Tag Archives: preparation

Mar 06 2016
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JQ USA Tour, THECar Advice

Preparing for your main – THINK!

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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.

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Mar 05 2016
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THECar Advice

Preparing For a Race – Keep it Simple

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I was at Dialed In today, turned a few laps, and prepared for their Spring Classic race. And that got me thinking that it could be a good idea to go through some advice regarding that. Here are a few points to keep in mind.

Sometimes things get really out of control, like in the picture above. By preparing well, you can make sure that does not happen at the race. Get all of that out of the way before the race. Don’t try new things at races, new parts you haven’t run before, new setups, go with what you know. Keep it simple.

You need to keep your stress level as low as possible at races, and the best way to do that is to have everything done before the race. Glue your tyres, or at least one set so you can start the race on them. Charge everything, receiver pack, transmitter, glow ignitor and starter box. Make sure your transponder is in the car and it’s working.

As for the car, I think this is the most important part, and the part where a lot of people over think and over wrench, and a lot don’t do enough, or don’t do the right things. The way I build a car, the important bits will basically stay on for the lifetime of the car. This means that I never take them apart. I think it is silly to tear down a car completely for a rebuild. You only need to check hinge pins, re-fill the diffs, re-fill the shocks, change the clutch, and clutch bell bearings, put a newly oiled air filter on, and clean the car all up. You don’t need to take every screw out.

If possible, run your fully prepared car on a track for a tank to make sure everything is working perfectly.

Try and figure out who will be your pit guy before the day of the race, if you don’t have a permanent grease monkey.

Go to bed as early as possible the night before.

 

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