As I mentioned in a earlier thread, I spent much of Sunday at MSR Houston Raceway watching sessions in which "student" drivers, with instructors riding shotgun, learn high-performance driving techniques on a track. This particular "school" is run by an outfit called Driver's Edge, and divides students into four groups reflecting varying levels of proficiency and time in the program, and track time is shared only by drivers of the same level. Student drivers use their own cars, which can range from SUVs to Porsche GT3s.

I was hoping to photograph a new C-7 Corvette on the track for the sole purpose of impressing Bob (), a 'Vette aficionado if there ever was one. Lucky me, one was in attendance, and I was able to catch it in action.

Bob: I used my DA 55-300, the longest lens I own @ 300 mm - not nearly long enough for this application - so the pics are crops that represent around 30-35% of the original image; ISOs ranged from 560 to 800. The lens is a great value, but it's a bit soft fully extended and was operated by a photographer of decidedly limited skill. In other words, I did the best I could.

Jer


C-7:





C-6:



C-5 (note the car's numbers - an intended irony?):



The Grid for one of the groups - note the wide range of vehicles that will be on the track at one time (again, grouping is according to driver skill not car capability):

[Bob Harris]

thank you my friend, all of these are great captures to my eye, brought the excitement of owning a Vette again. I really like the photo you captured of the C 6 pushing through the corner, you can see the down force and feel the g's building. Were you able to get some photos of the Porsches running "911"? Just down the road from me is Spring Mountain track which is owned by race great Ron Fellows. I called over there today and got permission to view and photograph on our next visit there, hopefully this weekend if all works out. Here's a link that I think you will enjoy, take a look if you dare. Corvette Owners School

[Sailor]

My pleasure, buddy. And, that pic of the C-6 is my favorite, too.

The C-5 "911" was an instructor's car and was on the track with 15 or 16 other vehicles, including a couple of older Porsche GT3s and a Cayman. However, although there are cars on the track at the same time, these are not races but simply opportunities for the drivers to hone their skills, so there was no way to compare performances of different cars.

Thanks for the link - that course looks like fun, for sure. Porsche and BMW offer similar ones (as do others), and I've been tempted but - for some reason - I've never pulled the trigger. Maybe because I'm just getting long in the tooth.

I am interested in getting an invitation to the Porsche World Roadshow (I've begun the process), which is presented in large metro areas and allows prospective buyers to get some extended time behind the wheel of the car in which they have an interest (the photos of the new Porsches that I posted earlier are used in that roadshow and had nothing to do with the Driver's Edge stuff I posted on this thread). If I ever decide to buy a new 911 Carrera S, something like the roadshow would be necessary; I'm certainly not gonna shell out the kind of money it takes to take home a Carrera S Cab on the basis of a 15-minute dealer test drive and running up and down the feeder road on Houston's Southwest Freeway!

Jer

[Bob Harris]

My pleasure, buddy. And, that pic of the C-6 is my favorite, too.

The C-5 "911" was an instructor's car and was on the track with 15 or 16 other vehicles, including a couple of older Porsche GT3s and a Cayman. However, although there are cars on the track at the same time, these are not races but simply opportunities for the drivers to hone their skills, so there was no way to compare performances of different cars.

Thanks for the link - that course looks like fun, for sure. Porsche and BMW offer similar ones (as do others), and I've been tempted but - for some reason - I've never pulled the trigger. Maybe because I'm just getting long in the tooth.

I am interested in getting an invitation to the Porsche World Roadshow (I've begun the process), which is presented in large metro areas and allows prospective buyers to get some extended time behind the wheel of the car in which they have an interest (the photos of the new Porsches that I posted earlier are used in that roadshow and had nothing to do with the Driver's Edge stuff I posted on this thread). If I ever decide to buy a new 911 Carrera S, something like the roadshow would be necessary; I'm certainly not gonna shell out the kind of money it takes to take home a Carrera S Cab on the basis of a 15-minute dealer test drive and running up and down the feeder road on Houston's Southwest Freeway!

Jer

That would be an awesome auto to own and drive, I find it amazing with these new autos that they get such great mileage with such high HP, not the good ol' day cars for sure. I found this and am sure you've seen it but just in case........

You Tube

You Tube

[COLOR="Silver"]

---------- Post added 10-11-14 at 03:10 PM ----------

another for a few bucks more, the turbo.......

You Tube

You Tube

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Last edited by Bob Harris; 10-11-2014 at 03:05 PM.

[Sailor]

Hey Bob - thanks very much for the video links - very thoughtful, indeed.

A Carrera S coupe or cab is certainly a potential target out there someday, but these cars are well north of a hundred grand and I'll require a lot of convincing. In any event, I have no interest in relinquishing my Boxster S anytime soon. The combination of relatively light weight and mid-engine balance is amazing, and since the car will likely be my last with a conventional manual transmission, I want to savor the involvement provided my car's drive train for some time to come.

Jer

[eaglem]

Well designed cars, shame we don't get them here!