> Thanks to all those who have offered up good advice and options. I have a
> couple more questions...
>
> First, this event on Sunday... All I see listed is "Fire and safety school"
> on the website. Is this the event that everyone is heading up to? Would
> this be a good event to show up un-registered and meet people? In other
> words, can I *crash* the event...? Bad form. I know.
The fire and safety school is on *Saturday* - ie today, as in you've missed
it.
Looking at the Solo2 home page: http://www.sfrscca.org/solo2/ , in the top
right hand corner the very top item reads "Next Event: Championship Round 3,
Sunday March 4th, 3COM Park. There are links to the event and location
information.
> Next... equipment questions:
> SHOES - I have been heel-and-toe'ing for years, but I have never owned a car
> where the pedals were really setup to do this, so I always have done is
> backwards (heel to gas, toe to brake). The M3 seems to have pedals placed
That's how it's done.
> specifically with heel-and-toe in mind, which means that its very difficult
> to do it backwards... hence I am now forcing myself to do it the right way.
> The problem is that doing it the right way requires a lot more
> sensitivity... and tennis shoes no longer cut it.
If you're trying to use your toe on the gas and your heel/side of foot on the
brake, you're in a small minority of those who are operating both pedals at
once.
> I have gone out to the web and or course found Simpson shoes, but no other
> brand. I am guessing these are fine, but thought I would ask before
> ordering. What do people recommend for a size 11 foot and an M3? Are there
> bennies to a high-top over a low-top?
Common for autocrossing are moccasins, wrestling shoes, and even neoprene surf
socks. We don't have (most of) the safety issues that govern true racing shoe
design. Light, thin, and narrow pretty much covers it.
> NUMBERS - I was gonna head out to get a set of magnetic numbers for my
> doors, but then thought about the obvious question... Will I be assigned a
> number, or can I just pick one?
There is a permanent number book at registration, and you can sign up for any
number in your class that isn't already taken.
> HELMETS - It seems that you can spend anywhere from ~$100 all the way up to
> ~$800 for a helmet. What makes one helmet better than another? Is the
> nomax lining worth getting? Open face, or shielded?
If you are going to use the helmet for open track events, Snell SA rating is
normally required, which includes fire retardance and almost unilaterally
full-face helmets. For autocross the cheapest piece of crap helmet that
passes Snell M standards is perfectly acceptable IMHO. I posted last week an
Internet site where such a helmet can be acquired new for less than $50.
> FUEL - How important is this? When I used to drag race midyear Corvettes,
> this was a big deal... There is a huge difference between 87 pump octane,
> and 111 airplane fuel in an old Chevy small-block. But... I am guessing
> that the M3 has some knock sensor in it that will get screwed up if I pump
> too high an octane through it. My guess is that I should be sticking with
> 92 pump octane, but thought I would ask to see what y'all know.
You must run commercial pump gas per the rules, this does include higher
octane "race gas" that can be optained at some stations. You can't run too
much octane, but you can run more than you need, which decreases combustion
efficiency, and you can run less than you need, which causes knock and
consequent issues with the knock sensor.
> SHOP MANUAL - I thought this was taken care of, but it seems that the person
> I talked with at the Steven's Creek BMW service department really didn't
> know what the heck I was talking about, so it didn't get ordered. I would
> have thought that he had seen this request before. Where should I be
> getting one of these? The verbage on the SFSCCA website is a little
> ambiguous... do I really need one of these on hand before I can race?
No, you need one on hand before you are protested for rules violations
pertaining to your car. If such a protest were to occur, lack of factory
documentation on your part is usually an automatic forfeit of defense.
Chances of this happening at a local event are essentially nil.
I'm pimping for a ride at this event, if you care to share your car I'd be
happy to walk you through the entire event process, including course and
driving instruction.
KeS
|