Sunday, June 17, 2018

First Shakedown - Verdict - Awesome!

To say that I was nervous about Bumblestook's first event today is probably a massive understatement. With so much done in the past few months, it was unclear how she'd behave when pushed to her limits. Were the tires going to violently rub and crack a fender? Was the car balance going to be way off and I'd find myself spinning run after run? Was I going to hit a cone so hard that the paint would chip badly before I got a chance to even put her first coat of wax on?

Maiden event - MSNE
Meadownlands, NJ - 6-17-2018
Well thankfully, the answer is that Bumblestook worked flawlessly today. I have a minor issue with the driver side rear shock adjuster not having "all the clicks" but her balance was spot on. Within 2-3 runs I felt really confident to lay in more throttle and toss her into the corners and wasn't phased by the street tire squeal or slide. There's something very different about this car to me. I noticed I drive differently when I'm in this cockpit. I have full confidence and trust that she will perform.

I had no issues placing her where I wanted and she transitioned so well and moved so predictably there was no drama. She felt amazing! Underneath her show car exterior still lies the guts of her glorious racing heritage. It was like putting old sneakers on. It just fits and feels right. Despite the sweltering heat, that was probably the most smiles I've had autocrossing in a long time.

MSNE Autocross - 6-17-2018

I got a chance to mess around with the 360 camera I picked up from Don. I didn't particularly like watching it in 360 (having to scroll around to view different angles) but I thought it'd be just as interesting to overlay it with my internal gopro, render it as a flat video and effectively have 3 camera angles. Surprisingly, for someone really trying not to hit cones all day, looking at the exterior 360 video, it seems I really was trying to at least get on top of them. I think I only hit one cone all day. Success!