Another Successful Autocross Car Control Clinic
PCA-GGR Autocross Enthusiasts,
We hosted three exciting and fun events in April! The first was our Autocross #2 which we reported on last month. Two additional events highlighted here include the Day 1: Novice Car Control Clinic and the Day 2: Car Control – Practice What You’ve Learned event hosted in partnership with the Golden Gate Lotus Club (GGLC) on April 26th and 27th on the Alameda Point Naval Air Station property. While cause and effect connections are anecdotal, one key takeaway is that running these events at Alameda Point is a fantastic draw!
Student registrations for our Novice Car Control Clinic sold out in 36 hours. We ultimately hosted 68 Students, pairing them with about half that many Instructors who answered our call from PCA regional clubs including GGR, LPR, SVR and Redwood, plus the GGLC and BMW-GGC clubs. The weather was great. Connie Lu was our Chief Instructor. She engaged with the students exceptionally well giving an overview of the morning exercises and leading the afternoon course walk (see photo). During the morning, Students / Instructors rotated through 3 exercises: Slalom, Square Pad and Skid Pad. In the afternoon, Students ran with their Instructors as passengers in two run groups on a mock autocross course. We ended the day with Instructors driving their own cars with Students as excited passengers, enthusiastic to experience how it is done! Feedback on the day: Students appreciated the caliber of instruction and the opportunity to learn more about sport driving; Instructors were energized and rewarded by the opportunity to help their Students succeed.
Chief Instructor Connie Lu leading the afternoon course walk.
Our Day 2: Car Control – Practice What You’ve Learned event was also waitlisted. The pavement was damp as drivers began to arrive, but the tarmac quickly dried and the sky mostly cleared for the remainder of the day. We hosted 91 drivers running in 83 cars in a three-run group format going one direction in the morning and reversing course in the afternoon. While many drivers brought their Porsche and Lotus cars, we hosted a notable range of other brands as well. Running at Alameda Point was a great opportunity for the more experienced drivers present, including many of our Instructors from the Novice Clinic, to have some fun, learn more about their cars and expand their sport driving skills. It was also a great way for a significant number of Students from the Novice Clinic to get some highly appreciated time to practice what they’d learned one day prior. All things considered, it was a successful, fun and safe event. And it was great to be back at Alameda Point!
Our next regular Autocross #3 scheduled May 17th was booked to capacity on the day registration closed and we are looking forward to another exciting autocross event at Salinas Municipal Airport.
We are grateful to Porsche Redwood City for their 2025 season sponsorship and support!
Steve Forshay
PCA-GGR Autocross Director
