beowulf

Since there are some interested parties, I will provide details about my participation at the Porsche Sport Driving School at Barber Motorsport - Alabama.
1. The price for the intro course is 1795. (Precision Course)
2. It's a full day of activities. No significant downtime. Quick intro in the AM then out to driving. Participants are split into groups; about 4-5 per group.
3. Helmets are provided (though I brought my own).
4. The cars: 911 CS, Cayman S, Boxster and Spyder. PDK and manual.
5. The courses: Autocross (Boxster; each group is timed against the others to get a bit of competitive spirit), skid pad (911 PDK), lane change, and the great track (911 PDK/manual; Cayman PDK). You get two sessions on the track. The group follows the instructor who is in the lead car and after each lap the student behind the instructor goes to the back of the queue -- at the long starting straight. There are radios in the cars and the instructor comments on how your doing regarding speed, line your taking etc. Surprisingly, the whole track can be done in fourth gear in 911 and you are encouraged to minimize shifting and focus on technique. The 911 laps are videotaped and given to you on a memory stick.
It would have also been nice to get an instructor in the passenger seat but they did catch a lot of things I was doing incorrectly. ( On the autocross/skidpad you do ride with an instructor. )
They also noted I was much faster than the other guys in my group so they gave me a personal instructor for a few laps.
6. This course is more for novices. Those with more track experience will likely find this too basic.
7. Overall, it was a lot of fun. I am just recently starting to get involved with taking my car to the track and learning about correct line, trail braking, apex etc. I got better feedback than my last
instructor with Porsche Owners Club (who was sitting in the passenger seat). I plan on going to the
next level (Performance Course then followed by Master course) once I've completed a few more track events. For those not really interested in taking their P-car to the track this is a great and condensed way to learn more about your car in a variety of courses. You learn the limits without potentially ruining your car.
8. End of day treat is a BALLISTIC ride around the track in a Panamera Turbo and 911 Turbo with instructor at the helm. They start with launch control and the speeds achieved in both cars is incredible; their technique is flawless and make sure your seat belt is buckled since you will fly out a window otherwise.
As an aside, I didn't think much of the Panamera until this event. The Turbo is definitely overbuilt and
I'm sure capable of easily setting good times at Nurburgring - and doing it safely.

cheers to all.
PS: the instructors mentioned someone who has participated about 30 times with them; GT3 owner. I think he's a Rennlister?

NC 997

Good post.. I'm going to try to go in 2011.. I'm planning on attending the 2-day course.

Coochas

I've done the 2-day intro, the 2-day masters, and the 3-day competition courses. I loved all of them. I'm glad you had a good time. The instructors are fantastic and the whole experience is just a blast.

The person they are referring to is Brian aka MJones. He is ultra enthusiastic about PSDS and a great guy!

cannon1000

Can you drive your own car or just theirs?

Discounts available at all?

Sounds like a blast!

buckwheat987

You can't drive your own. Some discount on masater course when you complete first two day course.

Good time. But I recommend one or two DE's first to really accelerate learning.

enduro963

Thanks for the info Beowulf!

I was there 4 years ago, on a motorcycle and it was a blast! Coming out of turn 4, on throttle and praying there was no one there. I loved the track, the surrounding woods, and the museum!

JMaples

I live about 5 miles from the Barber track. You can drive your own car at driver's events, which are hosted by the local BMW car club and Porsche car club about twice a year. I took my "beater" maxima out there couple years ago just for kicks (and my wife's 335i). Indy racing and motorcycle racing is worth a trip to the tract as well. And the museum is very impressive (especially for those that love 2 wheeled vehicles).

Carrera06997S

I just completed the two day course in August of this year. I am planning on returning for the masters course soon. It was the most fun that I have ever had in a car! The track is awesome and the instructors are great. I would highly recommend it, it is well worth the money.

brt3

I am dying to do the course and am shooting for early March. At that point I can do the "performance" and "masters" courses back-to-back. Extravagant? Perhaps. I have lots of track experience, but this is my first 911. I want to really have a handle on how these cars perform at the limits before trying to explore the limits in my own car...

beowulf

Great BRT3, The instructors are top notch!
I'll do the Performance in Feb. and Masters in March or April.

As an aside, I'm timing my GTS Euro Delivery with the F1 Catalunya GP.
I'm interested in also experiencing some tracks. Either with Porsche Sport or
with an independent outfit and my car. I'm considering some options such as: Silverstone, Magny Cours/Le Mans, Nurburgring/Leipzig, Spa, or Monza/Imola. If any one has info/recommendations please let me know. thanks.

brt3

Your Euro delivery trip sounds incredible; have a great time secure in the knowledge that many Rennlisters are living vicariously through you! Post lots of photos, in other words...

If I could choose ONE of those tracks to drive it would have to be Spa. It might not be the best to drive in a streetable 911, but it has such incredible history...

beowulf

Thanks brt3. After completing the Barber event, I can confirm that our 911's are more than capable on the track so any of these settings should be great fun -- just need to keep the shiny side up.

DMoore

Back-to-back Performance/Masters is the way to go. I did that in April of last year and had a ball. I was a total novice with zero track/auto-x background and learned a ton. However, there were several people there with considerable track experience and all agreed that they learned a lot. Most thought that having prior experience made the classes even better.

Now that I've spent this summer doing DE's and AX's (why didn't I do this sooner) I'm chomping at the bit to go back to PSDS. I do think (and my instructors agree) that PSDS gave me a big leg up as a novice DE driver. One instructor was quite surprised to see me trail braking. I told him that PSDS puts quite a bit of emphasis on that.

DMoore
'09 C2S
'10 P4S

MJones

That would be me!!

Did you enjoy the hotlaps?

ADias

Fantastic! And I suspect your avatar photo was shot at Barber.