My Journey to Club Racing

I did my very first PCA Club Race on April 23/24 2021 at Lime Rock Park, CT. It took me 7 years to get there via the PCA Driver Education program.

I had been taking my BMW sedans to Bill Rudtner's shop South Shore Performance for a number of years. I always admired the cool looking 911s he had in the lot. He also put in a word for DE every time I got there, being the chief instructor for the Metro PCA region.

Fast forward to 2013 and I purchased my first 911. So of course I had to check out this DE thing Bill kept telling my about. I did my very first DE at Watkins Glen back in 2014. It was in a 991 Carrera 4S. I was hooked from the very start. I ended up participating in almost all of the Metro DE events, which includes Watkins Glen, Lime Rock, NJMP Thunderbolt and Lightning, and Summit Point. We also did one event at Palmer. I also went with the guys a few times to the Zone 2 event at VIR.

I traded in my Carrera for a 2015 GT3 because I had envy of all the guys at the track with their GT3s. I still have that car, a 991.1. I DE'd it for a while. In 2015, on the day after he graduated high school I took my 18 year old son up to Lime Rock for the 3 day Skip Barber in the open wheel cars. He also got hooked as soon as he drove those cars on track.

So now I had a needed a second car since he was going to also go to the Metro events with me. I told Bill I was looking for a second car. He told me I could purchase the Spec Boxster he was building at the time. Which I did. Everyone I told about purchasing the Boxster told me it was a great decision as I would learn how to really drive on track rather than relying on horsepower. It is what's knows as a momentum car.

So now we would go to the track with both cars, or sometimes just the Boxster and share it. A year or so later Bill told me he was selling his race cars. These were: 996 RS which had run at LeMans, 2 997 Cups and his Turbo 935 he had built from a 930. My plan had been to buy one of these 5 years down the road but since he needed to sell them now I decided to go for one. I ended up buying the 2009 Cup from him. I then took the street GT3 off the track and my son and I shared the Cup car and the SPB at the track.

The first time my son drove the Cup he commented it felt a lot like the SPB only faster. He had gotten quite fast in the Boxster and that training helped him to go into the faster car. He is faster than me in both cars, which is probably due to being 24 vs. my 60.

At the same time, every time Bill went to a Club Race I would follow him on Race Hero. He would then return and we would watch all his video from the event. It looked awesome but I didn't feel I was ready to take on the challenge. The plan was to race the SPB not the Cup. I actually thought my son was ready and would support him but he was wrapped up with school and now his job and didn't have the time to devote. So I continued to attend all the Metro DE events and progressed to the black run group.

In February of 2020 I started doing Noom, as I was overweight for years (over 300 lbs 6'5”). I did quite well on the progam and did not let the pandemic effect my weight loss journey. I got down to 217 in about 10 months. I also was doing 30 minutes each day on the stationary bike and my cardio was pretty good. I felt better than I had in years.

So I decided to take the plunge and try Club Racing since I was always concerned about my endurance for even a 30 minute sprint. I would typically have to come in early before I lost the weight, now I could easily stay out for all sessions.

I told Bill and he was very happy and excited for me. We decided to aim for Lime Rock in April of 2021. We started prepping the car for the extra bits that are necessary for a Club Race vs a DE. And I started speaking to him every day about all the questions I had about Club Racing. There were many.

I watched a lot of video from the top drivers including Bill. I already knew about a number of the front runners, guys like Hoyt and Hunt and Bill, and of course Chris Drake and the Texas boys there are many others sorry if I left you out). I knew I had no chance to keep up with any of them. I also figured I wouldn't be in the mid pack. I was realistic that I would be a back marker. And it turned out I was. Totally OK with that, since this was a brand new skill for me. My lap times were never that good but Bill told me Club Racing would force me to decrease by a second or 2 automatically.

In the fall of 2020 my wife found out she had cancer. She is still dealing with it and had surgery in February. I say this because she also does chemo every 2 weeks and is weak during and a few days after the chemo. I didn't want to leave her alone during that period and the schedule was such that it conflicted with the Lime Rock race. I proceeded with my rookie application and told Susan about the situation. She told me to sign up anyway and cancel if I couldn't make it. My wife ended up having a low white blood cell count and her sessions got rescheduled which opened up the Club Race for me. She told me she was OK with me doing it so now I was locked in.

