ajobrien Posted August 14, 2007 Share Posted August 14, 2007 All's I can say is a video is worth a thousand words http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=8406230171062274475&hl=en All in all it was a great event. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thefrush Posted August 14, 2007 Share Posted August 14, 2007 Good thing the brakes were still working when that Miata went around! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajobrien Posted August 14, 2007 Author Share Posted August 14, 2007 I thought I was going to have to pit for a change of shorts did you see the spin @ 8? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thefrush Posted August 15, 2007 Share Posted August 15, 2007 Yeah, the S2000, I'd hate to see the interior of his car after that. He's lucky he didn't roll, considering the angle and speed that he went off at. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jon dawes Posted August 16, 2007 Share Posted August 16, 2007 question from a very new noobie. when you decided to stop after the miata spun, was it instinct, necessity, training, common sense, magic that made you stop? i've watched some race footage of the CMC guys and it seems that at times they are driving blind through a cloud of dust and smoking tires. granted, maybe the videos didn't show that they could actually see where they were going. i guess my instinct is never to stop [on the street] because i'm afraid the next guy WON'T stop. was my question clear as mud? [i would imagine such spinouts are a rarity in HPDE1, but assuming for the sake of this post that it could happen.] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thefrush Posted August 16, 2007 Share Posted August 16, 2007 Here's my thoughts on your question northy. In this video, you can see the Miata start to spin very early, I was saying to myself well before it happened, 'the Miata is going around.' Once that thought comes into your mind, you already start thinking slow down, instinctually. You also start considering where he might end up. Some spins it's obvious the car is going off track, and not coming back. In this spin, the Miata was pointing towards the track, so it was likely that he would stay on track. Also, considering this was an HPDE and not a race like CMC, aj wasn't worried about position. In any situation, if you see a car starting to lose control ahead of you, you should instantly prepare yourself to stop, slow down, and/or avoid. I guess the reason you would see someone drive through a cloud of dust, is because they know where the car ended up, and they know where they need to go. Something that comes with time, experience, and a little bit of balls. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jon dawes Posted August 16, 2007 Share Posted August 16, 2007 hopefully someday the experience and the balls part will equal out for me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajobrien Posted August 16, 2007 Author Share Posted August 16, 2007 At the point of the spin, I had 3 options. 1, go around the guy to the right, But the traffic would not let me. 2, go for the dirt, but I was hoping he would back off the track into the dirt. 3, aim for him, HOPE I could stop. I picked 3, I have the wink mirror, so I can see all around me, and the cars coming from behind me would have made for some tricky driving. The guys that run in group 4 have some, well a lot of track time, most of them race, and know to watch for cars, spinning and about to spin, If you view the video once more you can see the miata sliding in the off camber corner (Turn 3) and in turn 4 he is off line. At the crest of the hill he is off line and turns in at the top of the hill, which is the start of the “Spin†Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JamesS Posted August 23, 2007 Share Posted August 23, 2007 Good discussion. I just moved up to group3 and understanding what to do in situations like this are important to me. I figure if I think about this in my head while off track, I may be able to process the information better as it occurs on the track. One thing that I really like about these driving events is that the experience really teaches you to be aware of everything going on around you at all times, and this is great because you use all that information when an incident does occur. The course of action that you decide at that instant will be based on all the information stored in your head up to that moment and then the additional infomation that your mind processes as the "moment" unfolds in front or around you. To me, this ability is invaluable especially when driving in a more uncontrolled environment like a simple daily commute to work. I've had a few situations at T-Hill myself. Maybe my video can contribute to the discussion: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IGZOSTD Posted August 24, 2007 Share Posted August 24, 2007 AJOBRIAN, I hope before you move on past HPDE, you learn that aiming tward a car and HOPE to God you stop is unquestionably the wrong choice. Remember you wreck it you by it, and more important someone could get hurt. You did stop and nothing became of it , remember there are better options . Honder 2000's There was at least 3 S2000 that did some plowing for the local farmer that weekend . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jon dawes Posted August 27, 2007 Share Posted August 27, 2007 AJOBRIAN, I hope before you move on past HPDE, you learn that aiming tward a car and HOPE to God you stop is unquestionably the wrong choice. 'unquestionably wrong' choice, or less favorable than your suggestion of 'better options'? also, what are those options? Remember you wreck it you by it hmmmm, i know one guy whose car was totalled and another whose car was pretty badly damaged and the 'breakor' didn't buy anything. my understanding is that it is more of a 'gentleman's code' that you offer to help pay for a car you have damaged if it's your fault. maybe i'm missing something in the NASA CCR. and more important someone could get hurt. too true and also highly unfortunate. You did stop and nothing became of it , remember there are better options so doesn't that make the choice to stop something other than 'unquestionably the wrong choice'? i'm NOT arguing here, i'm trying to learn and assess the situation as a student of this stuff, so please nobody take offense. There was at least 3 S2000 that did some plowing for the local farmer that weekend . . . . Mustangs would NEVER do that [i have two as well] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chino 240Z Posted August 28, 2007 Share Posted August 28, 2007 Nice work Jon. You saw it as a prediction and you reacted with choices. You kept control of your own car and knew you were good to stop for the distance given. If you would have continued around to the left or right and the sliding car released his locked brakes it would have changed the direction of it's path forward or backward (or left to right from your view) and this may have been a bad deal for both. After getting back to speed you kept composure and displayed no attitude after what had just happened. You drove hard, reacted to your best, and you completed the session. The sliding car did good by keeping his brakes locked which helped the car stay sliding forward. He would have been unpredicable with anything else, and hope for no roll. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajobrien Posted August 29, 2007 Author Share Posted August 29, 2007 IGZOSTD wrote: AJOBRIAN, I hope before you move on past HPDE, you learn that aiming tward a car and HOPE to God you stop is unquestionably the wrong choice. Oh and its OBRIEN, not BRIAN. anyway, what would you have done???? Please tell us. It sounds like you have lots to offer, so please offer up. I'll see you in TTB SOON. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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