Chris Raglin hails from Findlay, Ohio and is a dual member of the Ohio Valley Region SCCA (OVR) and the Northwestern Ohio Region SCCA (NWOR). He competed this year as he has in every other appearance at Nationals in his E Prepared1986 Honda Civic on Avon Tyres.
RR: Is this your first attendance at Nationals?
CR: No. 2008 marked my seventh trip to the National Championship.
RR: Is this your first national championship?
CR: Yes
RR: What was your favorite memory of the competition?
CR: Standing in grid after Wednesday’s runs were completed, as winning the Championship slowly sank in to me.
RR: What do you think was your key to success?
CR: There are so many keys to success required when running in a Prepared class. I think my car has been capable of winning for at least two years. I really didn’t change much on the car. One important thing was that I had a full year to get used to the Avon tires. I switched to them late last season, and only had a month or so to tune before Nationals. This year, I ran on them all season, and the car was fast everywhere. This year was also the first time I’ve run on a fresh set of tires at Nationals – that may have helped some too. The biggest change for me this year was mental. I always put so much pressure on myself at Nationals. This year, I was much more relaxed. The other big change comes from learning from data acquisition. I’m an Engineer, so I often need to see things represented on graphs and charts in order to understand them. Looking at data and intentionally trying different lines and techniques really taught me a lot about what is fast. I also spend as much time as I can watching the people who are always fast, and trying to learn from them.
RR: Who has most influenced you?
CR: Without a doubt, the person who influences me the most is my wife – she tells me what I can and can’t do all the time!!!
RR: Do you have any special pre-race routine, or any superstitions you follow?
CR: I generally find that the more distracted I am with little tasks, the better I drive, so I like having lots of gadgets to mess with. I did listen to Johnny Cash on my way in on Wednesday to calm my nerves – that may become my new superstition.
RR: Do you have any driving aids or tools you use to help you?
CR: As I mentioned, I love data. I try to get data as much as I can, especially at local events where I’m more likely to try more radical changes. I record in-car video, log the motor behavior and log the vehicle motion.
RR: What do you think you do differently than your competition?
CR: I still feel that I way under spend most of my competition. Virtually everything on my car has been made by me. I don’t think that makes me any faster, but I do feel a sense of accomplishment when running against far more expensive cars.
RR: Have you attended any driving school?
CR: No, but I have taught a few, and was once employed as a professional driver evaluating tires for about two years.
RR: Describe your driving style.
CR: Smooth, slow, and deliberate with the controls. I tend to operate the steering, brake, and throttle slower than a lot of people I ride with, but I also tend to make a lot less corrections too. I very rarely chop at the throttle in a turn, which I hear people doing a lot.
RR: What was your first –and favorite autocross car?
CR: First autocross car – 1978 VW Rabbit on all-season tires. It was a Porsche club autocross. The people were not very helpful or friendly, except one guy from the SCCA who was there. He gave me the SCCA’s schedule and I started autocrossing with them soon after. My favorite autocross car would have to be the Civic. I’ve had it for 15 years now, so I must like it.
RR: If you could change one Solo rule – either for your specific class or in general — what would it be?
CR: In Prepared classes, I really think that roll cages should be required if the safety structure of the vehicle is altered. Right now, we are allowed to remove door beams, roof supports, etc. and only require roll cages on open vehicles.
RR: Who would you like to thank for your success?
CR: First and foremost, I have to thank my family for allowing me the time to race. I also need to thank Cooper Tire. Cooper is a great place to work, and they have been very supportive of my racing efforts with the Avon race tires I run.
Pictures courtesy of http://www.gotcone.com
For copies of photos email me at david @ evorticity.com
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