Doing trackdays vs actually learning to drive

[nefarious986]

Hey Brad,

Thanks for the invite but I'm going to be helping my sister move next weekend. I took a look @ the POC site though and they seem to do more track events vs PCA which seems to focus on AX, which is great as it gives me more flexibility next year when I want to get on track vs an AX course.

Skip Barber is definitely pricey .. lol .. I am already saving up pennies to attend Keith Code's CSS next year for my 30th gift to myself. Unless I get a big raise, Skip is going to have to wait until next year. =(

This learning to race stuff isn't cheap at all .. LOL

[Brad Roberts]

Those of us who work 24/7 in the industry call it "crack".. and we are the drug dealers I suggest AutoX for at least one year. Save your money. AutoX will always translate to road racing/track events later.


B

[The Radium King]

come on up to vancouver; the pca canada west region (cwr) now uses a driving school to run their hpde events, so you get a pro instructor with the cost of admission. mission raceway is a short but technical track and great to learn on.

[Brad Roberts]

The crack is cheaper!! and the US govt. just reduced the sentence if you get caught with it!!



B

[stephen wilson]

Sorry for the delayed response. A few good general racing books are "Winning, a race driver's handbook" by Anderson, "Going faster"-Skip Barber, and "High performance driving" by Bob Bondurant. They aren't Auto-cross specific, but the concepts are the same.

Reading is helpful for many reasons: You can't learn how to drive sitting on the couch after dinner, but you can gain knowledge by reading about it. Understanding the physics of WHY a car behaves the way it does will allow you to modify your inputs to get the best out of it. For instance, which driver inputs will make a car understeer or oversteer. The theory will also help you understand suspension tuning. Like, what will installing stiffer rear springs or anti-roll bar will do?

In addition, as others have mentioned, not all the advice you receive will be good, whether from friend, competitors, or instructors. How will you know if you have no personal knowledge of the subject? You have to be equipped to filter advice, and decide what works for you.

I also agree that professional instruction is the best, and most expensive option.

Also, being a demon late-braker is the last thing to work on, and is usually the last thing a driver learns to do well. Granted,my experience is in SCCA road racing, but Auto-cross shouldn't defer too much.