SCCA Street School - Advanced - Thunderhill Raceway

I managed to get the trailer hitch and wiring hooked together, although it took longer than I expected, so once again I got a late start for the drive up to Willows. I managed to get a last minute room reservation in Willows despite it evidently being peak pheasant hunting season. There were a lot of big ol' pickup trucks in the hotel parking lot.

The trailer, on its first outing, was rock solid. It didn't even feel like it was there. My gas mileage on the trip up was only 22 MPG, down from the usual 26, presumably due to the increased wind resistance and perhaps the heavier load being pulled.

Saturday morning I walked over to the restaurant to grab breakfast, and the place was packed with camouflaged people talking about their hunting plans and their dogs' night of anticipation. On the brief drive to the track I almost ran over a couple of pheasants strolling slowly across the road. Talk about "sitting ducks".

I registered and went to work swapping wheels. It only took about 20 minutes or so to put the race tires on, thanks to the floor jack. I'm sure it will be even quicker next time. Fellow Boxster Boarder Kevin C. was there, as were a couple of other arctic silver Boxsters. Other cars of note were: a 996 with big ol' Gemballa logo and aero kit stuff; a silver Honda S2000; RX-7s; Miatas; M3s and other BMWs; Mustangs; sporty late-model Volkswagens and Audis; a couple of 4000 lb Chevy Impalas; a Ferrari or two; and many many more.

We spent the morning rotating groups C (advanced, our group), B, and A, in 20- to 30-minute track sessions on the 1.9 mile east loop (turns 1 through 7). It was pretty fun. The guy in 996 had a fast looking car, but he wasn't doing too well. I followed him around the track easily, as he didn't take the line well, but on the straight he floored it and didn't wave me by, so I couldn't pass. I tailed him around the track again, staying very close so that he would know I wanted to pass on the straight. I suspect he was driving a little beyond his skills in order to try to keep me off his tail, because he continued to have trouble with the line, and when he went around turn 7 to hit the straight, he really got it out of shape, the back end came around, and he came very close to spinning, and nearly stopped. So he waved me by.

But later in the morning, as I came down the main straight, the yellow flag in the starter's stand was waving: caution in turn 1. And there, in the dirt on the outside of turn 1, facing back up the main straight, rear end in or near the tire barrier, was the 996. Unharmed, fortunately, because he was back on the track in the afternoon.

In the afternoon, they sent us group C folks over to the west loop (turns 8 through 13) for continuous lapping (using common sense for when to take a pit break and give the driver and car a rest), while the A and B groups traded sessions on the east loop. I had run the full 3.0 mile track before, but doing just the west loop all by itself is quite a different experience. It is almost as if you're doing two long straightaways connected at each end by a sharp turn or hairpin. I was reaching 100 MPH approaching the 90-degree turn 10, and nearly that approaching the 120-degree turn 8. I would guess that I was taking turn 10 at around 45 MPH, and turn 8 at under 25 MPH.

I was having trouble executing all of my braking plus downshifting to 3rd gear prior to turning into turn 10 (I found myself either letting the clutch out early to get it over with, or in the middle of the turn with a throttle blip to match engine revs), and when I asked for advice, one of the instructors suggested staying in 4th gear. I tried this a few times and it worked pretty well. You can take turn 10 faster than you think (I know I have still more speed to use in that turn), and even in 4th gear the Boxster has pretty good power for hauling ass down the very short straight into turn 11. This was a pair of turns where I constantly closed gaps on other cars, and if I timed it right I could really accelerate out of 11, through the esses, and pull past them on the straight. I think it's because I take both turns well, and in addition I am very comfortable with the Boxster's great brakes and they allow me to scrub speed off extremely quickly (but still safely and under control) to set up for each turn. It seemed like other cars were having to brake much earlier and get their speed down more gradually in these turns.

One of the silver Boxsters spun gently in turn 8, and I caught it on my in-car video as I followed a few seconds behind, although it was a little too far away to make for a good video clip.

Late in the afternoon, a red Ferrari that had not been doing exactly stellar performance spun on turn 9, spewing dirt all over the track. They put out a standing yellow on turn 9 for a couple of laps, and then I pitted to let some of the other cars finish brushing off some more of the dirt. But then we found out that they had decided to end the session to allow a more thorough cleanup for tomorrow. So we were done for the day.

This was my first day using race tires, and using the 5-1/2 point harness. I suspect that the tires had me going faster, and some pointed glances at the speedometer seemed to indicate this. However, I didn't feel viscerally faster, and I suspect that being snugly strapped into the harness for the first time may have lowered the sensation of cornering g's. That's a good thing: it means the harness is really holding me in position well!

I decided not to put the street tires back on the car for just the quick drive back into Willows, although I was somewhat paranoid from my puncture experience. Kevin and I and instructor Dave Vandenberg met at a restaurant and had prime rib for dinner and talked cars and computer industry small world stories. Kevin noted that in his hotel there was sign posted, obviously directed at the hunting crowd, warning of a $150 fine if you gut and de-blood (is there a word for that?) your catch in the hotel room sink. When I walked back to my hotel I noticed several people at the back of the parking lot working over what looked like a makeshift table of plywood held up by two garbage cans: it appeared they were at the aforementioned task with their pheasant hunting reward.

Tomorrow: the advanced school on the full 3.0 mile course.