They stretched the length of Road Atlanta's pit row. Eighteen guards
red Porsche 996s gleaming in the bright August sun, engines rumbling,
warmed up and ready to drive. Number 19 was mine for two days. We were
part of run group D, four students passed between various instructors
and run through a series of exercises preparing us for the main event:
running at speeds touching 130 on the Road Atlanta Grand Prix course.
The 996 is a fitting heir to the Porsche 911 legacy, one of the most
capable machines in the model's 37 year run. It's horizontally opposed
six-cylinder engine produces 300 horsepower and 258 foot pounds of torque
that, when coupled with a six-speed manual transmission, produces 0-100
kph (0-62.5 mph) times of 5.2 seconds and a top speed of 174 mph. Just
as impressive as the 996's power are it's brakes: 12.53 inch cross-drilled
rotors in the front and 11.78 inch drilled rotors in the back with four-piston
monobloc calipers capable of bringing the car to a halt faster than
any production car in the world, while providing the exceptional fade
resistance necessary to brake the car over and over in racing conditions.
We would discover the beast within, but on first sight the 996s were
a stunning theme repeated 18 times, a testimony to the timeless beauty
of the 911 design.
Approximately 30 miles northeast of downtown Atlanta, Road Atlanta
is in an area of rolling hills and vegetation so thick that stretches
of highway give the impression you are in a remote jungle. Stretching
back from a two lane state highway, the Road Atlanta course runs over
and through three valleys. This is what gives Road Atlanta its character,
the elevation changes, off camber turns, and its unique driving challenges.
Look at a track map, and the course resembles a rib steak. But a two
dimensional map gives no hint of the undulating ribbon of asphalt that
compresses the suspension to add speed to turns, launches the car on
hilltops, and provides natural banking that works for the driver in
some turns and sends drivers spinning off in others.
The Porsche Driving Experience (PDE) uses the Panoz Driving School's
facilities and instructors. But the cars are Porsche 996 Carerras, and
that is the point of PDE, to give current and potential Porsche owners
an opportunity to understand the performance capabilities of these cars,
limits that can only truly be tested on a closed track.
The two-day course is broken into four half-day segments, each following
a well rehearsed format of one hour classroom instruction followed by
three hours of skill building and practice sessions. The morning of
day one focused on basic vehicle handling with an emphasis on keeping
the car balanced and the driver fully in command. The afternoon of day
one focused on mastering the line, the unmarked route around the course
that maximizes the car's ability to move at speeds guaranteed to scare
every participant at least once during the two days on the track.
Run Group with Two Instructors
The first morning's activities produced my first lashing by an instructor.
The high speed slalom exercise involved a spirited downhill run at about
70 mph, a turnaround, then acceleration up the hill through the same
gates, ending with a stop in a box at the top of the hill. The slalom
was going well for me, and feeling quite certain about my success, I
slowly glided into the box, stopping right on the mark. All the cars
were tuned to a radio channel that allowed the instructor to speak to
the entire group. As soon as I stopped, the instructor's voice rang
out of my radio: "What are you practicing, pulling into the drive-in
teller at your local bank? You just might look down at the crest on
the steering wheel and notice that you happen to be driving a Porsche.
How about we go out and drive the car like a Porsche?" Okay, so
the expletives have been expunged, but the message was loud and clear.
The next time I came up the hill, I was running flat out and braked
hard, screeching through the box by a good ten feet. Was this good?
"Okay, now that is driving. Next time stop in the #%&! box."
My performance continuously improved.
The afternoon drive session required we pull on our helmets for the
first time, and there was an instantaneous anxiety associated with the
anticipation of needing a helmet. I immediately discovered that the
996 is not exactly made for someone 6 foot 2 inches and wearing a helmet.
I already had my seat fully lowered. I would spend the next day and
a half with my neck compressed two inches and hunched forward in my
seat. So much for the ideal driving position. I got little sympathy
from the instructors, who took my discomfort as an opportunity to tell
me about the terrible cockpit conditions they had encountered with some
of their rides. I took this as validation that I was having a true racing
experience, stiff neck and all.
The style of the instructors varied a great deal, and we spent time
with each. One was a nice, warm human being. He gave helpful hints and
mostly positive feedback. He was by far the least effective of the instructors.
One was an army drill sergeant, taking a pound of flesh, but he also
set very clear performance goals, specifically stated the expected techniques
for achieving the goals, told you when you screwed up (see above), and
gave compliments when they were due. He was feared and loved, because
everyone knew that the praise he gave was deserved. The other instructors
were more analytic, and in many ways more helpful. They had an ability
to spot small corrections that made a huge difference in my ability
to execute, and it was these small adjustments that were 90% of the
advancement I made by the end of the course. And I definitely could
look at the crest on the steering wheel and tell I was driving a Porsche.
