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Track day advice


lmc

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Did my first track day yesterday at castle combe and rather embarrassingly had to admit defeat, after 2 15 minute sessions i packed up and went home due to motion sickness :blush:

Before the motion sickness kicked in i was loving it and therefore need to find a solution. Obviously there are tablets/medicine etc which will hopefully sort my weak stomach out :blush: but also there was a lot more roll in the car under braking and cornering than i was anticipating which obviously won't help neither.

So my question is what can be done to help solve this scenario?.

And also has anybody else suffered from this and if so how did you over come it ?

 

My current suspension set up is:

Eibach lowering springs

Eibach camber arms

Eibach anti roll bars.

 

Any help appreciated

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Coilovers, poly bushes, tyre pressures, better strut braces, racing seats....

 

Many many ways to tighten the car up, but none of it cheap :p

 

Exactly why i'm after some advice because i don't just want to throw money at the car, would rather spend it where i know it's going to help solve the problem.

I think bucket seats are probably a good thing as rolling around in the stock leather seats can't help. But what mods if any will help stop the roll in corners and the nose diving under braking.

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Get one of these:

 

cg-lock_fitted.png

 

 

The CG-Lock, not the girl. It straps your hips and bum to the back of the seat. it's very effective and costs a lot less than harnesses and buckets. plus you don't look like a clampet driving around the roads in full racing gear.

 

EDIT: ^^ someone beat me to that suggestion :p

Edited by CrumbMC
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Just be smoother with your driving style as a first.

This man speaketh the truth.

 

 

Myself and my best mate Mark often do trackdays together, and it'll be a mix of Impreza, 911, MX5 and Caterham. No matter what he's driving, if I passenger with him then I can only do a few laps before I have to get out, else I'll barf all over his interior. By his own admission he's far from a smooth driver, quick but very abrupt with his inputs, and it makes for a horrible ride. Not just me that has that issue, other friends of ours who have been out with both of us (often in the same vehicle) make the same comment. I'm much smoother so they'll happily pax with me, and Mark's binary input driving means they tend not to stay out with him for very long.

 

I would imagine that it's your own inputs that are causing the car to move around far too much and upsetting your brain, and making you feel sick. There's no easy cure apart from practice, but that along with the medicine should help. I wouldn't bother doing any upgrades to 'cure' this just yet, until you'll done at least one more TD (airfield if you want, as it's cheaper) and taken some tuition.

 

Definitely get a CG Lock though, I use one in all my vehicles as they're brilliant and for £35, you can't go wrong.

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  • 4 weeks later...

Just be smoother with your driving style as a first.

This man speaketh the truth.

 

 

Myself and my best mate Mark often do trackdays together, and it'll be a mix of Impreza, 911, MX5 and Caterham. No matter what he's driving, if I passenger with him then I can only do a few laps before I have to get out, else I'll barf all over his interior. By his own admission he's far from a smooth driver, quick but very abrupt with his inputs, and it makes for a horrible ride. Not just me that has that issue, other friends of ours who have been out with both of us (often in the same vehicle) make the same comment. I'm much smoother so they'll happily pax with me, and Mark's binary input driving means they tend not to stay out with him for very long.

 

I would imagine that it's your own inputs that are causing the car to move around far too much and upsetting your brain, and making you feel sick. There's no easy cure apart from practice, but that along with the medicine should help. I wouldn't bother doing any upgrades to 'cure' this just yet, until you'll done at least one more TD (airfield if you want, as it's cheaper) and taken some tuition.

 

Definitely get a CG Lock though, I use one in all my vehicles as they're brilliant and for £35, you can't go wrong.

 

Exactly this!! ^^^^

 

 

You will also save on brakes and fuel etc with better driving style. Look at Greekman, a set of discs and pads last him a day or two, I can get 5 tracks sessions on mine. Don't get me wrong he drives pretty fast but he has very minor sympathy towards the vehicle and passengers lol

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Smooth the lines out and progressively load the steering- it sounds too easy but it takes Jackie Stewart's skills to do it properly

Just be smoother with your driving style as a first.

