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- Apr 29, 2011 at 04:52PM
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E-newsletter for April 2011.
Our first event of the season took place on a day full of sunshine, horsepower and smiling faces. There is no better way to shake off the grey of winter than once again enjoy the pure and simple joy of driving fast on a racetrack. An engine roaring to the redline and the pull of hard cornering lap after lap is spine tingling and never fails to put a smile on one’s face.
Special Guests were the Stig’s two cousins…....Blue Stig and Black & White Stig
For this event, we played with the composition of the groups a little and were able to give everyone close to three hours of track time through five sessions of 35 minutes apiece. Compare that to the 10 or so minutes you get at a long day of cone dodging (sometimes called autocross) and you will appreciate why lapping or track days are the best value per dollar for anyone looking to fill their ‘need for speed’ and enjoy their vehicle driving it like it was meant to be driven.
Some of our members tell us that events held on Monday are not good for them so we are holding our next event on a Wednesday. What better way can there be to break up a week than taking off to the track for a day of the sounds and feel of track driving?
Whether you bring a daily driver or a track-bred sports car, you’re bound to have fun
Vehicle Registration is now open.
We think quite a number of PDC members will like a mid-week break, so please be sure to register early to avoid missing out. We look forward to seeing you there.
Safety is PDC’s primary goal. We are driving our own cars in these events, and not a race car paid for by a rich sponsor. Since we are using our own cars, paid for with our own money, we want to drive them home in the same condition as when we arrived for the event, with just some tire and brake wear to evidence our day at the track.
While accidents can happen, PDC tries to ensure that they don’t happen due to the failure of something on your vehicle. That is why all participants (other than those participating in their very first PDC event ever) must have an annual safety inspection carried out on their car and bring the completed Vehicle Inspection Form, signed by and bearing the stamp of the inspection facility to PDC’s first Mission event of each year. The completed form confirms that your vehicle meets the essential requirements to go on the track. If this is your first PDC event ever, a vehicle inspection is not mandatory but it is recommended.
Some think the annual inspection is unnecessary but my belief in them was reconfirmed this year when my mechanic found a bad ball joint in one of my car’s lower connecting rods. It was not exhibiting any effects in regular driving. But had it failed in a high speed corner, an ugly crash could have occurred.
Since many of us participate in a number of track events over the course of a year, the condition of our vehicle will change from the time we have the annual shop inspection done at the beginning of the year carried out. That is why a team of PDC volunteers also carry out a fundamental inspection of brakes, tires and various safety gear before each and every event. They have found a wide range of defects such as bad tires, worn out brake pads, cracked brake rotors and batteries held down with only a bungee cord. Any of such defects could have easily caused a crash.
Even though PDC does the best it can to keep unsafe vehicles off of the track, the final responsibility rests with you to ensure that your vehicle is properly maintained and capable of being used on the track. Remember it is not only your safety but the safety of your friends and fellow PDCers that you are protecting.
Instructors Corner…....by Mark Aisbett, PDC Instructor
Whoever made us, then allowed us to make cars, must have had a warped sense of humour. It seems that whatever comes naturally to us….. is slow.
There are all these crazy rules that don’t make any sense to a human, like:
• We want to go fast, but we must move slow…..
• We just want to drive flat out, but we must concentrate on doing it within our limits….
• Our vision naturally wants to be near, but it has to be far….
• The more erratic the car is, the more smooth we have to be.
• The car is moving very fast, but the driver has to move very slow….
• Our survival instincts say to get on the brakes NOW… but we have to WAIT.
• Our minds are moving at lightning speed, but our bodies have to move in a controlled and orderly fashion.
• We go too fast and the back end starts sliding and we have to apply…..throttle!
It’s all messed up. Maybe that’s why we like it. Maybe drivers as a group are just a little masochistic. We buy fast cars, and THEN spend our days moving as slowly as we can inside them! Kind of sounds like something we should spend $200 an hour talking to a professional about…..
Maybe that would help…. But I doubt it.
On with the fun,
Mark. Aisbett
PDC Instructor
*Check out some stunt driving videos on my blog at prostuntdrivers.com
Remember that we welcome your pictures from a PDC track day (or any other motorsport event) to be posted on our website. Please upload them at: http://performancedriversclub.org/index.php/gallery/
We often get asked by members how they can become more involved in the Club events. One of the best ways is to assist the Tech Inspection Team with its morning inspection of cars for the event. Not only will you meet some of the executives and other volunteers and participants but you will get a chance to learn about some of the great cars and their owners that take part in our events.
Contact our Tech Team Captains, Rob & Phil Boznik at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) if you want to assist.
Regardless if the weather is wet or dry, hot or cold, turn workers spend long hours at their corner making sure it is safe for us to drive around the track. The next time you are driving your cool down lap, remember to give them a wave, as a small ‘thank you’ for doing their job so we can have fun.
Many victims of serious motor vehicle accidents benefit from the services offered by BC Rehab, an independent, non-governmental, non-profit society. That is why PDC supports BC Rehab [bcrehab.com].
From each participation fee paid by a member for a PDC track event, $5.00 is donated to BC Rehab. It doesn’t sound like a lot, but over the years, PDC has collected thousands of dollars for BC Rehab. So remember that when you are enjoying your day at the track, you are also helping a organization that is helping British Columbians.
PDC encourages every member to spread that message. There is only one place for high speed driving - on the racetrack. So if you know someone who needs a little education about high performance driving, encourage them to join PDC. It will definitely be the biggest favour you can do for them. At the least, it will teach them all about high performance driving. And it could save a life.
Performance Drivers Club
www.performancedriversclub.org