Pretty nice experience at the track today !

[fastfredracing]

Porsche people sometimes get a bad rap as being rich douchebags. That has not been my experience in general. Most of the p car guys I know are track/autocross guys, or mechanics , and 90% of the people I have met at events , have been really nice friendly people willing to shoot the chit with you for a minute or two .
Anyhow, took my 10 year old boy to Pittsburgh Race complex today. There was a pca de day there,and I figured there would be some eye candy for us to behold . We try to take in some sort of car related activity every weekend if we can
We were walking the paddock and taking in all the cars . All sorts of cool stuff there today. My boy talks sort of loud, and he was raving over all the cars .
We came on a group of guys from Columbus Oh, There was a white SC , that has clearly seen track duty for most of its life . It had brake dust allover the wheels, paint blistered off the quarters from tire rubbing, and plenty of track patina ( excuse the use of that word )
My kid, ( who I think has exceptional taste in cars ) starts going on, " this is by far the coolest car here dad, look at it !! I love this car ."
Just then , a scruffy looking guy comes over, introduces himself as Dave , and says "wanna go for a ride kid ? " He asked me if it was o,k, and I said , of course .
He latched my boy into the 5 point harness, and took him around the paddock area, and out onto the road for a nice little spin . My kid has been in plenty of P cars, and my sc is similar to Dave's as far as condition, noise level, and track set up, but I think it really made his day to be in a " real race car "
It took over an hour for him to wipe the grin off his face .
If you are a Pelican Dave, , you are truly a gentleman and a cool dude ! Thanks

[Oh Haha]

Cool!!

I've met some of nicest folks at Porsche events. When I had my Camaros it seemed more common to trash talk about whose car is faster. Not so at P-car events.

[VaSteve]

I mostly only do track events with the PCA, but I have almost never met the douche bags that people complain about here. I help to run our events and I have met a few for certain but met som really really great people along the way. Guys that likely out earn me tenfold but just as much car lover as anyone on this board.

[Reddy Kilowatt]

Very cool. The d-bag rate is pretty low at real-life driving events, IME.

[A930Rocket]

PCA track days were always a blast for me.

Met a lot of good friends there.

[Jim Richards]

That sounds like a great time for you and your son, Fred. There's a lot of good folks tracking these cars.

[Brian 162]

I attend PCA (Upper Canada Region) DE events. Over the years I've met a great group of people some of which became good friendships.

[Craig T]

The general public has a misconception of Porsche owners, mostly from the few who lease them to be pretentious. I have been involved in PCA and POC track events for over 20 years, been a licensed instructor for 15 years, and Chairman of the POC Performance Driving Series program for three years. In that time, I've only met ONE a$$h@le...And I kicked him out after one run session. In my experience, if a Porsche owner is enthusiastic enough to join a club and do a track event, 99.9% are eager to learn, brand loyal, and super friendly. My entire social circle comes from Porsche racing, with some lifelong friends being made through track events.

[Bill Douglas]

When I visited John - Fischcop in Brisbane Australia we went to the local race track in his 2.7 RS replica. They were the nicest bunch of Porsche guys I've ever met. One even took the foreign guy for a lap or two in his GT3 track car

[aigel]

That's great. What a nice gesture by Dave.

AX and DE / TT / Club Racing is where the good guys are. The other events, well ... it is mixed there but mostly nice people that I have met. Around here usually a lot of older enthusiasts that may be a bit too old for going on the track ... the concourse d'elegance is probably the highest density of douchiness, but that's party because I can't fathom cleaning my car with q-tips even if it is very nice.

G

[Otter74]

It's great that your son had that experience. I would have had the same SIG.

I know few Porsche owners but they are not d bags. BMW owners have a rep too (well, maybe just owners of newer BMWs) but my impression is still defined by my first ever track event, with my 320iS at Road Atlanta when I was 18. I blew a tire in the esses and a stranger who had driven his 2002 from NC gave me his street tires so I could finish the weekend.

[ZOO]

Originally Posted by peteremsley

Fantastic. You meet the nicest people at race tracks!

Plus a million! I loveat how far people will go to help out a fellow enthusiast during a track day or autox event.

[VFR750]

PCA crowd here in CT is a nice bunch. Very much AX, track and club race group mixed with concourse, touring and general meetings and stuff. All very nice people.

At the track a lot of camaraderie. Most everyone is pretty focused too. We are there to drive and many are sporting fairly to amazingly fast, powerful cars. So we all expect some level of intensity and respect. But walk up to a driver after a session, and they will chat about their car and how's the day going. Just know when someone is focused on something else, and let them have their space.

[CJFusco]

The impression I get is that most of the "Porsche owners are d-bags" reputation comes from the owners of the news cars who buy them because they're status symbols. When I try the "Porsche wave," it's usually the drivers of the newer models that don't wave back. There are exceptions to this trend, of course.

Originally Posted by VFR750

PCA crowd here in CT is a nice bunch. Very much AX, track and club race group mixed with concourse, touring and general meetings and stuff. All very nice people.

At the track a lot of camaraderie. Most everyone is pretty focused too. We are there to drive and many are sporting fairly to amazingly fast, powerful cars. So we all expect some level of intensity and respect. But walk up to a driver after a session, and they will chat about their car and how's the day going. Just know when someone is focused on something else, and let them have their space.

VRF750, will you be doing AutoX this Summer? I plan on trying it out at CVR PCA events at some point.

[bkreigsr]

Fast Fred - I almost thought the thread was going to be about getting the 930 on the track
I'll second the good vibes that are the DE events. You wouldn't believe some of the shade tree mechanics I've seen performed at the track in the last 40 years - just to get a complete stranger back underway.
Bill K

[cashman]

Another positive vote for the guys that attend AX/DE's. I was fully expecting a bunch of douches too at my first AX. Now I'm a PCA instructor and everyone has been super cool. Also led to a Chumpcar team with all PCA guys. We have a blast.

[SiberianDVM]

Originally Posted by cashman

Another positive vote for the guys that attend AX/DE's. I was fully expecting a bunch of douches too at my first AX. Now I'm a PCA instructor and everyone has been super cool. Also led to a Chumpcar team with all PCA guys. We have a blast.

Yup. And I hope you're ready to drive without ABS, 'cuz I pulled it all out this weekend and there ain't any way it will ever fit back in.

[VFR750]

CJFusco, yes I will be doing a few AX at LAZ parking lot in Hartford, and likely the August Watkins Glen weekend.

[cashman]

Originally Posted by SiberianDVM

Yup. And I hope you're ready to drive without ABS, 'cuz I pulled it all out this weekend and there ain't any way it will ever fit back in.

SWEET! Can't wait.....Siberian is one of the good guys

[andyt11]

I remember before I ever owned a 911, I took a trip to Hershey with a friend just to look at some cars and maybe drive a few that were for sale. There were very few where I live and I'd never even driven one.

Earlier in the day I drove a car that was for sale, was equipped with 915 gearbox and was fun.

Later in the day we got talking to a guy and he asked why we were there. I told him and explained what we'd driven that day and what we'd seen, and then he just handed me the keys to his 88. Said go for a ride and see if I care about the different transmission. I turned to my mate and said "you wait here, we'll be back", and the stranger said "no no - you guys go, its insured, just don't crash it - I'm going to go look around the show".

Didn't ask for any security or anything. I don't think he even knew my name. Both were nice cars, but the best bit about the day was this guy.