Due to the weather forecast, AONE’s first Autocross of the season has been delayed until this Sunday, June 1st, when it's scheduled to be sunny and mild! All other info remains as below!
 

as you recall from last year, AONE is back in the autocrossing game!  If you were at either one of our autocross events (or both), you’re already pumping up your tires for this year’s sessions. If you weren’t but read the June or August reports, you probably are too!

This year’s first outing will be on Sunday, June1st. (Keep an eye on your email inbox for final confirmation and for any changes.) This session will again be in the parking lot of the Nashoba Valley Ski Area in Westford, MA, although we’re eagerly seeking alternatives for future events.

Autocrossing is a great way to do some light competition in your Alfa (or Lesser Car, if you insist) with very low risk. Basically, we use a bunch of cones and chalk to define a course in an open parking lot, making sure to avoid potential contact with curbs, sheds, or other obstacles, and keeping the speeds limited to something that, while fun, are also safe. Then, cars run the course, one at a time (i.e. no collisions!), competing for the lowest elapsed time in their class. If you hit a cone, or go off course, then you are penalized (two seconds for each cone hit, and twenty seconds for an off-course).

The class your car will run in is determined by the AROC Competition Code. It’s a formula that takes several factors into account, such as what your Alfa started life as (e.g. a 1.3L Giulietta or a 3.0L Verde) and then what modifications have been made to it (e.g. engine and suspension upgrades). So your souped-up Spider might end up running in the same class as a stock Verde, for example. The Alfa classes run from H (smallest displacement, least modified) through A (largest displacement, most modified), plus an L class for Lesser Cars. Up to three certificates will be awarded for first, second, and third place in each class (depending on how many class entrants there are), plus Fastest Time of Day (Alfa only). There is usually time for at least a half dozen runs for each participant!

Since these are lower-speed, controlled events, safety equipment is minimal. No roll cages or roll bars are required, even in open-top cars. For clothing, helmets are required, as are closed shoes and non-synthetic materials. We’ve got plenty of helmets you can borrow!

Your club has procured all the equipment we need—cones, chalk, brooms, helmets, and even some real high-tech timing equipment! We’re serious about this!

The day will start with an instruction and orientation session at 9:00am sharp, followed by a walk-through of the course we’ve set up. We strongly urge you to show up before 9:00, even if you’re an experienced autocrosser! Your car will be tech inspected to make sure that it’s basically safe and sound. Timed runs will start at 9:30. We’ll break for lunch at noon, and do more timed runs from 12:30 till 3:00, followed by some fun runs afterward if we still have the energy.

The cost for AROC/AONE members is $25 per driver ($30 per driver for non-members), which goes to offset the parking lot rental and required insurance costs. The things you should do and bring are:

1) Add about six pounds of pressure to your tires

2) Bring lunch! Everyone’s expected to supply their own.

3) Bring friends and family! This is a great way for new and old drivers alike to learn car control and improve their driving skills.

If you’d like to help with this fun and exciting club project, you can contact De Facto AONE Competition Chair Kevin Redden at kredden@cisco.com. We’d like to get as many members involved as possible! Any prior experience in setting up an autocross, or an interest in learning about it, will be gratefully accepted. The organizers all plan on running our cars as well, so don’t think you won’t get your full share of runs if you help out!

We are also desperately looking for good, cost-effective autocross sites. If you have any leads, contact Kevin Redden (see above).

Autocrossing is a great way to hone your driving skills and improve your driving reflexes. Not only that, it’s really a blast! Even if you’ve never autocrossed or done anything like it, don’t be shy! We’re also encouraging younger drivers to join us—what better way for a new driver to learn car control than in a controlled, safe environment. We’ll have some "classroom" instruction available for newer drivers (or anybody who would like it), and will also have some experienced drivers available for in-car instruction.

So come out and join us on Sunday, June1st for our first 2008 autocross—you won’t be sorry! Be sure to check back here regularly for announcements and late-breaking news.

Directions

• Boston or Rt. 95/128: Take Rt. 2 West to Concord Circle, then West on Rt. 2A/119 about 6 miles to Powers Road (on your right)

• North of Boston: Take Rt. 495 South to Exit 32 (Westford), left off exit, first right on to Rt. 110 to Powers Road (1 mile on your left).

• North Shore: Take Rt. 128 South to Rt. 3 North to Rt. 495 South, Exit 32.

• South of Boston: Take Rt. 495 North to Exit 31 (Littleton Common), then East on Rt. 2A/119 about 2 miles to Powers Road (on your left).

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