I can't help you with specific setups but heres the best advice any rookie can ever get.....

1) Make sure you have the car pointed the direction you want and stand on it...when I say pointed I mean holding your line..don't try to run half throttle all the way around, light that candle comin off the corner and keep it there as long as you are comfy...

2) The best advice for any rookie....GET A BASELINE SET-UP and stick with it for a year....don't adjust anything other than tire pressure and maybe wheel spacing...Until you as a driver get to the point that you can push the car hard and run a consistent line for 20 laps...until you are able to alter your line or driving style to compensate for track conditions...until you are comfortable running different lines on different track conditions....you will see absolutely no benefit in changing bars and shocks all the time. Actually you will make your learning curve considerably longer if you are always changing the suspension while you are still learning how to drive. When you get to the point that you can feel what the track is doing..finding traction or finding slick spots, and you are able to drive thru them effectively, thats when you can start tinkering with your set-up....thats when you will actually know if a set up change helped or hurt.

3) Throw away the cockpit adjustors.....this goes along with number 2.

4) Ask lots of questions...but don't react to every answer you hear...I promise you that there will be at least one guy out there, a guy who runs 8th every night, that will tell you something to the effect of "YOU HAVE GOT TO HAVE A .725 BAR IN THE RIGHT REAR AT THIS TRACK" or "IF YOU DON'T HAVE REBOUND ADJUSTABLE FRONT SHOCKS YOU WON'T BE FAST"....this guy means well and believes what hes telling you but he has no idea what your car consists of set-up wise...there has never and will never be one particular change that made every ill handling car drive like a Cadillac.

5) HAVE FUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! At all costs have fun...in order to do this you have to set reasonable goals...you will not win your first night, theres a good chance you won't win your first year, so don't get discouraged when you don't. Notice and applaud yourself for small gains, the first time you make the A feature, the first time you don't get lapped in the feature, the first time you win or run top 3 in a heat race, etc, etc...Expect to bend some stuff but every time you do learn from it and try to avoid the same situation in the future...

6) Breathe!....until you drive an open wheel car on dirt you have no idea what kind of physical demand it places on you. Learn to relax and breathe cause you will be working your ass off trying to keep the car under you and adrenaline can make you hold your breath for periods of time which can cause quicker physical and mental fatigue...


Oh yeah.....HAVE FUN!!!!!!!!!!