My experiences at Summit/ with R1s (Long) (archive)

I too have been driving Summit Point for several years. I do agree that it's not the safest track because of the limited runoff room in many areas. However, many improvements have been made over the last couple of years. The first of which was the repaving. The old surface was an absolute nightmare. The runoff room in turn three was also significantly increased. Also, as I said in the original post, the tire walls are now composed of tires that are bolted together rather than stacked loose. But, there are still several areas where one can get into trouble. Turn 10 for example still scares me. I usually reach approach speeds of 100+ into 10. If you ever have any brake problems you'll be over in the orchard (seen a few folks take this alternative). Turn 1 is also still a bit scary as well. Again, very high speeds in and a great deal of braking required. The gravel pit that was added a few years ago doesn't do much good when you don't have any brakes. I've seen a few too many cars skate right over the gravel. There are still a few other spots, but for the most part you would really need to be out of shape to get into trouble. For the most part, the incidents I've seen have been the result of driver error. Both novice and veteran alike. I was amazed when I saw someone flip a GTI between turns 7 and 8 coming out of the carousel. He got into some coolant and overcorrected when the car started to oversteer. As soon as he was on dry asphalt the back end whipped around violently and pitched the car into the air. Anyway, the long standing argument for R1s vs. street tires has merits both ways. I always suggest novices learn car control techniques on street tires first. R1s provide an artificial feeling of advanced skill simply because they work so well. They tend to lull folks into feeling they can do anything when it's really the tires hiding all of their sins. The experienced folk that use them are generally aware of their fast breakaway habits. But then again, the experienced driver will know how to handle the situation and minimize damage/injury. Both feet in/drive straight off methods work equally well with street tires and R1s. If anything, the R1s stop faster when sliding sideways. Enough for now. Just had to add my .02 on both topics. The bottom line is BE CAREFUL. Don't get lulled into a sense of security that you can do anything. I drive hard. I know what can happen. I simply do my best to be ready for the unexpected.

Rob K.
(Still working on finishing up the repaint of my 535!)

Follow Ups:

Re: R1's don't last long enough for me... Phaedrus 10:34 6/27/2001 (0)

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