...for keeping me from going off the road yesterday... As you all may well know, it's been snowing like a sonofasomething here and the roads have been less than stellar, to say the least... Well, after reading thread after thread of Rob's, Jon's, Hubert Otlik's, Maramarshmaranelloman's and everyone else's racing experiences, i managed to keep my car on the road when it was headed elsewhere... i was coming off an exit from the parkway and the exit curves the entire way around until you can merge with local city-street traffic... i knew the weather was nasty but i had no problems on the parkway; i kept a slow pace and everything was fine... Coming around the exit ramp, though, the back of the car just began to slowly drift out and before i knew it, the car was pointing towards some trees... Well, i distinctly remember reading (in a thread here) that i shouldn't look where the car is going, rather i should look where i want the car to go... That's exactly what i did and, as i cut the wheel to break the car's direction, the ass end got back in line, then drifted out the other way and finally fell back into place with where i needed it to be... The car is front wheel drive, so it's a lot easier to drive in bad weather than a rear wheel drive car... Still, i didn't panic or anything, i just instinctively recalled what i'd read, applied it and quickly diffused what could've been a messy situation... i actually learned something...!!! Thanks, everyone.
Bravo DES! After awhile, it will get fun, not scary, then you'll get confident, then you'll get cocky, then you'll be in trouble...just kidding, it's great practice and glad you kept your head. You can learn a great deal from watching Rob and John's videos as well. Go easy out there! ~C
Great job, DES!!!!! IMO, that is THE most important part of driving fast well on or off track: looking where you want to go. Works every time!! I am glad you are safe. We are so lucky down here not to get that sort of weather...
Glad to hear nothing happened to you. But as for the thing you said about where to look. Didn't you learn that when you took you drivers license?
Driver Education sucks out here...I didnt learn a damn thing in my drivers ed class except dont look when they watch the "Red Asphault" videos because it will give me nightmares. DES, glad your safe!
Entelechy, LOL...! Practice makes perfect... At the advice of an old friend, when i had my Saturn, i went to an empty parking lot one night and practiced heel-toeing in 90-degree turns, with some mild understeer... Every little bit helps, i guess... Dave, thanks to you and others... Yes, you're lucky not to get this type of weather, but at least you're moDESt about it, unlike a certain Californian i know... :::coughDarthcough::: i look forward to meeting you and some of the other Texas folks one day and hopefully chatting about racing and driving and cars, in general... Jonas, as Jordan said, the driver's education out here sucks... When i took the written test to get my driver's permit, they didn't ask any questions regarding what we're discussing here... When i took the road test, it was without ANY level of difficulty... i could've, literally, done it in reverse... LOL, Jordan, what are Red Asphalt videos...?
Des: Glad you didn't get hurt. There is a reason why all the drivers schools have a skid pad. Only Code has one for motorcycles though. Art
As far as your mishap is concerned...MR DRIVER, I'm am happy to hear that your CAR helped you in acheiving a BON voyage to MC donalds, all the long remaining COY while relating it. Better get used to it! Lest we forget, "Gory Laurie" DL
DES, i found myslef in the same situation as you many many times this weekend during the snowstorm, and last weekends too. All those times were intentional though. I love snow and awd. I also loved getting rides in and driving my friends z3 in the snow. Its like that thing is reading your mind when it drifts and has awesome trac. with snows on. Im comfortable drifting it at 25 in snow on the road, its that awesome. I;d never drift that fast in my cr-v or type-s. Still, that really means something that you corected something you werent expecrting. Many people would freeze in fear and crash. good job on keeping a cool head and getting out of it without a dented body
Excellent save DES,you did the right thing which unfortunatly the majority of the population has yet to realise. Stay focused and don't panic. FWD also comes in handy in situations like those.
