Raceway school offers education in speed

Think you're fast? The professionals at Simraceway Performance Driving Center will be the judge of that.

The racing school, tucked in the rolling hills southeast of Petaluma, affords aspiring speedsters the chance to open the throttle on a brand new Audi TT S as part of the Audi sports car experience at Sonoma Raceway, a local favorite established in 1968 with a 2.52 mile road course and a quarter-mile drag strip.

The track is like a restless snake — its eternal uncoiling subjects the driver to a series of twists, turns and sudden elevation changes that challenge even the most seasoned operator — so it's no wonder the track's motto is 'think outside the oval.'

With its wide variety of programs and 116 racing and performance machines on site, the 17-year-old Simraceway Performance Driving Center has done just that, offering everything from driver safety classes — popular with corporate groups, families, and new drivers, to a full-on Formula 3 racing series, replete with professional instruction and the chance to earn points to move up in the FIA system (Federation Internationale de l'Automobile), the governing body of Formula 1.

But before any driving takes place for the Audi program, Chief Instructor Jeff Sakowicz, one of the school's 22 teachers, walks attendees through the many challenges they'll meet out on the track.

'(It's) 2.5 miles of nothing but turns, no two corners are the same, blind cresting over the top, downhill (suspension) compressing, banked turns, off camber corners … you name it, it throws it at you,' said Sakowicz, a former Formula Continental champion who's been racing go-karts since age 9. 'This racetrack exposes both the car and the driver, for sure.'

After a modicum of classroom instruction, drivers are treated to an autocross track set up in the raceway's pit area— a sea of orange cones marking the route, with apex and turn-in points that comprise a series of quick, technical turns.

It might sound daunting, but a constant stream of pointers and encouragement over walkie talkie from Sakowicz, who's equal parts coach and cheering section, offers insight into how to drive the course smoothly and, as a result, faster. The secret, it turns out isn't raw speed, it's controlled speed.

'If you're driving into corners too fast, they're scary, so we brake soon enough, and firm enough,' Sakowicz said.

And while the Audi's complement of all-wheel drive and traction control help ensure you're 'driving with all four wheels', these sporty S model cars will still let you slide around a tad as you find the proper line. After a series of laps at ever-increasing pace, it's time to move onto the racetrack proper.

According to Sakowicz, who's worked at the driving school since 2007, the boffins at Audi choose Sonoma Raceway because it reminds them of Europe's most infamous track, the Nürburgring, sometimes referred to as the 'green hell.' Our own neck of the woods was looking splendidly verdant as Sakowicz piloted the lithe TT S onto the track for a set of lead follow laps.

Sakowicz ends the program by taking each student out for a hot lap in the 430 horsepower Audi R8. Imagine a track level rollercoaster ride, only faster, and set to the music of the car's exhaust. Wending his way around the track in the supercar, Sakowicz is the very picture someone who loves his work.

'It's the best track in the country, a lot of people would say that,' Sakowicz said.

(Contact Liam Nelson at argus@arguscourier.com)