• Registered: 2009-05-27
  • Posts: 322

Topic: Any veterans willing to share procedures for Stafford?

Our team is all newbies, with basically no racing or pit stop experience. I read all the treads on the forum about Stafford. We're trying to figure out how to get everything done in a pitstop without looking like the Four Stooges. I assume you can change drivers in pit lane(?). Can you change tires there, check fluids etc. there too? I know you have to drive to a refueling pad, right?

So how exactly does a pit stop go and who usually does what? I'm assuming you check the lug nuts, look at the coolant and maybe oil/brake fluid, check for leaks / stuff falling off the car, plus swap the drivers, fill the drink bottle, change the video tape (if any). How long does a "good" pitstop take?

I also don't quite understand what you do to follow the no-driver-swap-during-refueling rule. Does this mean you stop in the hot pits, put the new driver in the car, drive to the fueling area, get out of the car, fuel, then put that new driver back in the car?

Sorry if these are dumb questions. I'm sure it's obvious if you've done it before.

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  • From: Toronto, Ontario
  • Registered: 2009-05-03
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Re: Any veterans willing to share procedures for Stafford?

Not dumb questions at all. Check your lap times and you'll see that you can gain track position easier in the pits than on the asphalt by far. Fluid level checks should not be necessary (use gauges) and since refueling must be done by a suited team member, have your replacement driver ready with the cans as soon as you stop at the pad. If you can change drivers then and there, do it, but have another team member there to strap in the new driver and replenish the water. We strapped in a hydration pak for each driver and just left them in the car until the end of the day...the driver getting out of the car can collect the refueling rig, clean the windshield and look at the tires while the new driver straps in. Alternatively, you can have the departing driver fill the tank too. Either way, I recommend a rubber chem apron and slip over work gloves during refueling...you don't want to race with a fuel-soaked suit, and you won't have an automatic pump shutoff like at the 7-11...just basically have everybody know what they should be doing before the stop. Not that I practice what I preach!

Jim "Endo" Anderton

Jim "Endo" Anderton
30 years of racing and still not Brambilla.....
  • RobL
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Re: Any veterans willing to share procedures for Stafford?

The no-driver-swap-during-refueling means that no one can be in the car while you are adding fuel. 

At Stafford, there were no pits nor pit lane - you pulled back into paddock to do your driver changes/car repairs and then you pulled into the refueling area to add gas.

--Rob Leone Schumacher Taxi Service
We won the IOE at Southern Discomfort.
We got screwed at The Real Hoopties of New Jersey  and we took cars down with us.
We got the curse at Capitol Offense but they wouldn't let us destroy the car.

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  • From: NJ
  • Registered: 2009-06-03
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Re: Any veterans willing to share procedures for Stafford?

If the driver has to get out of the car to fuel, does that same driver have to get back in after fueling? 

-Scott

Scott Barton
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Re: Any veterans willing to share procedures for Stafford?

Nope.  You can change drivers.  This isn't SCCA/NASA/Rolex with complex rules about driver changes and refueling. 

What typically happens at Stafford is that the driver pulling off will go straight to the refueling area, get out of the car, someone will start refueling the car, the next driver will be standing there until the fuel is in, then hop in the car.  You should do a once over on the car while you are refueling.  The previous driver and fueler will then help get the new driver settled and his belts tightened before sending them back out.  While the fuel is being added to the car, the previous driver should be telling the next driver about any/all problems with the car, track, and other drivers.

--Rob Leone Schumacher Taxi Service
We won the IOE at Southern Discomfort.
We got screwed at The Real Hoopties of New Jersey  and we took cars down with us.
We got the curse at Capitol Offense but they wouldn't let us destroy the car.

RobL's Website

  • From: Golden, CO
  • Registered: 2009-05-02
  • Posts: 968

Re: Any veterans willing to share procedures for Stafford?

Actually "Four Stooges" wouldn't be a bad theme.  You CAN bent a tire iron with your skull, can't you?

