Driving school

[FETorino]

I've been thinking my past racing experience is pretty rusty and before I get my car running I'd like to go back to school. :rolleyes:

I've raced some mountainbike, motocross, streetbike, stand up jetski and karts but never cars. Keith Code school was my only formal training.

What do you guys think of Bonduraunt or another school for one of thier one day courses? I'm looking to keep the cost within reason so don't tell me to fly to Europe to train with the Stig. :D

[Vegas69]

You're going to need it. :unibrow: :lol:

[FETorino]

You're going to need it. :unibrow: :lol:

It's just a big FAT version of my shifter Kart right :rolleyes:

[GregWeld]

Bondurant is by far the best technical training school you're going to get....

They have a very proven (boring) base building way of training -- but -- and this is the big butt -- when you get on track and show that you can actually drive and have paid attention to what they're telling you -- THEY WILL HELP YOU GO FASTER... the instructors there TRULY want you to go faster.

Some schools (shall remain nameless around Las Vegas area) are more "pay your money for an adult play school"... so you might get more "seat time" - but they won't help you go faster. HUGE DIFFERENCE. Just huge.

Bondurant WANTS you to go fast and they'll work on you and break it all down and if you're fast enough - the instructors will come out and PUSH you harder. Gotta love that!

:cheers:

[Vegas69]

It's just a big FAT version of my shifter Kart right :rolleyes:

You sound like me, experience with a bunch of fast stuff. Your biggest challenge is going to be finding the balance in your chassis and getting the experience under you belt in your car at multiple events. Remember, you aren't jumping on an engineered and tested product. You are the engineer and tuner with a 40 year old boat.

[FETorino]

You sound like me, experience with a bunch of fast stuff. Your biggest challenge is going to be finding the balance in your chassis and getting the experience under you belt in your car at multiple events. Remember, you aren't jumping on an engineered and tested product. You are the engineer and tuner with a 40 year old boat.

Your dead on on that. :thumbsup: But it's not a boat it's a race car just ask Richard Petty :rofl:

Dialing it in will be more complex than track width adjustment and tire pressure on the shifter. That is a huge reason I think I should get some instruction and track time in an engineered and balanced car before I jump into the unknown.

It's gonna be like Chuck Yeager in the rocket plane. It should work but you really won't know till you strap in and take the ride.

I've got time. Its gonna take me time to finish this thing :faint:

[Vegas69]

I get wood on the ball once in a while.

Weights not your friend but balance and driver will make a big difference.

[Matt@BOS]

I've been to driving school twice now (yeah, apparently once wasn't enough for me :lol: ). First time I went was before I got my Camaro on the road. I'd never been out on a track before. Over the course of several days, I learned how to drive Corvettes reasonably fast. When I jumped in my Camaro though, all of my new found driving skills got me right into last place at my first event. From there I had to start learning how to tune, and feel my car out. Most driving school classes aren't going to let you play around with out traction and stability control on, and it makes finding the limits of the school's cars a bit more difficult. It is really easy to over drive them without being able to tell when the computer is saving your ass. The reason I went back recently was because I felt like all of the seat time I'd gotten at events had allowed me to be able interpret what my car was actually doing. I'd gotten better at judging corner entry speed, weight transfer, etc. I could kind of tell when I was pushing the limits of traction in my car. So, the second time I went out to Bondurant, I could put all of the instructor's advice into context. Sure, I did everything they told me to do the first time around, but I wasn't necessarily able to tell if I was doing it right. The second time around, if the instructor told me to lift and turn, I could do it with way more finesse than several years before.

Greg is right about Bondurant, the instructors are a wealth of knowledge, not to mention patient. Since you've had experience with fast stuff in the past, I'd recommend getting your car out to an empty parking lot, and/or and autocross, and getting to know it a little bit first. Once you shake off some of the cobwebs, then head out to Bondurant, where you will learn how to react to what you are feeling in the car, and then how to tie all of the individual components of driving together.

Matt

[Flash68]

I've been to driving school twice now (yeah, apparently once wasn't enough for me :lol: )

Matt

Apparently twice wasn't enough either. :rofl:

[GregWeld]

Apparently twice wasn't enough either. :rofl:

Ouch.....



:rofl:

[Matt@BOS]

Apparently twice wasn't enough either. :rofl:

Dude. You're supposed to wait until after Buttonwillow to say that. This settles it, Im going to have to take the big boat of a car out so I have excuses.

p.s. There's no pressure on you Greg, you're a multiple time driving school "graduate," in a race car. Don't let Bobby down! :thumbsup:

[GregWeld]

Dude. You're supposed to wait until after Buttonwillow to say that. This settles it, Im going to have to take the big boat of a car out so I have excuses.

p.s. There's no pressure on you Greg, you're a multiple time driving school "graduate," in a race car. Don't let Bobby down! :thumbsup:



Hell..... I'm even going to watch the Monaco Grand Prix this month -- So I should be supery dupery fast after that!!


