Mustang Forums - View Single Post - Getting the most from your trip to the track

Blue02GT · 06-17-2005, 05:12 PM

Recently I made a trip to my local track with a first timer. He has an 00GT with the basic mod's, gears, DR's, exhaust and a 150 shot of nitrous. He is a friend of my son
and has been hesitant to race at the track. He was nervous that he would mess up in front of a crowd of strangers and that he would lose his races. I told him to choose a night and we would race together. I took him through the tech and registration process then we prepped our cars, finally we lined up and ran. He pulled through the staging lights and waited, I finally full staged figuring the starter was going to let us go even though he was five feet past the staging beams. They let us go and he reacted slowly but got through his first race. He ran about 6 times that night battling traction problems but he had a great time and ran a 12.35 @ 112.5 miles per hour on the nitrous. He sat out and watched several rounds until I convinced him to get back at it. He was upset at not running more consistant and felt he should be faster.
The point of this thread is to discuss what you should expect to get out of a trip to the track and how to better achieve your goals.
When I bought my car in 2003 I had a pretty good idea of what it was going to run and how to make it run faster. I did alot of research into the performance of a 2v GT before I purchased it. Before I ever went to the track I made a race log book to take to the track and set up a spread sheet in excel to help me compare trips to the track and better evaluate modifications. You should set realistic goals for you and your car. Don't worry about winning every race, you won't. There is always a bigger badder car right around the corner. Instead concentrate on consistancy, this means going through the same routine on each trip and each run. You should stage the exact same way on each pass. Why is this important? Because staging affects your e.t.. If you stage very shallow (inching until the second staging lamp is barely lit) you will run faster than if you stage deeper. On a mid 13 second car you can run as much as 4 tenths faster or slower just by differences in staging. Always check your tire pressures before running, lower tire pressure in your front tires will slow your reaction times so you should know your starting pressure. Of course rear tire pressure plays a important role in traction. By checking your tire pressure before every pass you can make accurate adjustments. Keep detailed records on either your timeslip or in a log book. I put in anything I can think of on each run such as tire spin, shift points, rpm through the traps, wind etc. Finally always correct your times after you get home, this allows you to accurately compare each run, not only of that trip but of any previous run you have made. You can find correction tools at sites such as Modular Depot which has an excellent array of tools for drag racers.
By setting realistic goals and following a well thought out routine you will find your times will drop and you will enjoy your outings a great deal more.

06-17-2005, 05:12 PM	#1 (permalink)
Blue02GT Ex Mini Smack King Join Date: Nov 2004 Location: St. Louis Posts: 868	Getting the most from your trip to the track Recently I made a trip to my local track with a first timer. He has an 00GT with the basic mod's, gears, DR's, exhaust and a 150 shot of nitrous. He is a friend of my son and has been hesitant to race at the track. He was nervous that he would mess up in front of a crowd of strangers and that he would lose his races. I told him to choose a night and we would race together. I took him through the tech and registration process then we prepped our cars, finally we lined up and ran. He pulled through the staging lights and waited, I finally full staged figuring the starter was going to let us go even though he was five feet past the staging beams. They let us go and he reacted slowly but got through his first race. He ran about 6 times that night battling traction problems but he had a great time and ran a 12.35 @ 112.5 miles per hour on the nitrous. He sat out and watched several rounds until I convinced him to get back at it. He was upset at not running more consistant and felt he should be faster. The point of this thread is to discuss what you should expect to get out of a trip to the track and how to better achieve your goals. When I bought my car in 2003 I had a pretty good idea of what it was going to run and how to make it run faster. I did alot of research into the performance of a 2v GT before I purchased it. Before I ever went to the track I made a race log book to take to the track and set up a spread sheet in excel to help me compare trips to the track and better evaluate modifications. You should set realistic goals for you and your car. Don't worry about winning every race, you won't. There is always a bigger badder car right around the corner. Instead concentrate on consistancy, this means going through the same routine on each trip and each run. You should stage the exact same way on each pass. Why is this important? Because staging affects your e.t.. If you stage very shallow (inching until the second staging lamp is barely lit) you will run faster than if you stage deeper. On a mid 13 second car you can run as much as 4 tenths faster or slower just by differences in staging. Always check your tire pressures before running, lower tire pressure in your front tires will slow your reaction times so you should know your starting pressure. Of course rear tire pressure plays a important role in traction. By checking your tire pressure before every pass you can make accurate adjustments. Keep detailed records on either your timeslip or in a log book. I put in anything I can think of on each run such as tire spin, shift points, rpm through the traps, wind etc. Finally always correct your times after you get home, this allows you to accurately compare each run, not only of that trip but of any previous run you have made. You can find correction tools at sites such as Modular Depot which has an excellent array of tools for drag racers. By setting realistic goals and following a well thought out routine you will find your times will drop and you will enjoy your outings a great deal more. __________________ True Blue 2002 GT Premium 4r70W 1/8 8.205@ 84.780 1/4 12.874@ 107.20 Bolt on's n/a NMRA #7703 Dyno'd at Modular Depot 251 hp. 291 Tq. 4.30's, 3500 Stall converter, Steeda upper & Lowers, Tokico drag struts, M & M frame connectors, P & A valve body, C&L plenum, Accufab 75mm TB, Jet Hot Long tubes, Hooker O/R X, Steeda catback,SCT tune,Steeda pullies.