I'm beginning the instructor training process this summer and am looking for some tips. I've been doing some ride along role playing with a bunch of different instructors, and I think I'm having the most trouble with the vocabulary.

What are some of the short, concise, direct terms that you typically use with students? Do you tend to use hand gestures to help the student visualize what you're trying to convey? What tactics do you use with an intermediate student that thinks he's the next Andretti and is driving WAY over his head in his 300+HP street car, making your uncomfortable in the right seat? Do you have any stories to tell that may help other novice instructors deal with certain situations (unruly student, super timid first-timer, over aggressive student who obviously has no track driving skills or talent, what to do in the case of a wreck)?

I use hand signals, but mainly for the braking. Hand presses down = apply brakes, hand comes up = release brakes. Move your hand slowly, especially on the release, to remind them to be gentle. Then a point with the finger to turn. Youo have to read their reaction times to get the timing right.

The most frequent short concise terms I use while they are actually driving are "Brake", "Gas", "Eyes up", and "Unwind". I find that "gas" is the most common term! Save the more technical terms (e.g. throttle steering, friction circle) for after the run back in the paddock, or brief discussions down he straights.

As for the hotshots, somehow you gotta convince them to drive at 70% so their brain has 30% available to learn. If they are using 100% of their brain to frantically survive the turn, they aren't learning. Some students never figure it out, you gotta read them the riot act. Some students *do* figure that out, and they often turn into great students.

<center><img src="http://www.lulu.com/author/display_thumbnail.php?fCID=330624&amp;fSize=320_&amp;12120 73838"></center><p>It'll cost you 70 cents to download. Nice little resource.<ul><li><a href="http://www.lulu.com/content/330624">INSTRUCTOR CANDIDATE MANUAL</a></li></ul>

I've got that one, 80 pages and have read through it several times. It's been circling around the BMWCCA for a few years to my knowledge. It covers personality profiling, techniques to use with students at different levels, some tables that help to categorize a student's skill level, and has a glossary of terms in the back.

Look ahead
Release
Watch your flags
Smooth
Roll in
Use the whole track
Track out
Squeeze the brakes
Look for braking points
Look for turn in cone
Look for exit cone
Coasting is not advised
Brake/Turn/Acclerate/Repeat

First things first...I found one of the best ways to approach any student is to set the parameters correct - what would you like to accomplish here today and how many track days did you have? That's mostly the first question I ask the student which helps to put things in perspective.

From that point going forward try to observe the first couple of laps and make mental notes of what you see. It also helps if you can break the track into multiple elements and work it turn by turn, by the end of the day combine the knowledge but be aware of exhaustion.....mostly under-estimated/rated by the student.

If you run into a Andretti wannabe then enforce more pit lane drive thru's, he'll quickly realize that it does hurt the exercise and shorten his track time; during the drive thru (or quick stop) explain and keep repeating the same thing if necessary.
One of the best things to make your point is a trip to the skid pad to achieve results so he'll get the point. Get the car intentionally into over or understeer and try to explain the physics of what actually happen.

Hand signals a good but try to place your hand in sight for the student, he is already busy ;-)

If you communicate your intentions and signals before you enter the track then there is a good chance the student will follow them, if all else fails then simply ask what he/she would prefer to make them understand your track "language". Some people react/interpret in different ways to given hand signals so it should be clear right up front.

Overly aggressive driving is a really bad thing; what usually helps is to extend the braking point. Make them brake way earlier so the focus is given on entry and exit of a turn - slow is smooth and smooth is fast.
Keep telling them Slow down! Slow down.....as much as necessary until you get to the point where you can focus on entry and exit speeds - keep repeating and don't let them off the hook.

I've had also no problems to tell overly aggressive students to pit in and have a little chat. There is no Trophy to win by the end of the day.
Bottom line; inter-act as much as possible and be persistent, let the student define their goals that always works in your favor. Don't let even small mistakes slip by, at 120MPH+ that can lead to disaster.
Make notes immediately after the run and go over these notes with your student 15 minutes before the next run - how close is he/she to achieve the set goal and what is required to get there....etc pp.....

