Quote:
Originally Posted by hazzazi
i was thinking to take my car to the track (i've never gone before).. but after these videos, and how easily each and everyone of them crashed.. i'm seriously having second thought, and most likely i'm not going anymore.
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Don't deprive yourself of one of the most fun things you'll ever do!
Here's the issue. Any HPDE will tell you to drive at 7/10ths of the car's ability. These guys who are crashing have gone beyond the 7/10ths. It's easy to do, especially by the end of the track day. You'll feel comfortable, have another car that you've been wanting to be faster than all day, and you'll start to 'go for it'. These are the dangerous factors during an HPDE that will get you driving more than 7/10ths and have you end up in a spinout or against a wall. If you're cautious, stay at 7/10ths or below and just enjoy the day as an education and not a championship race, you'll get by A-OK.
I've done two track days. Both times there were a couple of spinouts and one guy met the wall. Here are two observations I've made:
1) If you take your car to the track in a dedicated trailer and/or have racing numbers and decals on it....you'll probably crash or break your car. These are definitely negative prognostic factors, likely because these guys drive at 9 or 10/10ths.
2) People in Vipers and Vettes will spin out more frequently. The people pushing 400-500hp seem to routinely get on the throttle too hard and lose control.
The HPDE track days were both excellent experiences and unbelievable fun. I have a much better feel for my car now, especially after the second day when the track was wet for half of the sessions. Just use these videos as reminders that you're not a race driver, the days aren't a competition, and if you get overzealous the walls will bite you
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