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The Wrong Direction at Palmer

Palmer Clockwise – NER’s Second DE Event June 9-11

Ok, I’m a bum.  My car broke at Thompson and I wasn’t sure I would be ready for Palmer so I didn’t sign up at first.  By the time I knew I was OK my calendar had filled up (or “been filled” to be more accurate) so I could only go on Sunday.  Fortunately that turned out to be the best weather day – another perfect 70 degree and sunny day just like Thompson.  Then I got there and was really busy being slow.  I really don’t like the clockwise direction and – despite pedaling as fast as I dared – I was almost 4 seconds slower than my best going counter-clockwise.  No excuses and I still had a fun time chasing others and having some good rides as part of the check-out/advancement process.  I’ll do better at the second Palmer when we go CC.

 

 

So I didn’t take any pictures, didn’t get any good stories (well maybe one) and have no idea what happened on Friday or Saturday.  The pictures are courtesy of Melanie Randall, the text below is from Charlie Kenney and the advancement from Dave Berman…

 

 

“Team, Another excellent event by this team at Palmer! Thank you!!!

All TC members contributed to a great event. Pre-event registrations, Tech, on the track, Instructor Development, in the classrooms. [Note from author:  lots of classroom – even for instructors – it was nice and cool inside and someone I know fell asleep.]

Judi, Pam and Jen set a high bar for the social and dinner!!! You had me at Palm tree.

 And Social Media!!! and now our T-shirt’s are collectors items!

Shout out to all who researched and compiled and delivered the training materials and the classroom education! We are getting good feedback on our classes from all groups. Green to Red. This is a LOT of off hours work. It shows. Videos are making an impression!

Where would we be without Sally and Buzz managing Worker Assignments? The answer is ‘lost’.

Dave and Mike:  awesome job on management of the instructor corps, the promotions and sign offs and the Mentoring.

We are seriously underpaid for the level of professionalism in this team!

Calabogie – ADAM SCHWARTZ makes a return as Track Chair and overall event manager. 
Please contact Adam for all questions on Calabogie and you are welcome to cc me.

Have fun in Canada for those going!  Charlie”

 

Advancements…

Placement in White (first time driving with us)

Dave Veracka

New Instructors: 

Jim Daley

Green to Yellow:

Bobby Lemieux

Alexis Regan

Yellow to Blue:

Ted Emerson

Blue to White:

Jason Loy

White to Black:

Kurt Drottar

Niket Anjaria

Christian Lesuisse

Final story:  Bad luck of the weekend award to Aaron Walker and good Samaritan award to Mike Woodward.  The story… Aaron tows his new (to him) GT3 to the track on Saturday with his Rivian pickup.  Throw out bearing goes south early in the day.  Rivian is out of charge so Aaron puts it on a charger near Palmer and takes an Uber home.  Drives back same day in second GT3 (who the hell has two GT3’s?  sometimes the world is not fair!).  Rivian is charged and Aaron uses it to bring home GT3 #1.  Aaron hooks a ride to track Sunday morning with Mike (who also is his instructor and a very brave soul).  In next to last run session GT3 #2 has a water hose split.  [More author note:  I was on the track at the same time, smelled anti-freeze and had a slight dance.  When I looked at video it became cloudy at that point and I had apparently run threw a cloud of mist despite the fact that Aaron was not immediately ahead of me.  Odd.] Aaron with help from Mike and Dave Berman wraps split hose with duct tape and zip ties and nurses it home while Mike follows with trailer (in case the wrap doesn’t hold plan is to take Mike’s car from trailer, put Aaron’s car in trailer and drive Mike’s car – which has a plate – home on the street). Aaron claims he got 20 miles per gallon of water which is better than his gas mileage. You can’t make this stuff up.

 

Fine German Engineering!
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DE Crier(s): Thompson Report – Jose Starts Down the Slippery Slope

In this special write up we see two DE perspectives, one from NER’s OG Bill Seymour and also from Jose Alberto Betances, a newer NER member – read on to get the full scoop!

Another One Starts Down the Slippery Slope!

Author: Jose Alberto Betances

The Porsche brand has fans of all kinds, from those who enjoy the casual comfortable drives, to spirited drives, to true performance drives.  I have been in the first two categories, looking from the outside at that third category, for a long time.  I decided that this year, a year after getting a 2006 Cayman S, would be the year I added that third category to my repertoire. 

