Bill935K3

NOR'EASTER Online - August 2005 Porsche Club of America, The Northeast Region
Door Handle To Door Handle
By Bill Chadwick & John Ktistes
A Beginner’s Guide to PCA Club Racing
http://www.porschenet.com/doorhandle.html

TD in DC

Great article Bill.

Bull

I can't imagine anyone thinking that they are the same, which is why i don't understand why some seem to need to constantly tell us they are different. Seems like a firm grasp of the obvious to me...but, maybe that is because I have done both.

Larry Herman

Some people do think that DEs are just like racing, they really do, and they need to be reminded. Just a simple affirmation of the statement "they don't know what they don't know".

Bull

I guess I give some people too much credit.

TD in DC

The most fun for me was when I finally "relaxed" a little and felt like I "belonged" out there such that I could focus nearly solely on how to get around people and keep certain people from getting around me. Then it is the bomb.

The car is merely a tool in a chess game where you are trying to get into other drivers' heads and capitalize on their mistakes without making any mistakes of your own. That "focus" or "zen-like-awareness" is what I personally find to be really addictive (I don't really get off on the danger part of it).

Each time you make a mistake in a race, you can see the faster guys either pass you or make about three car lengths on you . . . so you need to be focused on not making tactical mistakes . . . if you have to think about not making driving mistakes, I promise you that you will make serious tactical errors.

A DE is like a single dimension game where you are focused primarily on your own driving. In the upper run groups it can be like a two dimension game, but you still have to be careful about when and where you pass, and it is still largely a cooperative effort. A race is like the three diminsional version of the game where everyone else is trying to screw you over and there are no excuses about "not really trying" . . . sounds like fun to me . . . I cannot overemphasize how much there is to learn, and the only way to learn is by doing. Being a good solid driver is a necessary predicate, but it is not sufficient to ensure that you will drive well or fast in a race . . .

During my first couple of races, I was nearly overloaded with all of the sensory inputs and things to think about. There are hundreds of things to think about:

I can't hear my engine so I need to remember to look at my tach. ****, that's me bouncing off the rev limiter . . .

Here is a yellow flag . . . when can I go again? . . . I'm behind the race director so I will just follow him . . .

This guy is trying to get past me . . . He isn't next to my door but is it fair or dirty pool to close the door on him? . . . what if we hit each other? . . . Oh well what the hell door closed and no contact . . . note to self: watch for this guy in the paddocks

Why am I such a o$%^& idiot that I chose a race in a blizzard for my very first real race? Why didn't I buy rain tires and unhook my sways before we came out here? Why do I keep spinning and nearly going off the track on the pace lap? Wow, there are tons of cars sliding off the track so I am here with a bunch of fellow idiots. Does this make me feel better or worse? . . . maybe my wife is right about that idiot comment?

Is this guy really going to stick his nose into the apex when I am at the limit and I really "need" to be there? Crap he did . . . hold on . . .

Are we really going to go three wide through Southbend? OK, so how did I end up being the idiot in the middle?

Are we really going to go three wide through Hogpen? OK, well at least I'm not in the middle this time . . .

Why is the grass at T17 so damned slick when it is covered with snow? Why am I accelerating as i slide down the hill? Crunch. How much is that going to cost me? What am I going to tell my wife? Oh yeah, why would I tell my wife? OK, now that I am wedged into the tire wall facing the track and stuck in the mud, which of these cars is going to slide off and come right down into me? Will this one? Will this one? Oh crap this one definitely will . . .



You get the idea. The first race or two, although great fun, seemed to last forever, and I remember wondering to myself when it would be over. During the club race, I had a blast and I wondered why it ended so quickly. I mean, after all, with just two or three more laps I could have passed 3 or 4 more cars. Even the 90 minute enduro seemed short . . . .

Total nirvana

P.S. As a total newbie, I really appreciated having the best seat in the house to see how more experienced drivers dealt with issues I was facing. In a low HP momentum car, it is hard to get around cars who have much more HP than I do but who, for whatever reason, are taking the corners more slowly than I typically do. I was frustrated as hell for large parts of the races. Then I would see Dennis Dohlen and Dennis Wasser in very similar cars come flying through corners without losing their momentum. They drove "their" race rather than letting other cars change the way they drove. I learned a big lesson by watching how they did that . . .

Gary R.

Now THAT was well put TD, and coming from a new racer much appreciated!

BostonDMD

TD, you got to be the funniest guy on Rennlist!

Where can I come and watch you race?

