Reaching for Speed

Just got back from a two day track event at Buttonwillow, CW#13.  Tested out the new aero, brake pads, exhaust and also new data from the G2X (thanks Jaku!)

In short: new personal best yet again at 2:02.344 on Federal 595RS-R street tires

The fixed/new aero seems to have helped the overall balance of the car a lot.  Whereas I would have a lot of mid-high speed understeer with the old (and damaged) set up, the car now exhibits significantly less understeer.  That said, understeer is still obvious, so either more camber or aero upfront is needed.  Unfortunately to achieve either one, must invest in more parts upgrade, which is not something I am looking to do at the moment.

First time running racing pads, and they definitely make a huge difference on the track (I estimate around 1-1.5 seconds difference overall.)  Stopping distance is greatly reduced and also exhibits less fade over time with very linear feel.  But it seems that all PMU brake pads have the same mushy initial bite feeling...

Amuse really knows what they do.  The R1000 exhaust gives a significant punch in the high-end revs compared to the old Tracysports dual.  Weight savings must have also contributed to the new lap time, and I estimate around a 0.5-1 second difference.  But I'm not sure if this is a good trade off considering how loud it is on the street...

Tested out new driving methods for sunset and sunrise.  Used to apply a lot of trail braking for both corners, but decided to try maximizing exit speed by braking and getting on the gas earlier, with minimal to no trail braking at all.  I believe this is a faster way for me to attack these two corners, as I see a maximum of 5mph increase on corner exit.

On a side note - sorry to my buddy Kevin who hit his car at a tire wall when he took my advise on how to take sunrise...=(

岩岩從連續兩日係buttonwillow 既trackday 返黎.  今次測試左新既aero, 制動皮死氣喉, 同埋Jaku提供既G2X 行車資料  (thanks!)

利用Federal 595RS-R street tire 創下新personal best: 2:02.344!  

修理好既aero 為車既整體平衡度帶來良好效果.  以前感受到既中至高速彎understeer, 現在都唔會點感受到 .  不過睇黎需要增加前邊既下壓力, 或增加camber先至能夠令 部車有更neutral既handling...可惜無錢去改啦.

第一次用racing制動皮, 效果非常顯著, 估計帶來1-1.5秒既差距!   制動距離大大縮短, 亦都唔會咁易呈現brake fade 現象.  不過唔知係唔係PMU既牌子特性, initial bite始終有點軟綿綿既模糊感覺...

Powerhouse Amuse 既產品果然名副其實.  今次換上R1000 死氣喉, 結果相比於以前既Tracysports喉帶來更明顯既高轉力量.  再計算到單出死氣喉既weight savings, 相信為今次縮短 0.5-1秒.  不過講真, 真係嘈到拆天, 非常唔建議daily driving 用...

再測試sunset同sunrise 新既行車方法.  以前都會利用比較重既trail braking來進入彎路, 不過現在改為提早煞車同加油, 為求達到更高既corner exit speed, 從而增加直路既max speed.  我相信e個係最好既攻彎方法, 帶來大概5mph高既出彎速.

再來一提, 要同Kevin講聲對唔住, 因為我既建議而撞到tirewall...希望你同你架車早日返到賽車場上!

It's been a while since I've had time to update.  Lots of things have happened since then...In short:

最近忙於功課, 遲遲未能update, 吾好意思! 不過實在係太多事發生左:

1. Hit a tire on the freeway in November
    十一月係高速公路度撞度條車胎...車頭同車底損壞左

2. New setup for 09 - specs update, check it out at Car Bio!
    修理好部車啦!  新裝備詳情睇 Car Bio 啦!

3. New personal best at Streets of Willowsprings (1:27.69!)
    創下新既Streets of Willowsprings personal best 圈速時間 (1:27.69) 只用Federal 595RS-R街胎!

4. New personal best at Buttonwillow (2:05.xx on street tires!)
    創下新既Buttonwillow personal best 圈速時間 (2:05.xx) 只用Federal 595RS-R街胎!