I have to believe there are many others out there like me, and after this experience, I highly recommend they take this step as well!  The “Ground School” at Palmer was a fine introduction.  Through this experience, I was encouraged to try out the first Driver Education event at Thompson.  I had never been on a track before, aside from the parade laps on Palmer, and so I prepared to do so.  After getting my first helmet, and tech inspection, I was ready to go.  But, admittedly nervous.  So much so, I almost backed out (as I have before), prepped some excuses just in case.  But I went anyway with a “now or never” mentality.

The Tech Crew

The folks who volunteer their time for this are really quality people – I can’t say enough about how welcoming and friendly folks were to me. While there was plenty about which to be intimidated, (just the line of vehicles there for this was incredible) it ended up not being so.  The focus for my “Green” group was learning some fundamentals.  Basic terms, flag meanings, and safety were essential and the day would be mostly about “the Line.”   Then it was out to the track for the first run of the day.

I was fortunate enough to be paired with Bill Seymour and he guided me through an exhilarating experience.  Just being on the track was good enough for me, but I was also there to learn how to become a better driver.  I remembered a quote from the Desiderata: “there will always be greater and lesser people than you” at anything.  Learn from those who are better and help those who may not be is my motto everywhere else.  It just so happened here that there were lots of people from whom to learn.  Yes, there were much better drivers (and cars!) out there, but Bill helped me focus on what I needed to do and learn, at a pace and manner that worked for me, personally.  And yes, passing signs were given – AND accepted.

As an added bonus, Bill found another member, Chip Wood, who was kind enough to give up some of his track time and car (a track-prepped orange Boxster) for me to ride-along.  With Bill in the driver’s seat, I saw what can REALLY be done on that track (and how far I have to go – but as they say, “the journey of a thousand miles…”).  I laughed so hard.  It was amazing.  I really should have done this sooner.

At the end of the day, I could not believe how much time I had on the track at Thompson.  Four rounds (five if you count the ride along), about 27 minutes each – so much more than I could have imagined for a first-timer like myself.  I learned a great deal about my limits (and beyond) and those of my Cayman.  I could feel the gradual improvement, and the opportunities to improve even further.  I know at least one way I can do so: more track time.  But first, let me prepare a strong case for my wife about the concept of “consumables….”

(Comment from Bill Seymour…”What Jose doesn’t explain – but you all should know – is that he would have had the same experience with any of the great NER DE instructors. The only difference is that they might not have talked him into writing up his experience for our website!”)

Thompson Rocks!

By: Bill Seymour

NER’s first Driver Education event of the season took place over Memorial Day weekend at Thompson Motorsports Park.  Apparently all of us Track Rats had been very well behaved because we were rewarded with absolutely perfect weather – dry, sunny, not too hot – perfect!

The weekend featured three special events.  First: on Friday, which was “advanced only,” the National Instructor Training took place.  Matthew Wallis organized the day which involved classroom sessions followed by on track role play (candidates in the right seat with mentors driving and pretending to be naughty students). Dan Dazzo, PCA National Safety Chair, flew in to do the classrooms and share lots of interesting stories. As a result there are now 17 new National Instructors in our region.

Charlie at the Drivers Meeting

On Saturday morning there was a special parking lot session for Green and Yellow drivers.  Chris Ryan, Autocross Chair, and his colleagues Ed Moschella, Bill Aubin and Bob Cantor, set up braking and skidpad exercises.  Think a braking exercise sounds silly?  You’d be surprised how many new track drivers never had their Porsche fully into ABS. And of course the watered skidpad was hugely helpful.  (By the way – a plug for Autocross – go to Ft. Devens and find the limits of your Porsche in a safe and entertaining way.)

On Saturday night there was the usual beer/wine social in the garage but this was followed by a buffet dinner at the Thompson golf course restaurant. (Sally and Mel got out all fancied up!)  Thanks to NER DE Social organizers Pam Mascetta and Judy Mansing! And welcome to the social crew a new volunteer:  Jen Hall. (Author note:  I quite enjoyed the Hall family.  I had a nice ride with Steve and daughter Emma was very complimentary of my car selection and driving.)

