Diary of a sprint Season Part 2- 2013

Hi all

I posted thread last year covering my first season sprinting my fairly unique TF 160 in the Curborough Sprint championship last year (link to the previous thread)
http://www.the-t-bar.com/en/forum/68-the-t-bar/44992-diary-of-a-sprint-season-in-a-tf-part1?start=45

As people seemed to enjoy the tale of my highs and lows I thought Id do the same for this years season which is starting this Sunday with the Club practice sprint.

http://www.curborough.co.uk/curbcal.htm
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Shenstone-District-Car-Club-Curborough-Sprint-Course/398534753505989
Last Friday I donned my DJ and attended the club awards night to pick up the trophy for my Class win B

TF has spent since September tucked away under its cover and with the battery conditioner attached- started first crack and drove as new.

Took her out to a club afternoon at the sprint course and had a couple of laps and then took her out for a bit of "familiarization" on the local roads to get my eye in.

an hour and a half later I got home to put her away Id forgotten how much fun this car is to drive"!!

Slightly nervous that Ive lost the knack and will have to accept I'll be a bit rusty and not expect my previous times straight away.

Will update how I get on
Cheers all

Lewis

Well back safe and sound and a pretty successful start

Track was very cold greasy at the start of the day (was snowing at mallory apparently )so took it pretty gingerly for the first run.

Watched my mate and main rival matt in his clio giving with the beans on his first run and thought id been a bit of a girls blouse.....

....until he span on the first corner :oops: so felt a bit better, he wheeled out the old "rear suspension bushes are shot" excuse but it looked a bit ambitious for the first run of the day

Cleared up in the afternoon so we could try a bit harder got a three 40 second runs in, vs my quickest time of 38.94 last year, given it was still pretty cold and the brakes were locking every run I wasn't unhappy. I had a slight fear beforehand I wouldn't remember how to do this but seem to have got back in the groove.

One irritatingly quick young chap in a nissan almera gti :pinch: got within a whisker for one run but he couldnt replicate it and was back to 41s. He was certainly committed if a bit ragged, almost lost it a couple of times, but hes one to watch.

Theres quite a few MGs couple of zr s and Tf in the class this year, so got a chance to see what the potential opposition was doing, most were about a second behind so its a good start from my point of view but theyll catch up quick, it should be a close season. Matt will be out for revenge in his clio 182 and once his suspension is sorted Ill have to get my finger out, i only beat him by quarter of a second last year and although its all very gentlemanly , he wasnt pleased about it.

Interestingly there was a lot of paddock interest in TFs as a sprint car, The class winner in the class above is thinking of getting one which could be a problem!( he won the class in an e30 325i against well driven M3s so he can peddle). I told him to get the 135 over the 160

I was struck by the growing interest in the TF I think people who arent necessarily MG enthusiasts are beginning to realise what a great value package it is, which can only drive values the right way(he said optimistically) :beer:


Anyway not photos of me but theres some here to add a bit of colour http://www.pentaxuser.co.uk/forum/topic/curborough-sprint---17th-march---15-photos---40129/p-0
Cheers all

Lewis

Entered the MG car club midlands center sprint on Sunday as another practice (two lapper this time) before the first championship round on the 28th April.

I entered this last year only a few weeks after getting the car and I dont mind admitting I struggled to make any pace, lagging behind most of the other TFs so I was interested to see how I compared this year with a season and Don Palmer's http://www.donpalmer.co.uk/car-control.html Tuition under my belt.

I fine day offered a much drier track than last time but the first run was a bit of a dogs breakfast, having locked up easily at the March event I was braking too early, although a 71.79 wasnt too shabby only marginally behind my not very impressive PB in a two lapper.

Next run saw another second off that and the third took me into the 69s, new territory for me (and where I was hoping to get to but unsure if I would) and pleasantly found myself in second place.....

Where I stayed for the rest of the day unable to catch the very effective and well driven Clio cup of Jamie Yapp who was in the 68's, whereas at 69.1 I was that infuriating whisker over

The timing gear failed on my last run and I was waved round for a repeat, annoyed as it felt a good one, neverthless the extra heat in the tyres and obviousley better grip at take off encouraged me to go all out to try to break the 69 sec barrier.

