Race Recap: VIR 3/08
Perhaps my most notable accomplishment of the weekend was completing the instructor clinic. With school starting in September and a partial race season this summer I don't plan to instruct any time soon. I do, however, want to start preparing should I wish to do so in the future. I think I will/would have a hard time switching from racer to educator but with racing becoming less prominent in my future, maybe that will change. Either way, it was interesting to participate in the clinic and see the track the beginner's perspective I've long lost. If you want to make use of my ~125 days of track experience and learn how to drive smoother, safer and more controlled, let me know! It's the only way I'll ever get to use my fancy "Certified Instructor" hat.
In terms of results, the past few days of racing were not my best. The weekend was marred by car trouble that made actually competing in the races more work than we would have liked. We spent most of the afternoon Saturday and part of the morning Sunday tracking down and fixing clutch issues in my car. We eventually got the problem fixed, but it wasn't without a struggle in the unseasonably cold and rainy weather. Let me rehash it for you...
As I pulled onto the track to qualify on Saturday, I was hopeful I could start in the top 3rd of the 28 car field. When I went to shift from 2nd to 3rd after entering the track, I couldn't find my clutch pedal. Thinking I'd lost my mind, I searched for it feverishly with my left foot, accidentally hitting the brake a few times. Uncertain of the problem and unable to shift gears, I limped in 2nd gear around the 3.3 mile Full Course configuration while pointing traffic by. In the safety of the pits I was able to feel around with my foot and find the clutch pedal pinned up against the floorboard. I had no pedal response and since I couldn't disengage the clutch, limped back to the paddock in 1st gear without stopping.
After some discussion with a few others we'd determined the clutch slave cylinder was likely bad. I'll spare you the boring technical jargon and give you the simple explanation. Basically it means the hydraulic pressure that puts the car in neutral when you step on the pedal was gone, so it was always in gear. The problem with this diagnosis is the slave cylinder was located under the car, behind the starter motor. We spent several hours lying in the sand, removing, replacing and reinstalling all the necessary bits to make the car go. We bled the air out of the system several times and with only 10 minutes to spare before the race, thought it fixed. As I pulled up to grid I quickly realized there was only ~30% of the pedal and while annoying, that was enough to race.
Since I didn't actually qualify for the race, I had to start DFL in 28th. Were I doing a whole race season I would have been uber-pissed about starting off on such a bad note but as it were, I saw it as an opportunity. (Side note: Not worrying about where I actually finish makes racing so much more enjoyable than it had been.) Working the clutch, matching revs and grinding a few gears, I managed to pass 13 cars to finish 15th. I haven't finished that low, that wasn't a DNF, in years but I'm actually okay with it. Passing all those cars made things interesting and while I haven't actually watched the video yet, I think it might make a good highlight reel.
Some post-race analysis of the system led us to believe there may be a leak in the fluid supply line for the slave cylinder. Since it entailed undoing pretty much everything we'd done before the race, we spent a few hours after the race replacing it. We bled the system a few more times and while it did improve the pedal, eventually realized that too was not the true nature of the problem. The only thing left in the system was the clutch master cylinder, but that task would have to wait. Our dinner reservations quickly approaching, we decided to call it a night and try replacing the master in the morning.
The next morning we spent an hour or two replacing the master cylinder and re-bleeding the system. The reason why all this stuff takes hours to complete is because the car designers saw fit to make you remove the starter engine every time you want to bleed the clutch system. Not only that but should you be bleeding it on a jack (and not a lift) like we were, the fluid reservoir tilts away from the pickup line so you introduce air into the system. For those less technically inclined, air in hydraulic systems are bad. The good news is once we figured all this stuff out and got the master replaced, the problem was fixed. We probably should have gone to the master first but the entire system needed updating anyway.
With the clutch issues sorted, Sunday's weather would play the major role. It was 40° and misting so tire choice became the decision that could make or break your race. The pavement was just barely moist, with a seemingly dry line, so I opted for dry tires with softer suspension and a bit higher tire pressure. Several other racers went to rain tires, including my dad, so the field was fairly mixed. As it would turn out, the wet tire was the right choice, and I finished pretty much where I started. My soft suspension allowed me to do better than others on dry tires (some guys lost as many as 8 positions) but those on wet certainly had an advantage. As I built up heat in the tires and confidence in their grip, my dry/soft configuration started to come into it's own but by then it was too late. I started 10th and finished 11th.
While it was one of my worst position-placing weekends in racing history, I'm not bitter. In years past, I would have been fairly upset at driving 4.5 hours each way for useless finishes... but not this time. As I said before, I'm sure a lot of that had to do with the lack of pressure and that's okay. I
learned quite a bit about my car, added to my knowledge of tire/car prep with respect to weather, got to spend some quality time with my pops and passed a buttload of cars on Saturday. As a bonus, I also got to take this sweet picture of a friend (my ride to/from the track) getting pulled over for doing 80 in a 65. I don't know about you, but I can think of a lot worse ways to spend a weekend.