More updates to come, so check back soon!

Today, more pictures and less talk!

废话小说，请欣赏以下照片！

This just has to be my favorite car.  ASM S2000, the fastest NA record setting team at Tsukuba and Suzuka!
我最喜欢的车。 ASM S2000，筑波和铃鹿自然吸气纪录创造者！

 Never mess with an Ariel Atom!
看见 Ariel Atom，誰敢不让？

Turbo Elise backfire!

Time to rip out the E92 M3 on the track!
新M3 也是时候显神威！

Turbo NSX...nothing but a Time Attack beast.
Turbo NSX...为了单圈计时而生的猛兽!

The C-West Turbo S2000 has every body panel in carbon fiber!
C-West Turbo S2000 身上每一处都是碳纖維制作！

The Japanese monster...RobiSpec Supra.
日本的怪物...RobiSpec Supra。

 Never seen a flying S2000 before, have you?
飞行的S2000， 你看过没有？

 

 

You may not like it, but Voltex wings work marvelously on the track!
尾翼过分大吗？ 不过这是赛道上必备之品！

 

Voltex wings!

Jaku's S2000 with his new Voltex wing!
Jaku 的 S2000 配上新装备，Voltex GT 尾翼！

No matter how the Japanese modify European cars, it still feels so JDM!
日本人如何改装欧洲车，始终会流露一丝东洋气息。

Voltex designed aero for Z33!
Voltex 设计的Z33包围！

Always wanted a video camera that is light, portable, easy to use and cheap for recording my runs to see where I can improve.  GoPro has developed a video camera precisely for this purpose.  

一直想要一个既轻巧，方便，实用和便宜的录影机来拍摄赛车的情景，好让自己能重播研究。  GoPro 现正推出一个符合以上条件的汽车运动专用录影机！

http://www.goprocamera.com/index5.htm

Just ordered it and it is already on its way!  Expect to have videos available for the next track event.  Hope to see some of your feedback on my low leveled driving skills!

刚订购了，大家请密切留意下次的 track event，批评一下小弟低水平的赛车技术!

First time doing some canyon runs ever since I got the S2000.  

换了Ｓ２０００　以后的第一次跑山路。

Decided not to go back to Mulholland since it was dangerous, started to get boring, lots of cops, and was where someone crashed into me last time.  So out of all other canyons, Turnbull seemed to be the closest available.

晚上决定基于安全性，警察和趣味性理由不跑以前的Ｍｕｌｈｏｌｌａｎｄ。　取而代之就是离我们最近的Ｔｕｒｎｂｕｌｌ山路。

Turnbull definitely is an interesting canyon with lots of low-mid speed corners and hairpins.  If this was a track or you had the balls to go all out and double-lane every corner, I would say this is a very challenging grip course, or a fun and intriguing drift course.  Unfortunately, it isn't, nor do I have the balls and skill to go fast or drift it.  I can definitely see why driving fast on track does not equate to being fast in the mountains.  Essentially they require the same type of skills, just there are a lot more uncertainties on canyon roads that make it interersting/dangerous.

 Ｔｕｒｎｂｕｌｌ的确名副其实是一个有挑战性的低至中速上下混合式山路。　如果这时一条赛道，我敢说会是一条非常有趣味性的爪地或飘移赛道。　可惜我自己不够胆子，更没有足够的技术控制车辆。　　这次一趟发现赛道上跑得快真的不等于能在山路上跑得快。　虽然需要的技术大致一样，可是山路的不测因素是在太多，有趣可需要非常熟悉路段才能跑快。

Almost spun out due to unexpected dirt on the road.  Makes me uneasy because my reaction to it was way too slow and VSA literally saved me from spining.  Having VSA save me is really something I'm not fond about, although it is quite handy.  Means I need to practice more car control in the future, or just run some more canyons.

大意地铲上路面上的沙石，差点打滑了。　ＶＳＡ　介入把我安全脱离险境，　不过有点气人的感觉。　始终在赛道上学到的救车技术未能在突发情况派上用场，和反应太慢。　看来要多加练习控车技术和多跑一点山路。

Really need to improve my grip and drift skills.  Definitely something attracting about the idea of drifting the canyon.

