Road Course In Palmer Massachusetts (RIGHT??? ANOTHER ONE!!!)

[Buryingthesun]

http://www.na-motorsports.com/Tracks/MA/Palmer.html

http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2013/10/groundbreaking_for_23_mile_20.html


Tons of elevation change! looks like a sick track
https://static1.pt-content.com/images/noimg.gif

[mbstingray75]

Awesome! Good to see some more tracks popping up in this area.

[Buryingthesun]

Awesome! Good to see some more tracks popping up in this area.

We have quite a few now! Im really excited about it

[V8TEC]

Thats exciting news, and it's only 20 miles from my house. Can't wait to see it open.

[jasonsnova]

Now I'm gonna have to put sticky tires on the nova ....not to far from my house!

[lnirenberg]

I went with the 1st group to use the track, Northeast Track Days. It is a little hard to find and has no signage. The track is done and nothing else--lots of dirt and piles of rock and if you go off track that and jersey barriers are what you would encounter. We had an over/under of 5 for the amount of cars that would suffer severe damage but everyone respected the technical challenges and no one had any significant issues. Amazing road course with ridiculous elevation changes and complex off camber turns. It is a great addition to all the plenty we now have to choose from.

[67rally]

I went with the 1st group to use the track, Northeast Track Days. It is a little hard to find and has no signage. The track is done and nothing else--lots of dirt and piles of rock and if you go off track that and jersey barriers are what you would encounter. We had an over/under of 5 for the amount of cars that would suffer severe damage but everyone respected the technical challenges and no one had any significant issues. Amazing road course with ridiculous elevation changes and complex off camber turns. It is a great addition to all the plenty we now have to choose from.

That's good to know. I had an HPDE day planned for today, but had to postpone it due to an eye injury. I'll be there in September. Maybe they'll have some grass by then? How was the course? It looked dirty in some of the YouTube videos from last month.

[Buryingthesun]

SCCA won't race there, the track seems overly dangerous. I will continue attending Thompson

[lnirenberg]

In may indeed be overly dangerous for heads up racing but HDPE events allow driving at whatever pace drivers are comfortable. It will definitely get better when the rocks go, the grass grows and soft barriers prevail.

[BMR Sales]

I went with the 1st group to use the track, Northeast Track Days. It is a little hard to find and has no signage. The track is done and nothing else--lots of dirt and piles of rock and if you go off track that and jersey barriers are what you would encounter. We had an over/under of 5 for the amount of cars that would suffer severe damage but everyone respected the technical challenges and no one had any significant issues. Amazing road course with ridiculous elevation changes and complex off camber turns. It is a great addition to all the plenty we now have to choose from.

I've seen Videos and the place looks amazing. I do think a bunch of cars will be wrecked there.

[68sixspeed]

I can never figure out why anyone would intentionally design off camber curves into a track?. Especially one primarily used for hpde use not racing. If you go in to one too deep or get loose it is so much easier to get off track or into a barrier vs a flat corner or one with banking to help catch the car. Driving into banking is fun, off camber... Well, not so much for me.

[lnirenberg]

I think the the idea, especially for us hacks that just do HPDE events, is to add various types of elevations and turns--banked, flat, off camber, increasing radius, decreasing radius, left & right, uphill & downhill, early apex late apex etc so that we learn car control under a variety of scenarios. If every turn were the same it would be called stock car racing. Each of the 4 New England tracks present different combinations and styles and that is awesome because it challenges each of us to adjust our cars and driving technique depending on where we are. I will never be Mario Andretti (that's dating myself) but my aged ADD addled brain likes the variety as I compete against myself to do better.

[BMR Sales]

Larry, I think (actually I know) that most people that show up at HPE's don't have a driving technique. I've been Instructing at Track Days for close to 30 years and most drivers are clenching the wheel, not looking in the mirrors, etc. The biggest issue I see at HPE's are cars that insanely fast brand new from the Manufacturers, no Driver Training and lack of "Real" safety equipment. You put those together on a technically challenging track and the results could get ugly.

I love driving the NE Tracks because of the Elevation Changes, but I've got a lot of Training.

[lnirenberg]

Larry, I think (actually I know) that most people that show up at HPE's don't have a driving technique. I've been Instructing at Track Days for close to 30 years and most drivers are clenching the wheel, not looking in the mirrors, etc. The biggest issue I see at HPE's are cars that insanely fast brand new from the Manufacturers, no Driver Training and lack of "Real" safety equipment. You put those together on a technically challenging track and the results could get ugly.

I love driving the NE Tracks because of the Elevation Changes, but I've got a lot of Training.
Great points. I didn't start doing track events until my mid-50s and I started with spec miatas before working up the horsepower ladder. I've learned to understand the different challenges of each track, the dynamics and ability of my car (which are huge) and most importantly my own limitations as a driver. I also Know that safety, both mine and others, requires 100% of my attention when on track. When the brain starts to drift from fatigue I pit in and call it a day. Also, testosterone has its place, HPDE is not one of them.

You've paid your dues as an instructor which I admire greatly as I would probably spend most of my time in the passenger seat screaming like a little girl in fear for my life.

With 4 day trip tracks in New England life is very good.

[BMR Sales]

Great points. I didn't start doing track events until my mid-50s and I started with spec miatas before working up the horsepower ladder. I've learned to understand the different challenges of each track, the dynamics and ability of my car (which are huge) and most importantly my own limitations as a driver. I also Know that safety, both mine and others, requires 100% of my attention when on track. When the brain starts to drift from fatigue I pit in and call it a day. Also, testosterone has its place, HPDE is not one of them.

You've paid your dues as an instructor which I admire greatly as I would probably spend most of my time in the passenger seat screaming like a little girl in fear for my life.

With 4 day trip tracks in New England life is very good.

I've never screamed like a little girl, but I've almost been killed a couple of times!

[lnirenberg]

Dead would be a very bad result for a completely thankless job. I run with a bunch of different groups and, as I would like think I have a reasonably decent head on my shoulders, the biggest problem I encounter is when someone over states their ability and/or experience and gets placed in a run group way above their head. They are easy to spot and my rule is to stay clear and get to know the people who run the events as I always speak up when I see issues. A lot of money and precious health at stake and dead is not an option.