BeaveRun 10/19 track school write-up

[Ivan Chou]

I went up to the newly built BeaveRun track, 45 minutes NW of Pittsburgh,
for a NASA HPDE (track school) run by the new NASA OH/IN chapter.  I had
only done events at Summit Point's two courses before, so this was a great
learning experience.  I also had the only SE-R at the event, which I was
not used to. :)  Track site: http://www.beaverun.com

50 deg F; rainy; run-off areas were muddy grass patches.  We ran the North
course, a 12-turn 1.6 miler.  Entrance onto the track is via a
claustrophobic, skinny road.  You enter on the left of the track just
after Turn 1.  Turns 2-6 are close together, and you slowly climb in
height through these.  Turn 7 is the scariest turn on the track.  Exiting
6 and approaching 7 you can't see the rest of the track, until you reach
the turn-in point.  It then drops you over the crest into a fast downhill
right-hander.  The first few times around I was not sure which way the
track turned after the crest.  My instructor told me to turn in "early",
because the apex comes up much closer than you think.  I would end up
driving over the concrete patch on the far right mid-way down the hill,
which seemed correct to both of us.

After this there are a series of kinks, for which I didn't have to brake
for -- you pick up speed fast after the 7 downhill, I was shifting into
4th after that.  I briefly squeezed the brakes at the kink for 9 but I
probably could have gone flat out in the dry.  Turn 10-11 is supposedly a
double-apex hairpin, but my instructor and others told me to treat it as
one.  The track is plenty wide, and I could have gone in with a more entry
speed, since I was basically following the inside here on most laps.  The
track is definitely wide enough to use up all the track and treat 10-11 as
two turns.  This is something I want to go back to try.  My instructor
kept telling me to stay inside-middle since it shortcuts distance.  With a
late apex it does seem like a good line to take.

Heading onto the front straight is blind also, you don't see the straight
until you drive the concrete patch at Turn 12.  Braking is done uphill at
the end of the straight, and you don't see Turn 1 until just over the
crest.

Hairy moments: Plowed off the track twice.  The first time, I carried too
much speed into the turn and slid straight off, almost rejoining it after
the kink.  Second time I went straight off having passed a few cars and
again, was going too fast for my experience.  Later, I locked up braking
at the end of the front straight, and stalled the car!  I had to finish
Turn 1, then restarted the ignition before 2.  Fortunately no one was hot
behind me or it would have been interesting.  A 911 smacked the tire
barrier at 10, and a 944 wrecked his rear end somehow.

I wish I had some good 'battles' to write about, but most people were
taking it easy in the intermediate group.  I was probably on pace with
most as I didn't ever see the guys who went out in the first row.  I got
passed by two Camaros that were handling the wet very well.

I just put on new CarboTech Panther Plus pads (regular SE-R brakes), and
new Falken Azenis in the 195/60 14 size.  They both felt really good
although I didn't get a great feel for them on my first event in the wet.
The Azenis felt just ok here, and I felt my old RE71s and AVS
Intermediates were on par in this case.  I can't wait to try them at a dry
event next year.

Ivan - '93 SE-R 112k, '95 M3 108k
http://ichou.freeshell.org/se-r.html