A couple of weeks ago, I drove our turbocharged ZX3 at Hallett Motor Racing Circuit. www.halletracing.com It was a great time and a wonderful learning experience. The track was dry and hot on that day.
Today I went back to Hallett Circuit and drove 5 more 25 minute sessions. The weather was completely different though. It was raining during 3 sessions, wet for 1, and dry for the last. I drove our Protege 5 wagon and wow! It was absolutely amazing driving this course in the rain. It forces you to really be smooth and the lines actually change from dry conditions. I was a little nervous at first but quickly realized that this is an excellent way to build skill and improve vehicle control.
The PR5 is a very neutral handling car and I was very impressed with its roadholding ability in stock form. It is not unlike the Focus but there is noticably less understeer.
After driving both the Turbo Focus and the much less powerful PR5, I can say that a slower car forces you to be smoother and drive the correct lines since you don't have the added benefit of extra power to cover your mistakes. Carrying speed is very important and this was clearly demonstrated today. I can honestly say that driving a slower car was as much fun as driving a faster car on the road course. It is definitely more conducive to learning. The PR5 is a fantastic car for the money!
Never avoid going to the road course on a rainy day! It was a TON of fun. Hopefully I will have some video to post of lapping in the rain. Stay tuned.
Today I went back to Hallett Circuit and drove 5 more 25 minute sessions. The weather was completely different though. It was raining during 3 sessions, wet for 1, and dry for the last. I drove our Protege 5 wagon and wow! It was absolutely amazing driving this course in the rain. It forces you to really be smooth and the lines actually change from dry conditions. I was a little nervous at first but quickly realized that this is an excellent way to build skill and improve vehicle control.
The PR5 is a very neutral handling car and I was very impressed with its roadholding ability in stock form. It is not unlike the Focus but there is noticably less understeer.
After driving both the Turbo Focus and the much less powerful PR5, I can say that a slower car forces you to be smoother and drive the correct lines since you don't have the added benefit of extra power to cover your mistakes. Carrying speed is very important and this was clearly demonstrated today. I can honestly say that driving a slower car was as much fun as driving a faster car on the road course. It is definitely more conducive to learning. The PR5 is a fantastic car for the money!
Never avoid going to the road course on a rainy day! It was a TON of fun. Hopefully I will have some video to post of lapping in the rain. Stay tuned.
