Using your data logger as a lap timer? Downloading the data but can’t understand the all those squiggly lines? Do you want to find a few extra seconds at your favorite track? Do you want to understand where and how your loosing time to your buddies on track?
Follow along as I work through data collected from club racers and track day warriors.
Have some data you would like me to look over? Send it my way mavidal@mavidal.com.
Analyzing your data
Where and when I can I will be track side and available to look over your data between sessions. I will post here when I will be track side and all you have to do is bring me your data and we will have a short data session. Let me be your race engineer!
Next event I will be at is the Champ Car Sebring September 22 2018
Analysis from past events
Classic driving errors as seen in data
Mechanical Analysis
I love to tinker. In this section you will be able to follow along as I obsess over trivial nuances like gearing ratios, brake bias, tire size, and whatever crawls into my head with the promise of greater mechanical efficiency.
I know all the magazines and coaches tell you to fix the nut behind the wheel first but for me the engineering that goes into races cars is just as fascinating as going fast!
Me in the center with my first speed dealer, my cousin, Charlie, and the Cobra Kai Volvo station wagon. Out of 70+ cars we finished 14 overall some 25 hours later; what fun!
About me - Miguel a. Vidal
My first time on track, which happens to also have been my first race, was in 2011 with Chump Car in the infamous Nelson Ledge Road course. I had no idea what I was doing. Hell I didn’t even know what the racing line was! What I did know was, I was hooked! Fast forward 6 years and I am still hooked. For me a race weekend starts weeks before with prep, practice, and of course reviewing the data. Upon my return from the track the weekend does not end till I have poured over the data.
I received my degree in Ocean Engineering from Florida Atlantic University in 2006 where I fell in love with data analysis. Not long after I started my professional career I moved away from the actual engineering work and into project management. Not surprisingly with my technical background I found myself applying all the skills I learned in engineering school to my projects. As the old adage goes what gets measured gets managed.
My weapon of choice when I hit the track is a World Sports Racer (WSR). Designed and built to be a spec class sports racer to run support races for IMSA in the mid 90s. In addition to racing the WSR in historic racing series I also race in club endurance events and occasionally in spec e30 with NASA.