Supercharged111

I saw the light and was hooked long before I hit my first track day, there were a great many things preventing me from tracking for years. Now that I'm in though, I feel obligated to spread the joy to others. I know a few people with sports cars and I don't feel that they truly enjoy them to the fullest. What's the fun in looking at a fast car with the same bolt-ons as everyone else? Lame. Car meets at McDonalds? Gay (if that's the extent of your vehicular enjoyment). You'd think NASA was paying me for new recruits the way I troll for them. They always push back with how expensive it is or make excuses about tires and suspension. I assure them all they need is clean brake fluid for their first day. I even push Hyperdrives, but I have great difficulty getting people to bite. I know if they're going to get hooked, it'll only take a weekend, but getting them there is about impossible. I've gotten one friend to the track. He didn't do as good as I hoped, but still left with a good attitude. If he lived closer, I could hook him for sure and he'd come around. The one friend who'd take to it great just got orders to Alaska (the ******* who beat me in my own car at autocross). Not sure about the rest, but you never know, they could be a prodigy waiting to happen.

Bill Dearborn

I call them the posers. They talk a good game sitting in their folding chair next to their car at the local parking lot meet. I proposed a FunKhana for our club and one of the exercises had a section where the cars had to drive across a lattice of 2x4s at 5 mph or less and one of the club members said they wouldn't think of doing that to their car. They never even thought they do it to their car every time they drive it on the street and hit all of our local pot holes at higher speeds.

They do benefit people like us though. If they didn't buy cars for them to watch while being parked at some event GM wouldn't be able to produce the Vette at such reasonable prices compared to other cars with its capabilities.

Bill

JeremyGSU

Good luck convincing people to do that. As fun as track days are they are very expensive and most people don't want to spend the money, tear their car up, or simply can't afford it.

As for Vette owners, very few actually track their cars in relation to the number out there. Some people simply aren't into it. They like parades, car shows, drag racing, etc.

I went to the Ocala Corvette Club once and I was the youngest member in there by 40 years and I'm 32. They were talking the next group drives and parades they were going to attend. I quickly left. haha

John Shiels

You can share your experience and they can decide. Many do not want to do things listed by Jeremy. I destroyed a car and went through a fortune but many will never do it. I always loved racing things most don't want to see 50% of the paint missing like my car had.

95jersey

To each his own. I tried a few people myself and had about a 30% success rate. The others felt it was too much work to prepare and travel time (and cost). Funny I have buddy's that rides dirt bikes, has fast cars, but had no interest in going to the track.

I remember helping one guy change his brake pads on a Friday evening before a track day and all he could say is "wow I could be out drinking with my buddies and I am sitting here changing brake pads". He never went to another track day. I thought, dude, tomorrow you are going to drive like you have never been able to drive your car in your entire life?!?!

Then the best part, I get my brother in law involved as well as his father and brother and they are immediately hooked...success! I did this hoping to have some friends attend track events with me, rather than always going by myself. We could share hotels, tents, grill, etc...After a few joint events, they went off on their own together and I rarely ever saw them again (I guess they didn't like my company).

I will say one of the few people who I would always see and would make track events enjoyable was John Shiels (above). He became a mentor to me during my early years giving me great advice. Then he fell on hard times and had to pull away.

Finally after years of going to the same tracks over and over and over by myself, I lost interest and stopped.

You are on the upcurve, so stay with it, learn some skills and enjoy your life.

CHJ In Virginia

That is a very difficult question to answer. My success rate at getting new converts is nill. Have had a couple of Vete friends come and watch and go for a ride in a session or two, but that was it. Never could get them to participate. The social aspect of track weekends is important, and I have developed a great group of friends over the past 10 years. Without the friendships, I probably would have packed it up and stopped tracking a couple of years ago.

Bill32

We (Reno SCCA) invited the local Corvette Club out to one of our Time Trials/PDX events.

We had 10 of our members running Corvettes in different classes.

The Corvette Club members:

Took pictures of their cars all lined up.

