HPDE 101: Tracking your Miata.

[— kung fu jesus —]

Just want to add some thoughts about another common question I get about HPDEs.

I am often asked about Auto-X versus HPDEs. This is a topic I am hesitant to bring up here because it can be a bit of a hot topic issue, but the focus of this thread is HPDEs.

Both have benefits and can extremely fun. If you are a competitive type with a low, low budget auto-x is a compelling choice to test and hone your skills. I have organized, coached and competed in auto-x over the years, but I enjoy HPDEs more. The key points to my preference are seat time and value.

Autocross poses similar risks as HPDEs, but the speeds are lower and the risks are fewer. At a typical autocross, most courses are about a minute. Some are longer, most are shorter. You will get about 5-10 runs at a typical event. You will rarely see third gear for much time at most auto-x. Some are more, but beyond 10 runs is rare, unless they are special events and I will address that in a bit.

Auto-x will allow you to get the basics of car-handling techniques nailed down and those techniques DO translate well into street and track driving. The classes cars are divided into are competitive and the times can be very close. Typically, though, you will have to work ('volunteer') at the event. This usually means working the event in some capacity such as resetting cones, staging, timing, etc. You will do this for about 1/3-1/2 of your time there. Auto-x is usually a cheaper entry fee as well. Your car will go through a similar tech process to verify it is safe, you will need a helmet, similar clothing but less safety gear.

There are few driving experiences like perfectly nailing a tight slalom portion in a Miata, it feels and literally looks like the car is dancing in and out of the cones. The Miatas excel at Auto-x and you will often find a LOT of them there. I still enjoy doing auto-x on occasion, but I prefer events that allow me as many runs as I can fit in a day as possible. These events are often staged by the same companies that put on HPDEs but they have paid employees working the course so you don't have to. They cost more than typical auto-x event, less than most HPDEs, but I have been able to get 20 or so runs in a day before I threw in the towel.

HPDEs are a better value for seat time, IMO. You will get 4-6 sessions at 15-20 minutes each, on average. They are more expensive to enter and require more gear. The speeds are higher, the 'flow' is longer, and typically at the end of each session, you are getting a little fatigued. When you move beyond novice, you get into groups where you start to learn the art of passing other cars on the course, maybe even blocking skills if you are running with people you know. ;) You can't get that at an auto-x.

HPDEs can also give you the experience of running on some pretty special, hallowed ground; VIR, Road Atlanta, Laguna Seca, etc. There are other, cheaper tracks that are just as much, if not more fun but I remember the first time I ran at Laguna very well. No stranger to HPDEs at my first time there, it still crept into my head all_day, "OMFG! I am banging gears and clipping apexes at LAGUNA freakin' SECA!" The car could have incinerated into a pile of ash at the end of the day and I still would have considered it one of the best days ever. It's not meant to sound elitist, but sometimes you gush at being at a certain track because you have watched or read about it's racing history and events there. Working all day to perfect driving through a track or famous corner, like the Corkscrew, is a lifetime experience you will remember fondly.

Sometimes having the opportunity to do an HPDE at a famous track is very much like this: