Hey-lo, GRM car and competition crazies! I am thrilled to see you here in Grassroots Motorsports magazine, which featured my VW Cup Golf racer on the cover at the very start of my career, way back in 1985. Congrats to Tim, Tom and Margie Suddard, David, J.G. and staff for making all this glorious c…
Great article to repeat - I'm sure it made my blood pressure go up a bit just reading it (I always raced small British cars and had to deal with exactly the issue of Mustangs etc. faster on the straights and slower through the corners).
Considering our fledgling Lucky Dog team's latest decision, this is rather timely. Thank you.
wspohn said:... it made my blood pressure go up a bit just reading it ...
that is exactly what i was going to say. Welcome Randy! Love your writing.
Love it, in Lemons with 80-120 cars on the track at the same time there are lots of these opportunities. Later in the race with more space and less cars it is a patience game. When the track is busy I find myself driving in the mirrors a lot looking for the faster cars coming up, they present their own opportunities.
Coming up next: How to keep that slower car from passing you even though the driver obviously has more talent. (I kid, I kid.)
Totally love working with Randy and more to come.
Great article. The more I race the more I realize how most passing comes as a consequence of traffic or mistakes.
My passes pre engine swap were usually when the other cars stop to fuel. There are benefits to an engine that only burns 3gph.
I always hated the game of passing a car through the corners then having them blow my doors off the second the track straightens out. Part of it is that I can be full throttle through most corners waiting for my teutonic turbo to spool, while other drivers are modulating throttle to keep in traciton. I didn't learn throttle modulation, but I did pass a bunch of people.
Glad to have you aboard, Randy! Your column was pretty much the only part of SportsCar I ever read.
Excellent!
Even more excited to go race *anything* than I was ten minutes ago...
If it's a track day, be sneaky. If it's proper racing, be ruthless. Within reason...
Well done Randy, you write as well as you drive. And that's saying a lot. I remember first seeing you at the Martin Marietta Sports Car autocrosses in Orlando back in the early 80's, driving the wheels off that POS Ford Fiesta and always at the top of the time sheets. We knew you were going places, and fast.
Racing a Bugeye Sprite in vintage for 30 years, I see this a a lot. And have been able to wait, and make that pass - sometimes. The next step, is when you need to do it again on the next lap, when you don't have enough to hold that lead all the way around, and they've got a lot more power up the straight.... The best case of waiting for it - the fast car was a 6-cylinder Corvette, who would pass on the straight and block in the corners. It was a joy to not just pass, but lap him when it rained for the final race!
IMHO, the most important phrase in this excellent article is "leave room to use my good handling..." That is probably the most difficult part to get right.
If you leave too much room, then your good handling might not be quite enough to make up that room and make the pass in time before his power starts to kick in.
If you leave too little room, then your good handling makes you catch him too soon for you to make your killer move and you are stuck behind again.
It might take a couple of tries to get the distance and timing right, but when it does, you can just motor by like you picked up 100 hp.
My Datsun accelerates at the same rate as a stock engine 1.6 Miata.......I know this realm all to well.
Every pass is work and has to be set up. I typically use my motorcycle racing experiance; this involves block passes, slide jobs ( I know Randy hates these) and round the outside in big sweepers.
What I love most about Randy's articles is that he always makes it clear that contact is unacceptable in amateur motorsports. I've always taken that position.
To be able to zap past a driver using your race savvy is so satisfying I can't imagine getting any pleasure from thumping someone out of the way.
I love reading your writing Randy you have an addictive way of storytelling and it makes me want to get out there feed the need for speed- your story is much like my last track day at vir. All over the mustangs in the corners but they run off and hide on the straights. I never got by him just couldn't make up the horsepower deficit... at least I didn't crash trying to make an ill advised pass
Amen!!! Endurance racing brings this scenario up countless times and you learn fast... no pun intended.
Randy, I've had the pleasure of being on the track with you in a Lucky Dog race at AMP a couple years ago. I was driving a Neon with My Little Pony livery on it. I did my best to stay behind you and just learn. I also appreciate how helpful you were off the track as you took the time to talk to my then 18 year old son.
Thanks so much for the article and see you on track soon!!!
I've been racing "momentum cars" (E30 M3 and 190E 16v) in mixed-class racing with the BMW CCA for many years. Huge speed disparity between my 170 whp econobox on 225/45/15 R-comps and an E46 M3 with tuned S54, full aero package, and 305/30/18 Michelin slicks.
What makes me crazy is when a (much, MUCH) faster comes up on me on a straight then waits for the last minute to do a late-pass. I have to slam on the brakes and lose ALL my momentum. It's like, "buddy, you had the ENTIRE straight to blow past me. Why wait and mess up my corner entry?"
Even worse when they take the late pass, then jump back on the line and over-brake massively. If you take a late pass, just stay to the inside. Why jump back in front of me and mash your 6-piston 16" rotor brakes so that I miss rear-ending you by 2 millimeters? Also, with all your wings and slicks, why do you enter corners slower than I do?
[/impotent ranting]
I was driving my 83 GTi at NHMS back in the nineties during a COMSCC event. My instructor was getting frustrated with the Taurus SHO in front of us. We were faster over all and he was upset that their instructor hadn't ordered a point by. From 2a all the way around to 11-12 (no ovals in use) I was all over his bumper. On the front and back straights he'd walk me, pulling away with that Yamaha V6. The instructor told me to be patient, that an opportunity would present itself and we'd pounce, point by or not. He said he'd take the grief if anyone complained. He had me delay my turn in on 2b to late apex and when the heavier sedan drifted out to the wall I punched it to the inside and was able to maintain position into three where I could use the nimble little VW to turn in and go up the hill ahead of him. It worked and he remained in my mirrors. I haven't done a lot of track stuff lately, but when I do that moment comes back to me. I don't recall who the instructor was, but I thank him for teaching me a valuable lesson on patience that day.
Randy has the best advice. I've learned a lot just reading him. And, one of the nicest guys at the track. You took time to talk about driving FWD when I mentioned my Scirocco at the Petit LeMans way back in 2000 or 01.
Glad you're here.
Good article. Thanks for the tip which I will remember racing the Flying Moose. 
Reminds me of a track day at Sebring trying to pass a Mustang 5.0. Not racing, but all over his backside for several laps (except long straights) in my Miata. Didn't think he'd ever give me a pass signal... I guess he just got tired of having me on his arse and seeing me in his rear view mirror.
Love Randy's writing. I was an instructor for the Northest Quattro Club for years. I mostly drove at Watkins Glen in a low horsepower VW. Its a great track for momentum cars. The downhill after the bus stop is where you can fly with a low horsepower car you just have to be careful coming out of the corner at the bottom. But if you get it right you can fly by higher horsepower cars with ease. We use to get 2 or 3 momentum cars running together and very slowly we would real in higher horsepower as we made our way around the track. It's very satisfying.
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