| BMW CCA CLUB RACING |
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From Driving Schools to BMW Club Racing - Your First Year updated: 02/08/05 |
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Going From Driving Schools to BMW Club Racing - Your First Year
Gateway Tech, March 2000
Bob Stommel
I. First year budget for Stock class racing
A. Required stuff
1. Medical exam
2. License fee
3. Coolant/oil breather catch tanks
4. Roll cage
5. Seat back brace
6. Window net
7. 5 or 6-pt. harness
8. Driver suit
9. Helmet
10. Gloves
11. Shoes
12. Nomex socks
13. Nomex underwear
14. Balaclava (if facial hair)
15. Fire extinguisher
16. AMB transmitter
B. Optional stuff
1. New parts
I. Tie rod ends
II. Rear subframe bushings
III. Motor mounts
IV. Transmission mounts
V. Differential mounts
VI. Brake rotors
VII. Brake caliper seals
VIII. Front wheel bearings
2. Brake ducts
3. Racing brake pads
4. Wide angle rearview mirror
5. Suspension
I. Lower control arms and bushings (E30 M3)
II. Upper strut mounts (factory camber adjustment strut mounts for E30)
III. Shocks
IV. Springs
V. Adjustable swaybars
VI. Swaybar end links
VII. Fixed camber plates
6. Fiberglass or carbon fiber seats
7. Tune up parts (air filter, spark plugs, ignition cap and rotor)
8. Hi-temp fluids
9. Lightweight wheels
10. Race tires
11. DME chip
12. SS cat-back exhaust
13. Short shifter
14. Steering wheel
15. Oil temp and pressure gauges
16. Tire pyrometer
17. Track radio
18. Timing equipment (stopwatch or hot lap timer)
19. Video camera and mount
20. Fire suppression system
21. Neck collar
22. Spare parts box
I. Spark plugs
II. Ignition cap and rotor
III. Spark plug wires
IV. Ignition coil
V. Front wheel bearing and dust caps
VI. Brake caliper seal kits
VII. Brake caliper guide pins
VIII. Alternator and power steering belts
IX. Coolant hoses and clamps
X. Oxygen sensor
XI. Flywheel sensors
XII. Clutch slave cylinder
XIII. Brake slave cylinder
XIV. Wheel bolts
XV. Fuses
XVI. Misc. nuts and bolts
C. Costs per event
1. Race entry fee
2. Track garage rental
3. Fuel (road and race)
4. Hotel
5. Food
6. Replacement parts
II. Timetable for preparation
A. Get car safety items installed in the off-season (winter) when the race shops have more time
B. Start at least 4-5 months before your first race; parts may be back-ordered or shops may have other priorities
III. Find a good "mentor"
A. Pick your own mentor; don't wait to get assigned to one
B. Best mentor is not necessarily a veteran
1. May not remember what it was like to be a rookie
2. May not have the right amount of patience
C. Best mentor is not necessarily someone in your class
D. Park next to mentor in paddock and ask a lot of questions
VI. Changes in latitude; changes in attitude
A. Go through corners two or three abreast
B. No “distance cushion” between cars
C. Pass anywhere and anytime (flags permitting)
1. No signal required
2. Just because you signal a pass doesn’t mean it will be on the side you pointed to
D. More corner workers; more flags
E. You’re on your own; no instructor to help avoid trouble (and 160-200 lbs. less weight in car)
F. Need to broaden peripheral vision
G. Need to heighten "situational awareness"
H. Almost always driving "off line" (until the pack thins out)
I. Lead cars may overtake you quickly
V. Things they may not have told you
A. When the green flag drops, the race starts for everyone
B. The start is extremely important in a 30 minute race
C. Second gear on the start - watch the tach because you won't hear the engine
D. Speed in the first corner after the start is usually slower than you think
E. Don't “drive your mirrors” - concentrate on what's in front of you
F. Don’t lift when you get passed
G. Don’t take your braking cues from the car in front of you
H. In practice, stay in traffic to get used to it
I. Practice driving off line and late brake passing
J. Fastest lap time is in first three laps after tires are warmed up; for qualifying, get tires warmed up, do a few fast laps, come in and prepare for the race
K. Avoid getting caught on the outside of corners in traffic
L. Get your oil temp up before you grid (start your engine early)
M. Grid early, get all your gear on and get focused
N. Use the race warm-up lap to heat up your tires, brakes and brain
O. Find out everything you can about the other racers in your class
P. Watch where the other racers are fast, slow, run wide, braking points, etc. - this helps you decide where to pass
Q. Grass is a racing surface
R. Drive it like you stole it
VI. Books on racing
A. Racing basics and general overview
1. Ayrton Senna's Principles of Race Driving
- Hazleton Publishing Ltd. 1993
- ISBN 1-874557-40-32. Competition Driving
- Alain Prost
- Hazleton Publishing Ltd. 1990
- ISBN 0-905138-80-53. Bob Bondurant on High Performance Driving
- Bob Bondurant
- Motorbooks International 1993
- ISBN 0-879380751-3B. More specifics and more race techniques
1. Going Faster: Mastering the Art of Race Driving *
- The Skip Barber Racing School
- Robert Bentley, Inc. 1997
- ISBN 0-8376-0227-02. Winning: A Race Driver's Handbook
- George A. Anderson
- Motorbooks International 1993
- ISBN 0-87938-776-93. Think to Win: The New Approach to Fast Driving
- Don Alexander
- Robert Bentley, Inc. 1995
- ISBN 0-8376-0070-7
* If you read only one book, this should be it