Other forms of motorsports?

[Jay Fleming]

I hope this belongs here, but I was just wondering if many people in FSAE were involved in other forms of motorsports, either during FSAE or before. I've been drag racing (not just test and tune or street racing) for 6 years now. Anyone else drag race, SCCA, motorcycles, boats, etc... Thanks.

[Jay Fleming]

I hope this belongs here, but I was just wondering if many people in FSAE were involved in other forms of motorsports, either during FSAE or before. I've been drag racing (not just test and tune or street racing) for 6 years now. Anyone else drag race, SCCA, motorcycles, boats, etc... Thanks.

[GTmule]

Not as a driver, but I've done a couple seasons of SCCA club prep work, and design work on another (closed wheel) sportsracer.

[boxsterb1]

I have done the SAE Mini Baja in the past and now I am moving up to FSAE.

[Denny Trimble]

I've been autocrossing since '98, and our team has been putting on local events since 2002. We just had an event yesterday, 210 entrants, and they got 4 runs each!

[Sam Zimmerman]

4 runs for 210 entries is amazing. We are lucky to get 4 runs if 100 people show up. You must run an efficient event, Denny.

[Patrick W. Crane]

Porsche club drivers events. Raced go-karts for two years. a bunch of autocross. FSAE.

[wrcRS]

autoX and drag racing

Raced BMX, and RC cars. Also some motocross.

[MotoDave]

Used to autocross when I had a car, now I've realized they're boring and I stick to trackdays on the real man's toy:
http://www.gallery.530riders.net/files/1/9/4/DSCF0001.jpg

[Dave M]

Not to brag but cal poly pomona is doing 3 runs for 350 in so-cal for championships, and just this weekend we had 60 people with over 14 runs each for a practice.

occasional karting, wrench on a midget, didnt start autocrossing until FSAE.

[syoung]

No previous experience of serious motorsport, but I race in the British University Karting Championship (http://www.bukc.co.uk), which has been a fantastic way of learning about driving a high power-to-weight vehicle at competition speeds.

[Denny Trimble]

Sam,
We get lots of help from the local autocrossers, especially working in the timing van. But, we're doing more and more, and all of the pre-event organization. It helps to have a short course with lots of overlap, and good weather!

Dave, you should be bragging, I can't imagine getting more runs in. We were sending cars every 15 seconds...

On the "other motorsports" topic, I was a mountain biker before FSAE, and it was all a controlled fall down the course my first few months http://fsae.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_smile.gif

[Dan G]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">I can't imagine getting more runs in. We were sending cars every 15 seconds... </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

What happens when someone powerslides through 20 cones? The cars would pile up quick, wouldn't they?

I started autoxing back in high school. It was PAINFULLY slow. I'd get a total of 4 runs with a field of 100 cars over a period of about 7-8 HOURS. Show up at 8am. Register till 8:30. Tech till 8:45. Walk the course for an hour. Wait another half hour. Drivers meeting. First car off at 10:15. My first run at 11:15. Wait another hour or so, run 2 at 12:30. Go work the course. Run 3 around 2pm, run 4 around 3:15.

I got sick of that pretty quick. When I moved up here to Detroit, things got a little better. They do it hotlaps style, so at least I get all my runs in quick succession. And I get about double the runs I used to.

But its still nothing on HPDEs. $/fun ratio is off the charts compared to autox. Its just tough getting my daily driver crapmobiles in sufficiently good shape to survive the couple hour drive there, hard laps on the track, then couple hours back. But I'm getting there. Hopefully I can get to half a dozen track events this summer after I finish the engine/clutch job on the 944.

[Patrick W. Crane]

I'd have to agree. tearing around in a 911 for 20 minutes on a full road course beats an autocross anyday of the week. Plus last time i was out i got 4 sessions in in an afternoon.

Good times!

[Dave M]

wow, you guys start late. For our championships first car out at 830 and practices at 9. They usually go to 5 ish. Heres a pic of our usual lot. its got alot more marks on it now though
http://maps.google.com/maps?q=Fontana+CA&ll=34.087100,-117.511321&spn=0.005193,0.006663&t=k&hl=en

[95M3Racer]

Race BMW and karts

[clausen]

Didn't do any racing, but did a fair bit of suspension component design for formula fords and v8 supercars (australian touring car series) before and during FSAE

[Ben Beacock]

I did about 7 years of roundy-rounds -- mostly on a 1/4mile high-banked paved oval with a 4-cyl VW. Nothing beats the wheel to wheel racing, but its was pretty low-tech with arc welders and sledge hammers. It took a while to get used to the delicate art of FSAE.

[mattr]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Dave M:
Not to brag but cal poly pomona is doing 3 runs for 350 in so-cal for championships, and just this weekend we had 60 people with over 14 runs each for a practice. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

PCA (porsche club of america) auto cross is 20 entrants, ~40 runs each http://fsae.com/groupee_common/emoticons/icon_smile.gif

Ive been racing RC cars for like 8 years (a few of them professionally), and wrenching on my Porsches for almost 2 years now. This will be my first year in FSAE and I'm curious how that knowledge will transfer to this competition.

[BStoney]

PCA events are great to get a heck of a lot of runs in for a great price. We get around 8-10 runs around here for the money.

[Patrick W. Crane]

matt - PCA drivers events are great as a stepping stone to an fsae car. Sure porsches are a lot slower, but the dynamics are still the same. any wrenching experience is also great. things will just be a lot more intuitive if you have a bit of a wrenching background - porsche or otherwise.

[drivetrainUW-Platt]

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Ben Beacock:
I did about 7 years of roundy-rounds -- mostly on a 1/4mile high-banked paved oval with a 4-cyl VW. Nothing beats the wheel to wheel racing, but its was pretty low-tech with arc welders and sledge hammers. It took a while to get used to the delicate art of FSAE. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
ha, I got yelled at a lot at first for my "farmyard" engineering I had picked up growing up on a farm. I was used to giving my self a lot of error factor with no tight tolerances....I'm still learning and fsae has definitely taught me a lot!

[rjwoods77]

4 years of mini baja. F'ing kick ass.