How are you guys adjusting your driving/car when the track gets soaking wet?
For thunderstorm / hail conditions I typically setup for full soft and have it under-steer like a pig. I prefer the car to be predictable so I don't kill myself. My fastest wet times are often a corollary to my confidence level in my setup. In a club context, few are capable of extracting from, nor would appreciate a vehicle that is difficult to control and/or exhibits a tendency toward snap over-steer for example, and the NSX is certainly capable of biting you.
I'll disconnect the rear sway bar. I'll set the rebound to full soft. I'll setup for maximum down-force, and set the angle of attack on the rear wing and diffuser to max. Typically I'll run my pressures low so as to get the tires up to temp quickly, but I may bump them up if hydroplaning is a problem. If you want to tune for the wet like a pro, then have a tire temp probe. If all this sounds too complicated or it is a new car and you are not sure- then got TCS? EPS? ABS? ESP? AWD? Auto-Pilot? Leave every switch with an acronym in the on position and you'll live. :biggrin:
On a serious note, while competition rains are available, all things considered I say +1 on the full tread RA1's, or even a set of street tires like the BFG's are fine as well. I still use the Bridgestone's myself.
Last on the setup- often overlooked is the most cheap/simple: visibility. You can't go fast if you can't see anything. I'll use the Rain X and a fresh wiper blade (like 8$) and sometimes ditch my visor if it fogs due to my breathing.
Now to what really counts. As to the driving- here is my initial disclaimer: a high speed wet road course with an expensive late model exotic is not the proper place to learn basic car control skills. A wet skid pad is. Then move on.
Feel confident? Then if you are not FI you should be able to do full throttle right out of the gate on the straight-aways, even on dead cold tires. + 1 on the smooth inputs, and certainly be cautious, but by the same token you need to stay on game and keep your tire temps up. Paranoia is your enemy. Keep the car sliding so it becomes predictable and doesn't bite you unexpectedly. Focus on what the car is really doing and communicating to you right now, and stop worrying about what it could be doing.
Mitigation- ABS is your friend. Prioritize the corners. Which ones won't ask you for a new car? Think about the details. How far at a given speed will your momentum carry you on over the wet grass in Turn X? Those are the things to be thinking about in pre-grid. That's where you are going to push it. That's where you are going to stack your chips.
To the line. Stay off the walls where water/leaves often pool, stay off the FIA curbing, and don't do moronic things to upset the car. The wet line is the line where the traction is. Watch for the seams in the pavement, crowns for drainage, or areas where the traction can change rapidly. If it is really coming down, you might not be able to see it; so you have to know these course details before you go out. Keep your attention at maximum. Conditions can change fast out there; so what you did on the last lap might not work on the next lap. Trust your corner workers. Their could be hail or a pile-up around the next blind corner. Maybe they are calling the session?
Strategy. Driving in the wet is about patience and consistency. A race is always greater than any one lap. Don't get sucked into a sprint and pile into the first corner of the first lap- that's for amatures. Usually, you are going to have to work for those positions and pick off the cars one by one (or seven at a time in the case of Howard Allen's SCCA Ground school :wink
. Push yourself to claim that extra foot here and that extra foot there. Nose in that extra little bit under turn-in. I am not asking for the impossible or to take a ridiculous risk, just give me that one extra half a car length under braking on every lap. It's the easiest time you will ever get.
Finally, as to the race craft- keep your competitors off balance. If you are leading, then brake checking the hell out of them to psych them out is a tried and true technique. Use your rooster tail to your advantage so they can't see anything. By the other token, if you are following then ride them hard, get them focusing on you, and get them to screw up and spin out.
Are you scared of banging up your six figure car on a wet course? Well they probably are to. Use that as a weapon to your advantage. Show them who wants it more. Present yourself strongly. You want to demoralize them on the pass so they don't even think about trying to hang with you. Don't show any weakness- and they will go back to running their slow laps.
Hope that helps.
My 0.02
