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I'm no pro at this sport. All I've done so far is the school and one event. I don't own a suitable car, which is why I rented the Dirmaster 1600. I rented Kevn's Suby for the school, and that was really nice, but I didn't drive it as hard as I wanted to either.
Here's what I've learned in the short time I've done this-
1) Risk- The risk of vehicle damage in my opinion is slightly higher than autocross on average. How much higher depends how you drive. The risk of personal injury I feel is probably about the same- very, very, low. And the risk to the car is mostly due simply to possible suspension damage from traveling over significant bumps, dips, etc.
The $$ and injury risks here compared to track events are not even in the same ballpark. Anybody that has done track stuff and learned to tolerate those risks has no reason to complain about the risks of rallycross. In my opinion the risks of seriously damaging/totalling a car and potential injury in track events is much higher than at a rallycross. Forty-five mph in the dirt, in a wide open field just does not compare to 90-130 mph next to concrete walls, or even grassy runoffs for that matter.
2) Managing Risks- Our tendency as humans is to want great fun and thrills with zero risk. You can do it, but those things are called video games, not competition driving. I would submit the argument that the philosphy of rallycross driving is really similar to the philosphy of driving on track.
On track, people start slow, build their skills, and increase the aggressiveness with which they drive as their skills improve (theoretically). Everybody at a track event is well aware that if they do something really stupid, it will hurt (either physically or financially). So, the moral of the story is that you learn to drive within your limits and skill level. Yes, people do make mistakes on track. Sometimes they are costly and sometimes you get lucky and just get dirt in the car. The same really applies to autocross, but the overall risk factor is also much lower, so we don't tend to sweat over it as much as say, on track.
Rallycross to me seems much the same way. I had to come to grips with the reality that if I go out there and drive over my head or try things that I'm just not ready for, it could get expensive, embarrasing, or be rather painful. But I'm used to that way of thinking from track events. I want to do all that I'm capable of at my skill level, but no more.
So, in the future, I will minimize the risks in rallycross the same way I do on track or in autocrossing. I figure out how much I'm willing to risk- get a vehicle I am comfortable with, continue learn, and drive within those limits.
3) Driving 10/10ths at Rallycross??
We are used to throwing around the terms "driving at 10/10" for autocrossing and we all probably have similar definitions of what that would mean. But it doesn't mean the same thing at a rallycross to me. I don't think it can. The course conditions can be dramatically different from one run to the other. The g's, the max speed, the optimum line changes every ten minutes or more during the day. That is part of the fun of it. You have to read the course a bit ahead of time and figure out where you want the car to go.
The goal of having to drive consistently and smoothly without cones and mistakes means that there must be some margin for error that you leave on the table. As skills improve and you learn the car, and maybe the course for that day, you may learn to leave a little less on the table and get away with it.
But I would submit that trying to get the absolute maximum g's from the car at every corner in rallycrossing will only result in the miserable overall times because of the conage and the number of times that the max g"s on run 3 and that last sweeper is just not the same as it was on run 1. Rallycrossing is simply not done with the same level of precision and predictability as autocrossing.
At the last rallycross, I would argue that most people I saw drove as hard as they could. I drove as fast and hard as I could at my skill level while avoiding cones. My approach would have been different if I had 6 runs and only the fastest one counted. But that isn't the way the game is played. So, for me, I did all I could do. I saw some other guys that drove 10/10ths and they wiped out 10 cones during the day. So if anybody was turned off my the whole "don't drive 10/10ths" statement, thinking that somehow you won't have fun because you can't push the car, don't be. You can drive as hard as you want in rallycross, as conditions allow, and as long as you drive within your skill level, don't do anything stupid, and don't hit any cones or DNF- you will do very well.
(By the way, we had a school to help people learn what those "stupid" things are.)
As for risks for me personally, I think it is unlikely that I will bend a car.. but I can't say it is impossible.... A successful event for me is a fun weekend where I don't bend anything, and leave the car in the same condition as when it started (ok, maybe a little dirtier).
Sound familiar? I think that is exactly the same stated goal that 99% of us have for track events.
So, in summary, I'd tell those worried about the risks of rallycross, to try it, but to use the same care and caution and plain common sense they use on track and in autocrossing.
Miles
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(and I know there are people out there that will attest to that!!) The school and this last event I have controlled my excitment and tried to concentrate more but I still have a blast and really don't care how I place (it was nice not to be dead last this last event!) So I just wanted to remind everyone that this is a whole lot of fun no madder how you do your first few times out!!! And the CRX is no worse for ware with 2 events and a school (we had a ton of runs) for 2 people!!!
