So just participated in a track day where they had some BMW factory drivers giving ride alongs. I was having issues with two corners so signed up so I could see what line a professional would take in those corners. WT*! So have I been doing it wrong all this time? Before corners he would slam on the brakes throwing me forward and then hit the gas. I thought the whole idea was to be rather smooth in your driving technique? I realize that when I'm driving I know when I'm going to brake and brace my self accordingly so don't feel it as suddenly hitting the brakes. Is this what I'd experience if I was riding along with myself or do 'professionals' hammer the brakes before corners and then accelerate out? He had me pitching back and forth for both laps.

 

If you go racing, you want to brake as late as possible and as hard as possible. There's no other way to achieve the best possible lap time. Acceleration is a given, you can only go as fast as the car can go but braking late and hard is something that has to be learned. The instructor was showing you the max limit, if it seemed crazy, then you know you have a way to go to achieve your best times.

 

I've been tracking cars for 40 years and had my rookie Formula Ford card back in the day. I love ride alongs or follow alongs because it show me how much more i can push myself and the car. Bouncing around is part of the fun but a good five point harness makes things easier.

 

The real pros are the ones who can drive hard AND smoothly. It sounds like these are incompatible things, but they aren't. A few years ago I had a day of instruction from a man who drove Indy cars and at CART in the 90's. What struck me the most was the casual ease and smoothness with which he maximized g's under acceleration, braking and cornering. Contrast this with the ride along I had at a Skip Barber course in a 911 with an ALMS driver: intentional driving over the limit at every corner. Exciting showboating for sure, but violent and certainly not the fastest way around.

 

Rule to live by on the track..."Don't lift until you S&@t your pants. Don't brake until you smell it."

 

Any recommendations on a good track driving instruction class? Located in Central California. I've done some manufacturer sponsored events but they were geared a bit towards sales vs skills. I believe BMW and Porsche have something down towards Palm Springs?

 

Not sure how close your are to Salinas...or if that's considered Central California, but Laguna Seca has tons of classes from what I'm told.