Piling into the molehill the car started to turn sideways, oops bit of a moment there, winding off a bit of lock saw me round , with another little waggle ( god that felt heroic :woo2: ) having gathered it up I decided to carry on the charge and see what could be done 69.09!!, if it werent for that "moment" Id have been the 68s for sure. :drive:

So overall please with myself to have made this kind of improvement this early in the season, the problem is of course the gains get harder and harder, the car is already feeling edgy, car can do more ( previous owner set two class records in it) so its "the nut holding the wheel" that will require some adjustment :bang:

I was despairing of ever matching Jamies times in the Clio, he sought me out for a chat before the awards and admitted he'd been watching me creeping up on him!! Hats off he was damn good but seemed to have reached a plateau spinning out on the last run :hgf: ( no damage thank goodness) trying to go faster.

Im tempted to come back and have another go with him at the august MGC event having a few more under the belt.

TTFN Lewis

Fantastic read as usual, Lewis!
:broon:

A quick update

Sheffield and Hallamshire last sunday first round of the championship.

We were blessed with dry weather but it was cold so grip wasnt as good as the MGCC event a couple of weeks before ( is that no 27 on the excuses register? )

Managed to get a 69.5 in the end ( vs 69.09 last event which was a personal best) so I may be reaching a new plateau.(hmm time to see the don again perhaps?)

There was only a second between the top four sp the seasons going to be close, fourth place taken by a newcomer who is getting quicker, 3rd Paul who has beaten me in past seasons and 2nd matt my major rival and previous class winner.

Winner well ahem twas me but only by 0.42 of a second so no room for complacency.

some of the other guys were out for the first time this season whereas Ive had two events to get my eye in, so may be caught up soon, "digitum rectum extractum"

Pauls quote of the day " im beginning to hate that MG!!" which I thought you'd all like

next event 18th May
TTFN

Lewis

Great stuff, really like following this thread, somebody giving the car the throttle it needs and loves, congratulations on the win, great that the driver and car are showing what an MG can do :broon:

Brilliant thread - I am really enjoying it, and the pictures aren't too shoddy either!

Lewis,

Well done on the sprints! really enjoy the thread - keep it up.

T

Congratulations on the win!

Well it had to happen some time :slapme:

Having had a couple of extra sneaky events this season to get my eye in over the other class competitors which has allowed me to stay ahead of the pack so far but not by much, I’ve known the gap would close as they get their eye in.

British Motorsport Marshals Club Sprint at Curborough today and 2nd championship round; the weather forecast didn’t bode well with rain looking a certainty and my hopes of staying in the lead weren’t high. The TF generally struggles in the wet against the more stable and predictable front wheel drives, the light front end allows easy lock up, a guaranteed way to mess up the lap.

Although overcast all day the track actually stayed quite dry and a first practice run of 71.07 saw me ahead not a bad start and quicker than my first run usually is , 2nd practice run and both Matt ( my main rival) and I dropped into the 70’s but the gap between us had closed to a mere 0.17 seconds in my favour. Dangerously close :help:

After curry and chips and my lunchtime snooze (I can sleep anywhere) I realised I had to get my finger out for the first timed run and get ahead. The practice laps had helped me refine my breaking points which tend to be my weakness and a neat run saw a 69.55 and me shouting my head off as I eased off down the return road to the startline and matt started his run. I knew his previous PB was a 69.92 which gave me back a reasonable lead, I could see his split time as he turned into his second lap was under the magic 40 seconds (if your not under 40 seconds at the split your not going to be under 70 as the time cant be made up) but I was pretty pleased with myself as I parked up.

I jumped out to see what his time actually was and Derrick one of the other guys in the class shouted “ he’s beaten you!”
“Your winding me up!!”
Unfortunately he wasn’t, Matt pulled a 69.3!! a new personal best for him,
Defeat!
:nv:
It had to happen sooner or later but that doesn’t make it any easier to swallow.

Oh dear! my hopes of a clean set of class wins this season just disappeared. I shook Matts hand and congratulated him on what I figured was going to be the winning time of the class that day. :coat:

I simply wasnt sure I was going to beat that, I’ve done a 69.09 before but it was a warm day, I had hot tyres having had an immediate re run and although it was a PB id nearly lost it twice at the molehill and it felt like a new plateau.

He went off to do a rain dance (no chance of beating that time in the wet).

Its all very gentlemanly but he’s not been happy to be second when he’s used to winning (he’s been a previous class winner) and it was my turn to deal with disappointment after a winning streak and taking the class win last year.