Had a barbeque

Stood there with their arms folded and discussed Zaino and floormats.

But they did take a 2 lap track tour behind me driving the pace car @50, no helmets of course.

Bill32

Absolutely

sperkins

I've never been able to convinvce any of my friends to come to a track event. Your best bet is to make new friends at the track. That's what I did and those guys are now my closest friends.

GettReal

Funny that you mention this... I have been on the forum for what feels forever and have met a LOT of people. over the years, we would all be part of the show crowd, and locally it can be a pretty big crowd, we did spend time waxing our cars (I never had a folding chair thank god) but out of the huge group there were a bunch of us that liked to go for drives, we really loved just driving. About 7 years ago I was introduced to Autocross and then the following year I went to a track event.. Hooked instantly.

It was the next year that I started to heavily solicit my group of friends to come out and do a track day and from that day on they were all hooked, I think you need to keep explaining the rush you get and tell them to forget the cost for one day of their lives.. they are either the type of person that wants to try it or not. To this day there are about 10 of us that make time for the track, not every person at every event but you can always count on going with a few people. We still try to get people out and sometimes we are successful but for the most part, people love to just wax their cars and add HP so they can talk about it.

2 years ago I got my brother in law involved and since then he is now over the top when it comes track days.. I mean Obsessed lol but its good for me because now I have close family to go with as well as friends.

Track life is good

If any of you are going to be at Watkins Glen this weekend, look us up as there are a dozen of us track junkies heading down. Good times.

MongoZ06

It's difficult to bring new blood to these events. I've offered the opportunity to all my friends to come for the weekend and do some ride alongs with me but none were interested, they are all too absorbed in drag racing and think road racing is for slow cars.

Tracks days is pretty much the word of Satan around the local car scene, including a majority of the vette owners. Most of what they do is the parking lot cruise in's and car shows and would never fathom the idea of putting their car on a race track.

Honestly it would be nice to have someone else to chat with on occasion about cars and track day stories. I have a good friend of mine come by every so often and we talk about cars, guns and what's going on in the world over a cigar or 2 and some good scotch, bourbon or whiskey.

Road Racing isn't for everyone but I do agree that if you have a car that is designed for this type of sport you need to try it at least once.

brkntrxn

I used to try to convince everyone to come to the track. That was mostly when I was working grid and doing logistics for more than one track organization. After lackluster success, I have stopped talking to most anyone about track days and racing unless they ask. And I very rarely offer to get someone to come to the track. Between racing or instructing and time trailing, and hanging out, I just don't want the headache of holding someone's hand anymore. I'd rather relax.

I have come to the conclusion that if they are going to do it, they will take the interest on their own and ask me how it works. That is what I did.

Like Scott said, the friends I have made from track events are now my closest of all. And only a handful are within thirty minutes of my house. The rest are all hours and states away but I know they would all drop everything to help me if called.

PushinTheLimit

This is my take on getting friends to the track. Even back when I was autocrossing alot, I would invite people out with performance cars to at least come check it out, ride with me or enter and try it themselves since it wasn't nearly as expensive as road courses. Even that was a flop as many were afraid they were going to "hurt" their cars or get a scuff mark on their cars. Some of these same people weren't afraid to do 100+ mph highway blasts during the day risking getting caught or even worse causing an accident. One lady said wearing a helmet would mess her hair up so that's why she wouldn't autocross or open track her car

I did get one friend from work with a 370Z to an autocross and hooked him. I then invited him to run with Nasa at Road Atlanta for his first track day. He loved it but soon moved to Texas and has done a couple of events out there but not any lately. Other than that, I've had a few friends come to the track with me but didn't have the money or means to buy a car for the track.

I too have made alot of friends that were already into the track events (C5 Mafia) and those guys have always been so helpful to me and it made the events even better having good folks to hang around.

trapp

Its like anything else....golf, trap/skeet shooting, fishing....they have to be interested and have the money and time. Tracking a car takes more money and time then the other hobbies. My brother loves it but just can't afford the costs involved. Time away from the family is another factor....you can get up early and get a round of golf in a few hours and be back to the family...track day is involves working on the car before the track day and after.......consumes a lot of time..

