JAGRACING essentials to do before your first race

TO DO BEFORE YOUR FIRST RACE

There are no guarantees that you will complete your first practice or race with your car still running or in one piece. There are however a number of things you should do to minimise the risk. It is an expensive business and requires a lot of time and preparation. It would be a shame to wreck it all for risks that are avoidable.

I do not intend to go into details that are on the MSA video or are covered in the JEC regs. It is vital however that you study them well before hitting the track!

Make sure your car meets all of the criteria for your class in the current JEC regs. Most of these are very clear, but if you are in any doubt, talk to Terry Dye for clarification.

Make sure that your car meets the minimum requirements of the MSA. Often there is little time to correct any non conforming areas. The scrutineers will check the safety harness for approved type, and rigidity of mounting eyes etc. He will check that your engine cutout switch operates. He will check that the car is basically sound, in particular that there is no corrosion near the mounting eyes for the safety harness, roll cage, mounts, etc. He will check your fire extinguisher for being approved type, date, and correct installation. Brake lights, Rain lights are also popular.

Many tracks will check the sound level of your exhaust, to keep the locals happy that didn't realise that living next to a race track may disturb their afternoon snooze from time to time. Check what the limits are, if your over, you wont be going out on the track!

Make sure that your fuel cap does not leak. If you are seen spilling fuel you will be black flagged, game over! (Apart from the obvious dangers to yourself and other competitors.)

It is worth making sure that all doors boots and bonnets are well secured. There are a lot of abnormal forces involved in racing, plus a minor shunt could pop open a boot etc. Again any loose or flapping body parts will almost certainly result in a black flag, Pins for boots and bonnets are highly advisable.

It is essential to install racing brake fluid and performance brake pads. You would also be wise to overhaul the master cylinder and calipers. The grade of brake pads depend on whether the car will be used on the road as well as the track. Most racing pads are illegal for road use, as they do not work efficiently until they are up to temperature. Also if you use many racing pads for normal road use they will glaze over and become useless for road or track use. If you do nothing at all you will almost certainly experience the peddle becoming spongy followed by no brakes at all after a few laps! Additional cooling is also highly advisable, and probably essential for V12 automatics (Class F)

For your own safety and others it is important to make sure that the areas that may not be seen by the scrutineers are also in good order. If it would fail a thorough MOT on safety issues, it is not safe on the track! Indeed in a lot of cases it is more important due to the abnormal forces imposed on the structure. All suspension and steering components should be in top condition, and the areas of chassis that they are mounted to. Including front subframe, radius arm chassis section, inner wings etc. Other areas worth inspecting are front crossmember, inner and outer sills, front of footwell, and A posts.

It may seem obvious but an efficient cooling system is a must. Hoses should be renewed or at least thoroughly checked. Radiators must be sound and free of sludge etc. Any obstructions must be removed. Then take the car on a track day, or give it a good thrashing to test the cooling components under similar conditions to racing. If all is well use a good quality antifreeze but don't over do it. It is worth using "water wetter" which works better with a weaker concentration of antifreeze.

Get there early and familiarise yourself where all the important places are i.e. signing on, briefing room, scrutineering bay etc. It is also a good idea to walk around the track, but this needs to be very early and ask permission from a track official first.

You will be surprised at how quickly time goes on the first morning. They don't always seem to give enough consideration for the amount of things you have to do, and the timetable that they have set. It is wise to try and arrive early for signing on and scrutineering. If there is a problem you will want as much time as possible to put it right. If you are late or don't arrive for a drivers briefing you could be fined or excluded!

If you do have a problem, there will always be someone that will help. But bear in mind that the other drivers and their support team (if their lucky or rich enough to have one) will be keen to sort out their own problems first. Terry Dye will always point you in the right direction. Or you could always ask me, but be warned, I am usually in panic mode myself!

Drivers Reps for 2007

XJS Championship, Myself Dave Robbie No.18 Email: dave@jagracing.co.uk

Saloon Challenge, Brian George No.3 Email: usergr7778@aol.com

XK Championship, Colin Youle Email: colinyoule@hotmail.com

I will be adding to this from time to time.

This is not a definitive list, and is only my humble opinion! I think that I have an advantage over some of the more seasoned drivers, in that some of this was learnt through bitter personal experience, and is much fresher in my mind! I would welcome any additions or comments on the above. Please contact me at: dave@jagracing.co.uk