I went to the unmuffled DE on April 13 for a tune up. I was able to get some 1:05 laps which for me is good although not so good for most SPB club racers. But I was happy and felt I was at least ready to be in the race. I attended the rookie Zoom meeting and met some other rookies. There were 3 rookies in the SPB class, I knew one of them already and met the other one at the DE.

Thursday 4/22 arrived and we left Freeport Long island for the trek up to Lime Rock. Much excitement and of course nerves. We got there and set up the site and unloaded the cars. I then get the car teched by Scrut Lori, as it had no log book. She found a couple of minor things but nothing that would keep me from running the race.

Friday arrived, the day of practice and qualifying (and the fun race). I was quite nervous (which Susan told me was normal, she would be worried if I wasn't nervous). I figured I had to get my feet wet and get out there. The main worry I had was accidentally cutting someone off who was lapping me, for instance not seeing them in my blind spot. That damn blind spot gave me so much concern.

I had a lot of puzzlement about how the “grid” worked. I had actually attended the Watkins Glen club race a few years ago but never saw how the grid worked. Bill said don't worry just follow us out and you'll see. He was right, it is well taken care of by the numerous volunteers. You just have to follow their instructions. Its amazing how much more organization is required for a Club Race vs a DE.

So they sent us out for practice 1. I was out there! I started lapping and made sure I was totally aware of the other cars on the track to allay my concerns. I turned a few 1:05s and was all smiles coming in. Went back out for practice 2 and got a 1:04. Yay (for me)! It was kind of cool not having to worry about point bys.

Qualifying arrived and I ended up being slower than both practice 1 and 2. Bill was in an incident in the runoff zone for turn 1 which ended the session early. I think I was either last or 2nd to last along with my friend Tom W from Metro (also a rookie). Tom ended up being the guy I had some fun with as Bill kept telling me I would find someone. Went out for the practice starts and the fun race. Only about 8 cars participated but I had a blast, it reminded me of the practice starts we did with Skip Barber.

Race day arrived. My level of nervousness had abated somewhat since I saw what it was like during practice. Due to my slow qualy, I was gridded in the back which was probably good for me. The start came and in the back it's not that big of a deal I just hit the hammer and started lapping. At first it was like a DE with Tom and I dueling it out as back markers. But then the SP3 cars would arrive and look to get past us. For Sprint 1 I was very sheepish and would just move over and let them pass, even giving point bys as Bill told me I could do if I wanted. Then the SPB leaders would follow them, again me moving over for them, I did not want to mess up one of the leaders and be thought of as a jerk.

Mid packers came next. Then the 944s would arrive again and the whole thing would repeat. My lap times suffered every time I moved over but I really didn't care, My goal was to just finish all 3 sprints cleanly and have fun. Which I did. Tom and I were dueling it out in all 3 sprints. I came in last in sprint 1

In the second sprint there was a full course yellow and the pace car came out. During the restart a few cars spun in turn 1 around me, but I managed to thread the needle and avoid any contact. Whew. Pretty sure I came in last for that sprint also.

I had to get used to the cars passing me and then diving right back in front of me as soon as they got by me. In a DE we are told to wait some distance to cut back but I get it, in a race you want to get all the advantage you can.

I spoke to Bill about how sheepish I was with letting cars pass. I was particularly worried about the blind spot thing. He told me as long as I don't actually see a car right next to me I can SLOWLY move in to the apex. Still nervous about that one but I did get better.

The third sprint was my best. I was getting a little more used to the traffic and the passing (of me). The only car I actually passed all day was Tom (and he passed me as well). I ended up 10th in class but a number of cars did not participate in that sprint so 10th is a misleading number. There were 40 cars in the white group and sprints 1 and 2 had almost all of them. Sort of crowded for Lime Rock but it gave me a good idea on how to mentally deal with traffic. That sprint also had a full course yellow and we finished behind the pace car. I was now finished with my first Club Race event.

Bill actually was coaching me during that sprint on the radio. He helped me with some very good tips.

