Blog

An Insider View

By Gary Lea

This weekend I took the plunge and did the HPDE event at Spring Mountain. I have been meaning to do it for five years, but work always seems to get in the way. This time I decided, now that I am retired, I would do it . I was the third person to sign up and most likely will be again in our next event.

When I was young, I would do anything I could to get the adrenaline rush. Skiing, cycling, kart racing, a weekend at Jim Russell School, and driving anywhere I could get away from traffic and police to go as fast as I could. I was lucky to grow up in Lake Tahoe and to have the Washoe Flat on 395 between Carson City and Reno, where there was no speed limit till 1973. (Thanks, Tricky Dick, for ruining that!)

Always the need for speed. However, back then I was also a daredevil and often reckless. I still cycle and ski, but driving calmed down decades ago as I became a father, suffered the pains of insurance increases with tickets, and I finally had the desire to not kill myself, which grew exponentially!

Going into the weekend, I was nervous because I knew how rusty I was, and at 71 years young, I also knew reflexes were no longer like they were in my teens and twenties. 

The great thing about the HPDE is that you are eased in gently to driving your car at speed, and the instruction is incredible. I was fortunate to draw Brian Schmidt, our Chief Driving Instructor, as my instructor for the weekend! How lucky is that? (OK, that is just a flat-out lie! I shamelessly pulled rank and will do it again for my next two sessions, and he will be done with me! Remember, we do not get paid for this, so why not……)

To say I got outstanding instruction would be a gross understatement, and there is a very clear reason why Brian is the CDI. With great patience, he eased me into things, showed me where to break, where to accelerate, where to let the car naturally go, and when I did make mistakes (oh yeah, there were many, including a few times where I went wide enough to drop two tires briefly in the dirt and get a black flag), the corrections were always in the form of “what did you learn from that, and what will you do differently next time”. Learning how to be aware of everything going on around me and bending me without losing my focus on the track in front of me. How to safely pass and let others safely pass me. Because of that instruction by my last session, I was not only going much faster than I thought I would ever go but I was totally relaxed, breathing really well, and so much smoother than I thought I ever would be at this age. I was actually passing more than I was being passed. I still have a long way to go, but I know better where I need improvement and where I feel I was actually quite competent.

I can only say the experience was incredible and thrilling beyond compare, but also as I left the event to drive home last night, my total mindset about driving on the road changed. Great confidence in the car and in myself, but also greater awareness of what was going on around me. The driver home was wonderful. 

If you have been giving it thought and just have not pulled the trigger, do it. Now is time to present as we only live once!

If you have thought, “oh, that is not for me,” I would beg to differ. The skills you will develop over two days will help you immensely every time you get behind the wheel the rest of your life. 

Finally, I would be remiss if I did not thank Brian and the rest of the group of volunteers, Brad, Barbara, Anna, Brian, Gigi, Ed, and all the rest of the volunteers and instructors who give up their weekends to allow us to learn in a safe (safety is the number one motto of these events) environment and to have so much fun. A special shout out to my friend and instructor, Kim Fowler, who took me out in his GT3RS for four mind-bending, reality-altering, nausea-inducing laps that show what an outstanding driver can do in what may be the best out-of-the-box track car on the planet. ( haha Kim, I didn’t 🤮 !!!!!)

         All track photos done by Barbara Lancaster – Thanks again Barbara!!!!