LuigiVampa

At the beginning of the class each instructor gave a short bio and they all had some manner of professional experience. One guy drove recently in the Continental series ST class. Another was a Formula Atlantic racer. They all had a certain pedigree above the club racing level and seemed to have a certain level of success. I think they were qualified and knew what they were talking about if they took the time to do it right. As many have pointed out that wasn't what I took issue with. It was the attitude. Simply put, you don't smack talk about your clients in front of them. Period. Its unprofessional.

Also, in regards to the focus of the class - it was a beginner racing school. Perhaps a lot of people shouldn't have been at this class. That's true. However, when they went around the room asking everyone their experience it became evident that most people had zero experience. A couple had taken a Skip course many years ago but that was it.

I do a lot of public speaking and rule number one is know your audience. They knew they had a room full of novices but didn't deviate from the script. That was the other big problem I had.

I have no reason to bad mouth Skip Barber and feel bad on a certain level to do so. But I paid a lot of money for this one day class and just felt like it was unprofessional. If my clients had had a bad experience I would have been asking for my money back. They enjoyed the class because they thought it was fun to drive around a race track in an open wheeled race car. I'm happy about that.

I'm not the kind of person who complains to a business - I normally just don't come back. As a business owner myself I would want to know if I had a customer service problem but from what I saw the corporate culture of Skip Barber must be poor to allow this to happen. I don't think my saying something would change anything. I just won't be back.

User 52121

Well that stinks. I haven't really read much of anything on the SB school but always had a desire to take it "someday" simply to get to spend time in a formula car.

I agree with the OP and a few of the other comments here - you have to know your audience. If they're going to breeze through topics like heel/toe, then they should have a prerequisite for signing up that the participant already have a basic understanding of what heel/toe (and whatever other topics) are.

I also 100% agree that bad-mouthing other students is a huge no-no: the student in front of you will sit and wonder, "Well then I wonder what they're saying about ME when I'M out there?" From that you run the risk of the student F'ing up WORSE because he's paranoid he's being made fun of.

I've done a lot of coaching over the years, some independent, some with a local (now defunct) racing school - mostly 2-wheeled stuff, but the last few years have been doing some instructing with PCA. Nothing close to the levels that Peter Krause/Dave Scott/David Murray offer (I thought I was pretty good at teaching until I spent an hour with David Murray...) of course but my personal preference is to keep the students relaxed and at ease. I remind them it's a learned skill, no one picks it up immediately, and it's OK to make mistakes.

I've also taken a lot of racing schools over the years (again, mostly 2-wheeled) and I'm sorry to say but the (what I call) "big head syndrome" is rampant just about everywhere. Instructors are high on themselves and the fact that everyone in the room is looking up to them, and generally don't know what to do when they run into a student that isn't kissing the ground they walk on, so instead they belittle them and move on.

Just because an instructor has credentials and a solid race resume doesn't mean he can teach.

al@cpt

IMHO, if you’re going to sign up for a race school, you should pick up a book and familiarize yourself with the basics.

When I took the 3 day SB formula school last year, I thought the instructors were very good. They did joke around a bit, but I did not find it offensive at all.
The program might be too generic for some, especially racers with some experience. If you have a clear objective, it might be better to work with a pro driver or coach to accomplish your goals. A lot of people start with a school because it doesn’t require any other commitment and it helps to determine if racing, and what type, might be right for them.

I can’t say which school is best out there, but certainly a lot depends on the participant and how serious they are about it. In my case, the instructors took their time after class to answer my questions and I felt that I certainly got my money’s worth.

LuigiVampa

Not sure if you read the original post but this was a corporate event for the group I brought so they are not necessarily "track guys".

That being said, I did preload them with information and tips so that they could enjoy the day more. I sent track videos also sent some videos on instruction, including heel/toe, and they all watched them.

The group of guys I took were all A type individuals each of whom wanted to be faster than anyone else in our group. In short, they wanted to learn and were probably more prepared than most of the people in the class.

Aside from the 2 or 3 individuals who had previously taken the course it seemed like there was zero preparation or knowledge. The instructors knew this and carried on. You could blame the students but in my opinion the instructors had the opportunity to do a better job.

ProCoach

This is the crux of the issue...

The SBRS instructor corps that I've been a part of would have made this a "never to forget" experience, and would have had the emotional intelligence and humility to tailor the program on the fly...

Circuit Motorsports

This.

I did Skippy a while ago before the big change. I had a couple of legends and a couple of quiet gems.

They are ALL gone and it's a bummer.

I still think I'll go back and run a race or two but without the key guys of the past it's really tough to pull the trigger.

fleadh

It really sucks you had such a bad experience.. and I've recommended the Skippy schools to a bunch of friends, but it's been a long time since I've attended. I had such a good and rewarding experience at both the Jim Russell 3 day school and the Skip Barber 2 day schools years ago that I wish I could lookup my instructors and thank them and see what they're up to now (but I can't remember their names, just what they looked like!).

Times change I guess...

-mike

ProCoach

They know you, Mike!

al@cpt

I agree, and that is what I recall from my experience.

al@cpt

Understood, seems like you did all you could.