Pipe dream?

[Rosso]

Originally Posted by cdh

Don't do it hungover

that old bottle to throttle thing again

Oh God, Amen. Avoid fish for lunch on hot days too, or bring mints or be prepared to prop the visor open a tad!


I don't think anyone has mentioned elbow pads yet. If you are 6' tall you will likely need them when you move up to the the sequential-shift RT. I beat my right elbow literaly black & blue the first day in a RT. Wasn't a problem in the school cars though.

[dalyduo]

Totally forgot to mention elbow pads. At 5'11 both my arms and elbows were beaten black and blue by the end of the 2nd day of my 3 day. As speed and g-loads increase with the exercises, if you don't have a seat insert, you use your arms more than you realize to hold yourself in place in the car. With the insert, I still bruised my elbows on the frame rails until I got elbow pads.
After one hard crash I became born again on knee pads as well. Your legs & feet are not locked down in the car and a hard hit will toss your knees and legs into the steering column and frame rails. The HANS and elbow pads worked beautifully but I could hardly walk for a couple of days afterward because my knees and legs were so badly dinged up. After purchasing knee pads I did have occasion to test them in a hard side hit into a concrete wall and they worked beautifully. Some very sore cracked ribs on the seat insert and two small bruises through the knee pads that might have been broken knee caps without them. The pads are butt ugly but they really make a difference if you have a hard hit. Not really necessary for your 3 day but cheap insurance after that.

And finally the one item most will nod their head in agreement on but rarely actually use are arm restraints. These are straps that fasten to the central harness buckle and then to your wrists to prevent your arms from flying up and out of the cockpit in the event of a rollover. I've been upside down once and was lucky not to have any injury. Now I always use arm restraints. They're cheap and you don't know they're there while you're driving. Again, not something you'll need during your 3 day but worth thinking about down the road.

I'd call ear plugs, elbow and knee pads and arm restraints very cheap quality of life improvers.

Originally Posted by Rosso

Oh God, Amen. Avoid fish for lunch on hot days too, or bring mints or be prepared to prop the visor open a tad!


I don't think anyone has mentioned elbow pads yet. If you are 6' tall you will likely need them when you move up to the the sequential-shift RT. I beat my right elbow literaly black & blue the first day in a RT. Wasn't a problem in the school cars though.

[kbalch]

Originally Posted by dalyduo

I've been upside down once and was lucky not to have any injury.

Holy crapola, that sounds expensive... :-)

What sort of knee/elbow pads are we talking about here? Just ordinary wrestling type pads, or something special? Worn over the suit?

I hear you on the arm restraints and will add it to my 'after the 3-day' list...

Ken

[dlippert]

I am also 6' tall and have never had an issue with elbows. I think it is a function both of how you position yourself in the car and if you shift using only your wrist, or by moving your arm.

[dalyduo]

I still have that wheel and yes, it was expensive.

I use Asics volleyball kneepads because I like their padding. They offer real protection while having a low enough profile. Asics Volleyball knee pads

Originally Posted by kbalch

Holy crapola, that sounds expensive... :-)

What sort of knee/elbow pads are we talking about here? Just ordinary wrestling type pads, or something special? Worn over the suit?

I hear you on the arm restraints and will add it to my 'after the 3-day' list...

Ken

[oldredracer]

Originally Posted by kbalch

I hear you on the arm restraints and will add it to my 'after the 3-day' list...

Ken

And now a word about priorities.........

First the HANS, arm restraints and narrow shoes. You will be getting into a car and trying to go very fast, yes? The HANS (buy the anchors and borrow the HANS if you're not sure) retains your head in it's accustomed position and THAT will make your 2-day MUCH more pleasant. Ditto the arm restraints. And as one who's sneaker once got stuck between the firewall and the clutch pedal while attempting Dodge Viper gymnastics can attest, narrow shoes (I'm about to put some used Pilotis on ebay) help make any crashes intentional rather than accidental...I think.
The inexpensive gloves mentioned above were my first glove buy in this century. I'm on my third pair now.
I'd do the suit earlier rather than later. there was a lightweight suit on sale recently for 6-700 bucks recently. Go white or silver unless you enjoy being a heat sponge in August.
And nothing beats being absolutely firmly planted in the car, so the poured seat can't come too early either.
After that you can upgrade till your wallet bleeds.
BTW. I started out in FV because they told me it was the cheapest form of racing. They didn't mention that there IS no cheap form of racing.

[oldredracer]

Originally Posted by dalyduo

I still have that wheel and yes, it was expensive.

That was YOU????????

Belated welcome to the Grassheads Club. I'm in the airborne division, m'self.

When it gets quiet, it's only half over.

[TomBobN20]

Hey Ken,
Just saw your thread and thought I would put my 2 bits in. I have an RV-4 and am one of the lead pilots with the Blackjacks up in the Seattle area. I think I saw your plane at one of the Arlington Fly-ins (or one painted very much the same........very subtle). Looks like it was a sweet machine. I started driving with Skippy when I was 46 and have had a ball. Some of the best drivers are old farts like us. The greatest thing about Skippy is the people. For a reasonable amount of cash (at least compared to other racing) you will get some great driving experience, amazing level of instruction and have a ball with some of the best people in racing. Almost as much fun as a little RV ACM. You would not regret any time with Skip Barber. Good luck!

Tom

[kbalch]

Hey Tom,

I've always enjoyed watching the Blackjacks; would love to participate if I lived up your way. I haven't been to Arlington, so you must have seen one of my many copycats! :-) The only time I had my -8 in the northwest was when I had it painted in Eugene. I loved that airplane. Most fun I've ever had in the air; better than the Pitts, better than the T-6.

I can't wait to get started racing. I'm most of the way through Going Faster and counting the days til my 3-day class.

Ken

Originally Posted by TomBobN20

Hey Ken,
Just saw your thread and thought I would put my 2 bits in. I have an RV-4 and am one of the lead pilots with the Blackjacks up in the Seattle area. I think I saw your plane at one of the Arlington Fly-ins (or one painted very much the same........very subtle). Looks like it was a sweet machine. I started driving with Skippy when I was 46 and have had a ball. Some of the best drivers are old farts like us. The greatest thing about Skippy is the people. For a reasonable amount of cash (at least compared to other racing) you will get some great driving experience, amazing level of instruction and have a ball with some of the best people in racing. Almost as much fun as a little RV ACM. You would not regret any time with Skip Barber. Good luck!

Tom

[Rosso]

Originally Posted by oldredracer

When it gets quiet, it's only half over.

Now THAT is a great quote! Maybe optimistic, but a great quote!