If the club has so called "Instructor rides" and the student is in your car then start off with a 4 to 5/10; address each point you are trying to make and slowly increase speed to 7/10 max. Encourage the student to follow your lines and speeds (if applicable); motivation goes a long way and positives should exceed the negatives (also if applicable); create success for the student so he/she stays focus and doesn't get frustrated.

You (the student) lifted going over the crest of the hill, and I didn't catch it. It obviously didn't matter at the speeds we were traveling at, but at our typical speed over that crest, a lift there could be BAD.

have a chat with your student before your first session with them, find out how many events they've done, what mods are on their car, brake pads, tires etc...i find this talk sets the tone for the weekend event....since most of the people i've instructed know me, they know what to expect....novice student do a few laps and have the student get familiar with the track, then take the track section by section, don't try to teach the whole lap, not gonna work, too much information to process....each time you go out work on a different section of the track until the event is over and the whole track is worked....get a good communicator, so you don't have to yell at the student, if you're calm they'll be calm....all the phrases listed above are good, develop your own style....i always tell new students two things....one, don't try to impress me cause you wont, don't try to scare me cause i already am....just have fun.

hand signals work for some students and not for others, you want them watching where they're going and not glancing, or worse looking at you while they're driving....

if you get the i think i can drive great student and you can't get them reeled in, pit in and have a chat with them....if that doesn't work tell the event master or chief instructor and if that doesn't work well shoot em....8^)

Do you, or any other instructors, ever give advanced techniques advice to students in the Experience/Advanced run groups? Personally, I think that's where the ACNA is lacking good instructors. I find that I get signed off after 1 or 2 sessions aftering showing that I'm safe around the track (namely doing student lines) and then have to figure out the faster things around the track on my own. I wish instructors would just stay in the car all weekend instead of being lazy. Or, if you go solo, at least come back for one of the afternoon sessions on the 2nd day to see if the student has improved and help even more then.

it's easier to see the track from the passengers seat....8^)

Once you've done enough events to be in the advanced group, you should have a pretty good idea of who's who in the instructor group, since you've probably had half of them as your instructor as you moved up the ranks. Currently I personally seek out the guys with racing experience and ask to both ride along with and have them ride with me. I'm to the point where I'm signing up for events just to have a certain instructor ride with me. I don't get much from the lower level instructors (like I'll be when I "graduate"), and don't feel comfortable driving my typically (non-student) lines when they're riding with me. However when the racing bunch is riding with me, I don't think they can give me pointers if I'm NOT driving my usual lines at 8-9/10ths of my ability.

I'm still learning something every time I'm at the track, which is what keeps me motivated. Moving to a car that highlights bad habits (Spec Miata) helped lots too.

Maybe you don't want to do anything but 6/10s around the track and being solo'd affords you the ability to do just that. I've been solo'd at a couple NE tracks, and constantly ask instructors to ride with me. I hardly ever run laps without an instructor just because it's easier to have someone there to point out your mistakes and learn something new.

If you ever get a "lazy" instructor, please let the head instructor know. Hope you can make it to our NJ event in October, which Thomas is the head instructor for.

If you are already in a position with plenty of track (and off track ;-) experience then I'm certain there is help for you. Learning advanced driving techniques will dial your speed down initially.
Here is my theory: in order to learn effectively advanced techniques the student should be in a environment where he/she can focus safely on this task.

So if you are assigned within the black/red/blue run group then I would suggest and try to get into the next "slower" run group. This would allow you to concentrate on techniques like heal and toe, double clutch, left foot braking or trail braking or anything else along these lines w/o having to deal with the speed of higher run groups.

Once you are comfortable with your accomplishment and to put it in practice it would be easy just to run with the black/red again since you are already established there.....makes sense?
Remember, for anything we do in life - speed is a by-product :-)

On my books being signed off doesn't mean anything, it goes back to the initial conversation between student and instructor on what to achieve.
HPDE's are like school days with elements of self studies and I haven't had a day where I usually jump back into the passenger seat after the signed off student went out by himself for a couple of sessions.