John Shiels

family lives on rice and beans. Small portions!

Supercharged111

True as that may be, I don't buy a set of golf clubs and not use them. The time thing might be a huge factor too, some people get stressed out just doing a brake job. I essentially do a brake job before and after every track session. It really throws me for a loop to wonder what makes most people tick. We need them, like Bill said, or else we couldn't get the Corvette and all its aftermarket niceties for as "cheap" as we do. It's all about supply and demand. I've found myself that I should probably be a little less social than I am right now, so I can start learning to use data and reflecting a little more on my car's performance. I always have a lot of great ideas the week after a track session. It'll only get worse from here, so I can see where having a brand spanking n00b friend at the track might be a drain.

BEZ06

I took a couple friends for rides on the Rolex 24 course at the Daytona event a couple weeks ago in my C6 Z06. My car is stock except for a cold air intake and tune, so it's just like their cars.

They both have C6 Z06's, they aren't car show guys, but they do keep their cars in beautiful condition. One enjoys a lot of get-togethers and group drives. The other drives his car to work every day.

They were both really stoked about seeing how a car just like theirs is capable of performing on a track. But I think both of them thought that running it up to near redline for multiple shifts every lap, braking quite hard for every corner, and then taking every corner at near max grip capable from the tires would be very hard on their cars.

Then they took a look at all the rubber marks all over the car, the massive amount of brake dust on the wheels, and the pitting all over the front fascia, and I think that even though they loved it and would like to do it, they probably won't.

For many owners just owning a Vette stretches their finances, and watching and feeling what goes on in the car while it's on the track is exhilarating, but it also yells out "MONEY for brakes, MONEY for tires, and HOW MUCH DID YOU SAY IT COST TO SIGN UP FOR THIS SO YOU COULD TORTURE YOUR CAR???"

Not to mention the time and expense of going to a couple day event at any distance from your home - a 2 day event can easily be 4 days away from home with 3 nights in motels. Sebring is only 140 miles from Daytona, but the NCM event was 3 days away from home and 2 nights in the motel. 250 miles up to Roebling for 2 track days takes a total of 4 days. 675 miles up to VIR can be 5 or 6 days away from home - I have a nephew I visit at Ft Bragg, and his mom (my sister) has a house 60 miles northeast of VIR, so it's a family visit kinda deal.

I do promote events in the C6 general and Southeast sections, and I did get 2 guys from Jax down for the Daytona event - one forum member with his Vette, and his buddy came with his BMW. They'll definitely be doing more track events!!!

So.....I keep trying, but however much some owners would love tracking their cars, the expense and wear and tear on the car will keep most of them from doing it.

Bob

deepcj7

I should be a salesman....so far I got my buddy with an 07 mustang hooked, it didn't take much to talk him into it though. And from that always moding his car for faster lap times.
Another buddy who was doing it with his Nissan Altima just handed that car off to his wife for track days and he is now tracking a Aston Martin DB9, I think.
At the end of June another friend and his wife will be going to their first one in an Audi A4.
And not to leave my girlfriend out, she attended with my Subaru WRX...nervous for a week leading up to it, had a blast, but no desire to do it again but at least she gave it a go.
We have a pretty large group going in June (all the above) should have a real good time.

jaa1992

Try to get them a ride with an experienced instructor.
Sometimes thats the way to get them hooked.
I'll give them a 7 or 8 tenths ride and talk them through the track - time permitting I'll give them the positives related to driving on the street.
Cause anyone thats done this a while knows that "eyes up" and knowing the real limits of the brakes improves the chances of avoiding an accident on the street.
Shoot it saved me three times just coming home from work today. Hang up and drive people!

Supercharged111

That is a great idea. I can probably lure them in for a hyperdrive (cheap) and a ride along (to see the potential of their car in capable hands).