The Social Team

The rest of the weekend involved lots of great weather and lots of track time. We had a somber moment each morning of the Memorial Day weekend when we recognized our fallen heroes with a moment of silence (and Stan Corbett once again brought poppies and flags). Track Chair Charlie Kenney managed to make the driver meetings short and amusing while not compromising any safety issues. Chief Instructor Dave Berman did his usual masterful job of herding students, instructors and arranging check out rides – there were a lot of promotions…

Placements (drivers who haven’t ridden with us before but had experience elsewhere): 

Nicholas Boghos – White

Amos Winter – White

James Dolabany – Blue

John Genereux – Blue

Advancements:

Green to Yellow

Gabriel Cueva

Roumen Stoyanov 

William Miniscalco

Yellow to Blue

Grayson Connors

Stephen Wanstall

Brianna Croteau

Blue to White

Arun Ramamurthy

White to Black

Christopher Necchi

Jeff Croteau

Black to Red (Instructor)

Robert Jacobsen

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DE Crier Report: DE Hooks a New Fish and Father Time Goes Electric!

NER Driver Education Ground School at Palmer Motorsports Park on April 23rd

 

Well, the weather sucked and that scared a few people away – HAH! – they lost out
on a really good event! NER’s Driver Education team held the annual “Ground
School” event – again at Palmer Motorsports Park – on Sunday April 23 rd . The
thinking behind this is simple: we know there are folks out there who haven’t been
to a DE event but might be lured in. So we chum the waters with some free food,
put up a presentation with some racy pictures and then turn them loose (well, not
really – there is an instructor in the car and they are parade laps) on the track. And
voila! They are hooked and start to sign up for events.


There were 45-50 interested students and 30 or so instructors/regulars to guide
them through the day. And despite the weather all of the “students” I talked to
reported a fine time and an interest in actually signing up for a DE. I rode in the
passenger seat of a 2006 Cayman S (I felt right at home, of course) piloted by
JoseAlberto Betances. Very nice fellow, originally from the Bronx (we didn’t
discuss baseball) who said he was new to driving a manual but acquitted himself
very well and did a good job of learning the racing line in the 5 or 6 laps we did.
We had time to talk about tires and the minor mods he might make to his car
before he went to a DE (brake fluid and pads). I encouraged him to sign up early
for Thompson since it might sell out for novices but not to miss Watkins Glen. I
think we landed that one!


While the primary bait on the hook is the driving, let’s also note the strong social
attraction of the DE events. There is a lot of time at a DE event for making new
friends – people with similar hobbies and similar cars are pretty easy to get to
know! – plus there are the beer/wine/dinner socials when the track goes cold. It
was great to see my many friends after a winter of no driving events.


Thanks are due to many for putting on a well organized event and let’s start with
Track Chair Charlie Kenney who put the whole thing together. Chief Instructor
Dave Berman did yeoman duty in herding cats and matching up students and
instructors. Stan Corbett did his usual registration chores (and reports that he
already has 4 new fish in the net). Ed Mansing was responsible for the nicely done
powerpoint. Dennis Mascetta was there to represent North Country Region and we had 5 NER Board members in attendance.

There were a lot of presenters who did a great job and they won’t mind that I don’t list them all. But let’s thank the food providers. David Peterman (who is now competing against my teammate
Nick Shanny in SRO GT4 America racing – sorry David but I have to root for
Nick) donated a ton of delicious Panera pastries and HMS Motorsports provided
pizza (and Cody also presented and brought some merch for display and sale).
And finally thanks to Al Sandy and Palmer Motorsports Park for hosting.
And speaking of reacquainting with friends, I had noticed that Aaron Walker, a
long time autocross buddy who lives near me, was signed up to go. (Let’s put in a
plug for autocross – a great way to learn your car’s limits before you head to the
race track.) I invited myself to ride with him in his Rivian pickup. I got to drive it
home. Wow. I understand that its 115mph speed limiter hurts its quarter mile time.
Think about that! Aaron points out that if he uses it to tow his GT3 to the track it
might actually be able to beat it. Very impressive and lots of fancy tech as well
(but let’s not talk about the range issues – there would be a lot of downtime towing
to Watkins Glen). I’ll stick with what I’ve got.

– Courtesy: Father Time AKA Bill Seymour

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Summer Snapshot: Calabogie 2022

NER’s Third DE of the Year – Calabogie in July

 

Hello folks. This installment of the DE Crier’s corner brings us over the border to a small town west of Ottawa Canada. That would be the township of Calabogie, which is in the heart of Greater Madawaska, Ontario, Canada. It is truly a beautiful place with wonderful lakes, rolling hills, and a few really good bistro type dining establishments. But most importantly, they have what we crave. What is that? An amazing, world-class race track.