I can't speak for others but I would not leave any student by himself (even if he/she is signed off) for the remainder of the event and continue to work together. And depends on their level of skill/run group there is usually the offer to work on different lines or advanced techniques if they desire to do so.
But I also expect the student to tell me what he or she is looking for.....so overall, it comes down to communicating everything on their minds.

Having said all that, should you ever be in a situation that you feel that your instructor is not up to your challenge then let him know, straight forward.
And if I ever run into Andretti or Schumacher junior who knows more than I do - then I'd ask another instructor to swap students for a session or the day if necessary.

These HPDE's are meant and tailored for people who have the ambition and motivation to better themselves behind the wheel and get to know more about driving physics and their cars.

But unfortunately, sometimes it comes down to a "battle of egos" which doesn't add any value, neither for the student nor the instructor........and that's why I prefer instructing for the ACNA because most of the relations between student and instructor are quite level headed.

I had a GREAT instructor for my first event. Pre talk---Rode with him in his car--- one lap in my car ( with my permission) Lots of hand signals. He was patient with my "terror" at my first few trips thru the high speed esses at Barber. I left there hooked. Instructors since then have all been different. You quickly learn whether they are going to be helpful or not. I've been signed off and asked the instructor to continue to ride because I still wanted to learn from him. I've been signed off and been glad, because alone I could concentrate without distraction. I had an instructor once that our type A personalities resulted in bickering and yelling (good naturedly) at each other. (We still laugh about that weekend when we see each other.) I've been to a non Audi club event and placed in advanced solo without even a check ride. That was an exercise in mirror awareness given that I was 10 to 15 seconds slower than some cars in that group. (Z06s Radicals, M3s ect) Was a bit scary and while it turned out ok, I don't think it was a good idea. At least the passing protocol was followed. I read of some groups that allow passing anywhere and wonder if aggressive drivers always wait for a point by.
Back to instructors. I like hand signals and very little verbal during the session. It is easy to get distracted by what is behind you and mess up what is in front of you. I do respect and appreciate the job you guys do. I have seen guys with 3 students running from one car to another with no break and I wonder how they even remember who did what. I may someday wish to seek instructor qualification, but quite honestly, I may not want to work as hard as you guys do. I enjoy driving and sitting around between sessions. Multiple students might take all the fun away!

which I think everyone is. It's a sport where there's no end, imo, especially since technology continues to advance. And, conditions are always different and/or changing, especially as you use up or as the car itself changes, i.e., tires going away, brakes being used up, weight changes as gas is used up, different lines when approaching/passing cars, wet lines, etc. etc.

As the years go by of watching racing, it appears to me that the fast of the fast drivers are those with the best equipment and who can race cleanly, fast offline.

It's the lack of instruction in the Experienced/Advanced run groups of the ACNA events that turns me off of them. And, I'm on the board for the Mid-Atlantic chapter -- so I'm not just bashing the club because I want to see it grow as much as the next member. It's just a perspective from this member.

I assume the ACNA would never try to bridge the gap between the $350 safety schools and a 3-day race school like Skippy or Russel. I guess I need to find some $1000 2-day in rentals or something.

and, since I had car issues at VIR last April and my instrutor's 911 developed a suspension issue, I spent my time between sessions trying to find BPVs to pop because I couldn't keep one working. and, my instructor wasn't available to do rides. I room'd with The Wonger and should've taken advantage/asked for him to take me out in his car or mine, or some of the other racers in the garages right around me. but, like I said, I had my own issues to deal with that 2-day.

Are you talking about Thunderbolt? Let me know when registration opens, and I'll try to make it.

some of us are already signed up there for the EMRA Time Trial on July 12th.

by an instructor in another car while on track (after Madness) because "my student is watching his mirrors for that guy instead of paying attention to me" and "his closing speeds are scaring my students" etc. So, when I was turning in the key for the race gas pump and paying for it at the garage for the eventmasters, I was approached about being bumped up to the next level for the reasons stated above, which I did and lost my instructor due to conflicts with his other student -- which was fine because I felt fine around the track and I was just chipped back then so the car was slow and kept me in check.