This man speaketh the truth.

 

 

Myself and my best mate Mark often do trackdays together, and it'll be a mix of Impreza, 911, MX5 and Caterham. No matter what he's driving, if I passenger with him then I can only do a few laps before I have to get out, else I'll barf all over his interior. By his own admission he's far from a smooth driver, quick but very abrupt with his inputs, and it makes for a horrible ride. Not just me that has that issue, other friends of ours who have been out with both of us (often in the same vehicle) make the same comment. I'm much smoother so they'll happily pax with me, and Mark's binary input driving means they tend not to stay out with him for very long.

 

I would imagine that it's your own inputs that are causing the car to move around far too much and upsetting your brain, and making you feel sick. There's no easy cure apart from practice, but that along with the medicine should help. I wouldn't bother doing any upgrades to 'cure' this just yet, until you'll done at least one more TD (airfield if you want, as it's cheaper) and taken some tuition.

 

Definitely get a CG Lock though, I use one in all my vehicles as they're brilliant and for £35, you can't go wrong.

 

Exactly this!! ^^^^

 

 

You will also save on brakes and fuel etc with better driving style. Look at Greekman, a set of discs and pads last him a day or two, I can get 5 tracks sessions on mine. Don't get me wrong he drives pretty fast but he has very minor sympathy towards the vehicle and passengers lol

 

 

Cheers for the advice :thumbs:

Got some coilovers sat in my garage waiting to go on when i manage to find the time. Also have a sparco harness bar and a pair of scroth harness's winging there way to me as we speak :D Hopefully when fitted these should help keep me planted in the car then it's just down to me to learn to drive smoother :blush:

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I also suffer from this and will leave the hardware solutions to others - (though I also find the CG Lock absolutely FIRST RATE and would advise it for anyone)

 

The other solution I have is more mental - find yourself someone to chase. You know you're not allowed to race - but that doesn't stop you from picking a target and going for them.

 

I found at Oulton Park (fairly short circuit, lots and lots of full on throttle, full on brake) that I got queasy - but if I picked a target to chase, my focus was on catching them and not on anything else

 

I hesitate to say it - but my saviour was an MX-5 - as I was working so hard on trying to catch up, I was able to keep it up for 5 full laps instead of my earlier coming off after 3 and feeling dreadful

 

Unfortunately, I didn't catch up with the MX-5 and here I am admitting that in public ( . . .shame . . .)

 

For the record, drove on Nurburgring - much faster, much longer - with no ill effects at all, so I think it's just down to the rapid change of the g-forces from one to the other.

 

Also for the record - went drifting and do-nutting at Santa Pod and I thought I was going to throw up, it was that bad . . .

 

Anyway - my suggestion is find yourself a target and chase them, concentrating on that to the exclusion of everything else -

 

Good Luck -

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I also suffer from this and will leave the hardware solutions to others - (though I also find the CG Lock absolutely FIRST RATE and would advise it for anyone)

 

The other solution I have is more mental - find yourself someone to chase. You know you're not allowed to race - but that doesn't stop you from picking a target and going for them.

 

I found at Oulton Park (fairly short circuit, lots and lots of full on throttle, full on brake) that I got queasy - but if I picked a target to chase, my focus was on catching them and not on anything else

 

I hesitate to say it - but my saviour was an MX-5 - as I was working so hard on trying to catch up, I was able to keep it up for 5 full laps instead of my earlier coming off after 3 and feeling dreadful

 

Unfortunately, I didn't catch up with the MX-5 and here I am admitting that in public ( . . .shame . . .)

 

For the record, drove on Nurburgring - much faster, much longer - with no ill effects at all, so I think it's just down to the rapid change of the g-forces from one to the other.

