Club series for the beginner?

[TwoLeadFeet]

jevans82 said:

Thanks for highlighting this Steve,

are 750 series cars welcome on regular track days or do they need to go on specific race prep days?

Thanks,

John

Hi John,

I’ve been on Trackdays with Javelin and MSV with my 750F and they are fine with these cars. Also my standard race silencer has met the noise limits easily.

I take Andrew’s point about performance differences but I mainly use a track day for pre-season testing so it’s never been an issue for me.

Rich

[PTP165]

Hi John

Sorry for the delay.

Yes the 750 can go to regular track days as it is classed as closed wheel so I think it would be fine.

Steve

[sabid]

ol said:

dhutch said:

Bertrum said:

dhutch said:

Whats I like in terms.of weather for the Ma7da championship etc? Whenever I book a trackday in the Westfield (and it's fairness it's been a while now). I'm always twitchy about what the weather will be like. Not due to grip particularly but spray, which then gets into the car and onto the screen which has awful wipers.
Presumably if race cars people have worked out various things the work maybe? Get the door/sidescreens to seal properly? Good wiper setup? Deflectors on the cycle wings/screen? Full cage, so no roof?

The unofficial solution is a bit of rag or similar taped to a stick and hidden in the passenger compartment so the officials don’t spot it.

Rain ex also helps.

Right, just to get the worse of the water off the inside of the screen! Doh. Fine.

for MA7DA we don't have windscreens, so a bit of rainex on your visor and you're good to go. Racing in the wet it actually a lot of fun, and really teaches you a lot about driving.

We had a wet quali at Snetterton a few weeks ago. Unfortunately I was on tyres that had done a year and a half and were totally bald. Made for some nice slides though! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YFcyxMkVVY

Edited by ol on Wednesday 26th August 10:05

+1 for Ma7da.

Nice car driving off at about 30 seconds into your video @ol ... ... In fairness it was being driven by pro driver Scott Mansell (Driver61 fame) not me so you'd expect him to be able to cope with a mostly moist track

Great to read this thread and see such variety of suggestions. Racing is such a good step up and a great way to see if you can translate all those sim hours into real pace when it matters.

Hope OP keeps us updated.

[jevans82]

Sadly the only update is.... there is no update.

I've been looking at the affordable end of caterhams, sigmax spec like these:

https://www.cgrc.uk/forsale.asp

However the initial cost of car and trailer is proving to be a little prohibitive. I'm hoping that as winter bites, there may be some bargains or a couple of months allows me to grow the pot a little.

Always happy to have a link or two thrown my way. One of my takeaways from this is how helpful this forum has been for someone who is using it from the first time.

I will definitely post if there's any movement!

[andy97]

jevans82 said:

Sadly the only update is.... there is no update.

I've been looking at the affordable end of caterhams, sigmax spec like these:

https://www.cgrc.uk/forsale.asp

However the initial cost of car and trailer is proving to be a little prohibitive. I'm hoping that as winter bites, there may be some bargains or a couple of months allows me to grow the pot a little.

Always happy to have a link or two thrown my way. One of my takeaways from this is how helpful this forum has been for someone who is using it from the first time.

I will definitely post if there's any movement!

A K Series engined car (MegaGrad) should be cheaper and now it is the end of the season I would expect a few more cars to come available. Worth going back regularly to that site to check.
Also worth posting a “wanted ad” on there if allowed or emailing the club to ask if they know of anyone selling.
Depreciation will be low, if none existent, and that makes the economics of buying a Caterham far better than many other cars.

[Matt W]

Jevans82, good choice

I'm looking froward to racing mine at Silverstone at the weekend. You don't have to be a member of CGRC to write on the forum so why not put a post up saying that you are on the lookout for a car. There may be a few people that haven't got around to creating an advert yet. You could also join the Caterham Graduates Racing Club Community group on facebook and post there.

[jevans82]

Hi, longtime since an update but I finally got a car. Caterham supersport that has been raced in the CGRC sigmax series and it arrived a couple of days ago.

I'm starting the process of getting it ready for an MOT and then out on the road when the weather allows. Hopefully spring will be just around the corner and I'm looking forward to some track days at Brands and other tracks before dipping my toe into some racing.

Long way to go before that but very happy with my new toy. Appreciate everyone's input on this.

[Kickstart]

jevans82 said:

Hi, longtime since an update but I finally got a car. Caterham supersport that has been raced in the CGRC sigmax series and it arrived a couple of days ago.

I'm starting the process of getting it ready for an MOT and then out on the road when the weather allows. Hopefully spring will be just around the corner and I'm looking forward to some track days at Brands and other tracks before dipping my toe into some racing.

Long way to go before that but very happy with my new toy. Appreciate everyone's input on this.