From now on, my initial talk with the instructor will include my full intention of the weekend and maybe a change will be needed to find the right person(s). And, I'm no meathead, so please don't take it that way. I'm just trying to learn more than a student line at 6/10ths...when I know I can do more and my car has a lot left, which, hey, I may never be able to run it at 10/10ths, but I'd like to be able to run my 9-10/10ths in it. I know I've been 11/10ths a few times :) T1 at VIR was quite a moment, last April ('07). dropping a wheel in front of a radical was another that I'll never forget.

by being charged $100 while students are $350. and, they get more track time since they run the day before, but that does cost another day of vacation/hotel, etc. So, there is some give-and-take for being an instructor. and, I have no idea how they get into a perfect stranger's pass seat and run at speed around a race track. I can barely stand it when my wife drives ;)

First, my track experience is very similar to yours (including the experiences with instructors and running solo with a different club), but I have more time overall and I am a n00b instructor with one club and an IC at another. At this point I feel like I have one foot in each camp.

I like hand signals from either seat (as a sudent or instructor). As others have said, way out in front where they can be seen. I use left hand for brake and right for throttle. An open hand squeezed into a fist emphasizes that brake and throttle should be sqeezed on and off. Sometimes I like big exaggerated pointing for corners too. Some people like this and some don't. After a session it is good to get feedback from the student on what is working for him/her. ("Get your damn arm out of my face!")

From the post above: "It is easy to get distracted by what is behind you and mess up what is in front of you."
This is huge...and difficult. Any driver pining over a past missed apex is very likely to miss the next one too. Corrective comments need to be brief and the focus quickly shifted back to what is coming up.

Verbiage is tough. From both seats I have seen the power of a different phase. Simple things that seem obvious can achieve vastly different results:
"Really hammer on the brake pedal." Produced a good effort, but not what I wanted.
"Push the brake pedal as hard as you can." Seemed to be the same thing to me, but achieved a vastly different result from the same student who suddenly felt his ABS actuate for the first time ever (not on track at an HPDE obviously).

As a student this is true too. Coming out of turn one at the Glen as a student:
"Accelerate hard." Was good advice, but
"The back straight begins here." made more sense to me (Ah! Of course!) and changed the way I drove that section of the track.

As a student I usually had one "click" per HPDE; some silly phase that worked for me.

And if there is an extra instructors only track day, there is an extra cost to drive that day.

... instructive. An instructor may not know your car, or may be wedded to the "DE line" and therefore may actually start peppering you with advice and demands that you DO NOT agree with. At some point in your evolution, you are trying to find more speed and lower times.

Personally, I really appreciate instructor time, but I also LOVE my solo time. I am much more relaxed and I know exactly what to be working on. It's a great way to finish out an HPDE. At my most recent PCA HPDE, for the last day, last session, I staged first in line, and went out solo. I was able to run 4 or 5 laps completely alone on track, and then started to pick up cars at the end of the pack. It was like hitting a birdie on the 18th hole -- a great way to end the day.

1. for beginners, boil all communication down into things that can be understood simply and viscerally. This includes words like "gas, brake, turn, unwind" as well as hand signals.

2. Prioritize what you want your student to work on, and only work on one or two things at once. A few posts down, someone said that you can't let any mistake slip by. I disagree -- you can't let any potentially dangerous mistake go, but there are lots of things that might be important as the student picks up more speed, but that don't fit in with what you're working on in a given session, so make a note of it and bite your tongue. For example, you don't have to tell a novice in their second session never to lift over turn 8 @ NHIS when they're still only at 5/10ths.

3. One really good and subtle way to get intermediate students to slow down is to make them talk. You'll find they can't go fast and talk coherently at the same time, and if you're insistent about them talking, they will drive more slowly.

4. For intermediates, there are two places you really add value: telling them to get their head up (duh) and by letting them know what's going to happen ahead of time so they don't get in trouble... if someone takes a corner really well and exits 8mph faster, they might now know that they're going to have to start braking sooner at the end of the straight. etc.

