[qt:http://drivehard.net/racing/images/american_autox_3.29.09/american_autox_3.29.09.m4v 470 376]
A 4 year autocross hiatus and corded Hoosiers, a fast lap time do not make. It’s only fair the blame for being 4 seconds slower than others in my newly designated ASP class (thanks headers! pause, not) be equally spread between both the shear lack of viable rubber reft on my well worn A6′s and not having autocrossed more than once in the last several years. In the first heat I falsely assumed all those hours of seat time on road courses the past few years would have in someway kept my autocross skills sharp (enough), but alas that clearly wasn’t the case at all. While several sports may come back to you “like ridding a bike” this is not one of them. Proof of just how quickly you forget is in my first run, where I left the traction control on, incurred massive wheel hop off the line and finally landed in two 180 degree spins just a few feet from the starting line. Ugh. The rest of the day was spent trying to keep what felt like an unwieldy beast under control. It’s shocking how this sport can take a well mannered, neutral handling car that feels down right smooth being pushed around the sweeping apexes of a road circuit, and shines a glaring spot light on it’s (and the driver’s) lack of ability to gracefully manage sudden and dramatic weight transfer. She pushed, she oversteered, she bucked, she kicked. I thought back to the many years I spent convincing my ’98 Z28 that it was really meant for autocrossing and that pushing like a pig wasn’t actually the fastest method around the course. After several seasons and lots of practice trail braking, we finally came to an understanding and played a very competitive role in F Stock. Yet somehow, the infinitely better chassis of my Corvette was uncontrollable. Maybe it was the gas I used??
My laps peaked at a 44.0, still several seconds from being anywhere near decent. A farther cry still from a fantastic 38.xxx performed by an ASP Z06 and it’s driver who were one of the fastest of the day. So what’s the take away? I need some practice, and…new tires by the next event. 275/40 17s for the front at $560 and 315/30 18s for the rears (up from 295s) at $662 for a grand total for $1,222 worth of disposable rubber. Assuming autocrosses only and no track days, they should last all 16 of American Auto-X Series season. Next is suspension. That ASP Z06 was running 1,200lbs front and 1,000lbs springs in the rear along with double adjustable shocks. A far cry from my Z51 gear. All in due time…
