PSDS Intro & Masters Report
10-25-2008, 02:01 PM
#1
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
PSDS Intro & Masters Report
I spend 4 days in Birmingham this week at PSDS doing 1) the 2 day Intro course and 2) the 2 day Masters course. Brian (Mjones) suggested that I do the 4 day combo since I am relatively new to the track.
The first thing I want to say is a huge public thanks to Brian for his suggestion. The PSDS is extraordinary and my driving abilities have been significantly enhanced. It truly is the best mod that you can do for your car. The only bad thing about it is that at some point you have to park the car and go home.
There were a few Rennlist members present:
-Pete (Zellamsese) was with me for both courses. I think he’ll agree that this is a fantastic 1-2 punch as a driving experience. Pete – great meeting you!
-Brian (Mjones) is a true fixture at PSDS. EVERYBODY there knows him and loves him. He’s a fantastic guy. When he preaches about PSDS,….you should listen!!!!! I used to just think he was crazy,….well, maybe he is a bit. J/k Brian.
-Brendon (Brendorenn) was there for the 2nd course. Very funny guy but I think Hurley probably thinks we’re both insane after our dinner conversations.
-Colm (Colm) was present for the Masters and is a repeat offender at PSDS! Great meeting you.
-Adam, the final part of the CA connection was having a great time and like Brendon is a very funny guy.
There have been numerous write ups about PSDS so I won’t go into too much detail.
The Ross Bridge Resort, the preferred lodging for PSDS, is a very nice hotel. On check in you receive a PSDS folder with the schedule and track info.
A shuttle bus comes every morning at 645 and 7 to take you to Barber which is about a 30 minute drive. You arrive at the PSDS which has its own building on the track ground – the teaching facility is quite nice and includes a continental breakfast and good coffee (thanks Rebekah!).
The lecture each morning covers some history of PSDS, instructor introductions, simple physics (weight transfer, friction circle, string tied to steering wheel and gas/brake pedal model), heel-toe basics, and track layout. The classroom part is less than an hour each morning and then it’s off to driving activities!
The classes are split in two and then into smaller groups. One group goes to the track and one group does off-track activities (AutoX style).
There are a variety of off-track activities that take place in some of the facility’s parking lots with cones set up like an AutoX.
-There is a large oval pattern in which you can practice heel-toe downshifting. This is done with a Cayman. All of the instructors execute seamless HT shifts on this little loop and they each have slightly different styles. Hurley uses more of a classic HT using the ball of his foot on the brake and his heel on the gas, while the other instructors I drove with do more of a roll. Rich does an incredibly quick HT that is very smooth. This exercise definitely helped me refine my HT technique and by the end of my 4th day I was probably getting about 75% really nice HT on the track.
-The WET skidpad is a figure eight course with sprinklers that keep it flowing with water. I am told they recycle the water which is a nice thing. They also overinflate the tires to help. This is the place to practice oversteer and understeer. You drive the car (a C2 Tiptronic in M2) with PSM off so that you can learn to feel AND deal with understeer and oversteer in an extremely safe environment. Then you do some laps with PSM on – it is extraordinary what that system does for the car. I would love to get my 4S on that skidpad. While the entire school is NOT a competitive thing, they do run “the fastest man alive” contest at the wet skidpad to see who gets around the fastest. It’s really quite interesting to watch in that the person who looks like they’re the slowest (no understeer, no wheel spin, no oversteer) is the fastest,….which is the whole idea.
-The final off-track activity was a mini AutoX course which was run in a Boxster Tip (intro course) and a Boxster S Tip (Masters course). The course is run in M2. There is a friendly competition in which each group runs 3-4 laps, doing a quick pit stop (driver swap).
In the Intro course I had the single fastest lap of the competition and was awarded a Michelin polo shirt. I absolutely crushed my nearest competitor by 0.01 second.
In the Masters course, Pete and Brendon performed the fastest pit stop.
Oh did I mention that I had the fastest AutoX time?