看来真的需要多加练习。　山路真有趣。　终有一天能在山路上飘移吧？

On a side note, met some interesting men  in a WRX/STI (whatever it was) at the top of Turnbull.  

在山顶遇到几位ＷＲＸ／ＳＴＩ　的大叔，以下是奇怪的会话。 

Guy: Is that your S2000?  K20A engine?
叔：　那是你的Ｓ２０００？　Ｋ２０Ａ引擎吗？

Me: No, F22C.
我：　不，是Ｆ２２Ｃ　引擎哦

Guy: Oh right...Could you swap for K20?
叔：　噢对。　能换入Ｋ２０Ａ吗？

Me: (Why would you want to do that when F22C is stronger than K20?) Um...I'm not sure I've heard anyone do that to their S2000.
我：　（我不明解为什么要换逊点的引擎进去？）　那我不清楚。　没听说有人有这样的想法。

I suppose once you start going to different tracks, you kind of crave going to more and more different ones because of the kind of freshness it brings you.  Plus, you'd probably be able to learn something new you'd otherwise not be able to on your home tracks.  Anyhow, thanks to Alex Peng, a fellow S2000 driver from USC, I was able to go to Horse Thief Mile (HTM) at a discounted rate.  Talk about what networking can get you!

赛车根本就是一个无底之渊，要是一开始就不能自拔。 我的无底渊又到了一个新的境界，我开始渴望到更多不同的赛道。 我的借口： 新的赛道可以让我学到home track 不能学到的东西。  不管，先向我的师兄Alex Peng说声谢谢，让我可以discount价钱到 Horse Thief Mile (HTM.)   关系果然重要。

So to speak, HTM is a technical track with many elevation changes, and is also a very short track which can be completed in around 1:00.  In fact, the track was so short I could memorize it completely by my second lap, and was already clocking approximately 1:04:8xx (only a guestimate from a friend who ran at a similar pace to me, since there was no timer available.)

HTM 好比山路一样路窄多弯，高低起伏甚多，是一条挑战车手技术的短途赛道，估计能在1分钟左右跑完。   跑了几圈已经基本上掌握了赛道的线和节奏， 创出大约1：04：8xxx 的圈速 （没有计时器，按照友人的计时，只能作参考）。

Since it was so short, it naturally got boring after two sessions.  Imagine running 60 laps in an hour...!  I decided then to add some flavor to the day by practicing getting a little sideways.  Why not when HTM is more famous for being a drift circuit than anything else?

再说，HTM以爪地走法的确太短了，跑都跑的没趣。  为了增加自己的趣味性和向难度挑战，我决定练习漂移技术。 毕竟HTM是以漂移而出名，并不是爪地。

First time on the track trying to drift every corner was quite a handful for me.  In fact, it took me a while to figure out how to best get the S2000 to go sideways.  After figuring out that a braking drift was actually the easiest for me to do by the second session, it was a matter of sustaining the drift long enough throughout the corners to achieve a beautiful line.

While I was able by the end of the day to trace my line, I havent been able to come around to achieve large drift angles, let alone connecting the corners with a drift.  But I will admit I am rather satisfied with my achievement today. 

这次是第一次尝试在赛道上以漂移方式通过所有的弯道。起初我还手忙脚乱地尝试不同的方法把车弄横，鸡手鸭脚地控制着漂移。 慢慢发现很容易就能以 braking drift 把S2000 乖乖的漂亮横滑走出我想走的路线， 感觉蛮棒。 只可惜还未能以大角度维持漂移出弯和连接所有弯道！

Drifting is addicting.  If only I had the cash to get a dedicated drift car!

漂移可能比爪地 是更深的渊。希望一天能拥有一辆漂移专用的战车！

Unbelievable 40C heat.  

酷热天气警报！ 当日温度有40C！

 C'mon, more sideways!

