Autocross Recap: Autocrossers Inc., May 8 2010

Two Consecutive Good Events In A Row!

We came off a good day at the races last week when we finished in the top ten in a crowded STR class at FedEx Field. We tried to follow that up with a similarly decent performance with Autocrossers Inc. in Waldorf, and succeeded with a second-place effort at Waldorf's Blue Crabs Stadium.

The club tried a new twist, and we think it made for a good day. It started with four runs in the morning, then an hour break for lunch, and then back at it for four more runs in the afternoon. Each driver's best morning time was added to the best afternoon time and those totals were used to determine who finished where.

We still have nothing but praise for the lot at Blue Crabs Stadium. In addition to only taking us eight minutes to get there in the morning, it's big, smooth, and mostly flat. AI put together a great course that included one of the longest slaloms ever that finished at a hairpin turn, and a nifty short stretch that really had me confounded the first couple times through until I eventually realized I could carry way more speed through it, and I watched my times drop noticeably after that.

In the weeks leading up to the event, Kate had been the only entrant in the STS class. I was going to run STR in the '99 but then figured I'd give the '90 a chance to play on a big lot, and switched to Captain Slow, but staying in STR. But then I couldn't let Kate run without competition so I switched classes to STS. Eventually a couple more drivers joined the fray, denying Parsimonious Racing domination.

Morning runs were inconsistent as I started out with a 54-second lap but slowed to a mid-55 the next time out as I took on a passenger. But something clicked between the second and third runs, where I decided I could carry much more speed through the middle section of the course. This strategy worked well, and I finished the morning session with a fast run of 51.697 seconds. That was good enough to wind up a very close second (by only 0.15 seconds) as we headed into the lunch break.

Back in action, we had some fresh ideas after shooting the breeze with other drivers and strapped in for our afternoon runs. Things didn't start out too well as we seemed to have regressed, turning times in the 52s. I did finish up with a 51.462, though that was only good enough for third. But since I ran better in the morning, my combined times kept me in second place in the final tally. That's not a bad day.

Kate, in her Ugly Duckling, had a decent day as well. Her best morning time was a 55.929 while her best afternoon effort was 54.994. She might have been fourth in STS, but she was faster than the Ferrari 308 that ran in a different class.

For a new format, the day at Blue Crabs Stadium was a success. We got twice as many runs on a good course as we usually do, and even got lunch between sessions to boot. We're hoping the club gets similar good feedback from other participants and they run more events like this down the road.

Next up for us should be SCCA Level 1 and Level 2 autocross schools, scheduled for May 22 and 23 at FedEx Field. The next weekend is the SCCA Northeast Divisional, also at FedEx, but I don't foresee us partaking in that as it brings out the real big guns, and we're not at that level. We'll probably show up to cheer on our rivals who are running, and play photographers for their benefit.

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