One run left, no pressure!! I had a cup of tea and started to think my way round the lap. The danger in this situation is you overdrive, get ragged and lose time, or hold back for fear of over driving and don’t perform so well. The game becomes one of psychology as much as driving ability.
I looked at my times for a bit of inspiration, the 64 foot start time and split time help diagnose what’s going on. I have the quicker start, the engine position on the TF allows excellent traction off the line and an immediate 0.4 second advantage over the front wheel drive cars( in the dry anyway), split times were close but with the edge to Matt, so it’s all in the first straight and corner.

Unfortunately its the most challenging part of the circuit as its easy to lose it at the immediate right hander after the first left if you carry to much speed. You need to pick your speed and line and hold your nerve, too slow and it’s a poor time, not an easy thing to judge and there’s a degree of bravery required.

We lined up for the last run of the day and I sat waiting with my eyes closed thinking my way round the circuit rehearsing the lines, acceleration and braking points.

Make or break, I now needed to do something exceptional to stay ahead.

As I pulled up to the start line I pulled the straps tight pushed myself back into the seat stretched my arm and hands before taking a light touch on the wheel, a little up and down shuffle of the finger tips and thumbs on the wheel ( just enough to feel the skin on the pads of your finger tips to move but without actually moving the wheel). This acts like a kind of “re-boot” to clear the mind before the start and to sensitise your hands for a delicate touch on the wheel.

Its one of “ the Dons” http://www.donpalmer.co.uk/car-control.html preparation techniques to get you in the “right place” mentally to perform.

As I saw the last car returning I pulled the revs up to 2600, just before peak torque, ( most people use too many revs), this allows a clean launch with minimal wheelspin; as the weight transfers to the back there’s a chirrup of tyres and you simply drive it off the line. That’s another technique, this time from Steve Wood the maestro and former record holder who sold me the car and who I knew was watching. The light went green the lesson was applied and we were away for a good start.

(see www.curborough.co.uk/curbcnr.htm if you want to understand the corners Ill described from now on)

First was revved to the max, second short shifted slightly into third which allows more stability into that crucial first corner, I pushed harder than before into the start of the upward sloping long lefthander which comes after the paddock straight, brushing the last of the cones which separate the start lane from the return lane before running the car wide to the right, adding a little throttle to get the rear down and stable as you then turn in and drive through the left handed “Paddock bend” carrying a lot of speed (Lifting at this point particularly in a mid engine car is disastrous), now for the tricky right turn back into Woodside, a place I’ve been sideways more than once, get this wrong and your into the big foam bags as there’s not a lot of run off and you will bend the car in a fairly big way. This is one of the big challenges at Curborough as its easy to turn in too much and your carrying a lot of speed.

As” the Don” also showed me last year, the answer is to try and use as little steering as possible, to get the car to turn progressively at the limit of adhesion, you almost have to feel the tyres just move as they take a slip angle and no more, it almost feels like you just “breath” on the steering wheel , hold the steering steady at that point and the car runs to the edge of the tracking bleeding off the sideways g forces. As the car stabilises and the steering lock unwinds itself a little squeeze of the throttle sneaks a few extra hundredths of a second along the Woodside straight before getting hard on the brakes before the “ Molehill”.

The temptation here is to carry too much speed into it, a sharp right and left is needed and the tendency for most people is to cut the corner and monster the rumble strip like you see the touring cars do on TV. The problem with that is that this leaves the car carrying its momentum in a straight line heading into the infield when you actually need it to turn left and then immediate right, consequently in a TF the weight of the engine wants to carry on as the front turns into the left and the tails then starts to wag the dog, as it had done earlier in practice, not disastrously so, but time is wasted allowing the car to stabilise before you can get back on the throttle.

Having learned that lesson earlier in the day I turned in slower pulling over hard to the right , the slower speed allowing the car to pivot neatly around the mid engines weight to the left, as the car lined up between the two sets of rumble strips firm but progressive opening of the throttle allowed the rear to squat and push the car forward ( too harsh on the throttle too soon and the grip spins away and the tail wags for that reason instead), clipping one curb and then the other another subtle steering input allows the car to run wide to the left before braking for the “Fradley hairpin”, a long right hander, where under steer rules if you carry too much speed in as most people do (usually me included).
This corner is tricky in the TF , its easy to lock up here as you leave braking as late as possible, this time there was a slight chirrup from the front right tyre , braking on the threshold of grip (just right)before a progressive turn in to the left, too much lock carrying too much speed and the front tyres stall into under steer as they drag and judder sideways instead of rolling forward under a slip angle and carrying the car round.

