Not sure what it's like now but when I was growing up about a 1/2 mile from Millville's airport it was mostly asparagus, corn and tomato farms. SoJer was pretty much nothing but gardens..... and sand.

Most of Jersey still is.
If you’re on the turnpike up north, it’s an industrial skyline. Go south and west and the state truly is still a garden. Drive out 80 or 78 going west and it’s nothing but peaks, valleys, and awesome clean scenery.
There are beautifully preserved reservations and rivers and lots of elevation change.
I live in the Ramapo reservation where Mahwah meets Oakland, and it’s nothing short of beautiful. We ride our ATV’s up into the hills of the Ramapo Mountains and it’s really nice and clean and beautiful.
Then you have the shore, 117 miles of beautiful beaches. Then there are the Pine Barrens, which we go off roading in our tow vehicles through the cranberry bogs and sand pits.
I am clearly biased because I live here, but 80-90% of New Jersey is still mountains
forests, beaches, and beauty.
Yes, the Garden State is still a garden.
YMMV…

Interesting to read this post from April on the same subject :

https://rennlist.com/forums/racing-a...this-year.html

I was at the HOD event back in June on Shenny ... maybe 50% attendance ? They combined B,C,D groups in a single 60 minute sessions .

I think Chin in August on main was almost full , there were a few slots available in solo groups when I checked the week before .

PCA in October has a waitlist and is full up .


... and for the record , for all it's drawbacks I still love NJ .... ( Toms River native here )

NNJR has always offered free tech inspections. Usually two weeks before every DE event. Easy to attend as they are after work hours (usually 6-9pm). In addition NNJR accepts inspection reports from a huge number of private shops and porsche dealers. The idea that its tough or expensive to get your car inspected for a DE is simply preposterous.

Ah yes, the River. Home of the 1998 Little League World Series Champions in Williamsport. Defeated Kashima Ibaraki Japan for the trophy....

We was at the parade.

+ 1000

NNJR does indeed make it really easy to tech. Not bad for a bunch of pompous arrogant power-hungry condescending a$$holes.

Also, nice use of the word preposterous...

Help me understand this a little better. Once a person has learned how to drive safely and quickly on track thanks to multiple sessions with a qualified instructor - you feel as if they should be able to self tech their car. Is that correct?

Isn't it true that any student who reaches the goal of driving solo, could easily do so without ever putting a single wrench on their car?

I believe Millville, NJ is now known for its meth and not so much for its farms.

I agree with you 100%. I am probably approaching 1000 track days total, and I ALWAYS have my shop nut and bolt and tech the car before events.
Chit can still go wrong as things do happen, but that tech gives me some peace of mind.
I know for a fact that if I was to tech my own car for every event, I'd miss something, maybe multiple somethings.
Having that 2nd (and/or 3rd) set of eyes on the car is the way to go.

I would not want every (or any, for that matter) solo driver at any event I'm at to self tech.
The result could be really ugly.
Our tech team catches stuff all the time, not just worn pads and old tires.
Cracks in rotors, pads wearing unevenly, bent or cracked wheels, etc.

Solo driver self tech is a no-no in my book...

And the toothless hookers. Don't forget the toothless hookers!!

I would counter that by saying that in my region instructors are allowed to self-tech.

So what makes an instructor mechanically capable of that task while folks who are driving in the black group and about to become instructors cannot?

You make a valid point. The only difference I can think of is that an instructor would hopefully be more self-aware of how their car is driving and if there is a problem, whereas a newbie may not understand that there is a problem.

There is no simple answer to this issue. Removing restrictions makes it easier for people to get involved but sometimes at the price of safety. The line is generally drawn where our insurance overlords decide.

IMHO would not consider anyone to be running in Black a newbie. All those folks are hard-core drivers, some of them even racers. Some more competent drivers than the instructors but they just don't want the burden of being an instructor.

Maybe the folks in black could earn self tech by doing a certain number of events as a black driver?

There are drivers in Black who 100% deserve to be there based on their skill, heads-up awareness, speed and years of driving. However, some of them couldn't tell you where the brake fluid reservoir is and some of them can build a race car with their eyes shut. A surprising number of experienced drivers are just not mechanically inclined, curious, competent or have the time and or "facility" to properly judge a car's condition. Yes, a driver with years of experience can usually sense when something doesn't feel right but that doesn't help much in an instantaneous failure that has no forewarning. I personally feel much safer at PCA events knowing/hoping that there's been at least a ounce of pre event tech inspection.

So how do you feel about instructors with zero mechanical proficiency self-teching? Should everyone have to go through pre-event tech?