paradocs98

Nice to see people exercising these cars the way they should.

Hammer911

Curious...at Pocono do you drive on the NASCAR triangle track? I assume so with the 140 top speed you mentioned. High Plains Raceway where I did my DE has 15 corners in 2.5 miles or so, I think my top speed on the main straight was 115-120. What do the experienced DE guys think about the "road course" learning versus the "Speedway" experience?

Ceepe

We ran the double infield in the morning, and the IMSA course in the afternoon, which includes the large banked Nascar turn 1. I had run only that larger IMSA loop last year. I enjoyed the limited time on the double infield in the morning a great deal. I would have liked to run that all day. The road courses seem to be more fun to me and more of a learning experience. I don't love the feeling of being in a banked turn at 120 MPH, but I guess there is some enjoyment in seeing the higher speeds on the main straight when carrying all that speed out of the turn. However, with this car the top speeds were not mind blowing, it was the balance and the ability to carry high smooth speeds through the infield that really was extraordinary. I think these cars lend themselves to a tighter more technical course, over a speedway type course. But everyone likes different things. It was fun doing both.

Zohan

Any one can do 140, what did you get G force meter up to?

Ceepe

I reset it by accident, but it was only 1.39 max I believe. Felt pretty intense in the bank though.

Zohan

The best I could do is 1.21

chuck911

Fester, no, tracking your car does not make you a better driver. What makes you a better driver is lots of classroom study combined with in-car practice with lots of instructor feedback. This doesn't even need to be on a track. In the beginning in fact it is much better if it is NOT on a track! Your best bet is a PCA or BMWCCA Driver Skills class where the basic skills are practiced on a course marked out with cones at mostly 2nd gear speeds, much safer and easier on the car than (high speed) track driving.

A good course will not only make you a better, safer driver, it will also greatly amplify your appreciation and enjoyment of your Porsche. Ask anyone who's done it. The problem is finding a good program. Standards are all over the place, making it way too easy to find yourself getting mere track time and not the instruction you need to improve. See the video posted here recently. So a guy like you, who is right to be concerned about safety, needs to pay close attention to a few details in order to select a truly good program.

Here's what to look for. And by the way this may be "just my opinion" but its also what you will find at all the best schools like Barber, Bondurant, etc.

Classroom time covering safety, flags, etiquette, track entry/exit and passing, track layout, turns, cones for marking braking, turn-in, apex and track-out, car control terminology such as threshold braking, throttle steer, etc.

Track sessions with an instructor with you the whole time. For a novice the emphasis should be on learning the line and being able to drive it within inches, with speed being a very very distant far down the list priority. Smoothness, precision and consistency are your goals. (Your goal should be what ceepe wrote: The defining element of yesterday was smoothness and I seemed to make my instructor proud in that regard.")

Off-track sessions or additional classroom time to gain feedback and learn additional techniques.

It sounds like a lot, but read Hammers account of his DE day, they covered pretty much all of this in one day.

What you want to avoid are programs where they advance you just for having a fast car even though you haven't learned the line, where its hard to learn because they don't mark reference points on the track, and, worst case, where instructors let you get in trouble and laugh it off. (See video uhear posted, practically a primer on how not to run a program.)

As far as insurance goes, the key to not having trouble here is the same: get yourself into a good program and you will not have trouble. For programs that are run like PCA DE where the entire emphasis is on education I can't think of anyone ever being denied coverage. Much more important and to the point however is that if you are in one of these true DE events and doing what you're supposed to be doing your risk of damage is slim to none. (Yes I know uhear damaged his wheels/tires- see above comment on how not to run an event.)

Which car you decide to do this with is up to you, but I would take whichever one I enjoy driving the most- because you will enjoy this! Just look how much fun ceepe is having!