In answer to your question, you are too old when you are dead and not before.

I have a good friend who regularly kicked my butt in real racing when he was 78. As the professor points out, PL Newman can still get the car around the track.

 

I am in pretty decent shape (since have a younger wife)

I already know I should have done this long time ago

I am doing it.... any advice on how to progress quickly? (Time is ticking)

 

as long as you don't mistake the acceleator for the brake you'll be fine

 

Brake, what is that?

 

Some guy, whose name escapes me, won the SCCA National Championship in Formula Atlantic at either 79 or 80.

Bill Seifert

1987 944S Race Car

 

The guy that got me started in racing 8 years ago was 60 at the time.. Still rides a Kawi ZX12... None too old sir!

 

We have a guy in our region who turned 85? this year. He can't drive at on the track anymore because his eyesite is going.
He still does autocross in an old 911. Trailiers it to the track. Pulls good times.
Last year his was driving his Boxster. He drove the car to the event with street tires and changed to track wheels, drove the event, changed wheels and drove home. 40 or 90 degrees. Damn good for mid 80s.
I can only hope.

 

Thanks for the inspiration fellows, see you all at the track....

 

Get to the track as often as possible. Get as much regular coaching as possible. Be willing to accept instruction and have a blast out there. Use the search function on this web site and you will find lots of folks that have asked the same or similar question.

 

Metro NY PCA does a DE weekend every April on the South track at Pocono at the same time that a vintage racing group (I can't remember which sanctionaing body) has a lapping day and driver's school on the North track. Lots of those guys are in their 60s and 70s. I had the pleasure of having dinner with their chief instructor last year, who was a dimunitive 86 year old fellow with a Lotus 7. He was shuffling around OK outside the car, but certainly looked his age. Once in the car, though, he was cooking right along! You're never too old!

 

RS4, mind over matter, age is irrelevant....

 

We have plenty of guys doing DE that are at least in their 60's (maybe older). There are guys I race with that are at least in their 60's and might be 70's or older. I don't bother to ask their age as it's somewhat rude and it's irrelevant. I'm 51 and started DEs 5 years ago and racing 2 years ago. I had a woman student at a DE a month ago that had to be at least 70. She wanted to learn to drive her 993 better/faster and she said the grand kid's thought it was cool.

Like Mark said, you're only too old if your health represents a safety risk (dead being the extreme ).

 

Hell no;

Good friend of mine - Rocket Ralph - is still driving like the wind in the Red Group at 74. Don't think twice, it's alright.

 

Out West here in LALA land we have multiple racers in their mid to late 60's that are competitve. One has a 997 cup, the other a high HP TT. A few years ago Pete McCarroll finally retired from active POC racing at 80. He successfully campaigned a 700 HP 930 up till then and still keeps the car in his garage just in case. He come out to the track now and supports his granddaughter who is racing in the IMSA GT3 Cup series....

 

As I was reading through this I thought about Pete McCarroll. Would have been afraid to ask because the response might have had something to do with "late"! I do remember him battling with that monster car about the time I was getting back into track stuff and doing some POC events.

I will say one thing though......at 45 and almost 25 years into this (off and on), for some reason I really felt my age today going from 911 to Radical to 911 to instruct, etc. My student today was nearly 60 I'd guess, and just getting hooked!