Hot Lap at Buttonwillow Raceway Park

Hot Lap at ButtonwillowRacewayPark

By Jack Miller

Each track has its own personality. Willow Springs is, of course, a big hairy, monster. If it were liquor, it’d be white lightening. Buttonwillow, on the other hand, can be an enjoyable experience even for those whose balls actually fit in their pants and don’t clang when they walk. But make no mistake; it’s plenty fast and plenty challenging. I’ll talk you through each corner of race configuration #1 (see above), the longest set up at almost 3 miles. Very few, if any, of our cars will break 2 minutes. All the gearings will be those of my ’92 C2 or 2000 996. I’ll mention if they’re different. Any speeds I state are just my best guesses. I can’t remember the speeds in my 996 and, in my C2, I just can’t see the speedometer without serious effort.

On February 8-9, 2003, we’ll run Race #1 clockwise. You will enter the track just after turn 1 (Sunrise). Stay to the extreme left until you get to Off-Ramp, the hairpin. This will keep you out of the way of any unexpected traffic.

Let’s start the hot lap with Sunrise, turn 1. As far as front straights go, Buttonwillow’s is relatively short. I’m in 4th gear, and not tempted to go to 5th. Sunrise is definitely a 3rd gear turn. Resist the temptation to go to 2nd gear, if you’re new here. Start it from the far right of the straight, but don’t go onto the gators there. Try it once and you’ll see what I mean. They really grab the car and yank it. The corner’s a mid-apex turn. Pretty straight forward.Itypically trail brake into the corner. The run-off is flat at the track out. Nothing much to worry about. Stay on the gas in the little straight following the turn.

The track doglegs to the left. This is my braking zone for Off-Ramp. Brake while making this left. Get close to the gators on the left. I’m very busy here, trailbraking, and steering with one hand while downshifting. Go deep into this 2nd gear corner. Many people don’t go deep enough and apex way too early. I’ll apex on the gators to the right about two-thirds of the way to the end.Easy on the gas and pay attention to the back end of the car. Too much gas and it’ll be all over the place since you’ll be at high revs in 2nd. The corner opens gradually, so you can carry a fair amount of speed in the second half of the corner. Use the entire track on the left to track out. Remember to shift because you’ll be at redline before you know it. You’ll still be weighted to the left so be careful getting the car in 3rd. I shift to 4th just before the end of the I-5 straight. It’s debatable in my car whether that shift is worth it. You may be able to stay in third. Get hard on the brakes and down to 2nd for Cotton Corners. If you are brand new to the track, you could leave the car in 3rd for this whole upcoming section, but once you’ve got the line, you’ll appreciate the torque in 2nd.

Don’t overcook the 90 degree right hander. Pitch the car going in to keep the car to the right to be set up for the left. (An alternative approach is to consider this a type 2 corner and extend the straight by braking into the left of the corner. I don’t.) Put the car in the indent on the left and stay left. Don’t get too far right, because it’s the final right turn that’s the most important. You can use the gators on the inside of this right. In fact the gators are pretty forgiving and useful through this entire section. Don’t forget to shift to 3rd at the track out before the Grapevine. Heed the same warning as at the Off-Ramp to be easy on your gearbox.

Grapevine’s a fast right hander. A little lift should do it. Haul ass. Shift to fourth just before Club Corner.

The right called Club Corner is flat out or nearly so. The previous shift to 4th should be all the breath you need. Apex close to the gator on your right. You’ll have to decide how much speed you can carry and still get back to the right enough to take the left in Bus Stop. To make the left, you don’t have to be too far right. I’ve seen a lot of drivers really miss the apex on the left. You do need to get to the inside so you can carry a lot of speed through to the track out. There is a lot of room to the right side track out and safe runoff. That said, the final left of Bus Stop comes up quick. Brake decisively, down shift, and stand back on it. Use the gators at the turn in, apex, and track out.

Into Riverside. Accelerate. I definitely get back to the inside, probably about where it says Truck Stop on the map, you’ll see the gators, and track out to the left, but not all the way to the edge. As the track bends right, I’m trying to keep my speed up (90s?) and to pinpoint the apex way around the corner. Again you’ll see the gators up ahead on the right. It feels like Turn 9 at Willow. Not much traction to spare. Once you decide on your tangent to the apex a very slight lift can rotate the car ever so gently, if needed, and then it’s back on the gas heavy to the apex (do NOT hit the gators on the inside) through to the track out. Fast cars are over 100 mph. Keep the peddle to the metal.