A neat turn on this occasion clipped the end of the rumble strip for the late apex which allows you to feed in the power for maximum speed down the back straight, winding off the lock saw the car run almost onto the grass as I got the throttle pinned to the stop, bouncing off the limiter in 2nd as I wrung every ounce of power from the VVC before a sharp upshift to third. On a single lapper all you have to do from now on is keep it pinned to the boards for the finishing beam at the end of the straight.

However today is a double lapper, which requires the challenge of stopping sharply for the righthander “flagpole corner” which turns you back on yourself and round the circuit for your second lap. Again the TF weakness is the light front end which easily locks up as you approach the tight hairpin at 80 mph, too early and you lose time, too late and you lock up and overshoot, losing time an getting round in a scrappy way if your lucky, or missing the turn completely and ending up in the grass or embarrassingly aborting your run and heading for an early bath if your not. I usually go for caution and keep it neat but in practice this was putting me 8mph down at the split on Matt who was able to brake late and turn in on the brakes in the front engine FWd Clio 182.

I’d been thinking about this in visualisation while queuing at the start, taking my previous laps as a reference point; this time I left it to just after the 50m board before feeding in the brakes to their chirruping threshold, a smooth steering input saw us neatly round to the right and I just glimpsed my split time freeze on the board as I began to feed the throttle in to its maximum to take me back down “woodside” and sneak a bit more time.

The split time tells all on the double lapper, to get under 70 seconds you need to see a figure in the 39s, over 40 and its not going to happen, you just cant make the time up.
I saw 38 something flash up! Interesting!

but no time to dwell on it as the molehill was coming up again, entry speed is lower after the sharp flagpole hairpin but you can still get it wrong, slow in fast out saw us bounce of the 2nd rumble strip with the throttle pinned up to the “Fradley hairpin”, not much time to be gained here but lots to be lost if you get it wrong, brakes, neatly round once more and onto the” Shenstone straight” with the k series wailing up through second and into third headed for the finish, I had a few seconds to think about that quick split time and wonder what I’d managed to do.

As I crossed the line I looked across to the timing display , triumph or disaster?



68.82!

an new personal best and a second up on last years PB!

I was literally screaming my head off and punching the air as I returned to the start and gave Matt who was waiting for his start the number one signal ,” beat that matey!!”

Off he went

I paused on the return road to see his split time, 39 something, no chance!!! Id managed, as the saying goes “to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat”

People turned to look in the paddock :omg: as I started screaming again :woohoo: as I drove back to my parking spot, making an exhibition of myself is not something I normally do but the adrenalin rush was massive and I just lost it.

I’ve been doing this since 2008 and there was a time when I could only dream of going that fast. (Ok it’s a respectable time but its not a record and others can go faster, but for me it’s a major step up in performance.)

I was shaking as I got out of the car, and it took me quite a while to calm down, there isn’t time to feel or think anything on the run as the concentration required is so intense. Normally I don’t really get a big rush of adrenalin doing this which may surprise you, for me driving is usually a fairly cerebral activity rather than an emotional one, but the feeling on this occasion of elation relied and excitement all at once was overwhelming. I just couldn’t believe what I’d just done. :woo2:

Matt got a 69.33 so he’s reached a new level of consistency, and I had to give him the bad news as he got out of the car. I try never to be cocky, there’s nothing worse than a smug winner rubbing it in ( and defeat is only split seconds away) but I had so much adrenalin pumping through me my hands were actually shaking and I was babbling about the run, with disbelief as much as anything.

We shook hands and he and the other guys congratulated me, although he couldn’t deny his frustration that Id pulled it out of the bag again. :bat:

Next Sunday is our home club (Shenstone and District car club’s sprint) and the third round of the championship and he’s sworn vengeance, followed up with a friendly tag on facebook saying the same, the gauntlet is definitely on the ground between us, the other guys in the class are improving at every event and cant be forgotten, my new PB isn’t that exceptional by the class record standards and I’m feeling hunted, but that’s next week.

Today, was my day! Hope you don’t mind me sharing it at some length. :beer:

As a footnote my son dragged me to see the fast and furious 6 this evening ( or “fast and farcical” as I like to call the series which I’ve never had much time for) having said that it was actually a pretty good action movie a and I quite enjoyed it despite myself, but….
Watching it, just aint the same as doing it!!!
Lewis

Well done, keep it up :beer:
Just shows how much analysis gives results, but I realise to drive on the limit pumps up the adrenaline & gives you that feeling.