 

This was our return to Canada in the post covid world. And to be honest, the border crossing thing wasn’t that big of a deal. In the last two years we had to cancel all of our events in Canada due to the covid border closings. As many know, we cancelled our Tremblant event earlier this summer due to low attendance. So we were very pleased to be able to proceed with his event. 

The event at Calabogie has always been a low turn out event and because of that, the event has a little more focus on individual development and TONS of driving. This year we each had a minimum of 3.5 hours of on-track time PER DAY, and well over 10 hours of track time for the total event was possible. Yes, you read that right. A typical DE event give you close to 4 hours of on track time for a 3 day event. I urge you to register and come to this event next year. Its well worth it, and its pretty special. 

Other than getting a ton of track time, we also try to have a pro-coach who can work with us. This year we were able to retain our best yet, Francis Marquis. Francis is a senior coach with Calabogie Motorsports Park, with responsibilities in HPDE program delivery and instructor training. He also works with TWOth Autosport as a driver coach and race engineer supporting the Spec Miata, Radical and TCR programs. And if that wasn’t enough, Francis is the chief instructor for the BMW Car Club of Ottawa, with responsibilities in organizing and delivering the Advanced Driving School and Tire Rack Street Survival programs as well as instructor development. He ran a wonderful program for us. He gave us several classroom sessions, in-car instruction and probably the best track-walk that I have ever been part of. His attention to detail was impeccable. And he was also really fun and just an all-around great personality.  

 

We had a beer and wine social, where everyone was able to embellish the facts of the day. For some reason everyone seems faster in the evening than they really were. The track also has a lunch counter. Each day lunch was included as part of the package, that made it easier for everyone, to be able to just get lunch at the track. 

We are looking at how to make this event even better for next year. This year has proven that we can run this as a stand alone event. We absolutely plan to go back next year. Whatever your reason for not wanting to go this year, or in previous years, I urge you to reconsider. The border wasn’t a big deal. Yes, the drive to get there is a little long, but we had no traffic and it was a pretty easy drive. 

Calabogie is absolutely one of my favorite tracks in the world. The experience is absolutely worth the effort. 

– Adam Schwartz



 

 

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DE Crier Report: Palmer #2

NER’s Last DE of the Season

Palmer 2022 Sept 23-25

Your DE Crier was unable to participate in this event (hence this is Kind Of Bill’s Report – LR) but thankfully there are better writers.  The following reflects the work of Mike Woodward, Joe Cracco and Dale LeBossiere…

In between the heavy rain on Thursday and the showers late Sunday, we were treated to 3 great days of driving at a spectacular and challenging track with Patrick Long and the Cayman Islands sponsored Cayman GT4 Club Sport.  Admittedly, Friday started out a little cooler than the Cayman islands folks are used to (cold temps and wind chill almost in the 30’s), but it was sunny and dry! 

If you haven’t seen the Cayman Islands Cayman, you should.  It’s a beautiful car.  It’s fully wrapped with the front being that almost indescribably gorgeous Caribbean blue water and the back being the sandy beach with crashing waves in between.  Pity that no one could see the car for long.  Why?  Because…well because of Long. Patrick Long.  He (thanks to the Cayman Islands Department of Tourism Authority) drove 24 lucky raffle winners around Palmer in that car.   Let’s say that Patrick’s pace was such that you never saw him coming and once you gave him the point by, he was out of sight in a matter of seconds.  Turns out that Porsche factory drivers are pretty quick. 

Patrick Long is one of the great Porsche team racers of all time, and he has been the only American on the Porsche team.  He has won endurance races at Le Mans (twice), Sebring, and many others during his illustrious career.

The NER Track Committee was thrilled to hear Patrick would join us at our local track in Palmer, MA on September 23 for demonstration rides supporting his favorite charity.  The Cayman Islands sponsored this event with impressive goodies for all participants and, of course, the car driven by Patrick.

We raised $3,000 for charity by selling raffle tickets for the 24 rides available with Patrick.

All of the raffle winners were thoroughly impressed with the laps riding shotgun with Patrick.  Many of us have spent years driving Porsches as a hobby, and we were all humbled by the skills and speed demonstrated by Patrick.

