Welcome to the Cadillac V-Series Forums!

Spring Mountain

S

strohw

Seasoned Member
Joined
Oct 8, 2021
Messages
427
Location
Michigan
V-Series Cadillac(s)?
CT4-BW
Anyone else sign up for the free 2 day driving school? I grabbed one of the Jan 19-20 slots yesterday and was curious if anyone else is going either those days or another slot.
 
I'm on the fence. Been tracking my cars as a sport driver (HPDE) for years. I did Spring Mountain with the V3 and while it was VERY well done, I'm not sure I'd get much out of it going again. Thought about giving it to my son but he has a competition license now (and a manual C7 GS) so I'm not sure he'd get much out of it either...first world problems!
 
The 1st thing you do when you go is talk with the other people in your class and get grouped with others that are into driving not trying to learn how to operate the radio . I think the BW classes will be smaller than other classes so you should be able to get some open track with a instructor so you won’t have to slow down every lap and regroup . Even if you are a seasoned professional it’s always fun to go to a track in someone else’s car and run the piss out of it. Go with a open mind and you will have fun, and even learn a few things , if you go thinking you know it all you probably won’t . Sometimes going back to the basics is helpful .
 
foot 1 said:
The 1st thing you do when you go is talk with the other people in your class and get grouped with others that are into driving not trying to learn how to operate the radio . I think the BW classes will be smaller than other classes so you should be able to get some open track with a instructor so you won’t have to slow down every lap and regroup . Even if you are a seasoned professional it’s always fun to go to a track in someone else’s car and run the piss out of it. Go with a open mind and you will have fun, and even learn a few things , if you go thinking you know it all you probably won’t . Sometimes going back to the basics is helpful .
Click to expand...

I assumed this would be like a track day but with class instruction. You're description makes it sound a bit different than that.
 
A typical class will have car intro , skid pad , lead follow laps , auto cross , PDR coverage , they usually break down the class into groups of 3 or 4 and some cars will be on track while others will do class room or paddock exercises . The staff does a good job of evaluating students and grouping them accordingly into run groups , they have so many different skill levels of students that attend , i.e. some have never been on track before and others are track junkies . If you've never been don't miss the opportunity .
 
foot 1 said:
A typical class will have car intro , skid pad , lead follow laps , auto cross , PDR coverage , they usually break down the class into groups of 3 or 4 and some cars will be on track while others will do class room or paddock exercises . The staff does a good job of evaluating students and grouping them accordingly into run groups , they have so many different skill levels of students that attend , i.e. some have never been on track before and others are track junkies . If you've never been don't miss the opportunity .
Click to expand...

Thanks for the break down.
 
Sounds similar to the Ford Performance GT350 Track Attack that original GT350 owners are given (I did pay $225 to make sure I wasn't going to have to buy the whole car if something went wrong). There they also covered heel/toe downshifts and went through the different mode settings. Also, idiosyncrasies like only using Track mode when we were on the Roval in Charlotte since the other modes have stability control active and the system gets in the way thinking the car is about to roll while on the banking. They also shuffle the people in the groups a little to match abilities. There was only one other guy in my group swapping positions each lap behind the instructor until he became ill (95º/85% humidity/black driving suits) then the instructor cranked it up a few notches. They also do a "ride along" with you in the passenger seat afterward showing what the car can do(130 vs 120 on back stretch and much harder braking) without a car in front slowing you down ;) You can also purchase a recording (like the GM PDR) assuming the system is working (mine wasn't it turned out).
 
