Driving School recommendations?

[GregWeld]

Originally Posted by HIFLYR

Be careful and check out the safety aspects of the school you choose, my wifes doctor was killed at a Bondurant school. No fault of the school but accidents happen.

I searched for 20 minutes and could find ZERO mention of this on the internet... I only searched because I find it hard to believe. I've done two driving schools there and while anything can happen... I would think that something like that would be big news.

[MaxHarvard]

Robert, just do BIR with me.

[Roberts68]

Originally Posted by MaxHarvard

Robert, just do BIR with me.

Well Gosh Eric, that is a pretty romantic offer but somehow Vegas with Jodi seems sooooo much more tantalizing.


Kidding aside, That would be cool to do BIR; do you know if they have their own cars or if you use your own? To say mine is a "ways off" from being 7 months out is probably a gross understatement the way my shedule has amped up.

[TheJDMan]

Just keep in mind that there is a world of difference between a driving Experience and a driving School. Programs such as Richard Petty Driving Experience are designed for the average NASCAR fan that is looking for a thirll but has no interest in actually learning any driving skills. On the other hand a Driving School like Bondurant or Skip Barber will actually teach you high performace driving like a professional. An economical alternative is a track day event. Most commerical road race tracks offer some sort of Track Days which will provide a ride along instructor and allow you to drive your own car on a real race track for a few hundred dollars. These Track Days are a good place to start learning the basics without the expense of a full blown driving school. Check out http://www.nasaracing.net/ for information on their driving events.

[Roberts68]

I couldn't agree with you more TheJDMan... Which is why I got a little "Deer in the Headlights" when she mentioned a NASCAR based program and started looking to alternatives.

I know there are tons of guys on here that could give me pointers and BIR as MaxHarvard mentioned is the closest facility.

Getting my car together by next season is a dream but as we know not all dreams come true. I would like to find a place to drive a "purpose built" car and get some instruction. Some of the motorcycle stuff crosses over but a Valentino Rossi I was not. Still, when I was into my bike I did pay attention to information pertinent to being a better rider, smoother and safer with aspirations of being faster through corners.

Do you know what region of NASA MN would be? I did not see BIR in the regions I looked up but maybe they are more SCCA? I'm pretty naive about the different organizations.

[MaxHarvard]

Originally Posted by Roberts68

Well Gosh Eric, that is a pretty romantic offer but somehow Vegas with Jodi seems sooooo much more tantalizing.


Kidding aside, That would be cool to do BIR; do you know if they have their own cars or if you use your own? To say mine is a "ways off" from being 7 months out is probably a gross understatement the way my shedule has amped up.

They do have their own cars you can borrow

http://www.birperformance.com/

Do we have a budding Bromance?

[tazzz2_ca]

I've been considering Spring Mountain Ranch and the "Ron Fellows" program out there....

[GregWeld]

Originally Posted by tazzz2_ca

I've been considering Spring Mountain Ranch and the "Ron Fellows" program out there....

I've done Spring Mountain --- and Bondurant is a FAR better school. You might get more seat time at Spring Mountain - but you won't get the schooling that you do at Bondurant. Bondurant will really watch your every move and coach you on driving faster... or your braking...

I was slow in a corner in the open wheel Mazda cars and said so - next thing you know - there's my instructor at that corner just watching me... after 3 laps or so he's flagging me in - and has a big white board with the track on it and he shows me what I'm doing -- and what he wants me to try.. sure enough. Bam I'm driving thru the corner WAY faster and feeling really good about it.

These guys don't want to just entertain you -- they WANT to teach you how to be better and they're good at it.

Just my "buddy to a buddy" talking.

[James OLC]

^^ this is a really good point.

Lots of "schools" are really nothing more then "experiences" that want you to enjoy yourself and are reluctant to be really critical of your driving or abilities. You really have to know what you want for yourself when you pick a school. When I went to DirtFish last spring I specifically told the instructors what I wanted to get out of the school and asked them to be blunt in their assessments rather than giving me a "good job" or "getting better" every time we got out of the car. Kind of like doing hot laps with Mary...

There are lots of extremely talented drivers who return to Bondurant every year for a "tune up" or to focus on specific weaknesses.

[intocarss]

Originally Posted by GregWeld

I searched for 20 minutes and could find ZERO mention of this on the internet... I only searched because I find it hard to believe. I've done two driving schools there and while anything can happen... I would think that something like that would be big news.

Maybe he is confusing it with this

http://sports.yahoo.com/irl/news?slug=txspeedwaydeath