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Editor’s
Notebook: January 2006
Happy New Year! Well ladies, the new season is about to begin, and what better time to take that long-awaited plunge into the exciting world of racing? If you’ve been following the Thunder Valley Racing website, you know that more women than ever are donning helmets and firesuits and strapping into a racecar. You also know that now, more than ever, race teams and sponsors are looking for talented women drivers to add to their teams. You say you’re not ready for an all-out assault at the NASCAR Nextel Cup Championship? Well, fortunately there are still a number of ways in which you too can experience the thrilling world of motorsports. In the United States alone there are virtually hundreds of sanctioning bodies with local and regional chapters through which an aspiring driver can become involved. In this, the first of a three part series on getting started in motorsports, we’ll take a look at the precision driving world of Autocrossing. What is an Autocross event?
Autocross/Solo II events are low to medium speed auto racing events; they are often run on parking lots and airport runways, although street events and events at Go Kart tracks sometimes take place. Generally a course will be defined using traffic cones. One driver at a time negotiates a course laid out with the cones, or pylons, testing their skill against the clock. Time penalties are charged for disturbing cones. In most regions, the penalty is 2 seconds per cone, although in some places it may be 1 second. There is an upper speed guideline for Solo II which is intended to keep speeds in a domain that most drivers might have encountered on the streets and highways; the fastest cars at a Solo II should not get much over 70mph. Generally, each driver takes three or four runs at an event. A driver is awarded the best time of all runs taken. Where can I learn more about autocrossing?There are a few nationwide publications which cater to autocrossing. A very good one is North American Pylon, a newspaper-style monthly. For subscriptions to Pylon, go the Pylon Web Page. Grassroots Motorsports (GRM) covers most forms of low-cost motorsports. This bi-monthly publication is available at most places that carry a wide selection of specialty magazines. Subscriptions can be obtained on the Grassroots Motorsports Web Page. The Stopwatcher is a weekly newsletter that covers autocrossing in the greater Washington DC area (MD,DC,VA,WV) and other amateur motorsports as well. Subscriptions are available, use the contact information on this web page: http://www.racesearch.com/resources/pubs/racing_10714.html There are also a few books and videotapes available about autocrossing, especially at the introductory and instructional level. Many local organizations sponsor autocross school-events where novice drivers can receive instruction and tips on how to become a better driver. Contact your Local or Regional Club to see if such programs exist in your area. Books on Performance Driving
Source: Getting Started: Autocross.com http://www.autocross.com/autoc/started.htm
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