THEQuagraine

Today I attended the Spring Classic at Dialed In Raceway. For once in life, I made all the right decisions going into the main, and my car was AWESOME! I managed to win the race after a good battle. I figured it would be a good idea to highlight the things I think about and change for main events.

In America, for me the main event has always been very difficult, because the temperature drops a lot, the track is wet/damp, and it’s dark. Driving under the lights makes everything seem to happen a lot faster, and I just can’t adjust. But this time it was different.

The first thing to think about is temperature. If the temp drops a lot at night, you have to change to thinner shock oils. I don’t change the diff oils, only the shock oils. Today I went from 450/350 (30/27.5) to 400/300 (27.5/25). This resulted in the same feel as in the day time. I also went to Super Soft Grid Irons from AKA, instead of Soft Impacts or Grid Irons in the daytime. The track is clay, and it was damp with no dust on the line, so grid irons I figured would be the best. They were dialed (in).

The next thing to think about is set up. For the main, you need to have an easy car to drive. My car was good, but it could be easier to drive, so I went to 1 deg anti squat from 2. I did this because there were a few ruts on the track, and also, I wanted my car to be more forgiving, and smoother. As I mentioned before, I struggle at night, and I wanted a safe car.

I thought about camber, and swaybars, but did not change anything. The car was too good. I made sure the engine tune was good as it changes, normally leans out at night, and I just decided to try and not make any mistakes, even if I was a few tenths slower per lap. It worked perfectly and I won.

I did not need to change airfilter, clutch, or clutchbell bearings for the main because I only ran one qualifier due to a short rain shower, so that stuff was ready to go.

So there you have it. Think what will be best for you, look at the track, and try and make the right decisions. It’s all about YOU, not other people. You have to practice, and test, so you know what you need. All drivers are different, and the biggest mistake can sometimes be following someone that is very talented. They adjust their driving, I can’t do that, I have to adjust my equipment.