Autocross School with the Sports Car Club of America - Finger Lakes Region

Steve Poses with the Mazda

Steve attended a one day class in "Autocross" put on by the Sports Car Club of America - Finger Lakes Region. Autocross is a solo race against the clock on a course laid out using cones on an empty area of paving, such as a large parking lot. Steve is holding a helmet because wearing one is required, even though there is no realistic chance of having an accident, and even less chance of rolling over. Rules is rules, even if they don't make sense.

Then, at a "High Performance Driving" class at the Mid-Ohio School, put on at the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course.

At the Mid-Ohio School, we used the school's cars. The school has a fleet of Acura TSX sedans and the race track to teach car handling, planning for the unexpected, etc. Rain fell most of the time of the 2 day class, so we learned plenty of wet pavement handling!

The cars are equipped with roll bars for the unlikely (but possible) mishap. Speeds can reach 100 mph or more on the back straight. Steve did get to that speed on a few laps before rain forced maximum speeds down to the 70 - 80 mph range.

A 5 point harness keeps the driver in place during the severe handling on the track.

A unique feature of the school is the Skid Car, a Honda Civic equipped with outriggers that lift the car off of its tires to simulate driving in very slippery conditions, such as snow and ice. This car allows learning how to recover from a skid in a safe environment (rather than learning on the expressway in the middle of a snow storm!).

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