:cheers:


I have to lay a rose on turn 12 for my NBF "Bobby".... where they got married.

[Vegas69]

I have a feeling some of the home schooled boys are going to lay an ass whippin on the polo wearing fraternity boys.:unibrow:

[Matt@BOS]

I have a feeling some of the home schooled boys are going to lay an ass whippin on the polo wearing fraternity boys.:unibrow:

Ooh, home schooling? Did you guys learn how to draw the racing line with pastels, and then have meditative exercises where you visualized yourself being fast on the track? And, whatever else it is that mother's teach their home schooled children.

Matt

[Flash68]

Dude. You're supposed to wait until after Buttonwillow to say that. This settles it, Im going to have to take the big boat of a car out so I have excuses.

p.s. There's no pressure on you Greg, you're a multiple time driving school "graduate," in a race car. Don't let Bobby down! :thumbsup:

That BW smack thread has made me a little mouthier all around. My bad.

If I can help in any way to get you to bring the Maro instead of that 1 of 800,00 edition Mustang, then I done good. :D

[Vegas69]

Ooh, home schooling? Did you guys learn how to draw the racing line with pastels, and then have meditative exercises where you visualized yourself being fast on the track? And, whatever else it is that mother's teach their home schooled children.

Matt

Nah, Mom let us go out and ride our bikes with no helmets or shirts instead of learning our ABC's. :lol:

[Flash68]

Ooh, home schooling? Did you guys learn how to draw the racing line with pastels, and then have meditative exercises where you visualized yourself being fast on the track? And, whatever else it is that mother's teach their home schooled children.

Matt

That is definitely a response from someone born and raised in Kalifornia. :lol:

[Matt@BOS]

That BW smack thread has made me a little mouthier all around. My bad.

If I can help in any way to get you to bring the Maro instead of that 1 of 800,00 edition Mustang, then I done good. :D

No need to apologize. In fact, I'd be upset if you did. You have part of the responsibility of keeping things of topic around here, and I wouldn't want you to be off your game.

Matt

[GregWeld]

No need to apologize. In fact, I'd be upset if you did. You have part of the responsibility of keeping things of topic around here, and I wouldn't want you to be off your game.

Matt

EXACTLY....


Matt --- I'd let you drive the Mutt at Buttonwillow -- but I like my tires ROUND...

[Matt@BOS]

EXACTLY....


Matt --- I'd let you drive the Mutt at Buttonwillow -- but I like my tires ROUND...

Sir, you obviously have me confused with Mr. Cassanova. I can even explain why my car had flat spotted tires - I lent Steve for Run to the Coast. I've never flat spotted a tire in my life. Can I have the keys now? :lol:

[FETorino]

Bondurant is by far the best technical training school you're going to get....

They have a very proven (boring) base building way of training -- but -- and this is the big butt -- when you get on track and show that you can actually drive and have paid attention to what they're telling you -- THEY WILL HELP YOU GO FASTER... the instructors there TRULY want you to go faster.

Some schools (shall remain nameless around Las Vegas area) are more "pay your money for an adult play school"... so you might get more "seat time" - but they won't help you go faster. HUGE DIFFERENCE. Just huge.

Bondurant WANTS you to go fast and they'll work on you and break it all down and if you're fast enough - the instructors will come out and PUSH you harder. Gotta love that!

:cheers:

Do their track cars run Intros? :D

[GregWeld]

Do their track cars run Intros? :D



On request!


But if you want to go FAST -- you have to run WELD RACING.


:wow:

[FETorino]

On request!


But if you want to go FAST -- you have to run WELD RACING.


:wow:

Ok I got it ;)

Intos = style
Weld = utility

[SLO_Z28]

I would take a serious look at the Evolution Driving School. I would argue that autocross is more difficult than time trials where you get to practice the same corner 10000 times, and any skills gained in autocrossing directly translate into time trials. These guys are fairly well known as probably the premier autocross instruction schools. You get training in your own car too, which helps.

http://evoschool.com/

[Matt@BOS]

I would take a serious look at the Evolution Driving School. I would argue that autocross is more difficult than time trials where you get to practice the same corner 10000 times, and any skills gained in autocrossing directly translate into time trials. These guys are fairly well known as probably the premier autocross instruction schools. You get training in your own car too, which helps.

http://evoschool.com/

The Evolution school is another great idea. I would argue though that autocross and time trials (road racing, yes?) are different enough to warrant two different driving styles though, and the skills gained from one won't translate to the other without some serious adjustment. Both schools will teach fundamentals like vision and vehicle dynamics, but how you brake, what you do with the steering wheel, and how you provide inputs to the the car are going to be completely different. I went to autocross the day after Bondurant, and I had to completely change driving styles.

Matt