乖乖给我再横点丫！

A friend's beautiful black S2000.

朋友的漂亮S2000.

 The aftermath of a spin...

出沙以后！

As day two of my trip, I spent the day at the world famous Mazda Laguna Seca.  Now if you are unfamiliar with this circuit, simply play a game of Gran Turismo on PS or Forza on Xbox - it is one of the most famous Formula level cicruits that all race drivers dream of competing at.

And at this point I would completely agree with Top Gear's Jeremy Clarkson that being fast in the video games at Laguna Seca means nothing in real life - given the same cars used in the game and in reality, everything in real life just seems different to how you would and could do it in the virtual world.  Needless to say, you cannot see the environment around the track (I guarantee you will be stunned at its beauty,) let alone experience the difficulties of the track and how monstrously steep the elevation change is at the infamous corkscrew!

远征的第二天到访驰名的 Mazda Laguna Seca. 不熟悉这赛道的人，建议先玩一场 Gran Turismo或 Forza Motorsport！ 它确实是一个车手的梦想赛道！ 提醒读者，游戏机里的情景跟现实是天渊之别！比方说，您不能在游戏里看到 Laguna Seca周边的美丽风景，又不能体验corckscrew弯的七层楼急速下跌！ 只能说 Laguna Seca 是一世人总应尝试至少一次的赛道。

Even though Laguna Seca is absolutely thrilling and challenging to drive, it is simply a harsh reality that high powered or high torque cars have an edge here due to the nature of the corners and the elevations of the circuit... It is even more depressing to see how much of a gap there is in my skill compared with some of the best drivers out there!

完美地混合高，中，低速弯道，让在赛道上奔驰的时候能真正感受到为什么它是一个一级方程式级别的赛道。  而在这一刻也发现到自己的渺小。  技术上远不及众多的车手，马力和扭力更不用说。  就算多努力地攻入弯道，狂踩油门也始终不能靠近对手。斗文字D 的粉丝，对不起，现实中不能重演只靠车手技术的情景。 战斗力不够就是不够。 车子都有极限哦。。。

My best lap time with passenger: 1:50.136

最快圈速 （有乘客）： 1:50.136

Clement's best lap time with passenger: 1'49"xxx

Clement 最快圈速 （有乘客）： 1'49"xxx

Unfortunately, no photos were taken...

叹息没有照片分享...

As the end of summer approached, I decided to take the opportunity to head up north to visit the tracks.  Conveniently there were events at both Thunderhill and Laguna Seca consecutively, so there was no way I could miss this opportunity.  The goal was not so much to set a lap time (although it would be great,) but rather to just experience the differences in "culture," "style," and pace of these courses that seem to be fundamentally different from.

暑假快没，我把紧机会在开学前往三藩市附近的赛道。 位于北和西边分别有著名的Thunderhill 和一级方程式级别，所有爱车之人梦寐以求的 Laguna Seca。试问 我怎能错失这机会？这旅程的目标不是以创下最快圈速 ，而纯碎感受北加州的不同气氛和不同赛道的节奏感。

To those unfamiliar with Thunderhill, it is a rather long 3 mile, mostly mid-to-high speed circuit with a nice flow to its rhythm.  Apparently Thunderhill just spent 1.6million to completely repave the entire track with asphalt over the last month, so the track is as smooth as ice but provides a lot of confidence inspiring grip at the same time.

对于不熟悉Thunderhill的朋友作简介，它是一条以3英里长的高速赛道。 节奏感顺畅而没有不安感。 更好的是Thunderhill刚从新翻身赛道，好比Laguna Seca一样平滑。 是一条高水平和考验车手技术和胆子的赛道。

Throughout my entire track racing experience, I have only been to rather low-to-mid speed tracks (namely Buttonwillow and SOWS,) so Thunderhill was like a double challenge to me - new track and new level of speed.  It did take around two sessions for me to get comfortable with both the line and the speed, but after that it was some serious fun (not to mention scary at some points!)