We finished day one running the Club Course, 1.85 miles of the Grand
Prix Course with a cross over that cuts out the wicked off camber Turn
7 and significantly shortens the back straight. The turns on the Club
Course were excellent preparation for running the Grand Prix Course.
Turn 1 was demanding mainly because it is at the end of the front straight,
which is where the cars carry the second fastest speeds on the course.
A sweeping right hander, Turn 1 naturally carries the car into a perfect
set up for the left at Turn 2, so perfect that you do not even notice
Turn 2 going by. Turn 3 then comes up very quickly, an off camber right
hander that needs to be taken very seriously as evidenced by the huge
number of skid marks all over the turn and the much used tire wall that
is hit when cars over correct. The warnings were heeded and observed,
as not a car in our class would go off turn 3. The cars that attended
the DE event the next weekend were not so lucky, with several piling
up in Turn 3.
Turn 4 is just a marker as you accelerate into the downhill esses,
a pair of turns that seem custom made to practice shifting the car's
balance from side-to-side while driving like a lunatic. At the end of
the downhill run is the crossover that defines the Club Course, a big
sweeper to the right joining the back straight and heading downhill.
At the bottom of the hill are Turns 10 and 11. A low speed chicane as
much as a pair of turns, these force cars to slow down drastically before
beginning the climb up the hill to the bridge that spans the descent
into Turn 12. As one climbs this hill, all you can see ahead is sky,
even as you crest the hill. Ahead is a long, sweeping right hand turn
that flattens out and straightens out a quarter of the way up the front
straight, right beyond the start/finish line. This hill was absolutely
unnerving, because there was no way to see the road ahead at a point
on the track where acceleration is necessary to achieve maximum speeds
down the front straight.
Run Group Coming Through Turn 12
We followed an instructor for an hour of laps, staying in third gear
and getting familiar with braking points, turn in, apex, and unwinding
the steering wheel as the car accelerated. Again, we were soon pushing
the rev limiter in third with speeds hitting 90 and never dropping much
below 40, no matter how sharp the turn. I was really starting to get
a feel for the car and what it can do.
I was bone tired and drenched in sweat by the end of the day. The PDE
director invited the entire class to dinner that evening at a local
restaurant, and I was not sure I wanted to go any further than back
to my room for a shower. But, realizing I needed to eat something, I
showered and headed over. We started with drinks, but no one was drinking
much and water was in demand. We had a very pleasant evening, getting
to know each other better and swapping stories from the day. I was dead
tired and had no trouble sleeping that night.
We were back in the classroom and hard at it by 8:00 am the next morning.
The second day was devoted to heel-toe downshifting and driving the
Grand Prix Course. The anxiety of the day before was now a sense of
anticipation. On the course, we sat with an instructor and practiced
heel-toe with throttle blipping as the car idled, something that proved
quite easy sitting in the pits. Our group headed out to practice on
the Club Course, which is where I discovered that the same 6 foot 2
inches that was making me hunch over the steering wheel also made it
impossible for me to heel-toe without getting my knee tangled up with
the steering wheel. After pitting, an instructor rode with each of us
while the rest of the run group followed, talking us through the turns
and providing feedback. At this point, very frustrated, I started talking
myself through the sequence of events leading up to the turns. It worked!.
With the right amount of anticipation - and this is the name of the
game - I was able to get my leg and foot positioned for the proper heel-toe
and bring the car into the turns flawlessly. This was a big break through,
although I would never feel entirely comfortable with the heel-toe maneuver
because it put my leg out of my normal driving position, my knee fighting
the steering wheel position.
After lunch, we took a van ride over the Grand Prix Course, 2.54 miles
and 12 turns. We had run segments of the course for a solid day, but
the full Grand Prix Course includes a big sweeper in turn 5 with a very
narrow entry and a backstraight where speeds exceeding 130 were possible.
Things were about to get much faster. The van ride was an interesting
start, because one of the instructors drove the line aggressively and
talked us through the course. It was possible to feel the weight transitions
and stability challenges in a very vivid way as the van swayed and rolled
through two runs around the circuit. You really want to see driving
mastery, have a professional driver take you around the line of a race
track in a ten-passenger van. You will never forget the experience.
Skip the hot laps, which are hokey. You want the van laps.
