I hate this... give me my wuss badge!
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I don't track my FGT. Candidly it is worth too much money to risk for my tastes and my circumstances. Took me years to accumulate what I have.
I am sure there are guys flush with money and multiple FGTs that have the luxury of risking one.
Tracking a car you are overly worried about damaging takes away the fun of being on the track.
I don't have near the experience of Ron or some other here but have been tracking cars for about 2 years now and have also done the 5 day Bertil Roos race school in Formula Fords and learned how much I don't know and gained mucho respect for guys who can drive at the top levels.
Racing is all about driving at the limit. Shit happens fast at the "limit" and in big ways.
DE events are driven less at the limit overall although some guys in the advance groups do go "balls out". I do a lot of point bys :facepalm: but do the best I can.
Track events are expensive. Also take into account that many insurance policies don't cover you once your tires hit a race track. You can buy track insurance for DE events but it's expensive. My Carrera GTS was $1200.00 for the weekend for insurance at Watkins Glen. I can imagine insurance for an FGT at twice that.
My son put his Shelby GT into the tire wall at Watkins two years ago. Didn't look like a lot of damage but it was $8,000.00 to fix it.
This is why I bought my Boss 302. If I wad it up, yeah, I'll be pissed but I can always go out an buy another one with my track insurance proceeds.
Safety is a priority. I am investing in a 6 point roll cage for the Boss this winter with harness (in addition to numerous performance and handling mods the Wife doesn't know about :biggrin). If you are going to track a car invest in safety and you will drive faster and better and with more confidence.
I love my FGT too much to risk it and I am not in a position to risk a quarter million dollar asset just to go fast on the track. I can go as fast and be more relaxed in the Boss and have the same fun.
I am sure there are guys flush with money and multiple FGTs that have the luxury of risking one.
Tracking a car you are overly worried about damaging takes away the fun of being on the track.
I don't have near the experience of Ron or some other here but have been tracking cars for about 2 years now and have also done the 5 day Bertil Roos race school in Formula Fords and learned how much I don't know and gained mucho respect for guys who can drive at the top levels.
Racing is all about driving at the limit. Shit happens fast at the "limit" and in big ways.
DE events are driven less at the limit overall although some guys in the advance groups do go "balls out". I do a lot of point bys :facepalm: but do the best I can.
Track events are expensive. Also take into account that many insurance policies don't cover you once your tires hit a race track. You can buy track insurance for DE events but it's expensive. My Carrera GTS was $1200.00 for the weekend for insurance at Watkins Glen. I can imagine insurance for an FGT at twice that.
My son put his Shelby GT into the tire wall at Watkins two years ago. Didn't look like a lot of damage but it was $8,000.00 to fix it.
This is why I bought my Boss 302. If I wad it up, yeah, I'll be pissed but I can always go out an buy another one with my track insurance proceeds.
Safety is a priority. I am investing in a 6 point roll cage for the Boss this winter with harness (in addition to numerous performance and handling mods the Wife doesn't know about :biggrin). If you are going to track a car invest in safety and you will drive faster and better and with more confidence.
I love my FGT too much to risk it and I am not in a position to risk a quarter million dollar asset just to go fast on the track. I can go as fast and be more relaxed in the Boss and have the same fun.
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I used to track with the FGT and all the while when people at the track asked "aren't you concerned about hitting the GT..?", I never thought much of it. Then, about 3-ish years ago, I started thinking with the value of the car kept going up..., perhaps, there is a point to that question. So, I set out to look for a less-expensive car to take over the primary track duties, such that if I wrecked it, I would feel perfectly fine throwing in the keys and walk away. I purchased an Ariel Atom 3.
I must admit, the first time I tracked not using the FGT, the sense of freedom was incredibly refreshing! At least mentally, there's a significant diff between the value of our GTs and a low-$70k Atom. One can get one for hi $50s, if you don't live in Ca and don't care to get it street legal here, but it is a prerequisite for me... Apparently, although I didn't think I was holding back when tracking with the FGT, with the cheaper Atom I quickly felt more committed to the braking, turn-in, apex and track out. Like I said, the sense of freedom was/is/has been quite refreshing, plus the Atom 300 is such a raw mini-beast to drive.
Now, before anyone start getting on my case...., I still try to take the GT on track once a year, as I don't want to lose the feel of driving the GT near its limits (more like my limits...).
Ed
I must admit, the first time I tracked not using the FGT, the sense of freedom was incredibly refreshing! At least mentally, there's a significant diff between the value of our GTs and a low-$70k Atom. One can get one for hi $50s, if you don't live in Ca and don't care to get it street legal here, but it is a prerequisite for me... Apparently, although I didn't think I was holding back when tracking with the FGT, with the cheaper Atom I quickly felt more committed to the braking, turn-in, apex and track out. Like I said, the sense of freedom was/is/has been quite refreshing, plus the Atom 300 is such a raw mini-beast to drive.
Now, before anyone start getting on my case...., I still try to take the GT on track once a year, as I don't want to lose the feel of driving the GT near its limits (more like my limits...).
Ed
I track mine at the rally's only. I only go about 9 10ths. I'm not scared about it, I trust my experience of approx 140 SCCA club races to get me through. It's what the car was built for to be driven. I would no longer bother to take it to an open hpde event.
cobra498
GT Owner
The biggest issue is parts availability, it is getting to be near impossible to get parts for the GT. I do some track days here and there but have limited even that the last 2-3 years. My Cobra is worth 4-5 times what my GT is worth but I can buy what ever I need quite easily at reasonable prices. Only problem with it is
if I stuff it in a fence some place, odds are that I won't walk away because it has 0 driver protection features. I now just run it in autox and the poor GT sits on Jack stands most of the year. It really is a shame because the GT is a true joy to drive and very rewarding because of the lack of nannies other than ABS.
if I stuff it in a fence some place, odds are that I won't walk away because it has 0 driver protection features. I now just run it in autox and the poor GT sits on Jack stands most of the year. It really is a shame because the GT is a true joy to drive and very rewarding because of the lack of nannies other than ABS.
Fubar
Totally ****** Up
Again, I'm glad I didn't hurt the car. The possibility was certainly present but it's not an egg shell like a cobra, it can handle some mild excursions into the unknown. However, all of the points here are well made... between parts, cost and personal attachment to the car, it may not be worth the risk as a track "toy"
I don't know, I also hate the idea of saving the car just so the next guy can enjoy it. It's my toy and I'm going to wring all the fun out of I can. Then my kids can worry about parts.
I don't know, I also hate the idea of saving the car just so the next guy can enjoy it. It's my toy and I'm going to wring all the fun out of I can. Then my kids can worry about parts.