[Stang Killer]

The car is down, and im itching like crazy to get on the track with something. Thinking about giving either Skip Barber or Bondurant. Im specificly looking at the into to racing from both schools, but want to know what everyone else thinks?

[z28racergirl]

I did Skip Barber 3-day race school at Laguna Seca in 2000? and their Advanced school at Road America in 2001. The latter was cut short cuz some idiots drove some planes into buildings and dirt on the eastern part of our country. (IMG:http://www.frrax.com/rrforum/style_emoticons/default/mad.gif)

I also took the Driving Concepts school in 2002. I'd actually already raced with American Iron, but Ryan F with NASA told me he thought I'd benefit from the class even tho I'd done the Skippy schools. I did. Read on.

Skip Barber taught me tons about weight transfer, heel-n-toe, threshold braking, etc in an open wheeled car. Nothing about "racing" like I do door-to-door in American Iron. The 3-day at Laguna taught me TONS about feeling a car and feeling how a non-street car feels--how a purpose track car feels. I was driving a 1996 Mazda MX-6 street car at open track and and HPDE at the time. The "2" day was supposed to be more advanced but they still started the day talking about "the line" and beginner crap. Which was good since I'd never been to Road America... but I wanted to feel the difference with the slicks and wings. The 3-day we had tread and no wings. Day two there was the one that was f-ed up. I was driving the Camaro on track at this point.

Driving Concepts, on the other hand, taught me tons about racing and race craft. I did that one at Buttonwillow ("home" track) and in the Camaro. I learned that you shouldn't go out for a session with your track chair in the trunk A#1. I also learned how to look at other things while on track besides where my car was currently going. My horizons totally lifted. That school was more about "what do you think you're doing on the track and what do you want other people to think about you being on track" than about driving techniques. I learned most that it's not just a one (wo)man thing when I'm in #29 on track. It's a whole population of us sharing space on a track. It's not about being timid though, its about sharing the space. Some people share very well and race very well, some have their heads up their arse and don't race well. After DC and time racing I feel like I can spot that range instantly by the smallest things... it's empowering.

I think I learned more from DC. And you could rent a car and do it in that. There's no time for "gonna do my best lap time evar" sessions with all the other stuff you do. Plus, when you're not on track you're in the classroom.

Jason (hubby) took the class recently, and I loved to hear that Judy Ray (I think she runs it?) introduced him to the class as "Christine Knight's husband." Have no fear, men, I believe all the other instructors are of the male variety. But Judy is an accomplished racer so please look past the gender thing.

Christine