Motorsports Coverage A Visit to Bondurant
By Jacob Isaac-Lowry
Dec 10, 2004, 01:07
In early December, Igor Sushko the driver of the AF Speed World Challenge 350Z traveled out to the desert in Arizona to hone his skills at the famed Bondurant School of High Performance Driving. We were lucky enough to speak with him daily about his experiences at one of the most renowned driving institutes on the planet.
Upon arriving at the massive facility on the first day of the school, all students are greeted by the awe inspiring expanse of the school "play ground". Boasting nearly a half dozen separate tracks and testing grounds, the Bondurant complex is truly huge. Once the initial impression is made, new students head indoors to meet their instructors. Fortunately for Igor, Bob Bondurant himself was teaching this class of only four students. Talk about a great instructor to student ratio! You simply cannot find this type of dedicated, nearly one on one time, with a true racing legend.
Quick to the chase, there is not but introductions and a brief rundown of safety checks before the students head out onto the tarmac to see the vehicles. With well over 200 vehicles in sight, the Bondurant School continues to live up to its reputation of excellence. First thing is first and all students are assigned their own cars to head out onto the track and acquaint themselves with their surroundings. At around 8:30 in the morning the whole class hits the blacktop, each one in their own prepped Mustang.
To warm up on the first day, the instructors slowly break the students in by going through a routine of exercises designed to quickly accustom the new drivers to their vehicle and begin honing the student's skills. The first exercise consisted of driving the Mustang's down a straight stretch in third gear towards a cone. Upon reaching the cone, the students rev matched, downshifted into second, made a U-turn and headed back towards another cone on the opposite end of the straight-away. This drill was repeated several times before the class moved on. The instructors then moved the class the oval track and continued basic exercises of rev matching and downshifting. In order to show the students the maneuvers to be performed, the instructors, each in their own prepped Crown Victoria's, would demonstrated the exercise. According to Igor, the instructors also took the liberty of having a "little fun" in their 4000 pound behemoths. We can only image what it would look like to see a Crown Vic shoot the tail out at 50 miles an hour and drift around a corner. Pretty impressive to say the least.
After a few hours out on the course, the class broke for the provided lunch in the Bondurant museum. The museum houses awards and former race cars driven by Mr. Bondurant himself over his illustrious career. After taking some time to soak in the history around them, lunch was over and the class again headed out to the tracks.
This time each student was awarded their very own CTS-V to enjoy. These Cadillac's are equipped with hardware to allow the handling characteristics of the vehicle to be adjusted nearly on the fly to provide a car with anything from terminal under steer to terrifying over steer. The class ran through several drift style circles, ovals, and figure 8's to break in the new vehicles and get used to working the throttle to get the back end of the car moving. Once completed with these trials, both students and instructors moved off the skid pad and onto the complete track for some open lapping sessions in the Mustangs. After a few laps, including both driving and riding with all the students, the instructors pitted their vehicles and moved about on the sidelines of the track watching the students take a few laps to themselves.
After taking the Mustangs off the track, the class headed inside for a quick debrief of everything that had been covered over the course of the day and each student headed home.
On the second day, class began even earlier with the students out on the tarmac at 7:30 in the morning. Once again the vehicle of choice was the prepped Mustangs and each student headed out onto the full track.
The instructors spent the entire morning and afternoon riding with the students, driving in front of them to reveal the lines, and following behind to observe. The class practiced on each small section of track one at a time gradually increased the length of the track they were lapping in a building block manner. This is to ensure that the class was comfortable with the track before attempting to run an afternoon of open track lapping on a completely foreign course. This strategy of slowly building up to the full track goes a long way in helping the students learn the course and take full advantage of the available track time.
At around 2 in the afternoon, the instructors called the class in for lunch and a debrief. With lunch completed, the class had finished all of the exercises provided by the school. Over the course of the two days with the high rate of instructor involvement, the feedback to the students on their driving skills was both invaluable and abundant. The real basis of the school lies in the one on one training time and the opportunity to both observe truly great drivers and have those same skilled professionals offer students pointers and tips to continue to improve their driving techniques.
For those fortunate enough to take advantage of the wealth of resources the Bondurant School of High Performance Driving offers, the experience is unparalleled.
We have put together some technical information on both the various tracks and vehicles used by the Bondurant Driving School for those that are curious:
The Vehicles
Cadillac CTS The vehicle that was revolutionary enough for the Matrix Reloaded is the car of choice for Bondurant Group Programs. The Cadillac CTS has all the options and luxury that you expect from Cadillac along with some unexpected attributes including 220 horsepower, performance, and a 5speed stick shift! (automatics also available) These beautiful cars handle exquisitely through all the Bondurant group exercises. All Cadillac CTS vehicles are outfitted with Stabilitrak stability enhancement system. And a Traction Control System in conjunction with ABS
Mustang SVT Cobra One of the mainstays of the Bondurant fleet has been the fast and fun Mustang Cobra. These 320 horsepower vehicles look and feel like real racecars and come complete four point safety harnesses. With over 200 specially prepared Mustangs, the Bondurant fleet boasts more cars than any other driving school. Bondurant is the only school where each guest will each have their own car. No waiting around, no sharing rides. All corporate group students get individual instruction and experience.