 

Also for the record - went drifting and do-nutting at Santa Pod and I thought I was going to throw up, it was that bad . . .

 

Anyway - my suggestion is find yourself a target and chase them, concentrating on that to the exclusion of everything else -

 

Good Luck -

 

Cheers mate :thumbs:

Nice to see i'm not the only one :p

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Get one of these:

 

cg-lock_fitted.png

 

 

The CG-Lock, not the girl. It straps your hips and bum to the back of the seat. it's very effective and costs a lot less than harnesses and buckets. plus you don't look like a clampet driving around the roads in full racing gear.

 

EDIT: ^^ someone beat me to that suggestion :p

 

Wow, that's tight.

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I would disagree here. one of the most important aspects of good track driving Is where you focus your eyes. Even when close behind someone you want to be looking through their car at your apex or as far down the circuit as possible on exit.

 

Looking at somebody elses car or a few metres in front of you is definitely not the way to do it.

 

Sent from my GT-I9000 using Tapatalk 2

 

 

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I would disagree here. one of the most important aspects of good track driving Is where you focus your eyes. Even when close behind someone you want to be looking through their car at your apex or as far down the circuit as possible on exit.

 

Looking at somebody elses car or a few metres in front of you is definitely not the way to do it.

 

Sent from my GT-I9000 using Tapatalk 2

 

I think you may have interpreted what was being said differently from what was meant. I chase people but I don't follow the person infronts lines. I drive my own lines. Once driving on tracks you will naturally pick up turn in points and catch the apex with ease.

 

 

 

I made myself sick bedding in a set of brakes. Had to stop at the side of the motorway to throw up. Purely because of the aggressive start stop nature of the job

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Hmmm, it's an interesting one.

 

 

I can't say that chasing other cars isn't something I've not done in the past, as on unfamiliar circuits or in an unfaimilar car it can help you work out the lines. That said, CrumbMC is spot on when he says you should always be looking ahead, and if that's through the car in front then so be it.

 

I think I would say that it very much depends on the situation, and that it's fine to do as long as you don't come to rely on it.

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Hmmm, it's an interesting one.

 

 

I can't say that chasing other cars isn't something I've not done in the past, as on unfamiliar circuits or in an unfaimilar car it can help you work out the lines. That said, CrumbMC is spot on when he says you should always be looking ahead, and if that's through the car in front then so be it.

 

I think I would say that it very much depends on the situation, and that it's fine to do as long as you don't come to rely on it.

 

I totally agree but on most track days its fun to try and chase someone down. I would never rely on following them to get the lines of the track though as 4wd, fwd & rwd cars all have different lines. My personal favourites are clio sport 182's. Those cars are very quick round tight tracks and great fun to have a bit of friendly sprint with.

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Ssshhh, you're making me want one again now! Brilliant cars, such stupendous fun, I was gutted when my brother sold his.

lol I have a soft spot for them. There is one at knockers which is stripped and caged and tuned. Blimey it shifts. The bizarre thing was I was catching him in the corners. The problem was coming out the corners trying to get this big fat piece of lard moving again, he was disappearing for about 50 yards and then once I gained momentum I could catch him

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  • 3 weeks later...

Sounds like you are braking way too late and possibly still on the brake when you turn in? Get it ALL done in a straight line,Brake,Gear,off the brakes,ease it into the corner,dont just yank it around. I would try this route before throwing plenty of hard earned at the car,because it might not be the car. ;)

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Smooth driving, look ahead. (both in your mind and physically) prepare yourself and the car for the next two to three turns ahead and think how can I draw the straightest/smoothest lines between the two. If you're feeling the Zed is unstable and wallowing or rocking like a boat you're being too vicious and not allowing the car to pitch into the next turn or settle. Also, try slowing down and getting the lines right - because that will allow you be drive smoothly and build speed.

 

I think being strapped down so you can feel if you're being smooth in your drive might help.

 

If you're concerned its medical, see a doctor.

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