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Car sounds nice Ruby. That can't be the stock cam. I see you're having to much fun driving your corvette rather than talking about it.
Originally Posted by 65Z01
Good size track; looks like fun especially in a 6-speed.
Looks like a taxiway of the airport. Nice how they let them use the airport but I imagine they have to stop flight operations to allow auto racing. They do that in California also as I believe the NCCC sponsored some of these.
Nice! Did you catch that last cone at the end of the long slalom?
A couple of my worse runs from last weekend. Watch the power slide in the first run. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lMxveDpnTTc&t=54s
Car sounds nice Ruby. That can't be the stock cam. I see you're having to much fun driving your corvette rather than talking about it.
Looks like a taxiway of the airport. Nice how they let them use the airport but I imagine they have to stop flight operations to allow auto racing. They do that in California also as I believe the NCCC sponsored some of these.
Stock cam. Stock engine. Good exhaust and microphone for the camera.
A lot of people on here like to complain and talk about their Corvette or about its problems. I drive mine and it doesn't break a whole lot. Stuff wears out sure, but broke. Not really. Once in the 8 years I've been doing this I went home on a tow truck. Power steering line ON the rack itself had a hair line crack.....
Thanks 93Rubie for the great video of your driving! You are a very impressive driver on that airport track. My daughter who loves Corvettes wants to try that after watching your video!
I wish they would open up some of the old SAC Airbases designed for the B-52's. Those runways are several miles long and used to have baby smooth surfaces while they were being maintained by Uncle Sam. Today they are all falling into horrible disrepair as nobody has a need for those old runways.
MatthewMiller, You are right about that, if everybody was trained to drive on a track like that we would all be better drivers!!
I signed up my daughter for an advanced driving training as she is into Corvettes and currently drives a 2011 Camaro six speed. The class is an 8 hour program at a local racetrack near Washington DC and they use ex-police cars for the classes. 8 hours with a professional driver learning how to drive with and WITHOUT the nannies they build into the newer cars. Half of the class is spent on the track practicing what they had learned in the classroom. Her insurance will be less expensive after the training according to my agent.
How do the insurance companies react to people using their street cars for auto crossing? The guy I bought my house from had a Ferrari that he took to the track mentioned above for a driver training program where you used your own vehicle. While travelling down a straight at high speeds he had his left rear tire blow out. In the process the tire shreds removed a good deal of bodywork and other important parts to the car. His insurance said "NO" initially until he showed them it happened during a "Official training" class he was taking to improve his driving skills. They ended up covering the entire damage which cost more than most new Corvettes in the first place. Auto Cross is a competitive sport and I am not sure if they would cover it if something happened to your Corvette.
I used to go to the airport where I kept my Cessna 172 and made a few passes on the runway and returned via the taxiways. It is a smaller airport and they only have 2800' to play with but that was way more than my 1968 C3 needed to get up north of 130 mph and back down again safely. I was not reckless and the owner knew I was doing it. Back then I was using the aviation 100 octane Low lead and was flying often so it was convenient to fill it up at the airplane gas pumps and since we had a gas club I was paying less than a dollar more per gallon than premium at a gas station.
How fast do you go when auto crossing? I understand it would depend on the location to some extent. My C3 has 3.36 gears and over 550 hp with the four speed but is a convertible. Can you run a convertible in those competitions or do you need to have a hard top? I have my factory hard top but that is it. I will not destroy the value of my convertible with a roll cage. This is what keeps me off of 1/4 mile tracks as I am not allowed to go below 12 seconds without being escorted off the track. I got good at turning 13.01's and stopped there. Having the power and no place to use it gets a bit old after a while.
There should be a law that everyone who owns a Corvette has to drive it in at least five autocross events each year.
Originally Posted by ctmccloskey
MatthewMiller, You are right about that, if everybody was trained to drive on a track like that we would all be better drivers!!
Totally!
There is currently an ARTICLE ON JALOPNIK about a Ferrari F12 driver who loses control, gets sidways, wrecks the car. The discussion that ensues below the article is mind bending. Guys are wondering why/how a RWD car can "get sideways when you spin the tires?" WTF?? How did we get to this point?? One commenter says that in a car w/a differential, one wheel is the "primary driven wheel" and recieves significantly more tq than the other wheel. And these are supposed "car guys"!!
People need to engage w/their cars, MORE. Unfortunately, today's car ensure that you are engaged, less.
MatthewMiller, You are right about that, if everybody was trained to drive on a track like that we would all be better drivers!!
Yep, and for Corvette owners we'd be using them for a purpose for which they were intended. I'll never understand all the people who put around like grandmas in their Corvettes and are afraid to drive them hard. Meanwhile, I just spent the weekend at our local St. Louis NCCC autocross event where multiple grandmas were kicking most of the guys' asses. One of those grandmas is the wife of the NCCC national president, and she whooped almost everyone. Anyway, to answer your questions:
How do the insurance companies react to people using their street cars for auto crossing? The guy I bought my house from had a Ferrari that he took to the track mentioned above for a driver training program where you used your own vehicle. While travelling down a straight at high speeds he had his left rear tire blow out. In the process the tire shreds removed a good deal of bodywork and other important parts to the car. His insurance said "NO" initially until he showed them it happened during a "Official training" class he was taking to improve his driving skills. They ended up covering the entire damage which cost more than most new Corvettes in the first place. Auto Cross is a competitive sport and I am not sure if they would cover it if something happened to your Corvette.
Autocross events are a little different than track events. The risk of damage is way, way lower and it's a parking lot. There is no door-to-door competition, and most events are designed to keep top speeds to 70mph or less for a fast car. My event last weekend had me at 80mph on the second day's course in one spot, but it was just a straight to the finish lights and so very little chance of disaster. But my car also had lots of grip (315 Hoosier A7s) and close to 500hp at the crank. Most weren't going that fast. When (not if) you do spin or go off course, you just hit orange traffic cones - no barriers or other damage-inducing hazards like most tracks or streets. So in short, I've never heard of much trouble with insurance, but there are almost never any accidents. Your drive to and from the event is more likely to result in an accident than the event itself.
Can you run a convertible in those competitions or do you need to have a hard top? I have my factory hard top but that is it. I will not destroy the value of my convertible with a roll cage. This is what keeps me off of 1/4 mile tracks as I am not allowed to go below 12 seconds without being escorted off the track. I got good at turning 13.01's and stopped there. Having the power and no place to use it gets a bit old after a while.
Right, no requirement for a cage or roll bar, or a hard top. Again, the speeds and hazards aren't there to justify such a requirement. So you'd be fine. We had a number of convertibles, and many coupes ran without their targa tops installed.
In summary, autocross/solo competition is the cheapest and lowest-risk way by far to learn car control and how to go fast in an environment that stresses cornering and braking at least as much as acceleration. And after all, Corvettes have always been intended to accelerate well in all directions!
this always interested me very much, I run my car in a straight line a lot but always wanted to try this, my brother does road courses with his CTS coupe and has a blast. I'm just concerned due to my car being automatic with a stall converter how it would perform in this situation. and what kind of modifications would need to be made to be able to do it. I just have new Bilstein replacement shocks and stock everything else as far as suspension. as far as engine just cam and headers. 309RWHP. 350 torque
06-19-2019, 11:31 PM
Love it! 