OK,….so off to the track. You take a number of guided driving tours of the track in a VW van or a Cayenne. For the Masters course you get out of the cans at the more difficult corners and watch Hurley drive by at speed. The track is magnificent. It is very smooth. Most of the more treacherous parts have ample run off room and several gravel pits. I’m pleased to report that in 4 days, noone went off track! What you don’t see on TV is that Barber is full of significant elevation changes,…it is really cool. When you’re driving the corners you don’t fully have an appreciation for these changes but when you get out of the vans and walk the track you realize just how steep many parts are.
In both courses, the track cars are C2. The Sport and PSM disable buttons have been disabled. There are a handful of Tips available for people that want them. They will be getting PDK cars soon but the percentage of the fleet is still up in the air. They break out the C2S cars with PCCB for one session although they did not in the Masters course because the track was wet (which is their discretion). While the S was more fun in some ways, the C2 is an equal learning tool.
The intro course relies on follow the leader with rotations of the first and last cars (in back of the instructor of course) every 1-2 laps. There is a 1-way radio and the instructors are very well aware of what’s going on behind them. The instructors will go faster or slower depending on how the group is progressing. This works quite well although I had a real poke in my Masters group.
The Masters course is follow the leader for day 1 and then solo on day 2. You get quite a bit of track time in the 2nd day of the Masters….I even cooked my brakes a little. On my second day of the Masters I was doing well with my HT.
On day 2 of the Intro course, there is a Cayenne component which was tremendous fun as well. They take you out in the woods with a Cayenne. The most impressive part to me was going down an incredibly steep bumpy rocky muddy slope. With the Cayenne in M1 you go down the hill with no gas and no brake! The Cayenne selectively brakes each wheel and it goes where you point it….very very cool.
There were hot laps in the intro course in the C2S which were lots of fun. On day 2 of the Masters, there was too much rain so they made the decision not to give hot laps. In the Intro they also took us out in the Cayenne Turbo for hot laps….pretty impressive.
OK,….time for some interesting tid bits and gossip stuff….
-I learned that Hurley Haywood is a cat person,….which is of course a great thing in my book. He told me that he grew up with dogs but being on the road all the time as a racer that he went the cat route. He has 3 beautiful Somali cats!
-I learned that there really are some Southern people (please note I said some) that are bigots. A guy in my group told me that he refers to Obama and Hillary as “the spook and the witch.” When I said “OMG,” he looked puzzled. This was said of course while the Black person in our group was driving the course.
-There was a guy who owns 2 GT3s (one is his wife’s) and talked about a variety of tracks he’s gone to. After the HT exercise in the parking lot, they gave him a Tiptronic for the track….go figure. Nuff said.
A big thanks to all of the instructors at PSDS who made this week so memorable AND so useful for me:
Hurley Haywood, Cass Whitehead, Christian Coggins, Daniel Eastman, Sherman Engler, Rich Hull, James Gue, Peter Litzenberger, Keith Macintosh, and Owen Trinkler. I hope I didn’t leave anyone out! They were all outstanding instructors and great guys to chat with at meal and beer time.
On Dec 16-17 PSDS is offering a special course with the following instructors: Hurley Haywood, Vic Elford, Derek Bell, Patrick Long and Brian Redman. I believe the car will be a 997TT. Call them now if you are interested as it will be limited in size.
I didn’t take many good pics,…maybe some of you other guys with me can post:
Me and HH:
The first thing I want to say is a huge public thanks to Brian for his suggestion. The PSDS is extraordinary and my driving abilities have been significantly enhanced. It truly is the best mod that you can do for your car. The only bad thing about it is that at some point you have to park the car and go home.
There were a few Rennlist members present:
-Pete (Zellamsese) was with me for both courses. I think he’ll agree that this is a fantastic 1-2 punch as a driving experience. Pete – great meeting you!
-Brian (Mjones) is a true fixture at PSDS. EVERYBODY there knows him and loves him. He’s a fantastic guy. When he preaches about PSDS,….you should listen!!!!! I used to just think he was crazy,….well, maybe he is a bit. J/k Brian.
