The Global Mazda MX-5 Cup Series continues this weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. It’s always hard to get on a track that has limited availability, like Indy. We know that not only seat time but also the setup knowledge that you gain from testing at a track in advance is critical. That makes Indy really difficult in both of those departments as Ashton Harrison and Patrick Wilmot prepare to race there.
The Virtual Reality goggles added a whole other element to the experience! It literally felt like you were IN the car, from the window net fluttering in the wind, to the rollbars over your helmet (I mean head).
We came up with the next best thing: GB Racing is local to Atlanta, so we went to nearby Simcraft in Marietta for a day of simulator training and practice. Simcraft provides state of the art simulator rigs, which not only allowed the drivers seat-time on track, but also to get a direction on setup because the iRacing simulations for the Global MX-5 Cup car and the Indy track characteristics are both so accurate.
One advantage of being at Simcraft’s facility (they sell these units for retail, as well) was being able to link up in–network on two different rigs. It allowed us to initially do some lead-follow. We worked on car placement and all of the subtleties throughout the Indy circuit in a lead-follow format, just like you would on the real track. This was ultra productive not only to be able to get in a day’s worth of testing, but also to have a quick turnaround time from being on track to debriefing. It winds up being the most cost-effective testing you could ever do!
We’ll soon see how the preparation pays off. The test day for the Global MX-5 Cup Series starts Wednesday afternoon, with rounds three and four of the series on Friday and Saturday afternoons.