Next is a very fast section as the track bends back to the left. You will need all, or almost all of the track on the right just after the bend. Heaven help you if you go off here given the speed, but if you are going too fast, it’s dangerous to yank it back. Many people spin here (I’ve even seen a rollover) and head off into the weeds, mud and whatever awaits you on the left just before the Lost Hill. Work up to it gradually. In my 996 and C2, it’s flat out with good tires. It’s a rush. I hadn’t thought of it prior to writing this, but I’d say this is the hairiest section on the track.

Get back to the left and brake hard enough for Lost Hill using the uphill to scrub speed and down shift to 3rd but keep your momentum. You can go fast over the hill, but this is a place where the advice to apex very late to start and then gradually move it earlier is good advice. Apex too early at the Hill and you will find yourself without enough room once you are over it. Don’t lift tho’, as you will loop it for sure. I had to lift coming over the hill to avoid driving into Greg Smith’s back seat on the first lap of a sprint race there. (Of course, I blame Greg for slowing down.) The car came around fast and went off sideways to the inside. The car leapt over a dirt mound and ended up with two flats and a two-hour clean up job.

Okay, so after you apex Lost Hill late and don’t lift, you track out right near the gators at the bottom of the hill. From there it’s flat out to Star Mazda. The left kink in the Drag Strip is not really a corner since you don’t have to slow down, just be careful passing there because you are flat out and the car will want to drift to the right. At the end before Star Mazda, I’m in 5thin the C2, 4th in the 996.Probably around 120 mph. It’s a good idea to have a specific brake point here as the road ends suddenly.

Are you still with me? This is a long track, isn’t it?Drop all the way down to 2nd and apex Star Mazda toward the latter part of the gators and track out to the gators on the left. Plenty of spins and OTEs here, but it’s safe. Notice that many of my descriptions indicate driving gator to gator, kind of like skiing moguls. Nowhere is that truer than in the upcoming esses. I like to short shift to 4th before entering the esses. If you are patient and turn in late for the first left of the esses and next right, you should be lined up to drive almost straight thru the remainder with little steering input using a fair amount of the gators on each side. Turn in too early and you’ll be very busy steering. It’s very fast through here. Flat out. Very easy in a Boxster. Mid-apex the last left onto the straight leading to Sunset. You may have to lift just a hair in the section coming out of the esses and leading up to this corner if you are in a high HP car. The run-off is quite flat here, but driving off the track at over 100 mph is never fun. You can carry maximum speed through this turn and haul ass up to Sunset. I’m in 5th at the end of the straight in the C2, 4th in the 996. Brake hard, drop to 3rd for Sunset. In both my cars, 3rd feels a bit sluggish, but second is too low. Just live with it if it’s the same in your car. You’ll get moving soon enough. Perhaps in their frustration with this slowish corner, drivers often overcook it. If you do, do not fight it here. Drive off into the infield. There’s plenty of safe, flat dirt. Fight it and you’ll risk looping it into the pit wall on your left. That would be a bad ending to a great lap. Head down the straight. Hop up to 4th around start-finish and get ready to go into Sunriseagain.

Passing zones for all run groups will be:

1. Front straight
2. I-5
3. Drag Strip
4. Straight leading to Sunset

The section of track from I-5 to Drag Strip is long and fast but has no passing section. If you have any doubt about whether to let a car pass at I-5 or not, DO IT! It can be frustrating to follow a slower car all the way through the most fun part of the track: Cotton Corners, Bustop, Riverside, and Lost Hill. Look in your mirrors. If you see someone coming up on you fast in I-5, don’t try to beat him to the corner. Slow down and let the car go. Thanks!

Last thing. Buttonwillow is not exactly easy on brakes. Remember the 5th gear to 2nd gear corner? Make sure yours are in good shape or that you have an extra set of pads. The track does not wear tires as unevenly as Big Willow, but you’re going to get a lot of track time. That means you need enough rubber, too. The track may have your size, but don’t count on it.

Jack Miller is PCASDR Time Trial Chair and President of PacificCollege of Oriental Medicine. His ’92 C2 is a PCA E prepared race car. His 2000 996 is a recently softened street car. It’s almost civilized again. Almost.