 这次可说是第一次走高速赛道，比平常SOWS 和 Buttonwillow  的低至中高速节奏，过弯时确实有点怯。再加上不熟悉的弯道，比预期中更难。到了中午才开始适应节奏，加快速度，赶紧练习高速弯。

Best lap time on messed up alignment and street tires (RT615): 2'14"191

用着RT615 和 不调和的alignment, 最快圈速： 2'14"191

Clement's best lap time: 2'15"xxx

Clement 的 最快圈速： 2'15"xxx

Little bit of drifting action here caught by the camera man!

 稍微横滑了！

 Looks like I own the track?

恍如拥有赛道一样独自狂奔。

 Scary high-speed sweepers!

可怕的高速弯！

My high school friend Gareth and I decided to visit the local kart circuit in Hong Kong for the first time.  After a long drive we finally arrived, only to see a E90 M3, Aston Martin DB9 and an Audi R8 in the lot!  Talk about the amount of high rollers in Hong Kong...

Of course, the next that greeted us were the "frequent visitors" of the circuit.  Looked very professional with their fire suits, gloves, shoes and even their own racing karts!  I believe those things can put out around 20bhp, compared to around 7bhp for those little rental karts...Such monsters!

It was already late afternoon by the time we got ready to be on the track, and funny enough it was just the two of us owning the track.  It's been a while since I drove a kart and I'm most certainly out of shape!  The amount of G-force was nothing out of the ordinary, and the bucket seat held me well, even though I still had to brace myself against the G-forces quite a lot...But my arms were seriously limping after a mere 7-10 minutes.  Talk about having to hit the gym more.

Diamond Coast is apparently a rather infamous circuit in Asia with several international competitions held there.  The course layout has a nice rhythm to it and within a few laps you can easily grasp and remember the line.  Unfortunately I haven't been able to max out the kart and its tires, since I am not familiar with the brakes and the kart's traction limits. 

I'm not sure if I was just out of luck, or I'm too rough with the karts.  Around 4 minutes into the second session, my kart seemed to have some sort of left front knuckle issues that made the kart not only unable to brake properly, but also unable to steer normally without waves of violent vibrations.  After slowly limping back to the pit, I hopped into another kart, only to have accelerator pedal failure and I could not make the kart move.  I'm almost certain I could have done a better lap time, but because of these problems, I was not able to break my lap time from the first session.

Best lap time of the day: 56'447 (sigh, still 3-4 seconds slower than course record!)


今天与中学朋友Gareth第一次去了龙鼓滩小型赛车场.  经过一段路程后，终于无惊无险到达! 一进停车场就看到E90 M3, Aston Martin DB9 和 Audi R8!  说香港人有钱是真的...

再到paddok就看到赛车场的常客们, 每个都很专业的样子, 把我们未下场已经输了士气似的!  他们还带了自己的racing karts，跟赛车场的租用kart 的7bhp 相比, 他们20bhp 简直就是怪物!  真想试试他们的racing kart，感觉一定很棒!

我们到达的时候其实已经黄昏了, 所以只有我们两在赛道上奔驰.  上一次玩kart已经是几个月以前的事, 可感觉还是一样爽, 但同时又感觉到自己的体能还真不 行!  赛道上感觉到的G-force还跟平时的没什么差别, 可是1：1的转向还是很吃力.  玩了没10分钟我手已经筋疲力尽.  看来需要多训练了！

听说龙鼓滩的赛车场蛮有名气的, 经常主办国际性的比赛.  从赛道的设计和我感觉到的节奏让我相信这赛道还是名副其实的.  只需要跑几个圈已经能轻松感受和记忆 racing line. 可惜的就是我还未能把kart和轮胎的潜质原本地发挥出来, 特别是我不习惯kart的brake和traction limit!