For those of you track rats, a few technical observations:

  • The Cayman Islands Club Sport itself was no more powerful than many of our cars, but its suspension and brakes were extremely ‘dialed-in’.  Porsche does a fantastic job tuning its cars, and Cayman Islands team further tunes these cars based on feedback from its racers.  Many of us longed for a chance to drive that car!
  • Patrick was very relaxed driving at impressive speeds.  Endurance racers can’t afford to waste energy, and Patrick appeared to be driving conservatively relative to his race pace.
  • Perhaps because of the fresh Michelin slicks and the relatively low power of Patrick’s car, he apexed a bit earlier than most of us.
  • Braking was most impressive.  Patrick braked later than we do, and he balanced braking and turning (trail braking) almost to each apex where he smoothly transitioned to the gas pedal.
  • Patrick balanced oversteer and understeer naturally and without drama.  His hands were very fast and precise when the car oversteered.
  • Many of us were surprised by Patrick’s technique of shifting the PDK transmission to a higher gear to reduce torque and oversteer.
  • Patrick did not use the full track width on some of the turns.  His natural line was guided by his vision.
  • Many commented on the smoothness of the ride with Patrick especially when transitioning from braking to throttle in each turn.

Many of us improved our lap times after riding with Patrick, and the enthusiasm of all participants was exciting to see.

Dale LaBossiere reported that while he was awaiting his ride, Al Sandy was watching and timing Patrick… “that’s a 1:41”!  That lap time is about 4 seconds faster than the fastest times of our instructors, and Patrick drove that pace in his very first session of the day on an unfamiliar track! 

When Friday’s track went cold, the pre-dinner social had a festive tropical vibe with colored lights and inflatable palm trees in kiddie pools full of ice and beer provided by sponsor South Shore Auto works. Then the Cayman Islands folks put on the grand finale.  A one-two punch of Cayman Islands swag bags (including Patrick Long signed hats, yeti mug, key fob, etc…) and a belly-busting Caribbean food-fest dinner. (Thanks to Pam Mascetta and Judy Mansing for organizing the dinner!)

After an awesome day on Friday, we enjoyed the rest of the weekend without the company of Patrick and the Cayman Islands team. Saturday dawned just as cold as Friday (but didn’t feel like it b/c the wind was lighter).  With new run groupings, drivers were treated to 26-minute run sessions (20% more than normal) and boy was it a treat.  That extra 5 minutes was just enough time for each of us to master Palmer (or am I the only one?). LOL. What with running CW one year and then CCW the next, for most of us, it had been 2 years since running the track in this direction (CCW this time). Remember how to drive this direction 2 years later? Some of us can’t remember what we had for breakfast. 

Funny thing, though….it took only a session for the track layout to come back to Joe Cracco (inconceivable b/c, no kidding, he still can’t remember what he had for breakfast).   Talking to others in the paddock, everyone seemed to be working on improving their driving on different parts of the track.  Isn’t that just like Palmer?  After all, there are 14 corners and lots of elevation change.  (Who is Joe Cracco you ask? He’s the only man in New England who might do this: Winter Beaters Season 1 Vol.1 – LR)

Some folks were promoted, some hit personal bests, all had a great experience. To quote one new student (back from a few years away from PCA), “Every single person was friendly and helpful. I have participated in many DE events, but this one was by far the most welcoming”.   For that we have to give thanks to the volunteers who continue to produce events like this which are a joy to attend. ‘till next year, Palmer!

OK, so now your DE Crier is taking back the microphone from Mike and Joe and Dale. And the main thing that I can add is that I have actually been to the Cayman Islands and can report that it is all you would hope for in an island vacation (stay at the Ritz Carlton and try the water squirty thingie powered by a jetski if you dare). See Water Squirty Jetski powered thingie below-

 

 

Here are the promotions from this event…

Placement to Blue (new to our club but has prior experience):

  • Penko Ivanov

Green to Yellow:

  • Corina Cisneros
  • Stephen McMillan
  • Chris Gorski

Yellow to Blue:

  • James Burgarella
  • Benjamin Zendejas
  • Jay Wynn
  • Matt Robison
  • Joe Davin
  • Stephen Hall

Blue to White:

  • Sam Axelrod

White to Black:

  • Michael Canfield (son of the instructor Michael Canfield)
  • Torsten Becker
  • Zachary Veugen

And finally, special thanks to Glenn Champagne and Betty Mae Mosley for finding and coordinating the Cayman Islands Dept. of Tourism event at Palmer and the following day at Lars Anderson!

 

 

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Getting Started with NER PCA

Welcome to the Home of the Porsche Club of America’s Northeast Region!

