Mike Buck

Be careful with that Manny. Just a few weeks ago I was stopped driving my car to/from work. The MTA police did not like my large windwhield sticker nor the very small ones on the side windows. Also didn't like my exhaust because it "smelled funny". I was doing 45mph in the right lane on S-895 when they got me. Maybe you can talk your way out of it, but I couldn't

As far as racing goes, you have to look at this way. Can you afford to walk away from the car if you wreck it badly? Frankly, I've decided I can't at this point. So even though I have a PCA provisional license sign-off, I'm seriously thinking about putting off my first race until I have a better salary. Not 6 figures, but a lot more than I make now. I can buy DE insurance, but not race insurance. I'm in the process of getting the former. Unlike Manny, I'm also pulling the car off the street. If I have an at fault accident, GEICO isn't going to pay me anything near what the car is worth and that's a risk I'm not willing to take.

Carrera51

Skip:
You can keep the car street legal and still race it. Manny, Mark and many others (including me) still have our race cars registered and tagged. Just by a beater to drive to work and in bad weather. Also, if you want to race the C4S, race the way you have it set up. You may not run at the front, but you'll find someone to race with within your group and have a blast. Since I run prepared, there are several more mods I can make within the rules. A wise long time racer asked me the following question when we talked about it: "will doing this make you run at the front?" "No" I said. "Then leave the car alone and race it the way it is," he said.

Sam N

Skip,

You'll be carrying on the tradition of the "gentleman racer," which I believe was what PCA envisioned the Club Racing series to be created for. Race at Summit, change out of the race suit, drive home, pickup Mrs. Swftiii and head out for dinner in the 4S.

Mike,

Which carrier for the DE insurance are you planning to use?

TIA,
Sam

Mark in Baltimore

I'm just making sure the fire's well stoked and not, er, put on the back burner or some sort of mixed metaphor like that.



Be careful of letting Manny drive your car, Skip; the last time he drove mine, it cost me a bundle.

Mike Buck

Sam,
sending you a PM

M758

What did they get you for? I am assuming the car had license plates on it?

I know a number of 944-spec guys who have their cars still street legal. Most do it so that the can drive to the track. Nice thing about a 944 is that it has enough space to carry the tires inside the car. No bumming guys to carry your spares.

Manny Alban

(knock on wood) I've been lucky. I've been at red lights with Mr. Policeman right next to me and I didn't even get a glance. I think it's the receeding hairline. I look like a middle aged guy going through a mid life crisis and they probably feel sorry for me More than often I usually have one of my kids with me. See Mike, what you gotta do is get married, have a few kids, and the cops leave you alone

Mark in Baltimore

Mike Buck

MD is pretty ****. Yeah, it had the plate on the rear and I was 5mph under the limit. I don't run a front plate even though they are required in MD(in hindsight, that might be why he pulled me over to begin with). No tickets, just a bunch of warnings and repair orders for everything which I may or may not get fixed. According to the officer, my PCA sticker in the drivers side rear quarter window is illegal(not transparent!). The officer asked me three times if I was running nitrous

Manny,
yeah, kids might help . . . but that's a pretty drastic step to save on a couple tickets isn't it

mitch236

get a inexpensive track car (944/951) and have a blast. You will be a better driver in the long run learning with a slower car and you'll keep the beauty unscathed

Bob Rouleau

To me the answer is more psychological - are you competitive? If so, you won't like being passed by real race cars. A daily driver is seriously compromised and up aginst stripped out racers you are outgunned. If there is a Touring Class at races in your region you would be fine with a street car - on the other hand it isn't real racing either.

It's like the old rule about going to a gun fight - "bring a gun".

Mark in Baltimore

Skip competitive?

jerome951

You're right, Mike.
Trust me. Kids are a LOT more expensive than tickets...

To the comment earlier about bringing a gun to a gun fight.
I did my first (and only) club race with my car completely stock except for aftermarket A-arms and necessary safety equipment. Well, I brought the (small) knife to the gunfight. I was ~10 sec behind the leaders in my class and slowest in practice and qualifying. I didn't finish the race last due to mechanical issues and spins by other drivers.
But the real question is 'did I have fun and accomplish what I wanted to do?'
The answer to that is a resounding YES!!

Of course, after that I started pricing double-adjustable struts and beefier sway bars....

swftiii

Thanks for the continued dialog.

Z-Man - I have been doing DEs for about 4 years now and have around 35 days under my belt.

This is my first season running the car in it's current setup. I started using MPSCs last year with the old stock suspension and did the PSS9s, Recaro PP, Harnesses, and the DAS bar over the winter. Boy did it make a difference, but I know it isn't a competitive setup, but am actually finding myself a little bored at the DEs. I've been running in the white group and almost never have to give a passing signal. It's getting a little monotonous, but hopefully an instruction session with Manny and/or others will improve that.

One of the problems is that I don't think I'll be able to spend as many weekends at the track each year as most of you. I would guess that 4-6 events per year will be my maximum for a little while - new baby girl at home. Therefore, I struggle with buying a dedicated track car to dirve 4-6 times a year and the associated storage costs (can't store the trailerin my neighborhood).

Yes, I am competitive, but can keep those juices in check when required. I think I'd like to go through the rookie application and initial race or two next year and gain some racing seat time. After that we'll see.

-Skip

Dbltime

My first two club racing seasons I used my C stock 993 for a weekend short drive. Actually I drove the car to Florida from Annapolis with the suspension the way it is now and Fabspeed cat back pipes on the cheater motor.

GTS2 racer from New Jersey drives his car to the track and races.

After a few seasons of racing and tweeking the car the car becomes less road worthy but a better track/race car.