About this event
The Northwest Alfa Romeo Club has been providing fun and informative Driver Skills and Car Control events to automotive enthusiasts in the Northwest for over 20 years.
This event is being held at Evergreen Speedway in Monroe and is a driving school for enhancing driver skills and teaching car control/safety. The curruculum and course are specifically designed for new drivers, drivers with newly purchased vehicles, and any driver who feels unsure or nervous behind the wheel. The course is as fun as it is informative, so we also welcome any and all drivers who simply wants to polish their skills or experience something new.
Morning Course: 8:30am - 12pm
Afternoon Course: 1pm - 4:30pm
Course Fee is $95.
A credit card is required to complete this registration, however your card will not be charged until you sign in at the track for the event. You may choose to finalize your payment now as you complete this online registration, or bring cash/check and make your payment upon arrival and sign-in at the track.
INTRODUCTION
The purpose of our Driving School is to enhance your awareness of the conditions around you and develop your ability to respond quickly and properly should you find yourself in an acute situation during your normal daily driving.
NWARC's Driver Skills event is a half-day course covering the fundamentals of car control and skills-based driving. Appropriate for new and experienced drivers alike, this Driver Skills course provides all participants with valuable classroom instruction, lots of seat time, and personalized 1:1 instruction. The course is divided into five primary segments:
- Slalom
- Threshold Braking
- Obstacle/Collision Avoidance
- Braking in a Corner
- Handling Oval
Together, these segments improve drivers' ability to look ahead, control vehicle weight transfer, practice smoothness, effective braking, and other vital skills. Groups are small in size, which means that wait times between exercises will be minimal. At the end of the five sessions, students are encouraged to apply the skills they've learned to their daily driving routine, and to practice safe and confident driving whenever they are behind the wheel. The intensity level and focus on driving is high, but so is the fun factor!
ALL VEHICLE TYPES ARE WELCOME AND ENCOURAGED. Please be sure your vehicle is in good mechanical condition with no visible fluid leaks or loos part hanging from exterior or underneath the vehicle. Check your tire wear and tire pressures the day before the event, check engine oil and coolant levels, and fill if necessary. All vehicles will be subjected to a basic technical inspection in the morning before being allowed on course. Please remove all loose items from the interior and trunk of your vehicle prior to arriving, and don't forget to fill your fuel tank BEFORE arriving.
Please visit our sponsor PROVA Motorsports if you have questions about any needed service to your vehicle in preparation for this event: Christopher Benny at 206.420.8161 - https://www.facebook.com/provamotorsports
WHAT YOU WILL LEARN
The Driving School is designed to teach students that the act of driving a motor vehicle is an intensive mental activity. You must pay strict attention to your actions and those of the drivers around you. Through classroom and in-car instruction, you are taught how to be observant of your surroundings and vehicle. You learn how and why a car will respond to inputs to the steering wheel, gas pedal and brake pedal - the physics of car control. The school provides a way to prepare for the unexpected, and to practice collision avoidance skills.
You don't need to be a member of NWARC to attend our Novice Schools, but you are welcome to to join here: http://www.aroc-usa.org/application.php.
Event requirements
This event is open to all valid licensed drivers with NO other prerequisites required to attend. Invite your teenage* children, parents, friends or coworkers to experience the art of car control.
*NOTE: Valid drivers license is required for participation.
More on the driving school...
Ground School
The school begins with a general explanation of the day's activities, safety issues, and how the in-car exercises will be conducted. There will be a discussion of each in-car exercise so that you understand what skills they are designed to teach and how best to perform them. Questions and discussion are encouraged.
Driving Exercises
Exercise segments have been designed to allow you to physically experience the vehicle dynamics theory explained in the classroom. Using orange traffic cones, exercises are laid out on the pavement for you to negotiate. An experienced instructor will ride with you to explain the exercise, offer corrections, praise accomplishment and answer questions immediately. With this real-time feedback, learning is enhanced.
The exercise segments are laid out with safety buffer zones around them to provide a large margin of error, keeping you safe and minimizing the risk of any incidents. The exercise area is isolated in order to prohibit access by non-school participants. The pavement in some exercise areas will be watered down to minimize tire adhesion and mimic adverse driving conditions. This allows you to experience the vehicle's responses to your inputs at much lower speeds than in the dry.
The classroom curriculum and driving skills exercises will emphasize these important daily driving rules, techniques, and habits:
1. Smart steering wheel control, keeping your hands should be at the 9 and 3 o'clock positions. This provides you with the greatest control over your car and keeps your arms out of the way in case of airbag deployment.
2. Setting and using your side view mirrors so very little to none of the side of your car is visible. This allows you to have a widest possible view of what is behind and to the side of your car.
3. Looking ahead to improve your peripheral vision. Generally look to the second or third vehicle ahead of you so you can get a bigger picture of what is happening ahead of time.
4. Driving with your seat correctly positioned. To test if you are seated correctly do the following: Sit up straight in the driver seat. Your shoulders should be touching the seat back. Next, extend your arms straight out in front of you, your wrists should touch the top rim of the steering wheel and hands able to hang over the front. Adjust your seat until you can accomplish this position easily.
5. Practicing courteous driving habits while becoming more aware of everything around you. Develop your positive communicative skills by signaling ahead of time and practice the '3 second' safe distance maneuver while following vehicles ahead of you on the road.
6. Practicing smooth movements while turning, braking and applying throttle (gas pedal).
7. Avoiding downshifting and using the gearbox to slow your car. Always use your brakes, that's what they are designed to do.
8. Practicing smooth braking by "imagining an egg" between your foot and the brake pedal. If you press too hard too quickly the egg will break.
Registering for the course
In order to register for this even here on Motorsportreg, you'll need to create a simple driver account and profile. This is a quick and simple process. However, there will be a series of detailed questions related to your vehicle including engine size and class, and other questions about your "permanent number." Please disregard all of these detailed quesions, you'll only need to provide "Make," "Model," and "Color" which are the first few questions. After filling in those answers just skip to the bottom and continue the registration process. If you have any questions or problems with this form, please do not hesitate to contact Mirko Freguia at: mirko@copperfin.com.