The ability to write a check for a very expensive high performance car does not mean that the talent to drive it comes with the ability to afford it. Case in point; this last Wednesday, in the early morning hours two “gentlemen” made a conscious decision to race their high performance cars on public roads. The out-come, (almost inevitable and most certainly predictable) left one driver dead, his unfortunate (and most likely unwilling passenger) injured and luckily only so-in that the Ferrari that he was driving is now in two very separate pieces.
The driver of the second car (a Porsche from what was reported) left the scene of this fatal accident. He- had also made a conscious decision to race on public roads and is therefore, in our opinion, as culpable as the driver of the Ferrari. It has also been reported that the driver of the Porsche has had numerous previous driving violations and citations- more on that later.
Rather than a Dennis Miller rant - going on and on about how racing on the street is an obvious danger to many more than just those participating, not to mention just bloody stupid-we thought it better to offer observations from years of legal racing and the teaching high performance driving skills to owners of cars just like this one and at the same time offering sound suggestion to those who are fortunate enough to acquire them.
One could argue (we will) that the largest percentage of drivers who own high performance cars have no real clue as to their cars performance potential nor do they possess the needed skills to drive the car well. Ego (not always bad) and ambition may have put them in the fortunate position to acquire the car. Ego (always bad) tells them that because they can afford the car, they have somehow and miraculously become a great driver and in many cases; just overnight.
There are but a handful of truly gifted drivers with natural God given driving talent; they are paid a great deal of money to race cars for a living; on race tracks! For them, the ability to control an automobile at speed is somehow natural. For the rest of us it is a learned skill. Let us repeat that- FOR THE REST OF US IT IS A LEARNED SKILL!!!!!
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Driving a car on a real race track (to us, meaning, having to turn both left and right) may just be one of the most fun things we can ever do; if done well. We would like to offer a few suggestions before you attend your first event or even if you have had the good fortune to “play” before. These suggestions may indeed improve how quickly you learn and just how well you drive. Take heed, they come from years and years of racing and driving instruction experience.
Who is managing the event?
It is extremely important to research who is managing the event and how well it is being managed. Driving on a race track is dangerous! If the event is not well managed, disciplined and organized; stay home! Open track days can be cheap, but you can end up with exactly what you paid for or far worse- a damaged car.
Do they have qualified Instructors?
Make certain that the organization has qualified instructors and that you will receive one-on-one instruction or coaching prior to signing up for an event. You may say to yourself, “why, I am a good driver”? Perhaps, but reality is, until you have been on a real race track with real driving instruction, you are probably not the driver you thought you might be. A talented driving instructor will help you learn “why’ things are done a certain way in relationship to high performance driving. Anyone can stand on the gas and go fast, learning how to “dance” with a 3,000 lb. partner is a different story and a really good instructor will help you do exactly that.
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Proper mirror positioning in a car can save your life and the lives of others, but most drivers have not been taught how to adjust them correctly. Forget what your ol’ driving instructor from high school ( if you are old enough for that) taught you.
It would seem to reason that the back of the car will follow the direction of the front, right? Since we already know that the back of the car is there, why the need to look at it? Most drivers have their outside rear view mirrors positioned so that when they look in the mirrors they can see the back of their own car. WHY? It is not going anywhere! Adjust the mirrors out, further than you think, so that you can see the lane next to you. This allows you to see if there is another car there. Yes, it sounds simple but you would be surprised how many drivers don’t do this or have never been taught how or why they should.
Another problem occurs when mirrors are improperly adjusted, a driver must turn his or her head to see if the lane next to them is clear. The BIG problem here is that as a driver, your hands go where your eyes look. If while driving, you look over your left shoulder for example, you will also have the tendency to turn left while you are looking. The car turns left BEFORE you can determine if the lane next to you is clear; too late!
If you properly adjust your mirrors so that you can clearly see the lane next to your car AND if you are constantly aware of everything that is happening around you, you will not have to turn your head to make a lane change. The key word here is awareness! The ONLY thing that we should be doing while driving is; DRIVING! If your mirrors are properly adjusted, you can sweep them with your eyes about every 8-10 seconds. You will ALWAYS know what is happening around you. An added benefit is that no matter what you are driving, there will not be a blind spot. Really, you say? Yup, no blind spot. Try this: Move both outside rear view mirrors out far enough so that if there were a car in the lane next to yours but just behind, you would see it; all of it. Adjust the center rear view mirror for maximum rearward vision. Now….without moving your head but moving only your eyes, can you see 180 degrees around your car? If so, perfect! If not, make the needed adjustments so that you can. Again, you may need to move the outside rear view mirrors out further than you had originally thought.
Traveling at 70mph your car is covering 100 feet every second, knowing what is going on around you is pretty darn good information! Not being able to see what is happening around you at all times, limits that information and dangerously so.
Since most have us have not ever driven with our mirrors in the proper position, changing them to where they should have been all along will take some time getting used to. Bad habits are easily learned but hard to change. Here is the kicker though…just because you have finally set your mirrors properly do not assume that anyone else has, in fact, most drivers mirrors are poorly adjusted at best. They cannot see you…just like you could not see them up until now…… 
Properly positioned, your rear view mirrors will allow you to see what you may have been missing, rather, almost hitting!
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At 70mph your car is traveling at 100 feet per second, snap your fingers, you have just traveled 100 feet! Now then, think about the last conversation that you had while driving your car…….do you remember any part of that drive?
Those who use their cell phones while driving are oblivious to just about everything and anything going on around them. It really does not matter just how good of a driver we are or rather think we may be, reality is, if you are using your cell phone while driving ( hands-free or not) the potential of becoming involved in or causing an accident increases dramatically.
A recent study by the University of Utah concluded that taking on a cell phone while driving is as dangerous if not more so than driving while intoxicated.
The kicker is that most of the time our conversations are going something like this ” NOTHING, what are you doing?” So, you may want to ask yourself: how important is that call really, considering that you are driving a lethal weapon? The difference between a gun and a car is that it is pretty hard to kill more than one person with one bullet. It is really easy to kill many people with just one car. Please give that some thought the next time you are talking about the ball game or the latest sale at Nordstroms.
If you are a parent and you have a young person who is getting ready to start driving, please be a good example and refrain from cell phone use while driving. Habits are easily learned but bad habits are very hard to break and in this case potentially lethal. Don’t teach your puppy that it is ok to chew the rug.
Need more proof?
http://www.iii.org/media/hottopics/insurance/cellphones/
http://www.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1700846,00.html
Only a suggestion !
O.C.C.E
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“According to the Cellular Telecommunications & internet Association; “In the United States over 236 million people subscribe to such wireless communication devises as cell phones as of May 2007.” *
“There are two dangers with associated with driving and cell phone use. First, drivers must take their eyes off the road while dialing. Second, people can become so absorbed in their conversations that their ability to concentrate on the act of driving becomes severely impaired” *
“A study from the researchers at the University of Utah, published in the summer 2006 issue of Human Factors, the quarterly journal of the Human Factors and Ergonomics Society, concludes that taking on a cell phone while driving is as dangerous as driving drunk, even if the phone is a hands-free model.” *
Consider this; at 70 miles per hour, our vehicles are traveling at the rate of 100 feet per second!
Snap your fingers, you have just traveled 100 feet!
Now, how important is that call, REALLY?
Please, put the phones away. It may surprise us all to see what we have been missing, or rather, almost hitting.
O.C.C.E.
*iii
Insurance Information Institute
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