jph05v said:
Sounds similar to the Ford Performance GT350 Track Attack that original GT350 owners are given (I did pay $225 to make sure I wasn't going to have to buy the whole car if something went wrong). There they also covered heel/toe downshifts and went through the different mode settings. Also, idiosyncrasies like only using Track mode when we were on the Roval in Charlotte since the other modes have stability control active and the system gets in the way thinking the car is about to roll while on the banking. They also shuffle the people in the groups a little to match abilities. There was only one other guy in my group swapping positions each lap behind the instructor until he became ill (95º/85% humidity/black driving suits) then the instructor cranked it up a few notches. They also do a "ride along" with you in the passenger seat afterward showing what the car can do(130 vs 120 on back stretch and much harder braking) without a car in front slowing you down ;) You can also purchase a recording (like the GM PDR) assuming the system is working (mine wasn't it turned out).
Click to expand...
Did you do a 1 or 2 day class in Charlotte ? I did a 1 day Ford Racing School in Toole Utah back in May of 2018 and it was fun , so I get emails from Ford Racing School all the time and thinking about attending it .
 
I've lost track but I think this will be my 6th trip to Spring Mountain and I track my cars a lot (at least once a month during the season). As foot1 said, you have to take it for what it is. If you go in with an open mind you will learn some things and if nothing else you'll get a couple of days to beat on someone else's car. I also like to go in early Spring and bring my wife as heading out West is a nice break from the cold back home and then tack on a couple days in Vegas since we're there.

They definitely will group you based on speed and will let you go as fast as you are safely able when you're behind the instructor. This was my last session of the C8 class and as you can see we're moving pretty well.

 
foot 1 said:
Did you do a 1 or 2 day class in Charlotte ? I did a 1 day Ford Racing School in Toole Utah back in May of 2018 and it was fun , so I get emails from Ford Racing School all the time and thinking about attending it .
Click to expand...
I only had time to do the one day and with how hot it was that was enough. Some of the GT350s were the early model Rs without A/C. I think the 2nd day, if you add that on, is done using the Mustang GT rather than the GT350 used for the complimentary one day. The GT350s are probably gone by now and only the GT500s are available for the complimentary one day track attack. One of the instructors recognized me from 25 years ago when I raced in Jim Hall Kart racing series when he was an instructor there. I won a 2 day Skip Barber school prize in one of those race series I was in and that was pretty fun when I attended that at Laguna Seca even in the rain. I saw one guy in front of me spin in turn 3 there and hit the wall sideways and backwards when we were in the open wheel formula cars. That cost him over $6k for the right side damage so I usually opt for the limited deductible insurance after seeing that.
 
jph05v said:
I only had time to do the one day and with how hot it was that was enough. Some of the GT350s were the early model Rs without A/C. I think the 2nd day, if you add that on, is done using the Mustang GT rather than the GT350 used for the complimentary one day. The GT350s are probably gone by now and only the GT500s are available for the complimentary one day track attack. One of the instructors recognized me from 25 years ago when I raced in Jim Hall Kart racing series when he was an instructor there. I won a 2 day Skip Barber school prize in one of those race series I was in and that was pretty fun when I attended that at Laguna Seca even in the rain. I saw one guy in front of me spin in turn 3 there and hit the wall sideways and backwards when we were in the open wheel formula cars. That cost him over $6k for the right side damage so I usually opt for the limited deductible insurance after seeing that.
Click to expand...
Speaking of LAGUNA SECA I was there last Saturday doing an advanced Lexus driving event with Townsend Bell and Scott Pruitt , that was a hoot . We were driving RCF TRACK EDITIONS with the CCB brakes and all the carbon fibre goodies .
 
Just an observation I noticed from a Chevy marketing email that original C8 owners get their version of the Spring Mountain driving school at a reduced rate of $1K. Cadillac is going all out for us Blackwing owners by providing it for free. Don't know when yet but hope to attend in the Spring.
 
I hope mine is built in time to join you fine folks out there. I've done a decent amount of track time, but never been to Spring Mountain.
 
All I can say, is don't go to the desert in the Summer - like I did...
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Win a CT4-V Blackwing!

Supporting Vendors

Exhibitions of Speed

Signature Wheels

Taput Tunning LLC

V-Series Marketplace

Advertise with the Cadillac V-Net!

Torque Shop

Our Partners

Back
Top Bottom