Really glad to heat that you had bought something and hope you enjoy it

As far as racing goes having competed for decades, even the middle/back of a grid is a lot quicker than most track days with much less room and overtaking anywhere - personally my view would be once you have driven it on track set up the suspension, serviced it, I would just race it as I struggle with the idea that track days really prepare you for racing - naturally all IMHO

Whatever you do have fun

[cashmax]

Kickstart said:

jevans82 said:

Hi, longtime since an update but I finally got a car. Caterham supersport that has been raced in the CGRC sigmax series and it arrived a couple of days ago.

I'm starting the process of getting it ready for an MOT and then out on the road when the weather allows. Hopefully spring will be just around the corner and I'm looking forward to some track days at Brands and other tracks before dipping my toe into some racing.

Long way to go before that but very happy with my new toy. Appreciate everyone's input on this.

Really glad to heat that you had bought something and hope you enjoy it

As far as racing goes having competed for decades, even the middle/back of a grid is a lot quicker than most track days with much less room and overtaking anywhere - personally my view would be once you have driven it on track set up the suspension, serviced it, I would just race it as I struggle with the idea that track days really prepare you for racing - naturally all IMHO

Whatever you do have fun

The other issue is that once you have raced a Caterham trackdays simply won't cut it, road driving too becomes a pointless waste of time. In fact everything is just waiting for the next race....

[Maldini35]

cashmax said:

Kickstart said:

jevans82 said:

Hi, longtime since an update but I finally got a car. Caterham supersport that has been raced in the CGRC sigmax series and it arrived a couple of days ago.

I'm starting the process of getting it ready for an MOT and then out on the road when the weather allows. Hopefully spring will be just around the corner and I'm looking forward to some track days at Brands and other tracks before dipping my toe into some racing.

Long way to go before that but very happy with my new toy. Appreciate everyone's input on this.

Really glad to heat that you had bought something and hope you enjoy it

As far as racing goes having competed for decades, even the middle/back of a grid is a lot quicker than most track days with much less room and overtaking anywhere - personally my view would be once you have driven it on track set up the suspension, serviced it, I would just race it as I struggle with the idea that track days really prepare you for racing - naturally all IMHO

Whatever you do have fun

The other issue is that once you have raced a Caterham trackdays simply won't cut it, road driving too becomes a pointless waste of time. In fact everything is just waiting for the next race....

Very true

[jevans82]

Thank you all for the input.

I'm very excited. Car is now (nearly) ready for MOT and I'm looking at Brands Hatch for my first track day.

I'm excited about the racing, just feel like I need to get used to the car a little bit more first. Also need to sort a trailer and my tow vehicle.

[andrewcliffe]

You could enter a couple of sprints as well to get a taste of how the element of competition changes things, even though its just against the clock.

[jevans82]

andrewcliffe said:

You could enter a couple of sprints as well to get a taste of how the element of competition changes things, even though its just against the clock.

That's an interesting idea. I'll have a look. I've never really thought about that before.

[andy97]

jevans82 said:

Thank you all for the input.

I'm very excited. Car is now (nearly) ready for MOT and I'm looking at Brands Hatch for my first track day.

I'm excited about the racing, just feel like I need to get used to the car a little bit more first. Also need to sort a trailer and my tow vehicle.

Enjoy, but get on track with an instructor a few times. You will learn bucket loads, and gain confidence more quickly.

[jevans82]

I've got some instruction lined up. I've seen a few ads say that that some instructors don't offer tuition in vehicles like caterhams. Is that quite wide spread?

[cashmax]

jevans82 said:

I've got some instruction lined up. I've seen a few ads say that that some instructors don't offer tuition in vehicles like caterhams. Is that quite wide spread?

There are lots that do, but the most common way is to do it all remotely. The instructor will set a banker lap in your car and then you will have something you can chase. Then after each session you both review the footage in the paddock. If you don't have a Vbox, you should consider getting one.

[andy97]

jevans82 said:

I've got some instruction lined up. I've seen a few ads say that that some instructors don't offer tuition in vehicles like caterhams. Is that quite wide spread?

There are plenty that do, as long as you have a passenger seat fitted.
Certainly worth investigating a VBox, or GoPro for a cheaper alternative, and also talking to your instructor beforehand about what intercoms he recommends.

[Nampahc Niloc]

There are a few instructors well known and trusted in the Caterham world, to name a few:

Ben Clucas
Scott Gillam
Ryan Hooker

...are all worth checking out.

Ben also has some good videos on YouTube that are worth watching to learn lines and approximate breaking point. It’ll take you a while to realise and trust just how fast a caterham can corner, though it obviously depends on the car, the tyres and the conditions on the day.

When it comes to choosing an instructor, there is no one best option. If you have the time and money, try a couple of different ones. This will help you decide who has a style that beat works for you.

[Nampahc Niloc]

Also, before you invest in a specific camera/data logging system, talk to the instructors. They will have their own recommendations and might be able to sort you out a deal.

[jevans82]

Nampahc Niloc said:

Also, before you invest in a specific camera/data logging system, talk to the instructors. They will have their own recommendations and might be able to sort you out a deal.

Makes sense, however, the car comes with the vbox lite and driver display so that part is taken care of. Looking forward to using it on track