miscellaneous musings
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Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 3,660
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From: Midlothian
It was not until I could VTEC that "Man and Beast" bonded. This car is better than a large percentage of its drivers. Used skillfully, it is a surgeon's scalpel - used foolishly or through ignorance, it is a blunt instrument and deadly weapon.
If you have never attended a high performance driving school, or had frequent opportunity to track a car, I strongly recommend doing so if you have the $'s. I say this for two reasons: 1) To be able to fully exploit this car's capabilities, you will need to understand vehicle dynamics, shifting best practices, how to heel and toe, how to trail brake, what clipping the apex means, etc. and 2) You will not be safe when you decide to hang it out a bit.
A car with the grip and lateral stability like the S2000 has little progression from "all things are normal" to "whoops, I am in this corner a bit too 'hot'". The inexperienced driver at the limits will not know how to instantly apply counter-lock, braking, downshifting, etc. to recover, and that can be the difference between a very expensive, and possibly fatal, error and the ultimate thrill (recovery from what seemed an impossible scenario).
So my answer to you is it is not so much a matter of time as it is knowledge and experience. This car is too good not to invest wisely - choose well.
On your other point, I could not agree more. After driving the S2000, any other car seems sloppy and fat, and the entire suburban driving experience is like a cheetah or a gazelle moving through a herd of oxen - time seems suspended, and the incredibly lousy reactions, driving courtesy, and attention of most other drivers is magnified by an order of magnitude. This can be fun, as you anticipate other drivers' moves before they have themselves thought of them, and like a fighter pilot or sniper, you can pick off "targets of opportunity". It reminds me of when I rode my sport bikes - both in feel, and in the sad necessity of having to constantly protect yourself from the bone-headed moves of the cattle that surround you.
Enjoy your car, and let us know how you are progressing.
On Belay!
If you have never attended a high performance driving school, or had frequent opportunity to track a car, I strongly recommend doing so if you have the $'s. I say this for two reasons: 1) To be able to fully exploit this car's capabilities, you will need to understand vehicle dynamics, shifting best practices, how to heel and toe, how to trail brake, what clipping the apex means, etc. and 2) You will not be safe when you decide to hang it out a bit.
A car with the grip and lateral stability like the S2000 has little progression from "all things are normal" to "whoops, I am in this corner a bit too 'hot'". The inexperienced driver at the limits will not know how to instantly apply counter-lock, braking, downshifting, etc. to recover, and that can be the difference between a very expensive, and possibly fatal, error and the ultimate thrill (recovery from what seemed an impossible scenario).
So my answer to you is it is not so much a matter of time as it is knowledge and experience. This car is too good not to invest wisely - choose well.
On your other point, I could not agree more. After driving the S2000, any other car seems sloppy and fat, and the entire suburban driving experience is like a cheetah or a gazelle moving through a herd of oxen - time seems suspended, and the incredibly lousy reactions, driving courtesy, and attention of most other drivers is magnified by an order of magnitude. This can be fun, as you anticipate other drivers' moves before they have themselves thought of them, and like a fighter pilot or sniper, you can pick off "targets of opportunity". It reminds me of when I rode my sport bikes - both in feel, and in the sad necessity of having to constantly protect yourself from the bone-headed moves of the cattle that surround you.
Enjoy your car, and let us know how you are progressing.
On Belay!
Thread Starter
Registered User
Joined: Jul 2003
Posts: 221
Likes: 1
From: sacramento
Thanks guys. Glad I'm not the only one who feels this way about the car.
I think I may have to seriously think about the driving school. It's sounds life saving.
Cruise with attitude and also safely
I think I may have to seriously think about the driving school. It's sounds life saving.
Cruise with attitude and also safely
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