One of the most valuable things you can have in the world of road racing or autocrossing outside of seat time is instruction. While announcing the autocross it was fun to watch drivers drivers take passengers like Mary Pozzi around the course with them and get faster from what they were learning from more experienced racers. While you probably are not going to be lapping Sebring any time soon, you can still enjoy this fantastic video that puts us in a vintage Porsche race car with Jim Pace as he flat foots around the historic track, narrating his every move. It is important to note that this is not a voice over after the fact. Pace is narrating while ripping around the course, changing gears, and muscling the car through the corners! You can hear the effort in his voice when he manhandles the powerful Porsche around some of the lower speed turns on the course.
One of the things we enjoyed doing while watching this video was watching how Pace’s moves on one corner set up his moves in the following several corners. The lap is not about the corner that’s directly in front of you but about how your actions in that corner change the ways you approach others. The track is mostly empty during the video but Pace does manage to blow the doors straight off a couple of cars that he comes across, including one late model Porsche. Something else to consider. This is a two lap ride. Now think about running for hours at the place and what the physical toll of that would be. The track is by no means smooth so there’s the jarring bumps and then there’s the hours of keeping your concentration up as well as your physical stamina. We guess this video serves as an example as to why you rarely see big fat guys running endurance races. It is a lot of work!
Lastly, you may be asking what qualifies Pace to be the teacher at this track? The dude has won big time races with international competition here. He’s got the program down better than most. This is a really, really fun watch!
Jim Pace provides an exceptional ride-along experience on this one. Calm, collected, and instructive. Really enjoyed this. Thanks for that!