Jay Gratton

I can only hope that the student asked him to yell at him to get him to drive harder. That is the only reason I can think of for why that would be OK to do. I would knock him out after a lap! 99% of begining drivers would probably never attend a DE event again.
However, the BMW Club does put on a good event. It is a shame that video had to make it into the public viewing. I just hope that student returns to the track, but next time in a Porsche!!!!!!

Bigpinekey

Veloce Raptor

Well...

BMW does have an excellent DE program.

That said, I'm a nationally certified advanced instructor with BMW & PCA, and I have encountered some of this verbal macho posturing in both instructor corps. It works for like 5% of students. The other 95% prefer never to have that instructor again...

RickBetterley

I knew it had to be a joke when I saw the reference to the Seneca Lodge (which really isn't so bad).

Phokaioglaukos

Ok, I was at this event and know the instructor and the student, who is in the A group, what BMW CCA has as their top group. It was intended to be funny, and it was when broadcast on the TVs at The Glen Club. It was also serious, in that the instructor was encouraging the student. I laughed.

Rick964

Chatterbox is right because you could unplug your end and not have to hear him.

M758

Well being an instructor with PCA (national Certified an all) I can't say this is really that bad.
Here is why.

1) Sounds like yelling, but where the mic on the video? If it is much closer to the instructor than the driver then will is aduible to the driver with helmet may REQUIRE yelling from the instructor and this is what we hear on tape. Of couse with a chatterbox or similar there would be no need to yell. I many cases before I had my communicator I did NEED to yell so the student could hear over the helmets and other noise.

2) My personally instucting style is vocal and repetitive. I will repeat my words many times lap after lap and have uttered similar words .... Brake, brake, brake, etc is common one along with power, power, power and let it out, out, out... or wait, wait wait. I have found repeating words very helpful to ensure my students understand my directions to them. Of course intermixed in these directional comments are lots of encouragement words like, nice, nice, nice ... or perfect, perfect, perfert, or a visual thumbs up. These are typicalyl given in loud firm voice again to ensure the student hears.

Clearly with a comunicator I use the same words, but don't need to yell and can speak at very low voice and still ensure the student hears my words.

So I can't really say this is that bad. Not having driven that track I can't say how well the student is listening either. When I have students that either are not following the instructions or are late on the various action points I tend to get more energetic in my commands. So when I have student way off line the action will be much more verbal and louder. A student on line and doing things well will get fewer comments in general and possibly by the end of a day may have one comment per lap or less as compared to the start of day when they get talked though each corner.

SleepRM3

Perhaps the yelling is from not having a Nady Communicator?

Phokaioglaukos

Here is the reply to this thread of the instructor in that video:

I gave TONY FUNECCELLO his credentials to instruct for GVCBMWCCA , funny as all get out cause one of the posts on renlist refers to tony , and how he would dis aprrove
TONY WOULD PEE HIMSELF LAUGHING like most of us did , after viewing vernicks masterpiece
i luv this club
yaskin

rvernick

I'm the guy driving, the author of the video and our chapter's webmaster who posted it. Most of our members know Mike and myself and know that it's a total spoof.

You think that was bad instructing? Give me a break. As the recipient of this instruction, I found it totally exhilarating to have an instructor be so passionate. Mike is also a friend and doesn't like using a headset. He's loud enough that it doesn't matter. :-)

As a student, I'm at the point where I think my skill set is sufficient to take me over the comfort level to driving the car on the edge. It may not be for most people, but I found that experience to be some of the best instruction yet.

Good instructors adapt to what works with a student. I've had Mike a few times before and the experience was different. I think he realized I needed a kick in the *** to 'break through' and it worked. Pure and simple, it made me realize I could push harder and I'm thankful for that. Mike can have my right seat any day.

If you haven't attended a BMW CCA event, I encourage you to do so. We're a good group who likes to have a lot of fun and laughs. It's just unfortunate some people perceived it differently.

amaist

It's funny to see how most of the negative comments were made by guys who have never been to a BMWCCA driving school.

Having been to BMWCCA, PCA, Audi club, Trackmasters, etc. I can say that I usually end up meeting the same people over and over, especially among the instructors. So I can't say one organization is radically different than others. There are some differences but the basics are all the same. Getting all snooty toward BMWCCA driving school would only be a sign that the holder of that opinion only goes to one club's events and doesn't have enough experience to form a reasonable opinion about driving schools.

I guess, DelValBMWCCA should have made it clearer that it was a joke. Insiders get it but others can get the wrong idea.

Larry Herman

Of course you're a good group, and it is pretty funny to take a shot at yourself like that right on your web site. It is a classic example of the way not to instruct 99% of the time, and I'm sure that Mike got some good ribbing when you played it at the Glen Club.

BrianKeithSmith

All I can say is that if your BMW Schools up north are as good as you say they are, we wish you'd come down here and show our local BMW clubs how its done because its pretty much unbearable to go to one of their events down here (unless you are a beginner).

If you are advanced, but aren't instructing, be prepared with our local BMW club... You'll probably never get to drive solo the entire weekend... You'll have some goon sounding off in your ear all weekend who's probably use to driving a little E30. In my case, every time I'd get in the gas with my turbo he'd go "Whoa whoa...." It was kinda funny. I just pretty much ignored him. He was clueless. BUT, he was in the "clique" - which made him one of the all important instructors, so he had to be right, right?

Brian

Z-man

Therein lies the problem with inside jokes.

At least it's better than the vid that was on the interwebnet a month or so ago about a guy driving a BMW 5-series around the 'Ring in Germany with an obnoxious passenger making ill comments towards anything the car was passing, including a trio of 911's. (The driver seemed to know what he was doing out there, but the passenger was a total idiot.)

-Z-man.

Veloce Raptor

I have instructed with Peachtree and Heart of Dixie BMW Club chapters, at Road Atlanta & Barber respectively, and both did a very nice job.