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  • Registered: 2009-05-27
  • Posts: 322

Re: Any veterans willing to share procedures for Stafford?

Rockford Brodie wrote:

Actually "Four Stooges" wouldn't be a bad theme.  You CAN bent a tire iron with your skull, can't you?

True story. When I was a little kid, I hit my brother over the head with a hammer. Twice. Same day. I was never allowed to watch the Stooges again. Seriously.

Thanks for the pit procedure help. It's hard to practice something that you don't understand ;-)

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Re: Any veterans willing to share procedures for Stafford?

Dave (Eyesore)

Do you guys have a roles & responsibilities matrix for your pit stops?  I'd love to see it

Matt
Free Range Racing

9 Reply by bongle (edited by bongle 2009-06-18 10:03 AM)

  • bongle
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  • From: Waterloo, Ontario
  • Registered: 2009-05-04
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Re: Any veterans willing to share procedures for Stafford?

This might give you an idea of where you can lose time off the leaders.  We made this from the mylaps.com report, then compared the times with our log book.  This was at the detroit race.  The leader would have had about 800 laps around the time we crashed.

http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/1866/lapchart.png

Direct link to image (copy/paste into browser because imageshack sucks): http://img141.imageshack.us/img141/1866/lapchart.png

PS: Keep a log book.  Synchronize the clocks on all your electronics (digicams, video cameras, etc) and then write down the times of significant events like crashes on track or driver changes.  It really helps you figure out what is going on in all the videos you end up with.  Also, if you end up with a 2 hour video and want to find "that spin I saw at 1:30", you'll be able to figure out how far into that video it occurred and not have to watch it all.

Car to Pit telemetry (OBD2, GPS, and analog inputs) with little more than a phone, router, and laptop.  It's not MacGuyver, it's WifiLapper (forum | facebook)
  • From: Detroit, MI
  • Registered: 2009-05-16
  • Posts: 1,594

Re: Any veterans willing to share procedures for Stafford?

That's cool, but I can't read most of it.  Can you post a link to a bigger version?

BRE Datsun (Broke Racing Effluence) formerly Dawn of the Zed Racing
'74 260Z
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Jeff G 78's Website

  • From: Portland
  • Registered: 2009-05-02
  • Posts: 568

Re: Any veterans willing to share procedures for Stafford?

Jeff G 78 wrote:

That's cool, but I can't read most of it.  Can you post a link to a bigger version?

Right click, view image.. It will take you to the bigger one

Matt
Free Range Racing
  • From: Detroit, MI
  • Registered: 2009-05-16
  • Posts: 1,594

Re: Any veterans willing to share procedures for Stafford?

Thanks Matt.

BRE Datsun (Broke Racing Effluence) formerly Dawn of the Zed Racing
'74 260Z
Facebook page http://www.facebook.com/editpicture.php … 2559430584

Jeff G 78's Website

  • From: NJ
  • Registered: 2009-06-03
  • Posts: 210

Re: Any veterans willing to share procedures for Stafford?

RobL wrote:

Nope.  You can change drivers.  This isn't SCCA/NASA/Rolex with complex rules about driver changes and refueling. 

What typically happens at Stafford is that the driver pulling off will go straight to the refueling area, get out of the car, someone will start refueling the car, the next driver will be standing there until the fuel is in, then hop in the car.  You should do a once over on the car while you are refueling.  The previous driver and fueler will then help get the new driver settled and his belts tightened before sending them back out.  While the fuel is being added to the car, the previous driver should be telling the next driver about any/all problems with the car, track, and other drivers.

Awesome!  Thanks, that is great advice. 

-Scott

Scott Barton
  • From: San Diego, CA
  • Registered: 2009-04-30
  • Posts: 1,640

Re: Any veterans willing to share procedures for Stafford?

FreeRange wrote:

Dave (Eyesore)

Do you guys have a roles & responsibilities matrix for your pit stops?  I'd love to see it

I've done this for the last two races and it has worked out great.

The Homer: Powerful like a gorilla, yet soft and yielding like a Nerf ball.