I got up and packed so that I'd be on my way before 7am. I stopped at the gas station, filled up, checked tires, and got a light breakfast. 7.45 was the drivers meeting. I met up with a 911 driver in my run group and we chatted for a little while.
First session went well, more of the same with a little improvement on vision. I dropped off Kevin, then headed back to my spot to wait on class. As I hung out by the car one of the 944 guys drove up and mentioned that he'd been watching from turn 1, and said that I was doing real well. Cool Beans. Yes, every little bit helps.
During the classroom Kevin packed up and left, since they were facing snowy conditions & a loaded trailer. So I found Marty and asked about a replacement instructor. Apparently he was it
Lining up for session 3, we were behind the 540i. I remarked to Marty that this should be interesting since I'd kept pace with him before. Marty told me to drive my pace. We took the first two laps under yellow, and then we started hot footing on the third lap. I was keeping a comfortable distance through to the back stretch, where he wasn't getting away from me. I stopped watching him, checked my speed and turn in for the kink, when half way through Marty is pointing through the windsheild. I focus at the point ahead and see the 540 30deg off the correct heading and dialing in counter steer. My brain freezes, the only thing I can think of is to slow down so I don't hit him. :WRONG: I lift off the gas, and go for the brake. Somewhere in there, the 540 disappears from view and I see grass. Marty yells for both feet in. Well, I've got 1 in (the brake), while frantic dancing produces no clutch. So I just take what I've got and apply the brakes. We come to a stop and I refire the car. We look to the corner worker and she motions us on track. We both limp around to the pits to get checked out. That's when it hits me, and I've gotta slow my breathing a little bit. Marty congratulates me on my spin baptism. Thanks. I'm not on the 'watch list', and I spun to avoid the 540, so we go out at the end of the pack. I mentioned that Marty saw it well before I did, and he says that's because he was looking farther down the track than I. I think this made him realize how limited my vision had been. I think my speed and awareness of those behind has made my other instructors believe that I saw further ahead than I had been.
We get back up to about the same speed before, and then Marty starts getting me to look ahead into the turn by turning my head. Wow, what a crazy feeling! It feels real odd to look down a straight while your still tracking out and you're not *exactly* sure how much tarmac is left to your left/right. We do a couple more laps, and then the session is black flagged due to radio trouble w/ the corner workers. We got out, and have a couple of laps of more time. I dial back my speed and focus only on my vision ahead. Which brings the highlight of my weekend, which surprisingly was getting my first pass. It was catching the checkered flag being out on the front stretch before getting to the back stretch. Which was proof that Marty & Kevin's instructing was finally setting in, and I was seeing further ahead!
With so many people gone I grabbed one of the empty garage stalls. Chris, who owns a Scirroco, pops over and inquires if I'm the Fit driver... the one running One Lap. We have a short conversation, but his blue run group is heading out. I chatted with some of the other green students, rehashing my spin and enjoying the banter. I believe that it's the last session and start loading my gear into the car. Plus, I want to check my email and see if the VIR event is still on. I had a real nice chat with Chris while he packed up, and skipped the last green session. Then I buttoned up the car, and headed north.
The drive up was fine, and I apparently slotted in between the fronts and only saw rain falling. As I got into Mt. Airy, I got lost & got the phone call that VIR was canceled. That about sums it up.
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