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Written by Mike Roberts
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Sunday, May 06 2012 20:10 |
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Today, I saw a Cayman. It seems a million miles away…not just 5,300. I’m in the UK, the country I lived in until just under 14 years ago. The weather is grey – nothing new there. And in the small market town where I grew up, on the borders of Wales, little has changed.
But, the cars - they have changed. Picking up my Hertz rental at the airport, the guy at the counter explained that it was a Mitsubishi ASX. Oh really? What’s that? He didn’t know the color, telling me to ‘press the remote and look for the lights to flash’. Not so easy, because when I emerged into the (unmanned) rental car lot, there were three long lines of cars, of many makes and colors yet very similar looking models. It was raining very hard and I was dragging a suitcase across the wet asphalt. Tired, jet lagged, hungry and increasingly desperate, I walked the lines clicking the remote like a lost Star Trek character when his ‘beam me up’ fails.
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Last Updated on Tuesday, May 08 2012 01:24 |
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Written by Mike Roberts
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Tuesday, April 10 2012 19:37 |
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So, we have this huge, open parking lot at a premier US racetrack, a bunch of cones and some fast cars. Think we can have some fun with that??? At Infineon…Thursday, May 17th, we team up with Hooked On Driving who are running their HPDE event on the track that day…David Ray and his team have graciously offered us the opportunity of a Car Control and Track Experience event in the paddock while their event is in progress. [Editor: Sorry, that event was canceled by Infineon.]
You will be able to (urged to) turn the traction control (PSM) off! Even if you run on track, you may not know what happens when you brake so hard the ABS kicks in, or corner so hard that the back end breaks away, or you try and turn a fast left/right/left. It’s useful to find out. You never know when someone will do the unexpected in front of you on the freeway, or on any other road – and that’s not the time to learn!
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Last Updated on Friday, April 27 2012 20:17 |
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Written by Mike Roberts
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Saturday, March 10 2012 19:17 |
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Confessions of a DE Day addict…
Is it just me, or…are my DE Track Day compulsions taking hold? Every time I look at my tires, the tread seems to vary…sometimes it seems like they have plenty of wear left, sometimes they look worn on the outside. So I turn the steering wheel to full lock to make sure I can see the whole tire.
But the rears are harder to see…and my brakes – it’s a while since I looked at the pads. They must be worn by now…and I need them to have at least 50% left to go to Thunderhill…so I take the wheels off one by one so I can see both sides of the pads – and inspect all of the tires.
And then when I’m driving the car – is it pulling to the right or is it the rough patch of road I’m on? Do I need an alignment? The camber levels out – it feels OK now. But them I’m on rougher road again, and the Carrera’s steering wheel starts to dance in my hands, like the front wheels are square. Are they out of balance? But it’s OK, it was another random challenge on the variable road surface testing ground, which most people know as ‘The 580’.
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Last Updated on Thursday, April 12 2012 02:37 |
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Written by Mike Roberts
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Wednesday, February 08 2012 14:12 |
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 Sitting in Starbucks, gazing out the window at 7:30am it’s already warm like a spring morning. Skiers, snowboarders and snowmobilers are frustrated right now. But, drivers are excited the 2012 season may start with some dry track events like this one:http://youtu.be/RkddvW9g8pQ
Contrast the last couple of years when I thought it would rain all season long! Don’t get me wrong, I actually like driving in the rain. Yes, speeds are lower, but you learn a lot – there’s huge satisfaction to doing it well. I’m always amazed at the grip of modern road tires in the wet. It’s not the knife-edge dance people expect. (To be fair it’s easier to cope with in a Porsche than in a Viper).
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Last Updated on Tuesday, May 08 2012 01:28 |
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Written by Mike Roberts
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Friday, January 20 2012 20:49 |
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What a fabulous end of the year, for drivers. The dry weather may not have populated Tahoe with snow, but sunny and clear in December is the envy of the world! I managed to pack in a couple of late season track days at Thunderhill Raceway which were excellent despite the short days, with low sixties temperatures, small run groups and no bugs decorating the windshield and the front of the car…although the first run of the morning was a little chilly with windows down!
At the beginning of December, we got the Diablo Driver Education team together for breakfast and discussion of the Program for 2012 and beyond. (By the way, we welcome anyone interested in the DE Program to these meetings - email me at
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
and I’ll include you in all communications to the team). There’s only one caveat if you attend - you may get asked to help!
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Last Updated on Thursday, April 12 2012 02:35 |
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