Below are some helpful links to the activities shown in the NER PCA flyer you received, as well as contact information for the experts who can answer any questions you have on each type of activity.

If you have ideas for additional events we could plan or would like to volunteer for existing activities, please feel free to email me at [email protected].
We can always use help keeping our members connected through communications on our website, writing articles for us to publish, event planning, or if you have technical expertise, we welcome any and all perspectives to ensure members are getting the most out of the club!

If you are already a member of NER PCA and don’t currently receive our News email which goes out around the 15th of the month, please reach out to me on that as well. I will provide information on how to update the email address on file with PCA National.

On behalf of NER’s board of directors and myself personally, thank you for stopping by to check out what the club has to offer and we look forward to meeting you at one of our future events!
Lisa Burke
NER PCA Membership Chair

Full calendar of club events: https://porschenet.com/events/
Recurring weekly events not listed in the calendar:
Sim Racing, Tuesdays at 8pm
Cape Cod Porsche Gruppe Cars & Coffee, Saturdays 7:30am

Concours: https://porschenet.com/activities/concours/
Chair: David Melchar, [email protected]

Driver Education: https://porschenet.com/activities/driver-education/
Chairs: Adam Schwartz & Charles Kenney
Registrar & Safety: Stan Corbett, [email protected]

Ramble: https://porschenet.com/activities/the-new-england-ramble/
Ramblemeister: Dennis Friedman, [email protected]

Sim Racing: https://www.facebook.com/groups/810156892838722
Chair: Robert Galejs, [email protected]

Autocross: https://porschenet.com/activities/autocross/
Chair: Chris Ryan, [email protected]
Registrar: Jeff Johnson, [email protected]

Social Activities: https://porschenet.com/activities/social-events/
Chairs: Glenn Champagne & Betty Mae Mosley [email protected]

Facebook groups to connect with other members:
• Main group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/northeastregionpca
• Autocross: https://www.facebook.com/groups/260319394517298
• Technical: https://www.facebook.com/groups/3572353792857260
• Sim Racing: https://www.facebook.com/groups/810156892838722
• Cape Cod Gruppe: https://www.facebook.com/groups/1570367176509558

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DE Crier: August Report

We missed you! Yes, I’m talking to you.  You didn’t go to the Watkins Glen 3-day DE in August and you missed a helluva good event.  (OK, you over there.  You did go – I saw you – and I know you agree with me.)  First and foremost we had fantastic weather:  nice dry high 70’s and cool at night.  (Perhaps we can thank Buzz Bean for his non-directed kidney donation that brought incredible karma. Kidding aside, that’s one magnificent gesture!)  Then we had an incident free weekend with only a couple of significant car problems.  One was Paul Skinner’s attempt at mosquito control on the front straight. The other was Gary Hebner’s car failure which led to another very nice act:  Larry and Laura Tambascio drove their track car home so that Gary’s car could ride on their trailer back to Providence, well out of their way!

Then there was the BBQ.  Thanks to Judy Mansing and Pam Mascetta for their continued excellence in running our social events.  The food was provided by Dinosaur BBQ and included some of the best ribs and brisket over which your reporter has ever smacked lips – and there was a lot of it – leftovers at the track the next day! And held at a really cool place:  Iroquois Lodge in the State Park where we could spread out, enjoy a huge lawn and then have nice covered seating.  And did I mention the wine and beer selection (Judy is in the business and knows her stuff)? The featured beer for IPA fans was a NY beer aptly named Wrench – 7.1 percent and a 16-ouncer.  So good I’ll have another, thanks. How about a third?  All gone but there are still Lagunitas.  (The DE Crier – not driving that evening – was not so happy the following morning.  However, let the record show no sessions were missed.)

 

 

We also had a little special entertainment in the form of fancy race car drivers visiting us on Friday.  Our lunch break was extended an hour so that 4 NASCAR drivers could do orientation laps in advance of participating in the Watkins Glen event on August 21st.  Most notable among them was Kimi Raikkonen (ex-F1 champion) who was joined by Ross Chastain and Daniel Saurez and Trackhouse Racing owner and former racer, Justin Marks. By NASCAR rules they couldn’t be on the track within a week of the event (dictating Friday) nor could they use regular NASCAR racers – so they drove Camaro ZL1’s, identical except for color.  Without knowing which driver was in which car you had a choice of rooting for White, Black, Maroon or Silver.  Our informal timing had them at 1:18’s on the NASCAR layout (a good NASCAR Cup Car time is 1:10) so they were going pretty good, but there was not the “racing is rubbing” that I expect from NASCAR, nor were they totally over the curbing in Turn 1.  But still entertaining.  I don’t know who won but Silver had a problem and had to retire.