5. You should assume that you're in control and largely responsible for what happens in the car... so if something is making you instinctively uncomfortable, don't just sit there -- act on it.

Perhaps we should elaborate on mistakes and letting them slip by; first of all - you never ever assume anything on the track; assumption is the mother of all screw ups ;-)
If you are not behind the wheel, then you are not in control.

If the instructor ignores even the slightest mistake and let it go then he or she shouldn't be surprised if that little mistake becomes a bad habit - beware the beginning.

In the end it is up to the instructor what he or she calls a mistake and how to deal with it; and once we add speed to the entire scenario then even the smallest mistake can lead to unwanted results.

We as instructors are there to help, teach and correct if necessary. It might just be my philosophy but I'd rather give advise even by "small mistakes" instead of waiting how it turns out when the student moves up into higher run groups and goes faster. High speed driving is precision driving, we all know what happens if you miss the braking point by a couple of inches :-)
I've seen students who rested their right hand on the shift lever; some call it bad habit, I call it a big mistake.....even at low speeds both hands should be on the steering wheel.

And there are plenty of other things that we could discuss for hours; make a mistake in your tire pressure; don't adjust the head rest properly, or simply step with wet shoes on the pedals.....all small things which happen time and time again, sometimes we are "lucky" because nothing serious happens - sometimes we are not so lucky, and I don't want to take that risk if it can be avoided from the beginning......just a thought :-)

accommodate your requirements when you don't hear a word in the first 2 laps; that's the way most instructors adjust their "Butt Dyno" to your car to get a better feel for it, after that - it's Rock'n Roll :-)..........

It is a learning curve for both, student and instructor, every time there is a different car to deal with. But once you get the impression that the instructor tries to teach you a RWD line and you are in a FWD car then act quickly and ask for re-assignment, no harm done ;-)

And there isn't much we can do if that is the case; but I've had similar conversations with 100's of people about improving their skills. My advise: find the nearest Go-Kart track and get behind the wheel as much as possible, there is no better way of learning about car control and left foot braking is mandatory.....give it a World :-)

I meant "assume" in the sense of "taking responsibility for", not "take for granted."

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/assume

Second, all I was saying about calling out mistakes is that it's a matter of prioritization. Different things are important at different points, and one of the worst things an instructor can do early on is spout out a blizzard of mistakes the person is making, because there are often so many that you won't have time to say anything else.

And I never said you should "ignore" a mistake -- just that some things deserve immediate correction, and that some should be noted and brought up later. It's a gray area. That's why we (don't) get paid the big bucks :-)

The dictionary link is a funny one, since English is my second language, I'll skip if that's OK :-)

BTW, last time at VIR I've had a Gentlemen who liked to be instructed in German.
That was some experience, going in between two languages from one student to the other surely adds more challenges.....I should get paid for that :-)

right seat again. One thing that was only touched on and I think is very important is to never instruct behind the car. That is, if a mistake was made don't dwell on it - keep instructing ahead and put the correction in on the next lap when approaching the same point again.

1, 2 or 3 man teams. I've only done it once. I qualified 12th of 24 karts of about 60+ people as well as ran the fastest race lap time of our group of 6; and 4 of 6 of us track our cars or have dedicated track cars in Experienced/Advanced run groups with the ACNA (two M3s and a 911); other 2 are beginners. My team won Rookie class in 15th place overall, which we easily could've been in the 5-10 range if we made one team stronger over the other. But, we made our 2 teams equal (1 Advanced, 1 Experienced, 1 Beginner). I haven't been back since, unfortunately. I missed this year at Etown because it fell on Mother's day sunday. What I can be is fast alone, faster chasing down someone and slow trying to defend. I have no idea how to keep the fast of the fast behind me. But, they do have ~1.5 seconds a lap on us. I think going back to the track again and with a better teammate(s), we'd do better.

