The results of me having a co-driver at last weekend's autocross event

[flatlander937]

I was curious to see where I'm at as a driver, so I put out a request for a co-driver for the last autocross event. I had a guy who normally runs pretty quick in a Civic SI in GS class co-drive with me... and I had my ass handed to me by 1.8 seconds in my own car (wiggle)

I'm still adjusting to this car(this is my 2nd event with it, I ran all last year with a Mazda3)... I'm noticing I'm nowhere near close enough to the cones, and am kinda sloppy with finding the right apex and getting the braking zones down right every time.

Here was my fastest run at 70.931:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=12wovxD74Es&list=UUdHhUnQoZ4TcdhKCo7zwejw

And my co-driver running a 69.144:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEbgMo9tfrk&list=UUdHhUnQoZ4TcdhKCo7zwejw



I felt like I was driving a completely different car compared to at PE#1... we ran on the concrete pad at the airport(this event was in the employee parking lot)... the car behaves completely differently... it was super pushy and required a lot of shenanigans with the brake pedal to make it consider rotating... on the pad it would spin pretty easily with just a bit of braking input.


This is all on a bone ass stock Mazda2 with craptastic all season tires(320 TW Yokos up front, some 420 TW Kumhos out back, they came on the car when I bought it). Very happy with the car overall... it's a blast to drive. I'm somewhat debating buying a set of 15x6 wheels to stay in street class. It's mighty tempting to just buy wheels/tires and a rear sway bar and be done, just focus on driving. If a GS/HS merge doesn't happen I might just do that for a little while instead of spending money I don't have to not be fully prepped and uncompetitive.

 

[flatlander937]

Got pictures from the photographer... bad tires on this car can still lift a wheel:

 

[Andres3165]

Nice picture !! I will be in Toledo in two weeks, are you going? Which club do you run with?

Andres

 

[flatlander937]

Ah I wish I could... I have family visiting that weekend. I think we have grandparent visiting stuff to do like go to the zoo and pick strawberries and stuff with my 2yo...lol You have got to try and come for the next Wilmington event... The site is incredible. The Pro solo sold out online in FIVE minutes. Its that awesome.

 

[eyeballs]

Sounds to me like you should do a school. Do they have the evolution school in your region? I haven't heard of a single person that said it wasn't worth it.

 

[flatlander937]

Yeah I'd love to do one, it seems every time one comes up, I'm either out of town, have family visiting, or something stupid going on. It's been that way for the last 2 years.

 

[okvol]

I cannot wait until my next autocross here with NEOKLA (or maybe OKC). I've got a pair of new 205/50 15 Bridgestone Turanza RE11A tires that glue a 2 down like nobody's business. Try getting some for your car. They are UQOT 200, so you can still be in street class.

 

[flatlander937]

Yeah I'm actually thinking about the 195/50 RS3s or Rivals... They seem to be the tire to have at the local sites I run on.

I was hoping to do wheels+tires and go to STF but I'm leaning towards just sticking it in street class for a while... At least until I can get some coilovers.

 

[okvol]

I had the R11E's squeezed onto steel wheels, stock size.