Going to SCCA School

I have raced dirt track 3 years and bought a Panoz from Wirewheel and going to Daytona in April for the school. Can anyone reccomend what kind of car and someone to rent a car from for the weekend?

Rent a Mustang from Hertz. they have the Shelby HR version. You will pay a little more each day, but it will probably be the best bet for a real wheel drive car. Just don't tell them what you are doing!:biggrin:

I have raced dirt track 3 years and bought a Panoz from Wirewheel and going to Daytona in April for the school. Can anyone reccomend what kind of car and someone to rent a car from for the weekend?

Am I missing something? Take the Panoz?

Am I missing something? Take the Panoz?

sort of what i was thinking

Unless things are different on the East Coast at SCCA driving school you CAN'T drive a street car. Alll cars have to be race prepped and pass SCCA tech, although they don't have to be classed as there are no "winners" at drivers school. The Panoz would be a great car and depending on which one you have (GTRA?) will pass tech and be a good choice for school. Other common rentals are Miatas which are a blast to drive and good teachers. Some of the other Panoz school cars have roll cage compliance issues, but maybe you can get them passed by school tech as it's not quite as "anal."

Running your school car and getting it classed (GT2 vs STu etc) is a whole other issue as the only "legal" SCCA cars are the GTS cars (GT2, STO formerly BP class), but looks like out here in San Francisco there is some movement to get the numbers up a bit and let the GTRA cars run STu with target HPs of 250. You can run "anyting" in SP, but most of those cars are VERY fast 700+hp monsters so you will be a rolling chicane out there, but at least on track.

So maybe you could sneak it into GT2 on a regional level, run SP, and or STo-u depending on how things are graded. Wouldn't hold up at a national event, but not likely an issue at this point.

Bottom line is it's pretty hard to win in SCCA in a Panoz, but the fun factor is high.

Kevin
GTS. GTRA
Cirrus SR22 (200+mph)

Thanks Kevin, I'm very competive but at the same time not looking to win straight out of the box. The Panoz I bought is a GT-WC Car. I have been told I would be in the GT-2 Class. All I'm looking at doing is being safe to myself and the other drivers and having alot of fun. When I figure out the ins and outs (and the economy comes back)I might spend some serious money. I live within 20 minutes of Road Atlanta and want to visit several other tracks in the south. I should get my car from Fla. sometime next week and if I have time will prepare for the school but I may have torent one for the school.

Can someone tell me if SCCA accepts a 2 layer Drivers Suit or does it have to be 3 layer?

From the current CGR ('09 rules):
Driving suits that effectively cover the body from the neck to
the ankles and wrists. One piece suits are highly recommended.
All suits shall bear an SFI 3.2A/1 or higher certification label
or FIA 1986 Standard or FIA 8856-2000 homologation label.
Underwear of fire resistant material shall be used except with
suits carrying FIA 1986 Standard, or FIA 8856-2000 label or
SFI 3-2A/5 or higher (e.g., /10, /15, /20) Certification Patch.

So if your suit is 3.2A/5 or higher you only need Nomex socks,gloves and shoes (not underwear) to be legal in SCCA. If you have facial hair they will require a bellaclava/head cover as well.

If you are buying a suit look at some of the latermodel light weight suits from Puma. They are the lightest (better than Sparco) and most comfortable IMHO. If you buy a cheapo uncomfortable one you will be in the market again soon.


Kevin

I wouldn't worry about what class your in for the school. The group everyone into 2 groups and winning doesn't count. There are several places that will rent you a car or even take care of yours for the school. I had RMS take care of my SRF. You don't have a lot of extra time to be f'ing with your car.

Robinson Motorsports. http://www.robinsonmotorsports.com/
PM Racing 863-665-0815 Ask for Derek.

These guys take care of the top SRF cars in the Southeast. They also handle other cars. An SRF wouldn't be a bad car for the school.

The biggest thing in the school is paying attention to flags. They are gonna throw every flag at you several times. There gonna put emergency vehicles on the track and see how you handle it. They are going to try and trick you with the pace car.

Thanks Jim for the info. I am renting a SFR from Robinson. They are very nice people and I'm looking foward to the weekend. Any chance you will be around that weekend?

Thanks Jim for the info. I am renting a SFR from Robinson. They are very nice people and I'm looking foward to the weekend. Any chance you will be around that weekend?

Not going to be over that way anytime soon.

Mick is a super guy. He'll take care of you.