All of my track days so far have been in nice weather with dry tracks, but tomorrow may be my first track day in the rain. Honestly, I'm not looking forward to it (especially after spinning on the skidpad), but I think it's an obstacle I need to get past, so that I develop some idea of what these cars can and can't do in the rain.

Any advice? How much do you have to slow down? How much earlier do you have to brake and how much reduction in brake pressure? How do understeer/oversteer characteristics change? Etc.

 

Consider these points;

• A wet track will keep your tires from heating up and hence your pressures will be more stable. You can probably start pretty close to where you want to end up hot.
• Are your tires good? Well worn street tires, r-comps and slicks are great for a dry environment; not so much in the wet.
• Leave PSM "on".
• Don't be the first car out in your run group. Leave a goodly amount of space between you and the guy in front of you. If he goes off, you will still have time and distance to consider your situation. Similarly, if someone behind you wants to get by and be a hero, let him go.
• Be smooooth, relaxed and work up to speed in increments. Move your brake points back initially. Expect to slide around a little - that's part of the fun - just do it in a controlled manner.
• Avoid puddles and pools of water even if it means going off line.
• Get some Rain-X for your windshield.
• If the rain stops and the track starts to dry you may have a dry racing line and a wet rest of the track. Don't get sucked in should you need to move off line to pass or whatnot.

Enjoy the experience. It's kind of neat once you get over the initial trepidation. Best,

 

Great advice, thanks! I've printed it out so that I can review until it's committed to memory.

 

Did a track day in DUMPING rain just a month ago... it's really fun! PSM on to start, but you can get a little sideways at slow speeds which is always fun. Definitely focus on being smooth on your steering inputs and braking. it's a great experience as long as you don't try to set any track records.

 

I did it yesterday and the weather turned out to be perfect, with no rain. That was good from the standpoint of being able to go faster with confidence, but I didn't get to learn what it's like to drive in the rain.

And even on the dry track, I had a spin anyway (but no damage). Lesson learned: if you have two wheels off, keep them off until you slow down, rather than trying to quickly turn back on the track.

 

Nice! Dry > Wet for sure, but it's definitely an experience. Glad to hear no damage.

 

Just did a wet day last Sat. at a new to me treack. The ridge in Shelton WA. Left my sticky's at home which was a mistake as the track dried out in the afternoon. Smooth is key to running hard inthe wet. You have to learn the track first to get any real speed. I was running my street set up which is my wet track set up. Pacific Northwest guys tend to be pretty fast inthe rain. Lots of practice. I was running Conti DW summer tires. They are excellent in the wet. Not to my liking once the track dried out as they had to much roll to them but very predictable but nothing like sticky's. I was really hustling the little MINI through 9 and 10 up the hill. Checking my times from harry's lap timer there was not much difference in wet to dry times. I found out my instructor was betting with corner works if I could slow enough to make the hairpin in the rain carrying that much speed. He had to pay out several times. One time I also thought I was going off but stayed calm worked the brakes and got her slowed down. Was not the fastest way around the corner but learned the limits and how late I could break. Great way to learn the track. Heading back friday for a dry day on sticky's. Been thinking about all the areas I can pick up more time in my head all week. Studying the track map for where I can set up a better line and straighten out the curves. That wet track day was one of my best track days from both a fun and learning perspective. Tires plus have the right air pressure. The guy next to me was in MINI too. I was droppping my pressures prior to tracking. he stayed stock. I tried to share my tire pressure info but he was good to go. 2006 MINI with a 15K race motor and full race prepped vs my basically stock 2011 JCW. I ran away from him and never really saw him except at the start of the session. He complained about hydro planning all day and no traction. In the afternoon I talked him into lettign me set up his tire pressures. He came back smiling ear to ear. "Like a completely different car". Play with your pressures and ask other for help. it is huge difference at the track. At Thunder Hill they had a race crew checking and working tire pressures after each session. Amazing what just a 1/2 a lb of pressure will do once you are dialed in and all set up. They can tell how you are driving the car just by looking at what your tire temps are doing between sessions. They we a little puzzled readign my temps and first. They recommened and aliegnment. It was actually just me playing with my driving style. Sometimes I will use rear wheel drive lines in my front drive MINI and use lots of trail braking. This really confused them until they started watching some of the non traditional lines I tend to find. Nice thing about the MINI is it will run about any line you want if you have the skill and ***** to keep the throttle down when your brain is screaming lift,lol. The wet is the best learning days.

 

I did a wet track day a long while back in a Miata. It was a blast and a great environment to improve one's driving skills at a little reduced speed (still plenty fast though). I wouldn't be deterred from it -- other than being more worried about the other drivers on the track.