MyE28.com

I was out last night looking for a run when I came across this Silver SRT-4. I've pissed all over them before, but there are a lot of them out there boosting a lot more than stock. You never know what you're going to get. The first run started a little below my boost threshold in second gear, so he got a good initial jump. I made up the speed in third and reeled him in in fourth. We just happened to hit a red light after that, where the finer points of RWD became very apparent. I had him by a whole lot by third gear. Afterwards I found that he was using a boost controller, aftermarket downpipe and exhaust. He might have had more, but thats all I got out of him. He told me it was "Just an SRT-4" at first, I had to guess his modifications. He didn't tell me what kind of boost he was running either.

The Mach 1 was easier than that. We went on the third honk from second gear. His car was loud as hell, and it sounded pretty fierce, but he was a good 1/2 car behind at the top of second. No problem. Third gear left him far behind. He would have been more competitive closer to sea level, but I dont think that would have been enough. The best part about the Mach 1 was these guys in a Trans Am that saw the run. They caught up and yelled "Your car is f***ing sick bro!". Its nice to see more and more people out there racing without the "fast and furious" asshat mentality. It really is all in good fun.

Great job....

"TurboDan",
racing is a lot of fun, i remember when i was in high school and my favorite past time was embarrassing 5 liter mustangs, in my 280zx turbo, running #14 pounds of H2o, lots of fun , but please be careful!
thanks,
-danR.

The only danger I really contend with is the local police. I've been hit out on the street driving home from work, but I've never wrecked a car, racing or otherwise. I've never been popped for racing either, though I think luck has had something to do with that. All in all, I do alright.

Turbo E28 - what Turbo E28?

I think it's generally unwise to street race. This isn't a judgement of you or the situation, nor does this necessarily apply, but i figure i'll point it out.

- if there are other vehicles around _at all_, its a bad idea, because of the gross speed differential between you and other cars

- if there are people around at all, its a bad idea
- if there are entrances onto the road way, it's a bad idea
- if there is poor visibility, it's a bad idea
- if the road is unfamiliar to you, it's a bad idea

One thing people forget is that race tracks are engineered to be safe. The designers anticipate the speeds people will travel at, and then anticipate the mistakes they will make. After thousands of test cycles (i.e. people using the track at speed), they refine it to make it safer still.

Even so, things happen and people get hurt.

So when you drive on the street like you might on a track, keep in mind the following:

- the road surface was never designed for it
- the access to the road was never restricted for it
- there are very few safe "offs"

Now some more stuff:

When i stoplight dash with someone, my adrenaline gets going, and i feel different than i normally do during driving. I also feel different than i do when I'm at the track. "Racing", at least for me, puts my mind into a different state.

This is a state of unfamiliarity... while i may have lots of car control experience at speed, and while i may be really good at reading the road, reading other (well driven) cars, etc, and staying calm... all of that may go out the window in a "racing" environment because my mind and senses are operating in a different way. I'm focusing more on my oponent than i should be. If you can say that driving near the limit well takes 95% of your concentration, to the point that you don't like talking to passengers when you're running hard... how can you race someone if you don't have previous experience with racing? You'll necessarily lose some of your focus on car control, reading the road, etc.

So basically, street racing is bad beacuse:

- your mind / body are working at a higher level of excitement than normal, perhaps pushing you to take risks you might not otherwise take
- your mind / body are not focusing as much on safe driving as they normally do

Throw in the inherent risks involved in doing this in a public, uncontrolled setting, and it rarely seems worth it to me.

I would agree with you as far as safety goes. In general, its really not. There are some very considerable risks involved. But, I'm not the guy to split a car going double thier speed, or blast through an intersection, or haul ass down a road I'm not very familiar with. Common sense applies. If you're so amped that you are freaking out behind the wheel, than it is very dangerous. You perform best while as calm and comfortable as you can be. I turn the radio off, and I don't usually go racing with friends, for my own concentration and not to be responsible for thier well being. I aint skeered either, so its not a big deal. Like I said, I do alright. Done with sense and good judgement, its a hell of a lot of fun.

turbodan wrote:I would agree with you as far as safety goes. In general, its really not. There are some very considerable risks involved. But, I'm not the guy to split a car going double thier speed, or blast through an intersection, or haul ass down a road I'm not very familiar with. Common sense applies. If you're so amped that you are freaking out behind the wheel, than it is very dangerous. You perform best while as calm and comfortable as you can be. I turn the radio off, and I don't usually go racing with friends, for my own concentration and not to be responsible for thier well being. I aint skeered either, so its not a big deal. Like I said, I do alright. Done with sense and good judgement, its a hell of a lot of fun.

Matt wrote:One thing people forget is that race tracks are engineered to be safe. The designers anticipate the speeds people will travel at, and then anticipate the mistakes they will make.

And don't forget there's a flagman on every corner and an ambulance standing by....