Slipstream - April 2004

Photo by Matt Platts
Autobahn DE at MotorSport Ranch
By Scott Janke
My First DE Experience
For those who missed out, the Maverick Region just
finished sponsoring a two-day Driver’s Education
(DE) at the Motor Sport Ranch (MSR) in Cresson,
Texas. Boy, where do I start? Having dreams of driving
Formula 1 as a kid, the recent DE at MSR was as close as I
could have imagined. Yes, I do know that I’ll never make $50
million driving in additional DE’s. I also don’t think
Michael Schumacher can drive his F1 car on the road either!
Saturday morning started off early and wet. With the
nervousness and excitement of a kid again, my spirits
dampened just a bit with the rising sun….or lack of. My
new wife (Cathy) and I packed up my 1995 993 and hit the
road at 6:15am. Let me back up a bit. Weeks prior to that
morning, a potential participant must first send in an
application to the DE committee. If selected, you must
ensure that your car meets the minimum safety standards
with your mechanic. During this process, a pre-tech form
must be populated to ensure that everyone is aware of
their car’s abilities to stay in one piece during the event,
but also to ensure that everyone else understands their
role in safety of others. As a first time participant, I
sought out assistance on obtaining magnetic numbers for
the door panels and also the appropriate helmet to secure.
At this point, I can only wish that the event will be worth
all this effort (don’t sneak to the end of the story yet!).
When we finally arrived at the track, it was 7:20am and
cold. Now, I know it was still February, but it’s supposed to
be my day! Well, after attending a quick driver’s meeting,
I headed to a New Driver’s meeting. While it was an hour
long, I learned quite a bit on how to drive the track and
how the events are scheduled for the two-day event. Now
that I am an official Green Group member, I embraced the
title with honor. Okay, maybe not with honor, but you
know what I mean. As my group lined up on the grid, I
met my instructor for the event. Randy is a weekend warrior
in his track-only race car, so his knowledge of how to
get around the track was quite helpful. The first laps
around the track were as a passenger. This was to ensure
that the instructor became acquainted with my car, but
also for me to see how the track changes as we moved
16
The paddock area is always very crowded
Photo by Matt Platts
Photo by Matt Platts
A group of cars in the red run group round Big Bend
around the corners. When it was my turn, we only had a
few more laps left in that first session. My final thoughts as
I stepped out of the 993 was….I’M SUPERMAN!
That evening, Cathy and I enjoyed the local flair and
flavor of a pool hall down the road from our hotel. It seems
the Motel 6 that we stayed at was a favorite of the DE participants.
The parking lot reminded me of the starting grid
at MSR. After a few beers and a tasty dish of Chicken Fried
Steak, Cathy and headed to the hotel room for some much
needed sleep. The next morning, I realized the town did not
have a Starbucks. WHAT? Tells you how spoiled we become
living in Big D.
Over the next day and a half, we drove 6 more sessions
until we needed to head on home. As each session ended
and the next began, I continued to improve my knowledge
of the car and the best line around the track. I greatly
... smoothness equals speed ...
enjoyed passing all the SLOWER cars, but ate my own
lunch as I watched others pass me. It is true what all the
instructors mentioned in the driver meetings, the smoother
you can take the car around the track, the faster you can
drive. Smoothness equals speed. You realize this fact rather
quickly when what should be a slower car passes you on the
“track out” like you were standing still.
I left my first DE tired, happy and eager to sign up for
the next one. While my wife will keep a reign on my spending
for “necessary” improvements to the 993, I know the
best improvement will be found in myself. Looking back
on that weekend
and remembering
all the preparation
required to attend,
I can already
answer my own
question asked in
the second paragraph.
I can type
the word yes, but I
think the smile I
have as I type this
Bryan Henderson on the main straight speaks volumes…