It will depend on several factors as noted such as using water to reduce traction, the wear rating of your tires, proper inflation etc.

I will offer this up though: in 2007 my wife and I volunteered at Parade to help at the Michelin demo course set up at Qualcomm. This pavement is very abrasive and by noon completely wore out a set of Michelin PS2s that were on the C4S being used. We had to postpone drives until a new set was mounted.

I do not wish to rain on anyone's parade here so please don't shoot the messenger. A DE event is a great confidence builder in you and your car's abilities.

 

Absolutely!

You bet! We always have several cars with two drivers and it is never a problem.

 

With respect to Pcarnut's opinion...

Tire wear at this event is not an issue with properly inflated tires.

Qualcomm Stadium's parking lot is not a friend to the tire, however I can do nearly a year of Qualcomm Stadium AX events, a track day, AND drive my car to work 2-3 days a week, on trips, etc on the same set of rear street tires. I'm not kind to my tires in any way, either.

I've taken the course twice and am now an instructor. The two days of the Performance Driving school will reduce your tire lifetime by an amount that is more than compensated by the HUGE grin on your face and the driving skills you gain.

The skills taught are NOT racing (note: the event is not a "DE" as defined by PCA)...they are everyday car control skills (panic breaking, emergency lane change, skid control, overall auto awareness), and these skills will benefit you in your everyday life on the freeway, whether in the Pcar or not.

As noted above by cgfen above, the Saturday exercises are done on wetted and soaped surface specifically to reduce tire wear and enhance learning by lowering the speeds needed to create specific driving situations. Sunday's autocross is on a dry surface, but the emphasis is on control, not on speed.

I did not attend the above mentioned Michelin tire event, however it seems that is an isolated case... It is an event that was specifically set up to test the tires, thus they were pushed VERY hard, by many different drivers, almost continuously. If you gave me a test car and said "test the tires", I'm going to go WAY overboard with it...

Look forward to seeing all you students there!
Keith

 

Keith,

yo, reply to the text I sent you...

 

Registration is open!

http://www.motorsportreg.com/index.c...ED2B1AB4167A18

 

Sounds like this is the big boy version of teen survival....really good stuff to learn and practice!

 

Do you plan to one in Los Angeles or Ventura area by chance? Thanks.

 

Mach,

We only hold our school in San Diego, sorry. If it is an option for you to take a half day on Friday the 4th you could drive down, check-in to a hotel and head over to Black Forest where we'll be having the "chalk talk" portion of the school. Let me know if you have any questions, I'm happy to answer them.

Adam

 

To everyone who may be interested, The PCA San Diego Region Performance Driving Schools have been regarded as one of the Premier National PCA Driving School events for over 20 years and normally sell out within a week or two of opening on motorsportsreg.com, so if you have not had the opportunity to attend a performance driving school in your Porsche and receive professional driving instruction, I suggest you get off the couch, sign up for the school and come find out how much more skilled & confident you will be every time you hop in your Porsche after completeing this course.

I have been instructing at these schools since 1996 and can honestly say those who attend have an absolute ball, learn a lot about their own personal limitations and and gain a new appreciation for how capable & great the cars we love & drive truly are.

I hope to see lot's of fellow 993 owners there!


Joel Bowman
2009-2011 PCA SDR CDI
PCA National DE/TT Instructor / Past POC Cup Instructor
General Manager GT3 TEK LLC / Better Bodies Motorsports Design LLC
1995 993 RS Clone

 

i have a stock 996 turbo convertible. it has had all the normal services/maintenance and the only upgrades being wider and larger wheels and tires. What equipment is needed to take the class? Does one require custom seat belts or roll bars, a helmet for example? thanks

 

Hi mtmd,

Your car is fine just the way it is. We require helmets on the second day but we provide those to people that don't have them.

Adam

 

Just a minor correction to this post, Adam. Yes, a car has to be able to pass tech inspection to attend the PDS, but 3-point belts are not required in any pre-'69 car, as the DOT requirement for 3-point restraints was not implemented until then. The Zone 8 safety rules state:

For all Autocross entrants and Time Trial / DE entrants, at least fully functional OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) style 3 point seatbelts are required. Belts that are visibly frayed, damaged or dysfunctional must be replaced with new belts.
Two point belts are acceptable for Autocross if the car did not originally come with seatbelts or only came with 2 point belts OEM. For Time Trial / DE three point belts are required (when the vehicle does not require a 5 or 6 point harness).

The PDS is equivalent to an autocross event, not a TT/DE, so if your car came with lap belts only, as did my '68 911, they are acceptable for the school as long as they are in good condition. If your car came OEM with no factory restraints at all, then at least 2-point belts must be installed with suitable anchors. Hardware should meet or exceed the DOT or SAE strength standards. Example: Forged eye bolts with 7/16" SAE threads. Attachments to sheet metal portions of the car must have adequate backing plates. (1-1/2” O.D. washers minimum backing per 7/16” eyebolt.).

TT (former PCA-SDR tech inspection chair)

 

I think Javier's car needs more consideration than seatbelts!

But, it sounded a whole lot better when I saw it last Saturday, than it did in early Dec!!

 

I wanted to bring this back to the top. There are 50 people signed up so far which means only 2 spots left before we are full! If you are on the fence, get off and sign up!!!