourself too seriously. Don't expect to win. This is, after all, just for fun. Some of us take it pretty seriously. But not to an extreme that it no longer is "fun".

 

I just realized what I said. Just so there's no confusion from new guests, anybody strapped into a car on the track HAS to be registered and competing in the event. No spectators are allowed. Insurance. Fun runs, after the competition is over, are a different story. A competing driver can drive any competing vehicle and they can also take spectators with a driver license in the passenger seats. All vehicle occupants must sign release waivers and wear seat belts and helmets. So there actually is a bit of a restriction. Sorry.