It was a successful 2 days for me as I ran cleanly both days and finished everything. One more sprint and I can take the X off of my car (although Susan said to keep it on for the rest of the event anyway which I will)

The sense of accomplishment is probably the biggest joy I take away from the experience. It is not something the average person can do. I can't see attempting it without some serious DE time under your belt first.

I need to work on my driving/lap times which I can do outside of the Club Race environment. I am still braking too much for a momentum car. I can probably just tap instead of fully brake for turns like West Bend. Bill tells me driving a Spec Boxster with lap times in the 1:01s at Lime Rock is not at all easy and requires a lot of skill to get there, skill I obviously don't have yet. I'm thinking I need to get more comfortable with sliding and recovering from a slide. Maybe drift school which is offered at Louden?

I will definitely do it again. Hoping for Watkins Glen although my wife's chemo schedule conflicts as of now. Maybe it will get rescheduled. If not I will do the next one.

Club Racing is certainly a higher lever of intensity and skill than DE. But it is so worthwhile. I would say if you are on the fence, take the plunge.

I look greatly forward to improving my skills and some day making it up to the mid pack.

Many thanks to Bill Rudtner for being my mentor all these years and for supporting me at the track. Having track support makes it so much more doable. Also a shout out to Mark Pensabene for helping me as a mid packer who went through what I am going through a few years ago.

Also a shout out to Peter Krause who has helped my over the years with data setups and even a little coaching. I hope to someday soon hire him to get me to a higher skill level.

See y'all at The Glen.

Jeff

 

Jeff, this is SUCH a cool story. Thank you for sharing!

As you've pointed out, it's all about the PEOPLE...

 

Thanks for sharing the story, and we all hope your wife is doing OK!

 

Cool journey. Bill is a great guy and a great mentor to go down the racing journey with. I can remember him at Metro events helping people along for a really long time. I hope all continues going well for your wife and your racing endevours!

 

Welcome to the club!

 

Congratulations and thanks so much for sharing.

 

I'd rather be the slowest guy on the track than be the fastest spectator in the stands. Congratulations!

Best wishes for your wife's recovery. I'm a cancer survivor as well and I race with a thyroid cancer awareness ribbon on my race car as a reminder.

 

Well said, and so true!!!!!

Thanks for sharing your story...welcome to the club!!! Prayers for your wife's recovery.

 

Fantastic story! Best wishes for your wife continuing to kick cancer's ****!!!!!

 

Awesome story and great first weekend. If you finish shiny side up and had fun that is all that counts. You can work on the passing and getting faster as you feel more comfortable.

I hope your wife is on the mend and can watch you at some future event when all these covid protocols go away!

One piece of advice which helped me a lot was hiring a pro coach. It makes a HUGE difference.

 

Great saga--congrats on finally getting there! You're living the dream that many of us have had (and still do).

And, more importantly, best of luck to your wife; as a survivor myself I know how that can affect you physically and dominate your thoughts as well.

Gary

 

Love, love, love to hear stories like yours, and of course, as everyone else said - all the best wishes for your wife. Cancer is a terribly unfair battle for anyone. Looking forward to playing "backmarker" with you someday in the future

 

Enjoyed your story, thanks for taking the time to share it. I started racing last year with SCCA (I have an E36 M3) and hope to race NASA GTS2 this year as my car doesn't really fit into a class other than Bracket (BIT) in SCCA so I am living the same emotions as you. All the best to your wife and you as you kick the sh*t out of cancer.

 

Wow, Jeff--congrats on both getting in shape and taking the club racing plunge. Both tremendous accomplishments. If I ever make the transition to club racing, the description of your journey will be part of my inspiration to do so. I'm sure your son is so excited for you. Best wishes for your wife's recovery.

BTW, it might be worth it for you to check out one of Elivan's SCDA car control clinics at LRP. He does them several times a season, using the wet skidpad and the dedicated infield autocross course. Bring the Spec Boxster and some crappy tires and slide around like a fool--it's tons of fun and may give you the seat-of-the-pants comfort level you're looking for.

 

Way to go buddy. I'm not too far behind you.

Proud of you.......