June 23rd 2014: Driving a Dragster in Epping NH

I had to wake up early this morning for my first experience driving a dragster at the New England Dragway in Epping NH, with Pure Speed Drag Racing Experience.

my mom and I arrived a little early, and the dragsters we were to ride were already out on display.

We could look into the cockpit itself as well.

I went out to the track as well to take some pictures.

After registering, the drivers had to go into a shed for instructions on how to operate the dragster, with the left leg for the brake and the right for the accelerator, and the procedure for each run, which included a burnout phase involving spinning the tires on a wet surface to get dirt off it before heading to the start line.

To start, one positions the car such that the top set of small lights lights up, and then move slowly forward until the tires trip the lower set of lights.

With the lighting of the traffic lights, one can slam the accelerator on the 3 third set of yellow lights, and off the dragster goes.

On the first run, we were to let go of the accelerator at the first beacon, while we were to do so on the second beacon on the second run.

Once done, we were to head to the end of the track, turn around the wall and head back to the start line on a pretty bumpy road, as the dragster itself has little suspension to handle the bumps. We were then to wait in line for the next run, if we had more to go.

After the briefing was done, we were assigned to our cars, and as I had only 2 runs, I ended up being the last driver in the last car. This meant that I had to wait till around noon before my turn. A tour of the track in a van was done first, and then a demonstration run by a driver.

Finally it was time to get jackets and helmets and to head to our cars.

The cockpit itself was pretty narrow and hard to get into, and like for IndyCar racing, I had to get additional cushions in order to reach the brake and accelerator pedals. The pedals themselves felt a little weird, as they were more like knobs than pads.

The turning was a little weird as well with the small axles, but I somehow got the hang of it.

I could not get the burnout part right though, stepping on the accelerator too slowly when prompted and letting go and braking too fast for fear of speeding past the start line.

As I was going straight, I did not need to maneuver the steering too much. Unlike the other riders who did 3 runs, I was unable to accelerate all the way, hence my maximum speed was only over 70 mph.

On top of that, there were no turns involved, hence I felt it was even less exciting than IndyCar racing, especially with the bumpy ride back after each run.

After finally leaving, I decided to get the video, and my time slip.

With that, we headed to Kume, a Japanese restaurant in town.

Pretty decent decor, but I could not say the same about the food, even though they were presented pretty well.

The Beef Sukiyaki (Thinly sliced beef, bean curd, Japanese noodles and vegetables w. sukiyaki sauce) was a little too sweet for me,

while the Sushi and Sashimi Combination was definitely not fresh.

Only the Ice Beauty pieces were not too bad, but nothing extraordinary either.

At least my mom enjoyed the food I guess.

We headed home for the day after that, passing by Haverhill MA,

New Life Christian Assembly of God

tired after a long day in New Hampshire. Definitely not into dragster racing.

June 8th 2014: Driving an Indy 500 Racing Car in Loudon NH

I had to get up really early this morning in order to get to the New Hampshire Motor Speedway in Loudon, NH,

where I was to drive an IndyCar racing car for the first time around a track with Mario Andretti Racing Experience.

After signing in at the gate, I drove into the area surrounded by the track,

where the race cars were being prepared for the day's driving.

Signing in for the second time, I received my racing jersey to wear for the day.

After having put it on, our instructor brought a bunch of us into a classroom to show us an educational video on how to drive the car and to be safe, as the cars have no mirrors at all, and the only way to know about the surroundings and where other cars on the track are would be by radio communication with our instructors. I didn't know there would be other cars on the road beside me. Oh dear.

After the briefing, we headed back out onto the track. While waiting for my turn, I took some pictures of the cars on the track.

It was my pleasant surprise that I was one of the first to go, probably because of my small size, and because the cars were made to suit the driver based on size. I was given ear plugs, having them taped to my ears, and then put on a protective covering before putting on my helmet, with my ear plugs/phones being plugged into my helmet.

I was brought into the car in the second lane,

where it was pretty hard to get into it,

but even harder to press the pedals, and the instructor had to put 3 seat cushions behind me

before I could finally push the clutch down to the base. The instructor checked for radio communications with me, and after my acknowledgement, they attached an ATV to my back,

which served to give my car the initial push off with my clutch pressed down,

and when I was near the exit to the pit,

I was allowed to accelerate after the ATV detached itself.

Out on the track, I drove the first round within the apron area

before being told to move out beyond the yellow line, and accelerate on the straight portions of the track.

At the turns, I had to remain 5 feet off the apron line, as crossing it would wreck my car as the car cannot handle the differences in slope.

I was slow due to a fear of getting hit, so I kept getting overtaken by faster cars.

As soon as I was getting comfortable in my car, my time was up, and I had to get back to pit row, going between the cones and depressing my clutch

to let my car cruise within the apron

and into the pit with my gear pushed down into neutral

before breaking to come to a stop before my instructor.

With that, my ride came to an end. I got a plaque, a certificate and other stuff to commemorate my experience. I don't know why, but I did not feel any exhilaration from doing this. It was like riding a go-kart, just faster, but it wasn't fast enough as the straight stretches here were pretty short. Oh well, at least I have the pictures.