Pro Kart What goes 0 to 100mph in only 6 seconds? A go-kart! They are one of the fastest ways to racing fun. Your group can be out on the track in a matter of moments in a Bondurant Pro-Kart from the Bondurant SuperKart School. These twin-engine CRG ProKarts are real racing karts… not a kid's amusement ride. Pro Karts are fun, easy to operate and require no shifting, making them group favorite. Anyone at any skill level can have a great time karting!
Corvette C5 A top of the Bondurant performance Fleet is an American Legend, the Corvette. Your guests can ride in of these 350 horsepower V 8 sport scars for Hot Laps! The Vettes are driven by professional Bondurant Instructors giving your guests a chance to hold on for the thrill of the Bondurant road course at speed, the way a race track was meant to be experienced! Everyone one comes away faces grinning, hearts racing, pumped up for the next activity!
Tracks
Bondurant Skills Pad The purpose-built Bondurant skills pad is 8 acres of asphalt. This pad is used for high performance driver training with exercises on the Throttle Steer Circle, Handling Oval, Accident Avoidance Simulator, Slalom Course, Autocross and Skid Pad. The pad can be reconfigured (using cones or barriers) to set up karting tracks, a drifting area or several kinds of skill or slalom tracks. The pad has been used for group events, karting parties, video shoots, and as a valet parking lot for large group events.
Bondurant Road Course The Bondurant School track provides a world class experience featuring a 15 turn, 1.6 mile road course, specifically designed by Bob Bondurant for high performance, race driving and advanced driving instruction. This track is especially challenging for advanced as well as beginning drivers. Bondurant uses this famed track for every class and all group events that include lead and follow exercises or Hot Laps.
Firebird Tracks West Track The course consists of a variety of corners and elevation changes that will challenge both novices and professionals alike. Bondurant utilizes Firebird Raceway's three other tracks for selected advanced road racing and corporate group programs. Firebird features a professional grade drag strip that can be rented for group programs. Club racers normally use East Track and is a favorite for winter testing by the highest ranking professional teams.
Briggs & Stratton Karting Complex Just as Bondurant features its own purpose-built car racing tracks, we also have our exclusive Bondurant designed karting track. This facility (Opening Spring 2004) is state of the art 1/2 mile, 14-turn track with elevation changes and state of the art timing and scoring features. The Bondurant kart complex is perfect for group outings, company kart leagues and parties. Everyone loves karting, a fun, and safe driving activity for anyone at any skill level. Everyone will enjoy the Briggs & Stratton karting complex.
Upon arriving at the massive facility on the first day of the school, all students are greeted by the awe inspiring expanse of the school "play ground". Boasting nearly a half dozen separate tracks and testing grounds, the Bondurant complex is truly huge. Once the initial impression is made, new students head indoors to meet their instructors. Fortunately for Igor, Bob Bondurant himself was teaching this class of only four students. Talk about a great instructor to student ratio! You simply cannot find this type of dedicated, nearly one on one time, with a true racing legend.
To warm up on the first day, the instructors slowly break the students in by going through a routine of exercises designed to quickly accustom the new drivers to their vehicle and begin honing the student's skills. The first exercise consisted of driving the Mustang's down a straight stretch in third gear towards a cone. Upon reaching the cone, the students rev matched, downshifted into second, made a U-turn and headed back towards another cone on the opposite end of the straight-away. This drill was repeated several times before the class moved on. The instructors then moved the class the oval track and continued basic exercises of rev matching and downshifting. In order to show the students the maneuvers to be performed, the instructors, each in their own prepped Crown Victoria's, would demonstrated the exercise. According to Igor, the instructors also took the liberty of having a "little fun" in their 4000 pound behemoths. We can only image what it would look like to see a Crown Vic shoot the tail out at 50 miles an hour and drift around a corner. Pretty impressive to say the least.
This time each student was awarded their very own CTS-V to enjoy. These Cadillac's are equipped with hardware to allow the handling characteristics of the vehicle to be adjusted nearly on the fly to provide a car with anything from terminal under steer to terrifying over steer. The class ran through several drift style circles, ovals, and figure 8's to break in the new vehicles and get used to working the throttle to get the back end of the car moving. Once completed with these trials, both students and instructors moved off the skid pad and onto the complete track for some open lapping sessions in the Mustangs. After a few laps, including both driving and riding with all the students, the instructors pitted their vehicles and moved about on the sidelines of the track watching the students take a few laps to themselves.
At around 2 in the afternoon, the instructors called the class in for lunch and a debrief. With lunch completed, the class had finished all of the exercises provided by the school. Over the course of the two days with the high rate of instructor involvement, the feedback to the students on their driving skills was both invaluable and abundant. The real basis of the school lies in the one on one training time and the opportunity to both observe truly great drivers and have those same skilled professionals offer students pointers and tips to continue to improve their driving techniques.