Sean F

TD, if you could do it over again would you do anything differently to prep for club racing? I hope club racing is a year away for me and I'm curious what you would change. One thing that I keep reading is that the early races are about surving and not getting in the way of the experienced racers, but I'm wondering what you can do to learn the craft before you even get there (other than the racing schools like Skip Barber).

M758

Depends on the group. PCA likes driver's to have 8-12 minimum DE days then PCA Club race school. SCCA regional only requires you to complete 1 or 2 schools. Skippy counts for 1 I think. Nasa likes some DE time and school. Most all will honor the other's license and give you a provisional in their group. IE go to PCA club race with an SCCA regional and they let you in. They will keep an eye on you to make sure you are "OK", but that is probably the fastest way to a license. Of course you need a current physical for all groups.

Now when it comes to driver ability I think folks should stay in DE long enough to be comfortable driving solo on the track at speed. They simple act of driving should be pretty easy thus allowing them to focus on traffic. Once you get into the race group everyone will assume that you know how to drive your car pretty well and take the right lines at track you know and can learn the lines at tracks you don't. They also assume you can handle the car close to it limits and can watch out for traffic. Comfort in driving off line and making rapid adjustments is key in being "safe" in the race group. As for learing actual racing techniques those will be leared as you race.

Need a competition license and to race access to race legal car with all the personal safety gear.

No you just need to have more frequent medical check-up as you age. However if in good heath you can race forever.

No... If you want to race on tight budget then you need some mechanical skill to maintain the car. If you have the money to pay someone then all you need to do is drive. There are racers who just show up and race and pay crew to do everything to the car. Then there are racers like me who have built and maintain thier cars at home. You can let you budget, time, and desires choose. Of course there is also the entire scale in between as well where some guys so certain work and farm out the rest. Remember the car you chose to race will have an impact on how much you may be able to do yourself and how much crew support you need.

Not sure. It is not that many since DE can be an avenue to racing, but the majority do not race. DE is rather low effort thing both in driving, time and money. One you race even with the same car your effort needs to increase 10 times. Or it seems that way. If you are competitive you will drive so much harder, spend alot more time on racing planning & car prep and now everything needst to "just right" to race. It is hard to decribe, but "ok" is no longer "good enough" it has to be "perfect" and that is alot of effort. Rewards are worth it however as it is just so much more that just driving.

http://www.pca.org/clubrace
This is for PCA, but there are groups like SCCA and NASA along with a host of local only groups you can race with. If you want to race first pick budget both initial cost for the car and maintence costs. Then look at what you can get for that budget. What you will find is that it costs alot even in the lower "slower" classes. Don't be turned off however if your "race car" has less hp than your "street" car. Racing is not so much about absolute speed, but racing in pack of similar cars. So going 150 down a straight in pack of cars is not all that different from going 110. When you are racing all your focus on the competitors and making the most from the car not so much in absolute speed. Spec type classes offer a chance to competete on relativly level playing field with an eye on costs. PCA stock classes have limited mods, but not always a level playing field and still allow places to speed alot to get faster. There are also unlimited GT type classes where much of the competition is done in the garage making the the car faster vs on track making the driver's faster.

TD in DC

hmmmmmm That is a great question.

What would I do differently? Well, I would watch races on TV. Really. I don't watch too much TV now, and actually I didn't really ever watch too much TV while growing up (I grew up in the country . . . ). So, my friends who are big race fans have an advantage because they "know" how things are done, and what is dirty, what is clean, etc . . .

I also would not be in too much of a rush to start. I did my first races when I had about 30 odd DE days, and I also did them in a relatively new to me car. I am a solid driver who is not a danger to others on the track. However, I think I started on the early end of things. The more seat time you have, the more confident you are and the more you can commit driving to the subconscious. The more you have committed to the subconscious, the easier it will be for you to race. I would also encourage starting in a car with which you are very familiar and comfortable. After my first races, I realized what I did not know, and I focused on those during DEs. For my next round of races, I had about 60 odd DEs under my belt and the difference was night and day. It honestly was a lot more fun.

Finally, I think the Skippy schools were outstanding, but I don't think they were particularly great as prep for real races.

The NASA Competition School at VIR was incredible. It is great preparation.

The rookie races at the NASA Comp School give you a good feel for what it can be like . . . . but the real races are like the rookie races on steroids.

If you are ballys and confident (I took the school with }{, Eli K and Brian Keith Smith, all of whom did really well in comparison to many of the other rookies), you can treat the other rookies like baby harp seals and it is great for your confidence.