不知道是不是我和kart 没有什么运气, 第二个session跑了几圈我的kart的左前轮knuckle好像有故障了, 让我不能正常制动又不能拐弯.  慢慢会到pit再跳上另外一 个kart, 跑了几圈, 又遇到油门wire问题, 不能正确加油.   如果不是这一连串的事故, 我绝对相信我能打破自己的纪录.   只能说可惜,可惜！

最佳圈速： 56‘447 （唉, 还是比圈速纪录慢3-4秒!）

Unfortunately I have been out of the scene for a while due to school projects and finals.  I truly looked forward to going to Buttonwillow, especially with my Korean friends Kiwook and Kangwoo, as well as crazy drivers Jaku, Clement, Kris, Chad the Evasive Crew and the European professional driver Carl Rhydquist!  Sadly, my plans changed and I was due back in Hong Kong a few days before it!  However, I heard they all made remarkable lap times and I am happy for them!  The next Buttonwillow event is in September, and I definitely cannot miss that one!

Some old photos...

Evasive Motorsports' cars...Oh so aggressive!

AJR time attack machine, driven by Rob Walker (aka Maxrev!)

This was my first track day after some drift exercises at the last drift day.  Since I still had the drift setup with RT615 fronts and Federal 595 rears, I thought it would be a waste of time and money to swap back to RT615s.  So I decided to have some sliding fun at the track this time, just to see where the drift day got me.

Needless to say, the car would oversteer very easily, but still in a very predictable manner.  Occasionally I would begin to lose control of the car since I’m still rather unused to drifting, but thankfully nothing dramatic happened save a few close-to spin outs at the bowl – scary stuff!

The day was hot and paired with unmatching tires, I was not in a mood to set fast laps – until Jaku, a legendary fast S2000 driver who is unusually knowledgeable with cars, and Ted’s forced induction RSX lit up my fire.  It all began when I was pressured from Jaku and Ted pressurized me while I led the few laps.  I finally made a major mistake at the skid pad and spun (I guess I have no skill for wheel to wheel racing) and was then stuck behind Jaku and Ted.  Somehow I dislike watching the car in front of me pull away, so I decided to give my best to catch up to the two.  I was not aware at first that Ted had supercharged his RSX and had a very hard time keeping up with him, especially with such slippery tires!  But slowly I was able to have smaller and smaller corrections and shortened the distance between us.  After several laps of intensive struggle for me to keep up with both Ted and Jaku, my concentration finally gave up and I made yet another mistake at the bowl.

Finally, results show that I was around 0.2 seconds slower than Ted, while 0.1 seconds faster than Jaku at around 1:30’2!  This really meant something to my progress as Jaku is a really fast driver.  Looks like my next step is to come close to his and Evasive’s time at Buttonwillow, around 2:00 flat on street tires!

After a few warm up donuts and figure eights, I decided I would jump immediately to the course and waste no time.  After the first drift event “Drift Academy,” I was determined not to repeat the same mistake of wasting time doing mere donuts and figure eights.  The coned course was where the real challenge lay.

I have often heard comments that the S2000 is an extremely difficult beast to drift, due to its tendencies to straighten out.  Afterall, the S2000 is nick-named Spin2000 (you either straighten or spin.)  Nonetheless, I thought it mere excuses for drivers unable to maintain a drift in the S2000.  My challenge thus begun and indeed all I had was spin outs or straightened out drifts again.  Though I did realize that my weight shift techniques began to sharpen up as I slowly grasped the transitions from one turn to another.  Still, I had much difficulty maintaining a decent angle, especially through long turns.

After lunch I decided to hop onto Clement’s S13 and give it a shot at the coned course.  To my dismay, it was extremely easy to drift and maintain big angles – I could even do a complete course on the S13 while I would just spin like crazy in my S2000!  While part of me was happy that I could actually drift the course and maybe it really is the S2000’s unwillingness to drift that gave me such a hard time, another part of me felt depressed to realize that my skill is really a long way from being able to completely control the S2000.  I guess this just means more practice needed!

Chillin' at the paddock.  休息时间.

Formula Drift Miata! 美国Formula Drift赛车手的战车- MX5!

Got Pink? 车手的品味.

It's panda time! 真正的熊猫S2000!