Driver's age requirements

[happynole]

Hello everyone. I just joined NASA after attending my first track event with the S.E.R.C.A. anual convention. It was at Autobahn Country Club in Joliet, Illinois. The bug has bitten me!!

 

I live near Atlanta,Georgia and have a question regarding HPDE driver requirements. My daughter is 16 and will turn 17 in October. She went with me to the convention and loves cars and racing, almost as much as I do. As long as she has a driver's license and my approval, can she sign up for HPDE sessions along with me? I searched, but couldn't find a definitive answer.

 

Joe

[white_2kgt]

According to the NASA CCR (NASA bible if you will)

 

3.5 Eligibility Requirements – Step Two

Any person wishing to enter a NASA sanctioned HPDE must meet the following

requirements:

24

• Be at least 18 years old (16 or over with parental consent**).

• Hold a current valid state driver’s license.**

• Have use of an automobile that meets NASA’s technical requirements.

• Hold a NASA, or a NASA sanctioned car club, current membership

..........

 

You will want to open the CCR and read the ** for yourself

 

http://www.nasaproracing.com/rules/ccr.pdf

 

Enjoy!

Great that your daughter wants to get into it. Mine's just 7 months old and we just got back from the track . I think she had a good time

[happynole]

According to the NASA CCR (NASA bible if you will)

 

3.5 Eligibility Requirements – Step Two

Any person wishing to enter a NASA sanctioned HPDE must meet the following

requirements:

24

• Be at least 18 years old (16 or over with parental consent**).

• Hold a current valid state driver’s license.**

• Have use of an automobile that meets NASA’s technical requirements.

• Hold a NASA, or a NASA sanctioned car club, current membership

..........

 

You will want to open the CCR and read the ** for yourself

 

http://www.nasaproracing.com/rules/ccr.pdf

 

Enjoy!

Great that your daughter wants to get into it. Mine's just 7 months old and we just got back from the track . I think she had a good time

 

Thanks, I was looking for those. Still trying to find my way around on here. I'm a regular on the sr20forum and so is my daughter.

[Ultimate Altima]

She can run. I'm 16 and I did my first event at Mid-Ohio in april, less than 5 months after getting my license in Indiana, have fun, and don't let her be faster that you, youwill never live it down, and neither will my dad.

 

 

 

And for god sakes, don't go off track more than she does her first day.

[Bruce L.]

also check out http://www.streetsurvival.org for your daughter to learn some key skills before going on the track. Autocrossing is also a good thing to get her doing.

cheers,

bruce

[Bruce L.]

She can run. I'm 16 and I did my first event at Mid-Ohio in april, less than 5 months after getting my license in Indiana, have fun, and don't let her be faster that you, youwill never live it down, and neither will my dad.

 

 

 

And for god sakes, don't go off track more than she does her first day.

 

nobody should be going off track in HPDE 1 (or any level, really) - if you are you have the wrong attitude.

bruce

[white_2kgt]

She can run. I'm 16 and I did my first event at Mid-Ohio in april, less than 5 months after getting my license in Indiana, have fun, and don't let her be faster that you, youwill never live it down, and neither will my dad.

 

 

 

And for god sakes, don't go off track more than she does her first day.

 

nobody should be going off track in HPDE 1 (or any level, really) - if you are you have the wrong attitude.

bruce

 

Yea, brakes never fail, track never gets slick, someone doesn't spin in front of you There's more reasons that 'running out of talent' to go off.

[ExRacer]

Whoa guys, we got a newcomer here and it's very important to set the proper approach. While Bruce is dead right about the requirement to "keep it on the black part" especially in HPDE1/2, there may be situations where you cannot avoid an offtrack incident.

 

Avoiding contact with another vehicle that is out-of-control is one. Slick tracks should give the driver some warning, whether it's tires going off or track conditions degrading throughout the day. These conditions don't just happen instantly, they occur over time. The exception is anitfreeze or oil on track. Antifreeze ya can't really see and may occur in an HPDE setting. Oil, you may get some warning if the car is smoking or none if it's a catastrophic failure. Hopefully the driver that is about to have this problem is aware enough to anticipate the failure and stays offline.

 

The most important thing being dicussed here is attitude. It is definitely NOT OK to be losing control over your vehicle in any HPDE group. As speeds increase, it becomes more and more critical. Let's keep the info positive and our cars under control. It is after all the most important skill an advanced driver strives for.

 

There soon will be some National guidelines for each HPDE level. If you check out the basic rules, it usually goes 1 off=see Black flag marshall (have a little chat about what went wrong, go back out) . 2 offs= see marshall and then set out session . 3 offs=go home and think about whether this is the right thing for you and others .

[cmc35]

Suggestion: if there is an underage (<16) driver participating in an event, the other drivers in that specific class should be advised.

 

This is not just about common courtesy. The other drivers, particularly when it's a race group, need to know. Experience and Maturity are not the same thing, as several of us saw this past weekend at MAM.

 

-chris

[STRINGER]

well I could not resist my 2 cents

 

There are pro's and con's to this as with anything involving a minor

 

I agree with people about a maturity level...BUT, thats why HPDE 1 and 2 have instructors that can evaluate that in my opinion. Thats what the instructors are here for. To teach you proper racing. I hope to one day be an instructor and have the chance to teach young people what has been taught to me and what I have yet to learn.

 

Also. I think its good also in a way that it will teach valuable lessons in every day defensive driving for this young girl. I am 36 and I thought I had a real good grasp on driving. Although I did well in my first HPDE, I learned a HUGE amount that I could apply to every day driving.

 

I also commend the 2 for making this a family event where they work together. I would love to meet them.

 

I will be at VIR this weekend if you are there. I will also be at Savanna at the end of September.

[jimgood]

There soon will be some National guidelines for each HPDE level. If you check out the basic rules, it usually goes 1 off=see Black flag marshall (have a little chat about what went wrong, go back out) . 2 offs= see marshall and then set out session . 3 offs=go home and think about whether this is the right thing for you and others .

Wow! Given how my weekend went, I should thank my lucky stars I wasn't sent packing on day 1.

[ninetyfourintegra]

According to the NASA CCR (NASA bible if you will)

Great that your daughter wants to get into it. Mine's just 7 months old and we just got back from the track . I think she had a good time

 

Mine started going to AutoXs around 4-5 months and actually took her first steps at one. Then has been going to most every track event I have gone to since then. She has been complaining because we've only made 1 event this year (broken car and birth of second child). This past weekend we picked up some orange cones for her power wheels jeep - She's only 3 and we've already had to 'upgrade' her jeep to a 'faster' one...

 

For years I have been recommending that my neighbors take their kids to AutoXs, talking about what to do if (when) a car starts to spin and actually feeling it start to spin and actually having to react to it are 2 completely different things.

 

As mentioned elsewhere, I thought I was a good driver, but things I have learned doing AutoX and track days have already saved me at least once - - if nothing else, just from not panicking. I applaud you for bringing your daughter out, she'll be safer because of it.