A Lap. At just 1.53-miles, a lap takes but a minute in many cars, although it's one of the fastest minutes you can experience. The enclosed clips and description of the course will give you a great feel for track.
You begin by crossing the start/finish line at full song. Drivers move to their left setting up for the first corner. On the brakes, downshifting a gear or two, and trailing their braking into Big Bend, a long double-apex right hander. Steady throttle and keeping clear of the concrete patches will reward racers with good exit speed into the short chute that precedes the only left-hand corner on the track, not too cleverly known as the "Left-Hander."
Fast drivers know that this is a "throw-away" corner-because you purposely get it wrong and exit on the inside of the corner rather than tracking out to the right. Why? Because the next corner is key to getting a good run down the backstretch.
Up a gear, maybe two, for a quick burst of acceleration down the curvy No Name Straight before braking for the Uphill corner. This one's tricky because you are turning into what looks like a wall of pavement, and you can't see the exit of the corner.
It's also tough because your four best friends on the track, the little bits of tire connected to it, can be temporarily removed from doing their job as you catch just a little bit of air at the crest of the uphill.
Another quick dab of throttle as you get ready for West Bend, which is the only seemingly straightforward corner on the track, with a near-ninety degree right hander. And what goes up, must go down, as you rush under the bridge and down the hill into the Downhill corner. The name isn't entirely accurate, as the final right-hander onto the all-important front stretch is actually flat by the time you get there, but the car tends to still be loaded from the trip down the hill, making that last corner a tricky one.
And the next thing you know, you are crossing the start/finish line at full song, moving to the left once again getting ready for Big Bend...
Awesome! See the enclosed Track Map and Clips to experience it on your computer or become a Member and experience it in real life.
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The Secret Valley of Racing
by Chris Szwedo
Fall Run
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