During the first real races, I realized that I was the baby harp seal. Ever wonder why the experienced racers keep urging the rookies to just f*cking do it no matter how few days they have? It is because they want fresh meat for the races. Nothing is more fun than harassing a rookie . . . ask me how I know . .

If you guys think my posts are funny, you should see how I drive

}{arlequin

pleasepleasePUUUUHHHH-LEASE make sure you have car control down before you get out there. it is much *much* more important than being able to drive a perfect line around the track. you need to know what *that* line is, and where it's at, but you may not have many opportunities to use it during a race. there will be cars around you and their presence won't let you drive the line. so, even if you go to a new track, whether you know the line or not is just not as crucial as controlling your car.

the ACT of driving the car shouldn't even register in your brain. the fact that a guy in front of you is braking earlier than you normally do, should. keeping the car in check should be second nature by now. if you're still out of control for mostly no apparent reason, then you don't belong out there yet. if you do not notice the flaggers every time, and EARLY, on every corner, it's not time for you yet. if you feel like there are too many 'inputs' firing at you, you're not going to be comfortable or safe out there.

you need to process lots of information, FAST, and none of it has to do w/ driving your car. if a guy sticks the nose in and causes you to drop a wheel or two, you automatically need to know that if you do decide to get on the gas early and give chase, you *may* be missing some traction when your wheel has sand/grass on it for a corner or two. don't have to slow down, but you do have to EXPECT it, just in case.

i think the 8-12 DAYS' minimum is ridiculously low. some guy could just talk a good, respectable, level-headed game, to show he's ready and get his reccommendation but let's be realistic.... 8 days would equal one 3-day weekend at vir, one 3-day at midO, and sat/sun at summit. i'm sorry... there are people in green for ENTIRE 'SEASON' (8+ weekends = approx 20 days) and it's clearly obvious they're not ready, nor safe, to be racing. how can you even dare to go out and send a guy w/ THREE WEEKENDS of de's under his belt is beyond me.

TD in DC

x2

If you don't realize how much you don't know, you don't belong out there yet.

}{ is a little bitter, and rightfully so, because his car got taken out by another driver spinning under circumstances that seem pretty questionable. Although everyone tells you that wrecks are just "part of racing" and that you need to be ready to lose your car, it is still a very bitter pill to swallow when someone does it to you and you did nothing wrong and could not have done anything to avoid it . . .

M758

I had like 12 DE days undermy belt when i applied for PCA comp license. I also had 2-3 years of autocross to help car control skills.

My first race was on my home track and my only goals were to make it through the weekend with an undamged car firstly and then hopefully "blend" in on track so that nobody noticed me.


Well I achieve only 1 of those goals. Did not damage the car, but did get noticed as won the rookie of the weekend award!

I think the key for me was that inspite of my limite track time overall I was very comfortable in the car. I was running laps about 3 seconds slower than I do now, but I knew the track well. I knew where I could push and where I could not. I felt comfortable putting the car anyplace on the track and I knew where I could "go off" if needed to avoid a situation with no damage. In my first ever session I was waiting for mass train of "race" cars to come flying by. Well they never came. Only about 1/3 of the drivers knew the track as well as I did so I was actualy passing other cars. Be the end of the day the other drivers picked up speed, but I picked up confidence and held my own in the fun race. I had really nice dice with an H 911 and D RSA. I "raced" with these two all weekend and it was fun. Looking back now it was still VERY green, but I found it be the most exhilerting experince I have had.

So while some say you need years of DE experience I don't feel everyone needs that. Some drivers get-up to speed differently and never felt overwhelmed. It helped that I chose at track to race on that I was comfortable with. This allowed me to not worry about the "line", but drive my line as matter of course and then foucs on what the other driver's were doing. What you do need to feel totaly comfortable on the track and with the car. If that takes 5 days fine, If it takes 35 days that is ok too.

TD in DC

Joe, good point about starting at a familiar track. Just to clarify, I am not the kind of person who believes in hard and firm limits (e.g., you must do X number of years or days before you try to race). I am also no expert. I only share my experiences as a newbie to let other newbies know what goes through my head. I do think that you need to be honest to yourself about your own abilities. I know tons of guys out there who tell themselves vicious lies about their own ability (or lack thereof).

P.S. Keep in mind that starting your first real race in an honest to God snowstorm can really have a big impact on your opinions about when someone is "ready" to start racing . . .