07-19-2007, 10:19 PM
No, not by gutting the interior, whipping up a carbon fiber replica of the entire body, ceramic rotors, carbon fiber wheels, or anything along those lines. I got promoted to Solo at my last DE last weekend! Woo-hoo!
This is coming from someone who was initially probably the most pathetic driver in the history of DE-dom. In my first three sessions, EVERYBODY, Mini Coopers, VW Golfs, Nissan Sentras, that kid on the ten speed (to be fair, she was pretty buff for a ten-year-old...) was passing me. Instructor #3 dropped the not-so-subtle hint that "You know, racing just isn't for everybody." I know this sounds terribly sexist, but had I been female, I think I would have cried by that point. As I think I said in a previous post, I felt like putting a large brown bag over the car to prevent bringing shame upon the 968 community.
But at my 4th session, things suddenly started coming together, and last weekend, at session #5, things really started to click. By Sunday afternoon, an inexplicable sense of calm suddenly came over me. First I passed a Lotus Elise, and then passed, and nearly lapped, a BMW 335i. Even more thrilling, I began to notice that near the ends of several straights, much faster (and better handling) cars (new 911s, a Cayman, M3, etc.) would appear in my rear view mirror. I knew I had to let them pass at the next straight, but first had to negotiate the upcoming series of corners, applying everything I had learned from my excellent instructor. But when I checked my mirror at the track-out from the last corner, the rocket was no longer in my mirrors! And this was happening over and over! I was out-cornering far superior cars, probably driven by more experienced drivers! Sorry to sound so giddy, but this was the most fun I had had in as long as I can remember.
I also noticed that my car, despite having a fairly long list of suspension mods installed by the previous owner, sways and slides A LOT. I just sent an email to Jason at Paragon for suggestions on how to tighten things up a bit. I don't want to go too crazy, but I would like the car to be a little better planted through the corners. Uh, oh, sounds like the first step on a slippery slope. Anyway, I'm definitely hooked. I'm living proof that no matter how bad you are at the beginning, anybody who sticks with this high performance driving stuff can attain a level of skill that can turn initial frustration into indescribable fun. Can't wait to get out there again!
This is coming from someone who was initially probably the most pathetic driver in the history of DE-dom. In my first three sessions, EVERYBODY, Mini Coopers, VW Golfs, Nissan Sentras, that kid on the ten speed (to be fair, she was pretty buff for a ten-year-old...) was passing me. Instructor #3 dropped the not-so-subtle hint that "You know, racing just isn't for everybody." I know this sounds terribly sexist, but had I been female, I think I would have cried by that point. As I think I said in a previous post, I felt like putting a large brown bag over the car to prevent bringing shame upon the 968 community.
But at my 4th session, things suddenly started coming together, and last weekend, at session #5, things really started to click. By Sunday afternoon, an inexplicable sense of calm suddenly came over me. First I passed a Lotus Elise, and then passed, and nearly lapped, a BMW 335i. Even more thrilling, I began to notice that near the ends of several straights, much faster (and better handling) cars (new 911s, a Cayman, M3, etc.) would appear in my rear view mirror. I knew I had to let them pass at the next straight, but first had to negotiate the upcoming series of corners, applying everything I had learned from my excellent instructor. But when I checked my mirror at the track-out from the last corner, the rocket was no longer in my mirrors! And this was happening over and over! I was out-cornering far superior cars, probably driven by more experienced drivers! Sorry to sound so giddy, but this was the most fun I had had in as long as I can remember.
I also noticed that my car, despite having a fairly long list of suspension mods installed by the previous owner, sways and slides A LOT. I just sent an email to Jason at Paragon for suggestions on how to tighten things up a bit. I don't want to go too crazy, but I would like the car to be a little better planted through the corners. Uh, oh, sounds like the first step on a slippery slope. Anyway, I'm definitely hooked. I'm living proof that no matter how bad you are at the beginning, anybody who sticks with this high performance driving stuff can attain a level of skill that can turn initial frustration into indescribable fun. Can't wait to get out there again!
