CategoryOff-Topic

PRI 2023 Preview

If you are looking for a dry and sort of informative intro to the Performance Racing Industry (PRI) show, you have come to the right place. I am attending the show with a group of racers and I realize that a lot of you may not be familiar with PRI. Hence the preview.

Converting the Budget Spec Miata to ST6

The 944 Spec, Spec Miata, and ST6 fields bunched up at the start.

I spoke about this before in Trying Not to Finish Last at NCM. Although the budget Spec Miata is a blast to drive, it will never be competitive when the expensive equipment comes out to play. That is why I have decided to move the car to Super Touring 6 (ST6). The move to ST6 will open up the rule book and allow me to build the Spec Miata to a power-to-weight limit that will closer mirror the...

Pressing Pause on the Race Season!

Fracture of my right big toe in several places.

Apparently, I am not a ballerina. This profound realization came to me as I crawled across the living room floor while dealing with a very sharp and clarifying pain. Moments before, I was walking down my stairs, half asleep on my way to bed, and by some butterfly effect of miss position, I completely missed the last step. In fact, I was confidently stepping to a step where there was none, and all...

The Obituary of Memphis International Raceway

Leman start at Memphis International Raceway for the 944 Spec field.

I wasn’t quite sure what to say at the time. Memphis International Raceway is where I learned to race and was a fixture, on and off, throughout my childhood. It was a polarizing track. Home mostly to drag racers, but a few of us were proud to call the road course home.

2022 Wrap up: Part 1?

Spec E30 doing what Spec E30's do.

This is becoming a theme for me and one I am not particularly happy about. The last two years have been full of change coupled with excessive work. I left a job and business that I worked for nearly 20 years, looking to move into a career around my passion. And before I could execute any such plan, an opportunity presented itself that was too large to ignore.

Will Club Racing Survive 2022?

Image of the magellan tent on top of my aluma tilt trailer.

I see a concerning thread on social media as we approach the full-blown race season. Namely, more and more club racers are talking about race budgets falling apart due to insane gas prices and unchecked inflation. Which got me thinking, what can a racer do to mitigate these extra costs?

Sim Racing in VR Part 3 (Pimax 8k Plus)

This headset has me excited. After upgrading my rig to the Pimax 8k Plus I can confidently say VR sim racing has arrived. That’s a bold statement I’ve waited several hardware generations to say by the way.

SEMA 360 Showcase: DYME PSI Rattlesnake

I combed through the product section at specifically looking for new or generally unknown products that would be of particular interest to the racing community and custom builders. One such item that immediately caught my eye was the Rattlesnake by DYME PSI.

Sim Racing in VR Part 2 (Enter PimaxVR)

VR resolutions are improving rapidly leaving the narrow FOV (Field of View) the biggest drawback in sim racing. Most mainstream headsets are in the 100 to 120 degree range limiting peripheral vision dramatically. This is fine in a lot of VR games but in sim racing, peripheral vision is a huge component to immersion. Something serious sim racers traditionally remedy with a 3 screen build. Enter...

Sim Racing in VR Part 1 (Primer)

I’m not sure I actually enjoy sim racing yet. I’ve used sims such as iRacing to learn a new track in the past but never jumped in the competitive ‘deep end’ of the sim so to speak. I’ve always been more drawn to the fps and arcade style genres. Games where you function at 100 percent intensity. Perhaps that is where a distinction could be drawn as iRacing isn’t...

What the _ _ _ _ Happened to the Internet

It’s been a long time since I’ve gone on a good rant and I’m about to show my age with this one. Lately, I find myself asking, ‘What the hell happened to the internet?’ Over the past decade, this once amazing research tool has slowly turned into one big advertisement seemingly designed to distract your focus and drain your pocketbook. This ‘erosion of...

Atlas Shrugged Part 1.

Way off topic but I want to share a little love for one of my favorite books. Part 1 of the Atlas Shrugged movie premiering April 15th, 2011. Visit the Official Atlas Shrugged Movie Web Site!

About the Author:

Chris Simmons is a race car driver, instructor, business owner and all around gearhead. His passion for motorsport started in the drifting community and progressed into wheel to wheel racing of all kinds. When off track Chris can be found training and working on a myriad of projects. After a hiatus from writing, he is back to share his passion, knowledge and experience in regard to motorsports on and off the track.

Full Site Nav

Follow Me