I think everyone wants to drive their car fast. I see so many people who do it on the roads everyday. However, that is unsafe and there is a good chance of getting a speeding ticket. Besides, its not even very fun. There is always something keeping you from going that fast.
As a good, law abiding citizen I typically don't speed and certainly don't do any reckless driving on public roads. However, that doesn't mean that I don't want to drive fast every now and then.😁
So a few years back I wanted to buy a "sporty" car that I could have some fun driving. My wife being ever practical told me that I had a $1,500 HBD limit which kind of puts a limit on my fun. However, with two children and responsibilities I accepted the limitation.
The vehicle you see above it what I got. An economy sports car from the very early 1990s. It was very small, lightweight, not that much power but had great grip, stiff frame, limited slip differential, very low to the ground and a 5spd transmission. As a result it was actually fun to drive.
Now on a true racetrack it would be a total disgrace. Besides, a "regular" car isn't allowed on a racetrack. Special harnesses and safety equipment are required. A lot of the internal seats and stuff have to be removed. Special fire control measures. Racing brakes and all sorts of other things mean that race cars can't drive on the street 😎
Which is why autocross was invented and which is why I enjoyed racing in autocross for a few years (Until our club lost access to the airport runway that we used for our races).
In autocross you run through a circuit which is defined by a bunch of pylons and you have to do tight turns on a tight circuit as fast as you can. It is all about cornering, accelleration and precision driving. Loads of fun! Even better it is "drive what you brought" so pretty much any vehicle is allowed.
Exceptions: Vehicles that leak. Vehicles that are likely to roll over. Vehicles with stuff inside that can break lose and impair the driver plus vehicles that are in poor condition and likely to break down on the track.
So if you look at the first image you will see my vehicle on the track. Hood open to make sure everything is locked down. Trunk open make sure everything is cleared out and nothing moves inside the car.
I passed and was all ready to race.
There were 125 people on the track. How did I place?
Roughly 70th
Now you might think...
.... 70 our of 125?
Wow. That is truly awful!
and I might be inclined to agree with you.
But I look at things a little differently
First: My vehicle was worth about $1500HBD
I was also using a set of tires I picked up for less than $100HBD for all four tires.
Those tires squealed something awful on the track!
BUT
I was talking to a member who owned a Corvette. Beautiful vehicle and did much better than I did (top 50). He had way more power and style but he was running in a $70,000HBD vehicle and had tires valued at $2,500 which only lasted about 2 or 3 races.
he burned off as much value on his tires in one race as my car and tires were worth total!
I may not have even come close to winning the race...but I got to compete with him and spend a small fraction of the cost.
Second: I only have 130 horsepower!
There was a Toyota Supra on the course with over 800HP and it has so much more power than my vehicle it was unbelievable. After every hairpin turn I could see a cloud of smoke from his tires as he was burning rubber to accellerate as fast as he could. It was a beast of a vehicle but his times really weren't that much faster than mine.
His vehicle was way more powerful. It was much more valuable. It was far more impressive. However, in the end he wasn't that much faster as his vehicle was just not great on such a winding course.
I learned that power and flashy doesn't mean better. Sometimes something more basic is just as useful depending on the situation
THIRD: I still places ahead of 55 people in the race!
Do you know how expensive a Dodge Viper is?
I did a quick look and the vehicle was listed at $140,000HBD. How about a Lotus Exigy?
Used its selling for $125,000 Canadian.
I mention those two vehicles for a couple of reasons. (1) I got to watch them up close as I was monitoring the track while they ran--which was awesome! and (2) I beat one of them in the time trials--I'll let you guess which one I was faster than 😜
Just being able to watch those expensive vehicles run was a pleasure. Actually placing higher than one of them was pretty shocking.
How could I actually beat a vehicle so much better than mine?
That was something I couldn't wrap my head around for a while. I was outclassed on every level. But then I learned something. The driver of the vehicle was inexperienced and very nervous about damaging such an expensive vehicle.
My vehicle was cheap enough I could race carefree The other driver was nervous about hurting his precious vehicle.
Which meant
What did I learn from all this
I can't say I learned anything specific from my time racing in the autocross. However, it did reinforce some things that I already knew.
It was all about having fun! Sure I wasn't a great driver and I didn't have a great car but I had as much fun as anyone out there and maybe just a little more. We have a saying it's more fun to drive a slow car fast!
Money didn't mean wins. The most expensive cars were not the winners. The winners were the best drivers, with cars tuned for autocross, who drove flawlessly. They won with a match of skill and tuning. Expensive vehicles just couldn't compete with that.
I learned a lot about tires and making friends
But I think the person who had the most fun was a guy running around in a 1991 Ford Escort that he bought for $300HBD and was using old snow tires. He deliberately put the sign "90HP "H" Stock " on his vehicle. That was lowest possible category and less power than almost everything on the track
However, he still managed to finish in roughly the top third
Sure, he never won. However, of everyone out there I think he did the absolute most with the absolute least and had the most fun doing it!
My take home message from my time in autocross
Do the best you can with whatever you have.
Not everyone can be the "winner"
Not everyone can have the "expensive toys"
But everyone can do their best and have the most fun with what they have been given.
In the end there is nothing wrong with that.