Ferrari Pilota Corsa

Tried to do the April course in Modena this year, confirmed, paid my 7500Euro (this was in August or sthg) and was told a month later that I'd been bumped off. Frustrating. Anyone else have a similar experience?

 

VERY expensive option if your goal is to improve your driving skills. While I am sure the instructors are top notch, as a beginner you do not need expert instruction as you will only be working on the basics. In the United States most amateur racers first get track experience through 'Driver's Education' programs, and if the bug hits, progress from there. Here how it works:

A car club like Porsche Club of America or an independent for profit organization (there are many) will rent a race track and hold a driving school. The instructors are advanced amateurs, mostly club racers, who get paired one on one with a student. The student drives their own car and the instructor rides in the passenger seat during the sessions. There are also a couple of classroom sessions during the day integrated into the program. The one one one feature is fantastic, and usually not offered in the 'professional' programs like the one offered by Ferrari.

Then as you advance from the beginner group you move to novice and can get certified to drive solo, without an instructor in the car. It is VERY rare for this to happen on your first weekend, at least where I live. There are additional advanced run groups and most continue to run in these programs for years. Some take the additional leap and get their competition license to go racing.

The cost is only about $300 per weekend and again, you bring your own car. I would argue that you will learn more from a program like this then you will in the Ferrari program. Sure the Ferrari program is glamorous and you will be treated like a VIP, but your money is really paying for that and the use of their cars, not for any sort of special instruction. An advanced amateur who has also been taught how to teach (as these instructors have) can be just as succesful teaching the basics as a seasoned pro. As you advanced your skills more advanced instruction is required and then its time to call in the pros, but most have been driving for years before you really need to go to this step.

I think it's better to learn in your own car because that's what you'll be driving if you continue in the sport. For example, one of the cars I race now is the same car I began these programs in. It has no ABS, no power steering, no traction control, etc. Driving a car without these things is very different than driving with. Learning in this car made me a better driver in this car.

 

I attended in Mont Tremblant and have never had so much fun! I had no track experience at the time and have never had more fun. I met some very interesting people and made some good friends. The instructors are top notch and were a great group. There are a couple I stay in touch with and see each year at Pebble Beach. Ferrari does a fantastic job and takes very good care of their customers.

There was a dinner each night for the entire group and my wife enjoyed the experience as well. I recommend it highly!

 

BTW, I hope my reply did not sound like I thought the Ferrari program is bad. That was not my intent, I think it would be an absolute blast! A good friend of mine did the program in Canada and loved it. I just thought you were most concerned about improving your driving skills and feel there are more economical ways to do that.

No matter what you decide to do, I hope you enjoy the track as much as I do.

 

I've done the basic course in Mugello and Avanzato course in Fiorano back in 2002 or 2003, and these were terrific experiences.

Very pricey (who's surprised), but top notch instructors, both in the car with you or in chase cars, telemetry plots in the Avanzato course, you really learn a lot.
Although I don't have first hand experience of the off-shore courses, there's no doubt that if they transpose what they do in Italy, you will learn a lot of absolutely essential things, both for road and track driving, especially as a rookie. The average bloke who hasn't been through formal tuition has no clue how little you know about proper, basic, driving skills. Fiorano is one of my best track memories to date, and I've been

So if the cost does not bother you, I would not hesitate a second.

 

I'm still waiting for my helmet from 2000.

 

IMO at the beginning you're better off doing a cheaper (but not cheap) driving courses with M-BWMs or Porsches.

Once you get a fair share of experience, if you want to get instruction onboard Fcars, then you can do a more advanced Ferarri course. IMO learning the basics at Ferrari prices isn't worth it.

I have done two sports driving courses with the BMW sports driving program managed by Siegfried Stohr (ex F1 pilot) and it was a fantastic experience. Both very fun and very instructive. I plan on returning for a more advanced course this summer and then for an ice/snow course next winter with the Porsche driving school.

I have been told by instructors that ideally the best place from where to start is a ice/snow driving course if you can as it gives you a lot more sensibility in car control. Also, applying the principles that you learn on ice/snow on wet/dry road conditions should be quite simple.

 

I´ve done the first two courses and are going for the 3rd in sep. Expensive yes, best in the world, yes.

 

I'm going with my father to the first one (Sports Driving Course) at Fuji Speedway in September 22/23rd. Will update with impressions!

 

As others have expressed well in this thread, there are many other and cheaper options to 'get your feet wet' in club racing or simply to become a better overall driver of performance cars.

I started off in club racing 10+ years ago. I did some autocrossing, then when the bug bit, I did a 3-day performance driving course at Jim Russell Racing at Sears Point in Calif. There are many others -- Bob Bondurant, Skip Barber, etc. Some people start there, others just start in the clubs.

After Russell I honed my skills in the Porsche Club regional events with time trials and other types of racing. The PCA happens to be very active, as is the BMW club. But, if you have neither type of car, there are many private clubs where you can drive almost any sports car you happen to own. In addition to membership in the PCA, I am also a member in Checkered Flag Racing Association (CFRA) and I also have done events with TrackMasters and Speed Ventures. Some groups are more organized and professional than others, but they all have their advantages if you are seeking opportunities to take your Fcar on a real track and enjoy her the way God (and Enzo -- or is that the same thing?) intended.

Good luck, and good racing!

ketel

 

If you're sure you want to get into racing (not just track days), I echo most of the sentiments here that there are better series to join and hone in your skills:

What I would do is first do Jim Russell or Skip Barber's 3 day racing school followed up by 2 day advanced racing school. This alone will earn you a SCCA regional license here in the states. If you are in Asian I don't know who would be the governing body (if there's one) on the amateur level...FIA does licensing for the Pros. I could be wrong.

After that, go buy yourself an inexpensive Spec Miata or Mini and join one of the club racing series. Because to get better, you will spin and when you spin you will crash and when you crash your bank account will get a lighter (how light depends on teh car you drive).

Once you are proficient enough (1st place in Gran Turismo on the PS3 ain't gonna cut it...lol), then move on to something higher performance. Just remember, the more power you have, the faster you go, but if you f-it up, the harder you crash. Most of us have learned the true meaning of what an OS line is (yours truly have done that a few times and yes it hurts a lot...i meant the wallet).

Btw, Gran Tursimo is great in concepts and to learn the tracks; but there's a big gap in the driving virtual and driving real.