Oh, and the kart track at VIR is a blast. karts are a little slow, but that track is amazing for a kart track.<ul><li><a href="http://endurancekarting.com/">http://endurancekarting.com/</a</li></ul>

<i>"If you are already in a position with plenty of track (and <b>off track</b> ;-) experience..."</i>

...and at one time we all have been there....grass and gravel is just another surface :-)

and it wasn't a "I should have know better" type of mistake... then I'm happy!

From flying, there're a bunch of sayings that apply on the track as well... enjoy!


- <i>You start out with a bag full of luck and an empty bag of experience. The trick is to fill the bag of experience before emptying the bag of luck.</i>

- <i>Always remember you fly an airplane with your head, not your hands. Never let an airplane take you somewhere your brain didn't get to five minutes earlier.</i> (edit: replace 'minutes' with 'seconds' for driving...)

- <i>Learn from the mistakes of others. You won't live long enough to make all of them yourself.</i>

- <i>Good judgment comes from experience and experience comes from bad judgment.</i>

- <i>A fool and his money are soon flying more airplane than he can handle.</i>

- <i>Remember, you're always a student in an airplane.</i>

- <i>You cannot propel yourself forward by patting yourself on the back.</i>

I concentrated on teaching apexes, proper line of course, and with our category, Showroom Stock, the importance of not scrubbing off speed on a car with limited or no power. Feed the wheel back out to run clear to the outside of the turn. He paid for the track, use every foot of it he can. Smoothness over trying to set a track record. If they "have it," the speed will come. I always drove them around first. My go-to book at the time, Alan Johnson's "Driving in Competition."

... haven't read every post, so apologies if I'm repeating.

I've been fortunate I guess, I've never really had a student that just made me want to get out of the car - but here it goes:

I do a lot of pointing/guiding with my hand - sort of guiding them where I want them to place the car and/or look.

For new track folks - I'll point/guide where I want them to look - either a point of reference, or even the apex or track out cones. This is just to get them familiar with the line first few times out - as they get more comfortable with where the car is supposed to be on track - they'll need to start looking further and further ahead of course.

At this point - they sometimes start to get a bit more confident - and sometimes try to go faster than they're ready for. I always bring them back to line, line, line. One phrase I use: "Follow the proper line and the speed will come."

If they still go out and "try" to go fast - I really try to get them to relax. Inform them that if they "feel" like they're going fast, then they aren't. I use words like: flow, smooth and have even described the process as sort of a zen thing. "Get the corners to flow together."

OK - so thats not "short" but you get the idea...? Every track has a corner that you just have to get through. Its a really tight hairpin or a long carousel, etc. I find some students trying to get more out of the car then it can deliver - ultimately, they push off line, or start waggling the rear because to just sit there and drive through the corner, patiently waiting for the trackout, doesn't seem FAST. To these folks, I simply say "MAKE IT BORING" and explain that once they've reached the limits of adhesion, there's no point in trying to "make" the car get more grip or go faster than it already is - it ain't gonna happen! "Come to terms with the grip you have, keep it on the limit, but don't go over, and just get through the corner on line and on limit..... just make it boring."

Again - I just haven't had any boneheads that have been unruly - but I am a big fan of driving the student's car early on - show them what smoothness is, show them proper line and, if it's their goal to get faster laps - show them how putting those two things together creates them.

For a bit more advanced student - I'll tell them: "It's not about reaction - its about anticipation! Yes, quick reactions are an important thing, but - having the ability to anticipate what the car is going to do is what will save your butt!" Usually, that sort of skill is best honed by seat time.

OK I'm rambling now - but if they are turning in too early, I say "wait for it... wait for it.... turn." Just watch out for those wheel jerkers. If they have to go slower into it to get comfortable waiting for the turn in - so be it - they'll feel how smoother getting through the corner will be and find out how much sooner they can begin accelerating out of the corner. That reminds me of another phrase: "Slow In Fast Out" that way, they can stay online, and ultimately accelerate earlier.

For those wanting to stab at the gas when trying to go "fast out" the old egg between your foot and the pedal thing works well.

Hey - this was a good exercise! It's always good to occasionally do a self review and remember "how do I do this again?"

Thanks!