Running in the rain at Putnam Park

Saturday, April 14, 2007. Hoosier BMW Car Club's annual "Rites of Spring" - or winter as it would seem....

dangit I would have came!!!

whats involved with getting the car tech inspected??

with all the track dates I may not know till the day before if I can go, so If I need to be tech inspected before each run that could suck

I was wondering about that event on Saturday. I wasn't sure if they would be running due to the cold weather with the rain. Most of the day on the north side it was snowing actually...

I'm running a PCA event out there this coming weekend 21-22. Think they are full and registration has closed though. You need to self tech your car, and then they do a quick once over before letting you out.

http://www.cirpca.org/Events/Info.aspx?68

The weather Saturday absolutely sucked. It changed from a light sprinkle in the morning to a steady rain later in the afternoon. The last two run groups were black-flagged when the rain changed to sleet.

We run with the side windows down for safety reasons, so this lets in lots of water. The way the Gallardo roof is profiled, all the water from the windshield comes up over the roof and drains into the open window right behind the driver's arm.

Sunday was absolutely wonderful - this made up for Saturday. And it helped dry out the car.

Like Chappy said, some of the schools will let you self-inspect the car. You fill out a form, check all the boxes, and sign it. The Hoosier BMW Club sponsors a free tech inspection at an automotive service garage about a month before the event. Some schools (like the Hoosier BMW) require club membership, others do not.

The events are not free - typically $200 to $400 per event. So the tech inspection is not the real problem here. You need to send in your money to reserve a spot before the roster fills, so you really have to pick a day and commit a month or so in advance (and then pray the weather cooperates).

Looks like you handled that Mini pretty well.

Who is the trusting soul in the pass seat?

Bill Wade, my instructor. He's from Louisville and does a lot of these driver schools.

He helped me get a lot more confidence in the car - especially in keeping in the throttle longer down the main straight and braking later and harder before going into turn one. By the end of the day Sunday I finally had enough balls to stay in the throttle as I crest the little hill before turn one (right foot ALL the way to the floor at 130+ MPH) then get on the brakes HARD (ABS engaging) in the last 100 feet before the turn. I'm amazed at what this car can do and I'm sure I'm only driving it a 60-70% of what it's capable of. But that's OK with me. There's a big difference in driving the car at 99% vs. 101% of its capabilities.

It is nice to see the Gallardo out stretching its legs in the rain. Kudos!!

Awesome pictures!

Great to see the car out in the rain!