DES, the Red Asphault videos are a series of old cheesy movies from the 70s thast basically just show a bunch of really badly mutilated dead bodies and horrible highway crashes. In my drivers ed class we watched about 5 of these videos and they did what they were supposed to do --scare the living crap out of me. They showed decapitated bodies that were burned alive inside their cars, pieces of brain and skull laying on the highway, and other magical images. Not fun stuff...
Okay, that sounds bad Des. Here in Denmark, it takes at least 6 weeks to take your drivers license. You have to have 24 theori lesson, and at least 16 road lessons. And that is the minimum before you can pass the tests. (That includes the angle of view and where you are going as you mentioned) Still good that you got out of it alive.
DES, Remember my video with the Porsche? Never looked at him once at all. Just focused on keeping the car straight and finding some dry pavement. Everything else took care of itself. Had I looked at the Porsche I would have hit the Porsche 100% guaranteed. Way to go !!!! FChat is a great learning tool. As for looking where you want to go it's the single most important thing when you lose control. It's completely counter intuitive to do so. Most people see the telephone pole coming their way and look straight at it and 99% of the time hit the darn thing. As for getting a license in this country.....well I am expecting a 10 yr old will be able to get one in a crackerjack box any day now. Free prize in your box of Cheerios........a driver's license!!!!! Seriously my mom flunked the German driving test two times. It was a 3 hour written exam followed by 2 more hours of intense driving in all sorts of conditions (heavy traffic, country roads, city traffic and lastly a frozen skidpad). On top of that it cost her $500 to get the license (1971). She took three months of class time. I laughed when I took my exam here in the states. I could have drunken a couple of six packs and driven blindfolded. We had one ridicoulous test where you had to drive the car at 40 miles an hour though some cones without touching the brakes. I came away thinking I could have driven an 18 wheel rig at 80 mph through that course with no problem. If driving were a privledge not a right in this country people would treat it that way. Glad you are ok. Regards, Jon P. Kofod 1995 F355 Challenge #23 www.flatoutracing.net
Art, thanks... Driver's school is definitely where i want to be at some point... LOL, Darth...! Very nice... Very clever... Tim, that sounds fun; the Z3 is rear wheel drive, right...? It's so little, you could practically do donuts in one lane... Sounds fun... Did you get hit hard upstate...? Francisco, yeah, front wheel drive was what made it so easy... Had it been RWD, i don't know that i would've regained control so quickly... Jordan, sounds like fun... Too bad i never got to see one... Jonas, it sounds like it's really rigorous to get a driver's license over there... That's probably a good thing...! If driving were a privledge not a right in this country people would treat it that way. Jon, i agree... and i thank you (and the others) for sharing your stories and experiences... As you said, FerrariChat is a great learning tool... Thanks.
Des, Get thee over to the BMWCCA website pronto and join the NJ chapter (I know you live in NY, but the NY chapter doesn't hold a candle to the NJ chapter and you're close enough to Jersey that attending the car control clinics and autoX's won't be too out of the way). You don't need a BMW to join, the yearly fee is minimal and it includes the monthly newsletter and bi-monthly Roundel magazine (great source of information). There are numerous car control clinics each year for $20 a clinic, the track days are very inexpensive compared to some other clubs I've tried to do track days with, and the auto-crosses are really inexensive too. There's no reason, not even financial, you can't at least join the CCA and do a few car control clinics and autocrosses a year. I understand the track days can cost a bit after admission, tires, and brake-pads ... but you should do your best to get to them as well. Besides, while I appreciate your love for Ferrari's, I think you'll find yourself really enjoying a good BMW and it's something you can afford to not only purchase, but maintain ... while still being delightful at the track and a boatload of fun on any twisty road. Bill in Brooklyn
Bill, that sounds awesome... i think i'll do that... i'll check out the website in a little while, thanks...! Track days are out of the question- at least right now... i won't track my only car... If the time should come though, that i can afford something else, to beat on and play with on the side, then it's definitely something to consider... Going to car control clinics and autocrosses sounds like a great idea though, even if i don't participate... Just talking with the different people and observing would be beneficial... Thanks for the idea...