-Brendon (Brendorenn) was there for the 2nd course. Very funny guy but I think Hurley probably thinks we’re both insane after our dinner conversations.
-Colm (Colm) was present for the Masters and is a repeat offender at PSDS! Great meeting you.
-Adam, the final part of the CA connection was having a great time and like Brendon is a very funny guy.
There have been numerous write ups about PSDS so I won’t go into too much detail.
The Ross Bridge Resort, the preferred lodging for PSDS, is a very nice hotel. On check in you receive a PSDS folder with the schedule and track info.
A shuttle bus comes every morning at 645 and 7 to take you to Barber which is about a 30 minute drive. You arrive at the PSDS which has its own building on the track ground – the teaching facility is quite nice and includes a continental breakfast and good coffee (thanks Rebekah!).
The lecture each morning covers some history of PSDS, instructor introductions, simple physics (weight transfer, friction circle, string tied to steering wheel and gas/brake pedal model), heel-toe basics, and track layout. The classroom part is less than an hour each morning and then it’s off to driving activities!
The classes are split in two and then into smaller groups. One group goes to the track and one group does off-track activities (AutoX style).
There are a variety of off-track activities that take place in some of the facility’s parking lots with cones set up like an AutoX.
-There is a large oval pattern in which you can practice heel-toe downshifting. This is done with a Cayman. All of the instructors execute seamless HT shifts on this little loop and they each have slightly different styles. Hurley uses more of a classic HT using the ball of his foot on the brake and his heel on the gas, while the other instructors I drove with do more of a roll. Rich does an incredibly quick HT that is very smooth. This exercise definitely helped me refine my HT technique and by the end of my 4th day I was probably getting about 75% really nice HT on the track.
-The WET skidpad is a figure eight course with sprinklers that keep it flowing with water. I am told they recycle the water which is a nice thing. They also overinflate the tires to help. This is the place to practice oversteer and understeer. You drive the car (a C2 Tiptronic in M2) with PSM off so that you can learn to feel AND deal with understeer and oversteer in an extremely safe environment. Then you do some laps with PSM on – it is extraordinary what that system does for the car. I would love to get my 4S on that skidpad. While the entire school is NOT a competitive thing, they do run “the fastest man alive” contest at the wet skidpad to see who gets around the fastest. It’s really quite interesting to watch in that the person who looks like they’re the slowest (no understeer, no wheel spin, no oversteer) is the fastest,….which is the whole idea.
-The final off-track activity was a mini AutoX course which was run in a Boxster Tip (intro course) and a Boxster S Tip (Masters course). The course is run in M2. There is a friendly competition in which each group runs 3-4 laps, doing a quick pit stop (driver swap).
In the Intro course I had the single fastest lap of the competition and was awarded a Michelin polo shirt. I absolutely crushed my nearest competitor by 0.01 second.
In the Masters course, Pete and Brendon performed the fastest pit stop.
Oh did I mention that I had the fastest AutoX time?
OK,….so off to the track. You take a number of guided driving tours of the track in a VW van or a Cayenne. For the Masters course you get out of the cans at the more difficult corners and watch Hurley drive by at speed. The track is magnificent. It is very smooth. Most of the more treacherous parts have ample run off room and several gravel pits. I’m pleased to report that in 4 days, noone went off track! What you don’t see on TV is that Barber is full of significant elevation changes,…it is really cool. When you’re driving the corners you don’t fully have an appreciation for these changes but when you get out of the vans and walk the track you realize just how steep many parts are.
In both courses, the track cars are C2. The Sport and PSM disable buttons have been disabled. There are a handful of Tips available for people that want them. They will be getting PDK cars soon but the percentage of the fleet is still up in the air. They break out the C2S cars with PCCB for one session although they did not in the Masters course because the track was wet (which is their discretion). While the S was more fun in some ways, the C2 is an equal learning tool.