And speaking of Turn 1, please see the recent article by Br1anna Croteau with a nice tale of exuberance leading to a good learning experience.

The DE dog report showed the usual attendance by Hank and Silver (who have been nominated as co-mascots).  They were joined by newbie Skipper (whose person is Bobby Jacobsen’s sister).  

And, almost finally, thanks to Adam Schwartz for his years of service as Track Chair (including some very trying times during the Covid).  He officially turned the reins over to Charlie Kenney who will continue the strong leadership we have enjoyed.

And, really finally, here are the promotions during the event.  Congratulations and thanks to the instructors who made them happen…

Placement in Blue

Scott Schermerhorn (new to us so we had an instructor ride with him to determine where he belongs)

 

Green to Yellow

Ryan Cataldo

Melanie Randall

 

Yellow to Blue

Nicolas Renaud (went from green to blue)

Gregory Cheshier

Olivia Bostian

Brandon George (went from green to blue)

 

Blue to White

Yutong Duan

Larry Tambascio

Chris Necchi

Rob Kuebel

 

White to Black

Gary Hebner

Yun Ling

Fernando Presser

By: Bill Seymour

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Brianna’s Spin at Watkins Glen

This was my second time driving at Watkins Glen, and I am in the yellow run group. My Dad and I were at the same event last year, however, this year however we were driving a 996 dedicated track car. Last year, we were driving a stock 991 with all the nannies, and I had significantly more seat time and confidence in the 991. This event at Watkins Glen was my second time driving the 996, so I was still getting used to the car setup, the shifting without rev matching and the six-point harness and Hans device, etc. – I was still building my confidence in the car. This was my goal for the weekend, build confidence in the new track car, and it took the entire weekend for this to happen. 

Friday’s sessions went well. I spent most of the time relearning the track and understanding where I can make improvements to gain more speed. It wasn’t until after lunch on the second day where I started to get confident, and maybe a little complacent in the car. One of the things my instructor and I we were working towards was carrying more speed through the turns. I knew that this was possible to do in the 996, but making it happen is a whole other thing. I was on my 5th lap after lunch on the second day and was getting really excited about my progress so far – this is where it all started to go wrong. 

As I approached turn one, I was carrying more speed into the turn than I had been on previous laps. I could feel my back end slipping and this sent a rush of fear through my body. Typically, in the past I have been able to wait out that slipping feeling. But this time, my mind and entire body froze, and I couldn’t make any adjustments to ty and correct the oversteer. I was trying to “will” the car back on track so I wouldn’t spin out. I learned the hard way that this is not how driving works, as I am not a Jedi. The car completed the spin and I ended up sliding sideways through turn one and the car came to a stop facing the oncoming traffic. I also stalled it as I completed my first 180 spin on a track. 

The spin itself was not where the anxiety crept in. I grew up driving various machines (snowmobiles and side-by-sides), so I am used to losing some control and going offline. The part that made me freak out was sitting in the stalled car and watching all the cars come through turn one. Luckily, I was stopped on a part of the track that was not online, so I didn’t have to worry too much about being hit by any of these oncoming cars. However, the feeling of sitting on a fast corner and not getting the car started while facing oncoming traffic was incredibly terrifying. 

After about a minute, with some positive reinforcement from my very calm instructor (Steve Sisler), I was able to get the car running again. I did a U-turn on the track and completed the lap at a slow pace before pitting in. I stayed in the hot pits for a few minutes. This is where my instructor and I talked through what happened and what I should have done. I needed to do one of two things, and I did neither. I should have added more throttle to create more grip in the rear, and I could have counter-steered and gone off track and utilized the space that was available to me. 

In the end, there was no damage done to any persons or the car. I was anxious for the rest of the day and into the next morning. Thankfully I was able to push though and slowly gain my confidence back. In the last session of the weekend, I drove my fastest lap of the event, ending the weekend on a very good note. I feel like spinning on the track was something that I needed to experience. I am now more aware of what the limit in the car feels like, and I am more aware of what I can do to better control the car as I drive near the limit. I will never forget the experience and I can use this to my advantage in upcoming events.

           

-Brianna Croteau

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