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| Intro to NASA Time Trials |
As long time, avid autocrossers, we here at Vorshlag began to look into some other ways to participate on track. If you're like us, you probably autocross because it is relatively inexpensive, it teaches you great car control skills in a safe environment, AND you get that competitive rush that non-competition events lack. If you've won an autocross before, you probably know that feeling - that "Man, I crushed that run!" feeling. Its one of the most affordable forms of competitive motorsport on earth, relying heavily on driver skill and less on outspending the competition. With the gaining popularity of track events and the building of so many "country club" road courses around the country, we started to wonder - how can we participate?
Having done Driver's Education events ("DE" or "HPDE") and open lapping events many times in the past, we already loved the thrill of higher speed events. We also love that quick flick correction of the steering wheel we learned autocrossing that makes most D.E. instructors grab for the door handle and say "WOW, you're hands are too quick!". While we certainly enjoy a weekend of NOT working a corner and running 20 minute D.E. track sessions until your hair is on fire, we miss the competitive nature of autocross. There's only so much fun in passing a bunch of stock Miatas on track in our 2500 pound, V8 powered, 350 hp E36. At the end of a day of running a D.E., you still want to stop and say, "Was that fast? How quick were the Vipers and Corvette Z06s?" Enter NASA Time Trial - the best parts of Autocross and D.E. combined!
Click thumbnails for larger picture. Hover for description.
If you're not familiar with NASA (National Auto Sports Association) it is a relatively new organization that was developed to offer a choice between SCCA and... something different. There has never really been another good choice, other than single marque clubs (BMWCCA, PCA, etc) or vintage groups (SVRA, etc). If you wanted to compete against many other cars, you ran SCCA or nothing. We're not here to bash the SCCA, we're members and certainly enjoy the competition and well organized autocross events the SCCA runs. In fact, the SCCA is starting their own Time Trial series as well (we just don't have it in our region yet). NASA runs differently from the SCCA in that each region is individually owned, and as such these regions aren't run like the other purely volunteer clubs. If you haven't heard of NASA in your area it is possible there isn't a developed region yet; the organization is still somewhat young. We live in the NASA Texas region and have been running with them in 2008.
So what is Time Trial? TT, as it is known, is another competition group that is run during a NASA competition weekend event, which will include sessions for HPDE drivers (non-competition), TT and Club Racing (wheel to wheel road racing). Think of it as just the next level of HPDE, except with open passing and recorded lap times. One big difference is that you'll need to rent or purchase a timing transponder (depending on your region there might be a limited amount of transponders to rent). No transponder means no lap times, and no listing in the TT results. TT competitors have several 20 minutes lapping sessions each day to make their BEST lap, sort of like qualifying for other forms of racing. Sounds easy right? While making the perfect lap (like autocrossing) isn't easy, running a full session is a blast.
Click thumbnails for larger picture. Hover for description.
How do you start in TT? You'll have to get signed off for the TT license (and pay a $10 annual fee), and this usually takes running several weekends of HPDE within NASA. This means you won't see a newbie driver in TT. The open passing in TT is not as scary as it sounds - everyone in the TT group is not interested in passing or blocking each other, since the key is just getting one good lap time, not getting to the finish line first. Sometimes you will let a competitor by to try to get a "clean track" without lapped traffic or pressure from behind. It offers no one an advantage to force passes when you have several 20 minute sessions to get a good lap in for the day. That's another thing - most NASA event weekends are run over two days, and each day can be entered and is scored separately, so each day is a different event. If you only have time to run on one weekend day, that's not a problem, and you are only paying for the day you run. This is nice, as a lot of HPDE events charge one price for a weekend, no matter if you run both days or not.
The Nasa TT rules for classing a car may look complicated at first blush, but the reality is you just add up points for the mods you've done. If you have questions the folks at the NASA forums are always willing to help, as well. Also, there are several upgrades to an otherwise "base class" unmodified car that are NOT points penalties - for instance camber plates! See, we're not just in this for fun, heh. Several weight saving and safety options are "no points" mods as well. A lighter battery, harnesses, etc. do not collect points. You can usually do a few mods to an otherwise stock car and stay within your "base class", so if your car comes with an odd wheel or tire size you can possibly change to a more optimal size without getting bumped up a class. Use the NASA TT website to download the rules and find the class of your car.
We'll post more as we continue to compete in 2009!
Note: We are placing this information on our website for informational purposes. We are in no way affiliated with the NASA organization, except as members and TT entrants.
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