Cory M

I’m getting a physical this week so I went ahead and printed up the Medical Examination forms for the various clubs I’ll likely be racing with. In addition to the usual POC and PCA forms I also added a couple of vintage racing clubs (SVRA and VARA) because we are in the process of finishing up a 914 vintage racer.

It’s interesting how different the forms are between clubs. The POC and PCA forms are very similar and quite extensive. Both of them are multiple pages and require medical history, vision, cardiac, metabolic, and more. The POC form even asks for urinalysis results. The vintage groups on the other hand basically have two boxes the physician can check: patient IS fit to race, or patient IS NOT fit to race. That’s it. The SVRA form is a single page with some guidelines and a place for the doctor and racer to sign it.

I think it’s ironic because from what I have seen the age of the average racer in a vintage event has to be 10+ years greater than the average PCA/POC racer. Statistically the older racers in the vintage group would be more likely to have medical issues and therefore a more comprehensive medical check might be warranted. On the other hand maybe the vintage groups have it right and the Porsche clubs are going overboard. I doubt anyone in the POC and PCA are actually reading and examining things like my intraocular tension, Albumin content of my urine, blood pressure, pulse readings, etc. Shouldn’t it be enough for the doctor to examine you to verify you meet the specified guidelines and just sign the box? Why do the Porsche Clubs need so much additional info if the SVRA can meet their insurance liability obligations without it?

JCP911S

Old Rich Dudes race in these series, and if they have an Old Rich Dude heart attack and kill another Old Rich Dude, their Old Rich Dude trophy wives hire expensive Old Rich Dude lawyers to sue other Old Rich Dudes.

NaroEscape

And SCCA is somewhere in the middle...just a little closer to the PCA exam.

From what I have observed and somewhat experienced, PCA (and I would guess POC) racers take the racing MUCH more seriously than most Vintage race groups do. In Vintage, it's all about the cars and the camaraderie, so the stress level is not nearly as high. PCA seems more about the winning and the competition, so higher stress levels.

Just my $0.02

LuigiVampa

How many people would not be getting physicals if they did not race?

ProCoach

A lot...

Bill Lehman

I get a physical every year for FREE thanks to Medicare. It takes about 15 minutes. Back in the day, SCCA required anyone over 40 to get an EKG and the doctor had to be an MD., Not a DO.

linzman

That is just silly. I know quite a few DOs that are way better/smarter than some of my MD colleagues. And vice versa of course.

Sterling Doc

Judging by the number of racers who get their physical a week before it's due, (or worse, ask me at the track, when they are denied), I'd agree with Peter here.

NASA has a medical officer that will get involved with borderline situations.

I did have to call in a favor to get my wife cleared to autocross when she was 7 months pregnant. Boy, did she love beating the guys in her Jetta wagon while pregnant! [It was a VR6 manual trans wagon]

Back to the OP, I am amazed the VSCDA form flies, as many docs probably don't appreciate the physiologic stress of racing, and clear a lot of older racers on good will, and good intentions.

mooty

race or not, after 40 annual physical is smart move.
15 min is not a physical.
a real exam and the battery of lab work will amaze you. and you never know what you will find.
this is serious, not just for racing's sake.

fatbillybob

I'm not an MD but my observations are porsche people like rules so much they are willing to make extra ones to follow, hence the longer forms. As far as serious racing does SCCA or POC/PCA sponsor more pro racing or spawn more pro racers? I think SCCA but their form is shorter. Old people take more medicine and have more complicated medical histories. Their personal doctor would be more able to determine fitness than another doctor just reading a brief form. IMO racing is just a physical activity. If you can jog, ride a bike, go up and down stairs, or walk across a Costco parking lot you can probably do the physical rigors of amateur racing. Any smart racer who wants to get better would do what he would do if he wanted to run faster and longer. Exercise. Some would mention "heat tolerance" in a racecar but you do have the option to not race at Buttonwillow or Daytona in September just like you can skip the 10k in Death Valley.

John H

Mine took a lot longer than 15 minutes. My doc, a high school friend, takes it serious. Maybe it's his excuse to force me to be compliant because I probably wouldn't do it if PCA didn't require it. He even required me to do the exam yearly.

Coochas

Everyone should get an annual physical regardless of their extracurricular activities!

I'm going to guess however that most doctors don't know/appreciate the physical stress that is involved with driving at the track. Most doctors (like most 'other' people) just think of the risk of crashing as the biggest danger associated with the sport. Those of us that track know that you're having a serious workout both from the physical demands as well as the adrenaline associated with driving. We've had many discussions here about typical heart rates on the track which are high enough to cause ischemia/infarctions in susceptible people. I know of at least one friend (who was quite fit) who had a heart attack associated with being on track (he got stented and is just fine).

My point is that we can all get our doctors to fill out these forms for us but the docs may not appreciate the stress of our sport. If you have a track friend that you know has some health issues, be a friend and make sure they are not turning a blind eye toward their problems.

DTMiller

Someone posted the trace from their heart rate monitor while on track on here a while back. The numbers were really scary high. That got me back in the pool 3-4 days a week and my weight down about 10%.

Ritter v4.0

I have a wife, 2 x teenage children and run my own business- racing is the least stressful thing I do.

LuigiVampa

+1

I always tell people that the only time I feel normal, and feel like all the stress has left my body, is when I am tearing around the track!

To Coochas' point, driving on the track is very stressful on the body, even at the amateur level for most of us. I once had to pull off on a hot August day because I was overheated and felt my brain fogging over.