The intro course relies on follow the leader with rotations of the first and last cars (in back of the instructor of course) every 1-2 laps. There is a 1-way radio and the instructors are very well aware of what’s going on behind them. The instructors will go faster or slower depending on how the group is progressing. This works quite well although I had a real poke in my Masters group.
The Masters course is follow the leader for day 1 and then solo on day 2. You get quite a bit of track time in the 2nd day of the Masters….I even cooked my brakes a little. On my second day of the Masters I was doing well with my HT.
On day 2 of the Intro course, there is a Cayenne component which was tremendous fun as well. They take you out in the woods with a Cayenne. The most impressive part to me was going down an incredibly steep bumpy rocky muddy slope. With the Cayenne in M1 you go down the hill with no gas and no brake! The Cayenne selectively brakes each wheel and it goes where you point it….very very cool.
There were hot laps in the intro course in the C2S which were lots of fun. On day 2 of the Masters, there was too much rain so they made the decision not to give hot laps. In the Intro they also took us out in the Cayenne Turbo for hot laps….pretty impressive.
OK,….time for some interesting tid bits and gossip stuff….
-I learned that Hurley Haywood is a cat person,….which is of course a great thing in my book. He told me that he grew up with dogs but being on the road all the time as a racer that he went the cat route. He has 3 beautiful Somali cats!
-I learned that there really are some Southern people (please note I said some) that are bigots. A guy in my group told me that he refers to Obama and Hillary as “the spook and the witch.” When I said “OMG,” he looked puzzled. This was said of course while the Black person in our group was driving the course.
-There was a guy who owns 2 GT3s (one is his wife’s) and talked about a variety of tracks he’s gone to. After the HT exercise in the parking lot, they gave him a Tiptronic for the track….go figure. Nuff said.
A big thanks to all of the instructors at PSDS who made this week so memorable AND so useful for me:
Hurley Haywood, Cass Whitehead, Christian Coggins, Daniel Eastman, Sherman Engler, Rich Hull, James Gue, Peter Litzenberger, Keith Macintosh, and Owen Trinkler. I hope I didn’t leave anyone out! They were all outstanding instructors and great guys to chat with at meal and beer time.
On Dec 16-17 PSDS is offering a special course with the following instructors: Hurley Haywood, Vic Elford, Derek Bell, Patrick Long and Brian Redman. I believe the car will be a 997TT. Call them now if you are interested as it will be limited in size.
I didn’t take many good pics,…maybe some of you other guys with me can post:
Me and HH:
10-25-2008, 02:34 PM
#2
Pro
Just a side note.
If you're planning to do the PSDS don't forget to bring your golf clubs (if you're a golfer of course). There's a great course on Ross Bridge grounds and a couple equally as good right down the road.
It's a 2 for 1 deal; motor sports and golf. How can you go wrong?
If you're planning to do the PSDS don't forget to bring your golf clubs (if you're a golfer of course). There's a great course on Ross Bridge grounds and a couple equally as good right down the road.
It's a 2 for 1 deal; motor sports and golf. How can you go wrong?
10-25-2008, 02:49 PM
#3
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Great write up. I did the intro this summer and really enjoyed it.
To clarify, when you say the psm is disabled, it means you aren't able to turn it OFF.
The dinner is a big highlight. I was a lot of fun to hear the racers swap stories. And, you get a feel for what a tough lifestyle it really is.
To clarify, when you say the psm is disabled, it means you aren't able to turn it OFF.
The dinner is a big highlight. I was a lot of fun to hear the racers swap stories. And, you get a feel for what a tough lifestyle it really is.
10-25-2008, 03:32 PM
#4
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
Great write up. I did the intro this summer and really enjoyed it.
To clarify, when you say the psm is disabled, it means you aren't able to turn it OFF.
The dinner is a big highlight. I was a lot of fun to hear the racers swap stories. And, you get a feel for what a tough lifestyle it really is.
To clarify, when you say the psm is disabled, it means you aren't able to turn it OFF.
