Re: Off Track Excursions at the track

["Bob Smith" <bobs@xxxxxxxxxxxx>]

IMHO, it's better to be safe than sorry.  If you're in doubt about dropping
a wheel off, most road tracks have runoff room.  Although I've been in
advanced BMW school groups for many years, I'd rather be criticized by an
instructor for driving off when he thought I could make it.  The one time I
didn't was a mistake.

I had just modified my 540 with a Dinan stage three suspension and it was
holding so well, I thought we were invincible.  I had just late apexed at
Willow Springs and knew early that I could be in trouble.  I thought the new
suspension would allow me to correct in time - wrong - my wheels were
pointed into the track when I dropped off and the car shot across the track,
did a 180 and went backwards over the track again and into the dirt for
about 100 yards.  Fortunately, all the car needed was a new paint job, new
foglights and a wheel alignment.  My ego was much more bruised.  The moral
of the story is you usually know when you might drop a wheel off.  Listen to
the instructions and plan to drive off.  After about 30+ driving schools, I
should have known better but I still thought I could make it.  I won't make
that mistake again.

Bob Smith
West Hills, CA
CCA # 22252 (L.A. & S.D. Chapters)
95 540i 6-spd - heavily Dinanized
98 M3/4 Sharked & X-Braced


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date: Fri, 09 Oct 1998 12:11:18 -0500
>From: Michael Weishaar <>


>
> The important part of this is that I realized _before_ I dropped a tire
> off that I couldn't make it and drove off under control.  Had I waited
> to see if I could make it the loss of control, even for an instant,
> would have put me too far off for a smooth recovery.

>>I have only been to a couple of driver's schools, and haven't been off
trackyet, but have come close.  By close I mean that as I was coming out of
a
turn I was catching the rumble strip on the outside of the turn.  At what
point
do you KNOW you are going off?  I was ready to go off, and was going
to straighten it out and drive straight off if I did, but I was trying to
hold it
and stay on.  Is this dangerous?  I didn't go off, but it was close.
(this was at Gingerman, so there was plenty of runoff)
Do you know when your tire drops?  How much time is there to react when
>>this happens?

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