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From speedarena.com General Features Day camp. The idea conjures up memories of childhood. Dusty hot days of summer, bag lunches, rats nests made up of macaroni and yarn called necklaces that your mom pretended to be so proud to get. Oh, and don’t forget that teenage counselor that you couldn't stop looking at from across the picnic table. Ah, day camp was wonderful. Where does that kid get to go when he's all grown up? What's the day camp equivalent for 20-30 something year old cubicle dwellers? Is there such a place that provides fun and excitement? Indeed, and you can leave your lopsided papier-mâché birdhouse at home.
I arrive for my first day of the TRC 45 minutes early. I'm anxious and as giddy as that kid looking across the picnic table. I walk around and spend some time looking at what will be my classroom for the next 3 days. The Formula Mitsubishi is a little 1095-lb bullet, backed by a 2.0L 4-cylinder engine that gets the car up and running with a top 125-bhp. It's small and I'm big, so I'm a little concerned. Rick, my instructor, quickly interrupts my inspection of the car and concerns about fitting, as he wants us driving ASAP. In less than 30 minutes we are suited up, briefed and loaded up into our cars. I draw car #35 - my first ever car number assignment. Will I ever carry #35 to a podium? All of those thoughts are quickly squashed as we begin to throw the Formula Mitsubishis into an infield braking exercise. No ABS here - it’s all about threshold braking. As I take in the exercise and the experience, I realize that for motorsport junkies, watching the front tire in an open wheel racecar lock and release as you try to properly find the braking threshold limit is a near religious experience, much like the first time you smell 100-octane fuel. Day camp is fun! Day 1 at camp keeps on moving, literally. Much like when as kids we all lined up for the afternoon hike around the park; I’m sitting in 4th position of a caravan of my fellow classmates. We follow a Ford Mustang around Infineon’s world-class track, learning the racing line. The instructions are simple. Stay one car length behind the car in front of you. As long as we keep the formation tight and online, the Mustang goes faster. Simple I think, but I’m starting to realize that the exercise is about as simple as starting a campfire with twigs. People are flying off line, falling out of position, locking up tires. It’s ugly and we all know it. Very little eye contact is made when we return to the pits. A little positive support from Rick and the Russell staff and we are back on track. The next session and the rest of the day are better. The lines have been learned, we are comfortable with the cars and ready to be released on our own. This continues into Day 2. We pick up where we left off and by mid-morning we are lapping on our own. There is space between us when we are released from the pits, but there is still close racing action. Needless to say, it’s tough when I get passed and exhilarating when I start to pass others. It seems like we are on the track all day long, but we honestly got in about 5 hours of lapping. When not on track, we received lots of feedback from the instructors. We didn’t know it, but we were being timed from the beginning. In order to show exactly how much improvement we were making, lap time printouts started being distributed. It’s very satisfying to say that you knocked 15 seconds off your lap time in a single session!
Summer camp always has a downer. Someone chokes on a cherry pit, skins a knee or gets slapped for being a “little too mature” with the staff. Day 3 starts with what I think will be a disappointment. I arrive at the track with my windshield wipers on trying to clear the mist that came with a night of rain. The track is very wet and quite frankly I’m concerned. I know we drive rain or shine, but the confidence of Day 2 is gone. Will I be the first to spin? Will I wimp out from the challenge of a rain-soaked track? I start to be put at ease when I see the staff at Russell prancing around with a gleam in their eyes that can only mean one thing - today is going to be excellent. We are told that driving in the rain is one of the best learning experiences we could get. We are also told that we could all go home if we like, so that the instructors could take over the track for themselves. Apparently rain driving is one of those prized experiences that true racers long for. Covered in plastic ponchos, we are back on track learning the “wet” line. The goal of driving the wet line is to keep us out of the slippery spots and get us comfortable with a car that feels different. It is completely different. New lines, new turn-in points and new braking zones and I feel like I have to start learning all over again. We are all cautious but soon the speeds pick up and we are in full lapping mode. I start to push my car a little as my confidence grows. Then I hang the outside rear wheel out onto the berm coming out of turn 2. And by berm, I mean sheet of ice that was praying for me to come close enough to spin me. In an instant all of the fast driving and racing anxiety that I have experienced over the past year gets thrown in front of my face like the spray from the tires of my chase car. I counter-steer into the slide and save it just in time to push into the left-handed turn 3. It’s my first real slide at speed. When I save it, I realize that I really can do this thing called “racing”. The biggest grin I have had in years spreads across my face. I see another opportunity to pass coming. Concentration and euphoria are at 100%. The day continues and I manage to get my wet track lap times within 2 seconds or so of my dry track times. I experience a few other on-track firsts. Someone spins in front of me and I scramble to avoid the collision on the exit of turn 8. I have a moment of clarity and trail braking starts to make sense on the entrance to turn 4. It’s later that night at home after rehashing every turn and every experience of the day when I start to understand that everyone in motorsport harbors some reservation about getting behind the wheel at speed. The training given at the TRC has given me the confidence and the respect needed to proceed in the sport. Going fast is not about having balls or being able to go all out. It’s about control. The skills to control the car, to control input to the car and to control my mind when making split second decisions are critical in driving a racecar. At the track I have heard people say, “radius equals speed” and “late braking equals gained positions”. To me, the cubicle dweller by day/novice racecar driver on my days off, control equals confidence and with confidence my desire to be in the car and go faster continues to grow. The skills that are bestowed upon you as a driver graduate of the ESPN Russell Racing School teach you how to technically drive a racecar. Apparently, they do such a good job that they are one of two schools in the country that can certify someone for an SCCA national racing license. As a graduate of the TRC, you are eligible for the SCCA regional racing license.
What’s next for me? I’ll be going back to “camp” next year for the Advanced Racing Class and then an inaugural race weekend in the SCCA/Russell formula series. I look forward to getting back on the track and challenging myself in the controlled and professional environment. Come to the track and see the racing… I’ll bring the marshmallows if you bring the hot chocolate. © Copyright
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