The dinner is a big highlight. I was a lot of fun to hear the racers swap stories. And, you get a feel for what a tough lifestyle it really is.
10-25-2008, 04:46 PM
#5
Three Wheelin'
Dave - Honest ?: How does the course differ from a (well run) DE event (as you have now done each type)? Can you compare/contrast. Thinking of going in March 09. Thx in advance.
10-25-2008, 04:57 PM
#6
Three Wheelin'
Great write up Dave.
Does your PSDS experience reinforce your decision stick with your current car and put the TT on hold. I know my car is far more capable than myself.
Does your PSDS experience reinforce your decision stick with your current car and put the TT on hold. I know my car is far more capable than myself.
10-25-2008, 05:33 PM
#7
Nordschleife Master
Dave: Great report 
Can these sessions be tailored? For instance a PDK driver may not care for HT sessions. I clearly do not care for Cayenne sessions at all.
Can these sessions be tailored? For instance a PDK driver may not care for HT sessions. I clearly do not care for Cayenne sessions at all.
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10-25-2008, 05:35 PM
#8
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
PSDS is expensive w/o doubt, but I do think it is very very solid. Can you learn to drive really well just by going to PCA events? My guess is YES!
All this being said, I am planning on returning for another Masters course with them some time next year....unless of course the economy continues to be so ill.
10-25-2008, 05:37 PM
#9
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
I think my present C4S is more than 'enough' car for a guy at my level and that the extra power of the TT would be fun but not necessarily useful for me. I still do want a TT as it's always been my dream car.
10-25-2008, 05:42 PM
#11
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
I'm not sure what the Tiptronic folks did during the HT exercise. I think they were asked to do it....I think it's a good skill to learn even if it's just for fun!
As for the Cayenne session, it is only one part of the afternoon session of the 2nd day of the Intro course. I think the only people who bowed out were those that were experiencing motion sickness from the other drills. I would say that even if you majorly despise the whole off-road thing, most people would find the Cayenne module to be very interesting and fun. AFAIK, you cannot 'swap' it for another activity.
10-25-2008, 05:45 PM
#12
Three Wheelin'
I've only had 4 days of DE with PCA. I have had two excellent instructors one of which is Jay Gratton (fellow RLer). I learned quite a bit at PCA as well. At PSDS the instructors are ALL great. At PSDS, when you're not driving, you're watching others while chatting with instructors. Their critique of others also helps you when you're back in the driver's seat. It is full immersion therapy! I think this is the biggest difference between a DE and a driving school.
PSDS is expensive w/o doubt, but I do think it is very very solid. Can you learn to drive really well just by going to PCA events? My guess is YES!
All this being said, I am planning on returning for another Masters course with them some time next year....unless of course the economy continues to be so ill.
PSDS is expensive w/o doubt, but I do think it is very very solid. Can you learn to drive really well just by going to PCA events? My guess is YES!
All this being said, I am planning on returning for another Masters course with them some time next year....unless of course the economy continues to be so ill.
10-25-2008, 05:58 PM
#14
Rennlist Member
Thread Starter
10-25-2008, 11:54 PM
#15
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Yes it was a great Masters!!
Rain driving was an unexpected bonus on Friday. Yes speeds were down as you tippy toe around the track feeling the car, slip around and not react as clearly as it will in the dry. Towards the end of the day the rain pretty much stopped and the line started to dry out and the feeling of the car started to return, tires were starting to jitter. All a plus!!
If you have never done PSDS, just do it! You will NOT be dissapointed
Great to meet Dave!
Rain driving was an unexpected bonus on Friday. Yes speeds were down as you tippy toe around the track feeling the car, slip around and not react as clearly as it will in the dry. Towards the end of the day the rain pretty much stopped and the line started to dry out and the feeling of the car started to return, tires were starting to jitter. All a plus!!
If you have never done PSDS, just do it! You will NOT be dissapointed
Great to meet Dave!
Last edited by MJones; 08-03-2010 at 12:31 PM.