[Driv3r]

So i was schedualed for June 12th for the one day school...And im sorry but ive been writing up an 8 page essay for the last few days, so my head isnt in shape. But i will explain as best to my abilities. I Decided that i am willing to take the miles, and will take my car from Miami,FL to Spartanburg,SC...As i left on to 95 everything was smooth...i had my radar detector, found ALL bogeys(which all just leave their radars on!) and kept a good pace going from 85-90 and very abruptly hitting 100. the estimated time of arrival from map quest was 11 hours, i got there approximatly 10, by the time i got in my hotel it was 1030PM....

but the reason i tell this story to everyone is becasue i found an almost treasure of a highway stretch, it looks almost like the autobahn!, best of all there was not one poilice in sight, i was crusing 120-130 no problem, to and from the performance center...

I beleive the highway was I-85 i am not sure, I would look it up but im having trouble relaying this information because my head hurts from writing so much, so researching is out of the question..

[INDENT]Driving school was also a Lot of fun and anyone who is in the health to do it should...although i dont want to sound cocky or anything, upon arriving at the performance center, there wasnt any "new" manuevers or concepts that they taught me, i guess it is probably because i used to do karting so i am fond of the whole concept of suspension physics and how the car really works...well, i was well ahead of the class, as they couldnt even understand what understeer/oversteer was, it was a good feeling for me when i actually gave them some advice to help them remember which is which....As we start the day off with some slaloming, they asked that we keep traction control on...I WOULD HAVE NONE OF IT!, but then again, i didnt want to be a total jerk so i went with dtc, as we begin slaloming there are people hitting the cones, etc. as i hit the slalom i entered it at a decent rate of speed so not to need acceleration during the turns with dtc on i had a slight bit of oversteer which i personally adore, nothing better than that slight oversteer feeling in the steering...as i exit i hear on the radio, WOW, Impressive...

After the Slalom we enter the Wet Skid-Pad, this was where i really shined because another one of my favorite things to do in my free time is beleive it or not(i really hate to say this as it sounds childish and stupid after that rediculous movie;Tokyo Drift) Drifting, i do it all the time when its raining maybe in the dry once and a while at these huge parking lots we have here,stadiums, and such.

Anyways we enter the skid pad and the instructer proceeds to pull everyones handbrake so as to induce Oversteer(EVERYONE spins out i found it quite scary that there are people driving on the snow and such up north that cant control oversteer)...My turn is up, the instructer tells me to get ready, i relax but my mind is anticipating this ebrake..he pulls it and releases it...i immediatly start giving it some gas so i could hold it out but at the same time balancing the car, basically, i end up "drifting" around the whole set of cones at the skid pad, a FULL circle with a radius of about 25ft. i end up doing this stunt a few more times, impressing my instucter further each step..I finally told him I habitually do this back home in parking lots with cones set up...he replies

That is some gnarly driving you have down, you should really consider going back into your karting, maybe even go to some racing schools around the country, for 16 you well above the average.

This compliment is coming from a man who has been racing for close to 40 years, it made me feel so completed once i had that compliment, definatly made the whole thing worth every penny...

Final Part was everything we learned put onto the track as a series of cones,there was the lane change,hard braking/high speed braking while in a bent, slalom, watered down section to mimic wet road/ice, and a few bends here and there....

what i did at the end of the day was get the confidence to turn the traction completly off and go like that, seemed crazy as my brother who was in the passenger seat told me i am going to spin and/or hit all the cones down. as i start i go just fine, then once i hit the wet road, i begin to initiate this marvelous drift down a half a circle, i recover and start down the slalom. during the 1st turn or two my tires were still slightly wet and i had some serious oversteer but handled it just fine, then i proceed to the lane change.. this might have been the best part of the day for me, i had dcs off and was going at the lane change close to double the speed at which we learned to go(i cant really remember my speed as i wasnt looking at the tach, but i was past 60) this lane change was really a spectacle to look at from the outside im sure, because as i recover from the abrupt steering input my car oversteers and i stayed calm to control it and STILL DIDNT HIT 1 CONE!, so when i finish with the lane change i enter the high speed bend at arouund 70-75 then i had to slam the brakes and stop in between 4 cones, did it without a struggle,

All together it was the best fun ive had in a long time, i would love to do it again but im considering the mans words and trying out maybe a racing school when i can get the money together for it..

[INDENT]Another note was that as im travelling back from the place i notice that my back one tire is BALD and this was during hurricane alberto, so i was on the highway far from home, feeling my back dance the whole way, it got pretty scary after a while...there was ZERO tire displacement...i think it might have been due to BMW not aligning my tires when they had to replace a suspension component..anyways thats my trip hope its somewhat coherent..

[Driv3r]

Im the one wearing the dark blue with khaki pants and black hair, quietly seated in the center.

[bavarian19]

Sounds like fun!!! Im contemplating doing something very similar at a local track soon... Eventually I will work up to track events... not just yet though...

[Driv3r]

If i were you i would do it, but honestly tires are just too damn expensive for me to be able to do many track events.. im thinking about maybe an e30 stripped bare with 16 or 17" rims,suspension,sways, and track tires, that would be a track beast!

[KL2DC]

good write up...wish there were more pics though.

Been wanting to do the PC courses for some time...

Are the cars at the PC manual or automatic??

[Driv3r]

Originally Posted by KL2DC

good write up...wish there were more pics though.

Been wanting to do the PC courses for some time...

Are the cars at the PC manual or automatic??

i requested manual because my car is that as well, but they said becase of how.......ok i have to pause for a moment HEAAAT WIN!!!!!! FINALS!!!!!!!!!!!!

[MG_2006325i_KG]

You attending the good ole teen drivers course?

[Driv3r]

Originally Posted by MG_2006325i_KG

You attending the good ole teen drivers course?

yes sir! forgot to specify

[KL2DC]

Originally Posted by Driv3r

i requested manual because my car is that as well, but they said becase of how.......ok i have to pause for a moment HEAAAT WIN!!!!!! FINALS!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am curious...you still haven't finished this post

[BK]

Originally Posted by Driv3r

yes sir! forgot to specify

Ah!, I wondered why the people in the classroom looked so young. I am considering a PDC delivery (late July, probably), and after looking at your pictures, I was wondering whether I'd be the oldest guy there!

Congrats on having the knack for performance driving at such a young age. If it is something that interests you, continue to go for it! Not everyone gets the opportunity to do something like this at your age. Just please keep it under control on public streets.

[Driv3r]

Honestly after all this i felt like driving slower becuase i really dont need to prove anything to anyone...so no need, but once and a while when noone is near, ill take a bend or 2 and such, its a bmw, it was designed for spirited driving..

[Driv3r]

Originally Posted by KL2DC

I am curious...you still haven't finished this post

no manual because they want you to be concerned with pointing the car and driving the car, not worrying about shifting points etc.. anyways everyone their did not know how to drive one but yet "ive driven a manual before, i want one for this school." little do they know, driving a manual in a race or spiritedly is a lot more dificult and faster paced than any new "learners" could do, so BMW is smart in that aspect, although i think they should still have a few there on the lot just because...