My First Autocross, Part 1

I could barely sleep the night before. I was so excited. Why was my alarm going off at 5:30 in the morning on a Sunday? Oh yeah, because I had to be at the law enforcement training pad at 7:00 to help setup the cones. This is the story of my first autocross.

Autocross is a safe, fun way to push the limits of your car. Cones are setup to form a track, or more accurately a path, in a large paved area. The drivers are then timed as they race their cars through the course, one at a time. Drivers are penalized, usually by adding a second or two to their time, for each cone they hit. At the end of the day the driver with the shortest time wins. 

I had wanted to participate in an autocross for quite some time, but I was always worried about my capabilities, the capabilities of my car, and my age (I first learned about autocross now to long after I got my drivers license). It took trading my old car with an automatic transmission for an only slightly sportier Infiniti G20 with a manual 5-speed transmission for me to get the courage to sign up.

It just so happened one of the local autocross clubs was having their next autocross at a very local venue, so when I read on the clubs message board that they needed an extra hand setting up the course I was quick to volunteer. They assured me that even a first-time autocrosser would be helpful in setting up the cone course, and told me to plan to arrive at 7:00 sharp. 

I started preparing for the event the day before in order to allow myself to wake-up at a semi-reasonable time and make it there to help with setup. I filled a backpack with a camera, two towels, two water bottles, a tire pressure gauge, a course map and painters tape. I then went outside and inflated my tires a bit more than usual, because I had read that it helped the tire cope with the hard turns they would be taking on the autocross course.

Autocross course maps can be a little confusing to use for course setup.

I arrived at the law enforcement training pad where the autocross was being held just before 7:00. Trying to decide exactly where each cone should go in a paved area about the size of an average grocery store parking lot is not the simplest of tasks, but everyone was very friendly and I was reminded time and again that it didn’t have to be perfect. 

After finishing my section of the course, and setting up the grid (the area the cars sit right before their run) I went off have my car tech’ed. A technical inspection at an autocross is very basic. The inspectors are basically checking for anything lose inside the car or under the hood. As long as your wheels aren’t going to fall off and you left your floor mats at home you will probably pass. After a quick reminder that I couldn’t run with my backpack in my trunk I passed. 

Right before my technical inspection. I still needed to pop my hood before the inspector would come check the car.

After passing inspection I started walking the course. It is important to walk the course at least a few times before you drive it, or else you can easily get lost during your run and drive off the course. The first time you see all those cones setup, it is very intimidating to think that there is actually a path to follow. I was able to walk the course 3 times before the drivers meeting. 

The drivers meeting is just a short meeting to discuss how things will go throughout the day. The major focus is on safety, but work groups were also a major topic. With the F.A.S.T. autocross club, everyone who drives works. Your work assignment can be anything from chairman of the event, technical inspector, t0 just picking up cones if the cars knock them down. My job was helping with course setup.

After the drivers meeting there was a novice course walk, which is just an organized course walk where an experienced driver points out potential trouble areas on the course. I really enjoyed hearing tips from a more experienced (faster) driver, even though I wasn’t really able to put them good use. I will definitely take the novice course walk again, and in the future I hope to be skilled enough to take advantage of what I learn. 

I got out of picking up cones during the first set of runs by volunteering to help with course setup, so I got the chance to ride along with a regular in the group before driving. This was great fun and it really showed me how hard you can push a car through the course. Like the course walk, any novice who gets the chance to do this should take advantage of it.

After riding along for a few runs, and watching a few runs from the sidelines it was my groups turn to drive. I moved my car to the grid from the adjacent parking lot, picked out a loaner helmet, and started to prepare mentally.

This is a two part post. To read the rest of the story check out part 2.

•  My First Autocross, Part 2