Instructors Driving "Hot Laps" with Students
The van ride was followed by two laps around the circuit with an instructor
driving and talking through all the braking, shifting, and turn-in/unwinding
points on the track. As we went through the narrow chute in turn 5,
I commented to the instructor that it looked like a lot of cars had
run onto the rumble strips. He just chuckled, and on the second trip
through 5, we rocketed through the turn, up over the rumble strips,
and slid sideways on the crossover lane before rocketing up the hill
heading to turn 6. "That is the racing line on turn 5, but do not
use it!" All I can say is that every trip with an instructor convinced
me that they do not have to fear me taking their job away.
All four run groups would be on the Grand Prix Course at the same time,
the first time more than two run groups had shared track. Our run group
had consistently overtaken other run groups, and there is no doubt in
my mind that this was an unspoken objective as we headed out on the
track. The only way to accomplish this objective was to push the instructor,
because passing the instructor was strictly forbidden. Push we did.
After a couple of warm up laps, we were hitting 120 in the back straight.
A few more laps and we were at 130 in the back straight and hitting
110-120 in the much shorter front straight. We took turns following
directly behind the instructor, and it seemed to all come together as
I followed the instructor, pushing hard through the turns and accelerating
out of the turn right on his tail. Within a few laps, we were overtaking
the run group ahead of us, so our instructor pitted for water and discussion
time.
Taking a Break
Back on the track, we were running faster and faster. As the afternoon
wore on, we sustained very high speeds while practicing the line. And
with practice, the heel-toe downshifts started to become seamless, the
braking better timed and more precise, and the acceleration out of the
turns faster. It actually became relaxing, even going under the bridge
and having the world drop out from under the car while accelerating
into Turn 12 and the front straight.
Toward the end of our drive time, we were overtaking a group that had
overtaken the group in front of them. As we took our final two laps
at a more relaxed pace, I could see 12 student cars stretched out in
front of me with the yellow cars driven by the instructors leading each
group. As I crested the hill in turn 3, I could look down through the
esses and turn 5 to see a winding line of cars moving with astonishing
grace through the turns, then shooting up the hill coming out of turn
5. It was truly a beautiful sight to see these magnificent machines
running flat out in the middle of the beautifully green Georgia countryside.
Was it worth it? Adding in the surprise insurance payment of $200 to
reduce my damage deductible from $10,000 to $1,000, the cost of the
two days was $2395. The three-day Panoz Racing School is $2495 (www.panozracingschool.com)
and the Skip Barber three-day racing school is $2595 (www.skipbarber.com).
Both these schools are true racing schools, offering instruction in
passing, drafting, and the opportunity to earn a regional SCCA license.
Add an additional $800-$1000 for travel, lodging and a rental car, and
you realize that these thrills are not cheap. But neither are Porsche
996s, and, if you are considering buying one, as several people in the
class were, this is a very cheap introduction to what is going to be
a major purchase.
Entering Turn 5
Given this was my first driving school, it was an excellent introduction.
Should I decide to get more serious about racing, I will be looking
at the Panoz School at Sebring or the Skip Barber School, which is offered
on 23 different tracks. I think I will start with Laguna Seca.
PCA driver's education events are a real bargain compared to these
schools, and you get a lot of seat time in your own car. However, the
downside is you are driving your own car. I can assure you that if you
are thinking about buying a used guards red 996, I would make sure I
was absolutely certain I knew its entire ownership history. The car
I drove was about to be replaced by a 2001 model, refurbished, and then
wholesaled. A couple of my fourth to third downshifts were not exactly
perfect, and we did ride the rev limiter for a few miles during some
of the exercises. I mostly stayed off the curbs, but I can assure you
that any low mileage yellow 996 just might have been an instructor's
car that was driven over the track curbs a few times every day. Using
your own car is not necessarily always a cheaper option when you factor
in wear and tear.
So, was it worth it?
It was just a few of weeks ago that I was shifting from fourth to fifth
in the back straight, the engine screaming at 6000 rpm, a line of red
and yellow 996s stretching ahead and behind, Harmanizing as the sounds
of squealing tires, rising and falling rpms, and the whooshing turbulence
of the track all bounced off the concrete walls protecting the stands.
And I was in the middle of it, green grass a blur to the side, coming
downhill into Turn 10, hard on the brake, blip into fourth, blip into
third, blip into second, turn in left, apex, right into Turn 11, up
the hill and quickly into third, short shift into fourth, nothing but
sky ahead, hard on the accelerator as the world drops away. And I am
flying. Flying down into Turn 12, suspension compressing as the track
levels and the straight opens up ahead. I can see it now, can smell
the exhaust, can hear the cars screaming down the straights, can feel
the car cradling me as I accelerate to redline. I will never be the
same. It was worth it.
