Tsukuba Driving Workshop Plus

"Course 1000" in Tsukuba Circuit , Ibaraki, on July 13th, 2002

Weather:Fair

Condition:Dry

Lap Time

Air Pressure of the Tires　（kg/cm2）

Condition of the tires after driving

Right		Rear		Left
Right		Front		Left

- REPORT -

Purpose

"Tsukuba Driving Workshop Plus" (TDWP), which is mainly for the graduates of "Tsukuba Driving Workshop" (TDW), has more individual lessons, such as fewer participants and real time advice through a radio that every participant is along with. The contents are as below.

1. Lecture in the room
2. Trailing braking at the gymkhana field
3. Driving along the oval courses at the gymkhana field
4. Cornering on the road course
5. Lapping on the road course (with timing)

The reason I decided to join TDWP is that I expected I would be able to feel reactions of the new car Lancer Cedia Wagon through 2., 3., and 4. of the above items, and to get the potential of it through Item 5.

Lecture in the Room

In the room, we were taught that we could lose balance of your car and not drive faster after all if there were problems with the transition of your actions of speeding up, slowing down, cornering, through speeding up again. We have to be aware, in particular, that in the situation that the cornering force is concentrated into the front outside tire, the gripping power of all the tires cannot work 100%.

Trailing Braking

Two pairs of two cones are placed with an interval at the gymkhana field. We start our car straight from the parking lot with fully stepping on the gas, brake at the first cones, and stop just before the next cones. It is a practice for your handling the pedals with smooth transition from speeding up to slowing down. 18 participants were divided to two groups of A and B, and at first, Group A started the practice, while Group B watched them. This system is used also for later practices of this workshop.
Two practice lanes are set; one with advice through the radio by Tom who is a senior instructor of YRS, and other just for practice by ourselves without advice. Group A was divided to more two, and I started with the lane without radio. Shifting 1st speed to 2nd, I fully stepped on the gas which I had never done. I was scared of the feeling of this car speeding up with a turbo charger, which was different from my previous car RVR , though it may not be so much for others. Anyway, after practicing some times by myself, then I tried the radio practice. At the first run with too much consciousness for "smoothly", the advice from the radio,
"Without your driving, your car just ran. It means too late started braking."
convinced me. At the second run, thinking that advice, I tried.
"You did brake with a good timing. For next, brake more strongly at the first, and then gradually control the strength."
We can see the other group's drivings after our groups', with Tom's advice for their drivings through the earphone of the radio.

Tom advising to the running car through the radio

Driving along the Ovals

It is the same as the previous TDW I joined ( Oct. 23, 2001 | May. 22, 2002 ) that we drive along two ovals with different circle ratios. What was different today were my car, of course, and with the earphone. The advice through the radio is given to the car running along the bigger oval.
"Don't run too fast because your car is heavy."
It was given through the radio just before starting the first try. He who got it was so heavy (1.3 t) is truly great. When he drove my car with me on the co-driver's seat, I was advised that "not too fast" he told me meant more slowly driving on the turns followed by at one accelerating from the end of the turn could be faster on whole the oval. Anyway, while driving, the advice through the radio like,
"Still be patient of stepping on the gas. Now do at once!"
was indeed useful for getting the timing to do something

Cornering

Moving to Course 1000, we put our car in some lines (photo 1). I who have a child was happy to find child seats in the baggage put out of another participant's car (photo 2).
First, we walk along the course. After that, my Cedia Wagon could be driven by one of the instructors, though this driving was basically for the participants who had never joined this school. It was wonderful that the instructor Oishi was stably driving the car on the last turn without moving the steering wheel.
This practice of cornering is to bring what we practiced at the ovals to the road course. It is a repeated practice that one of two groups of A and B starts our car from around the beginning of the 2nd corner (A in the photo), fully steps on the gas along the short straight, slows down to the hairpin corner, stably pass it, and gets out with stepping on the gas again. With the earphone, of course.　The other group watches it around the end of the short straight, where Tom's advice comes from. Cones are put on the points of turning in (B in the photo), clipping (C), the exit (D) as landmarks. Trying it, then, I was advised too early turning in. It means I could not completely turn the car for the exit at the clipping point. I could do it when I imagined the oval I have just practiced. For under steering again with too early stepping on the gas, I could get that I had to stand stepping on the gas so long as getting to the point advised through the radio, as the practice at the ovals.

Lapping

This workshop's last lesson is lapping whole along Course 1000 (photo 3). Group A and B each have six sessions, with timed sessions of the 2nd, 4th, and 6th. It is my bad habit of stepping on the gas from the first lapping, seeing other cars' running faster, though I thought I would drive slower.　200 kg lighter body than RVR and the turbo charger that began working at the low engine revolution did not irritate me at the exit of turns. It was hard for me to overtake the other cars running at the almost same speed as me. The speed of MAZDA Roadster overtaking through my inside at the last corner made me long to drive like him.
We drive with the earphone while lapping as well. Tom was watching our driving around the last corner then. I was pointed out I turned too fast again. I observed the condition of all the tires every after session, and then, I found out that only the front left tire had been taken the edge since around the 3rd session. I wonder if I had been stepping on the gas too much after all, though Oishi advised me,
"You can't help it because the front of your car is heavy."
The brake became not working well at the 5th session, like it began working after running for a second when I stepped on the pedal, but it revived after I slowed down for a while. I cleared the time under 50 seconds I had aimed. With this result, I can expect to soon clear 48"481 that was recorded with TOYOTA Levin as my best record.

Reflection

What I have to correct myself is my bad management of today's schedule. There were only brief intervals between sessions of lapping practice because there were few participants. I took a little too long rest after 4th session, and then I was one or two laps late starting the next session. I should have been aware that I would not only waste my time, but also give a trouble to others than me. I apologize to all the staff.
In addition, I was aware again that I lacked the ability to feel the actions of a car. I may join TDO (Tsukuba Driving Workout) in the future that we drive thoroughly along the ovals.