P.S. - If you want to read about a winner, and not a not a non-winner like me, read about Mike's race.
In terms of results, the past few days of racing were not my best. The weekend was marred by car trouble that made actually competing in the races more work than we would have liked. We spent most of the afternoon Saturday and part of the morning Sunday tracking down and fixing clutch issues in my car. We eventually got the problem fixed, but it wasn't without a struggle in the unseasonably cold and rainy weather. Let me rehash it for you...
As I pulled onto the track to qualify on Saturday, I was hopeful I could start in the top 3rd of the 28 car field. When I went to shift from 2nd to 3rd after entering the track, I couldn't find my clutch pedal. Thinking I'd lost my mind, I searched for it feverishly with my left foot, accidentally hitting the brake a few times. Uncertain of the problem and unable to shift gears, I limped in 2nd gear around the 3.3 mile Full Course configuration while pointing traffic by. In the safety of the pits I was able to feel around with my foot and find the clutch pedal pinned up against the floorboard. I had no pedal response and since I couldn't disengage the clutch, limped back to the paddock in 1st gear without stopping.
After some discussion with a few others we'd determined the clutch slave cylinder was likely bad. I'll spare you the boring technical jargon and give you the simple explanation. Basically it means the hydraulic pressure that puts the car in neutral when you step on the pedal was gone, so it was always in gear. The problem with this diagnosis is the slave cylinder was located under the car, behind the starter motor. We spent several hours lying in the sand, removing, replacing and reinstalling all the necessary bits to make the car go. We bled the air out of the system several times and with only 10 minutes to spare before the race, thought it fixed. As I pulled up to grid I quickly realized there was only ~30% of the pedal and while annoying, that was enough to race.
Since I didn't actually qualify for the race, I had to start DFL in 28th. Were I doing a whole race season I would have been uber-pissed about starting off on such a bad note but as it were, I saw it as an opportunity. (Side note: Not worrying about where I actually finish makes racing so much more enjoyable than it had been.) Working the clutch, matching revs and grinding a few gears, I managed to pass 13 cars to finish 15th. I haven't finished that low, that wasn't a DNF, in years but I'm actually okay with it. Passing all those cars made things interesting and while I haven't actually watched the video yet, I think it might make a good highlight reel.
Some post-race analysis of the system led us to believe there may be a leak in the fluid supply line for the slave cylinder. Since it entailed undoing pretty much everything we'd done before the race, we spent a few hours after the race replacing it. We bled the system a few more times and while it did improve the pedal, eventually realized that too was not the true nature of the problem. The only thing left in the system was the clutch master cylinder, but that task would have to wait. Our dinner reservations quickly approaching, we decided to call it a night and try replacing the master in the morning.
The next morning we spent an hour or two replacing the master cylinder and re-bleeding the system. The reason why all this stuff takes hours to complete is because the car designers saw fit to make you remove the starter engine every time you want to bleed the clutch system. Not only that but should you be bleeding it on a jack (and not a lift) like we were, the fluid reservoir tilts away from the pickup line so you introduce air into the system. For those less technically inclined, air in hydraulic systems are bad. The good news is once we figured all this stuff out and got the master replaced, the problem was fixed. We probably should have gone to the master first but the entire system needed updating anyway.
With the clutch issues sorted, Sunday's weather would play the major role. It was 40° and misting so tire choice became the decision that could make or break your race. The pavement was just barely moist, with a seemingly dry line, so I opted for dry tires with softer suspension and a bit higher tire pressure. Several other racers went to rain tires, including my dad, so the field was fairly mixed. As it would turn out, the wet tire was the right choice, and I finished pretty much where I started. My soft suspension allowed me to do better than others on dry tires (some guys lost as many as 8 positions) but those on wet certainly had an advantage. As I built up heat in the tires and confidence in their grip, my dry/soft configuration started to come into it's own but by then it was too late. I started 10th and finished 11th.
While it was one of my worst position-placing weekends in racing history, I'm not bitter. In years past, I would have been fairly upset at driving 4.5 hours each way for useless finishes... but not this time. As I said before, I'm sure a lot of that had to do with the lack of pressure and that's okay. I
learned quite a bit about my car, added to my knowledge of tire/car prep with respect to weather, got to spend some quality time with my pops and passed a buttload of cars on Saturday. As a bonus, I also got to take this sweet picture of a friend (my ride to/from the track) getting pulled over for doing 80 in a 65. I don't know about you, but I can think of a lot worse ways to spend a weekend.P.S. - If you want to read about a winner, and not a not a non-winner like me, read about Mike's race.
2 Comments:
Why you should race a Honda: replacing the slave cylinder takes about 5 minutes and a single wrench :P
Glad you still enjoyed your weekend despite breaking cars and bad weather
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