Good - we need some serious Elises at these events!
Since you've got some time, you should think about prepping the car and yourself for the event. It takes some time to accumulate all t his stuff, so here goes:
Car:
- track alignment. There's only 1 place in town run by an experienced track driver/instructor, and thats SoulSpeed.
- pads. Most of the time, "pedestrian" pads lead to dull pedal feel and reduced stopping capabilities as the weekend progresses. You don't need race pads for just starting out (and they will quickly eat your rotors anyway), but there are a number of good dual-purpose pads that will work great. Having brakes is not a thing to have to be concerned with over the weekend, it will take a serious chunk out of the fun if they don't work.
- tire pressure gauge: a good mechanical gauge, not an electronic one (which are inaccurate). Look for a race style gauge, with a mechanism to release air and a large round dial.
- tire pump. You won't change tire pressures wildly (like you might in an autocross), but you will need to put in a few pounds and make adjustments ince you start to get the hang of it. I have an electric pump - with both it's own battery, a line to go to the cars power source, and an AC adapter. I don't recommend large tanks, you don't have the room in your cars to carry it, and their pressure just goes down anyway.
- consumable supplies: just in case. Brake fluid, oil. You should't be going thru any of this, but all cars are a but different and if you are eating any then you'll need to top it off during the weekend.
- small floor jack. As you gain experience with the car, you'll become familiar with the rate it uses up brake pads, tires, etc. To get familiar, you may want to take a look at the car over the source of the weekend. A small aluminum jack would be best (you have limited room anyway). Note that you can usually borrow a jack from somebody.
What you don't need:
- gas can. Popular with drag racers, certainly not needed here. Dangerous to carry anyway. MSR has a gas station next door, right outside the entrance. TWS has several up the highway, and sells gas onsite too (including race gas, whic you don't need and won't make any benefit from).
- race gloves, suit. Forget the fancy gloves for now, they will IMHO just bind you up. I have a set for myself, and dont' always use them. You don't need a suit, and will see very very few people bothering with them. Remember that this is Drivers Education, not a race.
What you'll need at a later point as you develop:
- torque wrench. Assuming you are goiung to get one of these anyway as you develop your tool sets.
- tire temp tool. Contact or infrared, for measuring tire temps to fine tuning your alignment.
- Serious brake fluid.
What you'll need at a much later point:
- race tires. These are inevitable for many drivers.. and it's a whoile new car once you get them.
- tool set. Things wil start to go wrong, or you may want to start making adjustments yourself.
- $$$$$ this hobby can get as expensive as you want. As you get further and further into it, there is never enough time, cash, or available parts to do what you want. Or, since you have a reasonably well designed car anyway, you can enjoy the car very nearly stock and just have fun.
I'm assuming the car is in great shape, since it's nearly brand new. A lot of the older cars that show up may be deficient in brakes, tires, etc. Don't want to loose out on the weekend just because some maintenance item got missed. The inspection should catch these things, but you shoudl have a handle on them regardless since these are serious cars.
Yourself:
- serious helmet (not a motorcylce helmet, but one with the latest Snell rating). You'll want a full-face helmet (we're not dale earnhartds here) witih a visor that goes down. I recommend the largest visor you can find for the widest field of vision. Try the helmet on ahead of time - fit is *crucial*.
- good driving shoes, or race shoes. An extremely narrow sole is critical for narrow-footwell cars like the elise. I use race driving shows, where the sole (what ther eis on it) is considerably narrower than the widest part of the shoe.
- Cooler. There are drinks at the track (lunch at MSR, and a lunch stand at TWS open form bfast to late afternoon) but you'll want your own. I recommend you skip the caffeine, especially once it starts to get hot. You will sweat a lot and need replenishment with the right stuff.
- books/videos: get a head start on the classroom. I'd recommend Bondurant's book. The Drivers Edge also has a CD available with some good stuff on it.
There are a bunch of sites with videos of laps at TWS - most of them bad/wrong to varying degrees. It will always look different when you are there in person, in the drivers seat (not = to the camera angle), making it happen yourself. Also of course different cars have different lines... for example one reason not to go to the master race driving events (oops, I mean PCA) is that they insist on teaching the 911 line and only the 911 line - which for cars with engines in the right place is the dead wrong line. So, any videos shot form that perspective are also wrong for instructional purposes.
This is not a definitive note... just some quick ideas over bfast. The first events are going to be slow anyway - driving sklills are far more important than having a fast car or driving it fast. It's more important to have the car in perfect shape than it is to show up with every possible tool and item. Fortunately, since it's all but a brand new car, you basically don't need very much for your first event. Check the car carefully in advance, get yourself there on time, get some serious sleep the night before.
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