BMW Club and alternative AutoX sites

[Rschreckhise]

I know this was a recent topic under a different a different thread, but I think it deserves more attention.

The SD BMW CCA has just sent out a survey regarding alternative autocross sites, and is forming a committee to evaluate other venues as Qualcomm is looking less feasible for AutoX under any scenario. They've already been looking at a lot in Lake Elsinore. I'm sure the PCA Board has had many discussions about this recently- if so, it might be good to connect with Matthew Kogan, who is spearheading the BMW CCA efforts.

I'm hoping someone in the know about PCA discussions can speak up. I don't have any particularly helpful connections (for example Military or local College/Universities), but am happy to help in any way possible.
Randy

[Old Guy]

Deserves more attention? You are 110% correct.

Belonging to the local BMW chapter, I got and answered the survey. My view: less is better than nothing. For 3 years in VA before moving to CA I survived autocross events where "good" times were "only" 30+/- seconds. Once mentally adjusted: still fun. And...MUCH cheaper when it comes to destroying tires. Because I'm in North Oceanside the Lake Elsinore site is not much farther north for me than Qualcomm is going south. My answer to the BMW group was positive. Kudos to them for searching out alternatives. FYI: my one and only "recent" (in the last year) PCA autocross at Qualcomm was at the instructor/tech team event two weeks ago. I voluntarily pulled out and stopped running because I found myself ignoring the track cones and only focusing on avoiding the holes and broken pieces of pavement. My opinion: Qualcomm is history. Don't think I'll autocross there again, no matter PCA or BMW. Pavement condition sucks. Not fun. Today I spent an hour with my GTS up on a jack putting trim pieces back together under the car. Total BS.

[Cajundaddy]

Mmmmm, reasonably fresh asphalt.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Lake+ ... a8aa0854d9

[Old Guy]

News flash! Last week the stadium powers that be did a major patching/repair job on the parking lots. Bit of loose gravel, but for the most part the broken pavement sections were repaired. If, I say if, our intelligence agents had reported this, me, myself and I - among others? - would have signed up for/run today's autocross. Any participant reports from today?? Was it much improved??

[Greg Phillips]

News flash! Last week the stadium powers that be did a major patching/repair job on the parking lots. Bit of loose gravel, but for the most part the broken pavement sections were repaired. If, I say if, our intelligence agents had reported this, me, myself and I - among others? - would have signed up for/run today's autocross. Any participant reports from today?? Was it much improved??

The patches looked nice but in 90+ degree weather and g-loads they started breaking up. And for stiffly sprung cars they were a bunch of new bumps to deal with
No problem in 968 but Steve's 914 did not enjoy it.

Greg

[ttweed]

The patches looked nice but in 90+ degree weather and g-loads they started breaking up. And for stiffly sprung cars they were a bunch of new bumps to deal with
No problem in 968 but Steve's 914 did not enjoy it.

There was some chunking still in some places (turn 8 comes to mind), and the loose aggregate from the top of the patches really shredded off during the day. There were broad patches of it collecting offline in many of the corners by the afternoon, which punished any deviations from the normal line with a slide on "marbles." It looked like David Hobbs' infamous field of "clag" around the outside of many turns. Naturally, I ignored the deteriorating conditions and overdrove the timed runs, ending up too deep and pushing through corners as I slid wide, collecting way too many cones along the way. My worst day ever, not getting within .7 seconds of my practice times. You needed to be very precise as well as quick to get around cleanly in the afternoon. Congrats to Steve and Martin for pulling off a difficult drive very smoothly.

TT

[ttweed]

FYI: my one and only "recent" (in the last year) My opinion: Qualcomm is history. Don't think I'll autocross there again, no matter PCA or BMW. Pavement condition sucks. Not fun. Today I spent an hour with my GTS up on a jack putting trim pieces back together under the car. Total BS.

You obviously never got to experience the track conditions at Holtville at the end of its life as a race track. We used to call it "Joltville" because of the football-sized pieces of concrete that would be thrown up by the cars in front of you. Trim pieces damaged? HA! I saw broken wheels, fist-sized holes punched through steel floors, and mangled header pipes that looked like someone took a sledge hammer to them. It made Qualcomm look like a walk in the park....

TT

[Steve Grosekemper]

The patching is awful for any car with stiff suspension.
I thought I was going to break the 914.
Really dangerous in my opinion.

Glad the next event will be in the SE lot.

[Robert Joe]

The track design was a enjoyable flowing track. Thanks to the AX team that are just getting better and better in the design.

The patches were really bad. I could not believe how bumpy it was. Yet another "obstacle" the track designers have to take into account. From a safety perspective, we will have to make sure we don't brake or turn at high speed on these bumpy sections. Anything that upsets the balance of the car when all 4 wheels are not grounded is not a good thing...

Here are some comparison videos of before and after the patching. Make sure you select 720p in the lower right corner for best resolution. Then rewind to the beginning when that resolution has downloaded i.e. you see the RED HD.

I have 9/6kg (504/336 lbs) springs. This is not very stiff so it handled the bumps OK.

Here is what it looked like on 8/23 during Instructor day before the patching:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTyvVN6VRCA

This is how it was on 9/12. Really nasty from the 30 second mark up through the left hander at the far end. Compare how bumpy this left hander is to the similar left hander at the instructor-day-44-second-mark. There is another nasty section from 48 - 50 second mark.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIx5iMfICOI

[kleggo]

Mmmmm, reasonably fresh asphalt.

https://www.google.com/maps/place/Lake+ ... a8aa0854d9

i vote yes,
the fact that this lot is only 0.5 miles from skydive elsinore has no affect on my opinion................................ really.

[sf.in.sd]

This other thread that Randy started thread from Fall 2015 (that turned into a discussion of the Q surface; which we will miss when its gone) didn't really get into the topic of where can we find another big parking lot. I

Any thoughts now that the end is a little closer?

Shawn

[sf.in.sd]

I heard that the BMW club thinks that the Lake Elsinore parking lot will be the best "local" option post-Qualcomm.

[pecivil]

75 miles each way. I have to wonder how many would be willing to drive 150 miles for 12- 1 minute laps. Its tough to imagine doing that. For a TT weekend, of course, but AutoX?

OCR's time in Irvine is also running short. I wonder what they thought about the event they tried at that pier in San Pedro. Still farther away than Elsinore.

The bottom line really looks bleak. Even having events that far away is surely going to kill attendance, and that means it probably wont pay for itself either.

PCA and BMWCCA may have to join forces to make it viable.

[Ryan McClune]

The OCR member that I asked about the San Pedro/Long Beach event said it just didn't work well.

I know, it's a sample size of one, delivered via second hand, but his take was very clear.

[Andrew Raines]

75 miles each way? I might resign from the AX setup team.