Richard Petty crappy "Driving" experience

Couple of weeks ago, my buddy and I went to Vegas for the Richard Petty Driving Expereince. His company was sending him as a perk and I went along so he wouldn't have to go on his own. $800 for petty, $ for air fare $ for rental $ for hotel $ for gambling and the experience PRICELESS. It was priceless because I could not think of a price low enough that I would pay again. What a horrible dissapointment. I had to follow a pace car the whole time, I could have easily passed the guy at any point. Now I realize that some of these things are geared towards any idiot that wants to drive on the track, but I really feel misled the literature did not talk anywhere about following a pace car the whole time. 18 laps @ 45 sec each average 13.5 minutes of track time $800 FREEKIN DOLLARS!!! Think of the part/parts I could have got instead.

Anyone else ever go to this ripoff?? I talked to the director of operations and got your typical BS "that's why we call it a driving expereince and not a driving school", at no point did he actually say that he was sorry that I was dissapointed with the "experience".

I can go on and on about just why I was dissapointed but just wanted to let everyone know that its not worth it. I get a hell of alot more of a rush driving my shifter kart for 15 $ worth of gas.

 

It all goes back to the media calling professional athletes(motorsports or otherwise) "Heroes"; they belive everything with their name on it is made of gold.

 

If you drive a shifter kart I can see why just about anything else would seem boring to you. Those things are insane! Anyway I rode along in a Petty car at Daytona driven by a pro. Cost me $99 bucks. I enjoyed it. They said we were doing about 160 mph in the straightaways. I would have like to been doing the driving but what do you want for $99.

 

Trust me the 99 buck was the way to go, I could have done that and been just as satisfied, I mean come on follwing a pace car? you might as well jsut be in the passenger seat. During the orientation way more time was spent telling you what would happen (you may get pulled off the track) if you didn't follow properly than safety issues, what does that tell you?

 

And your right Henry the shifter kart is insane, most people that think they are bad ass's will go out to the track with me and either watch me and then not want to even get in the kart or will get in and turn two laps and then want out real quick!!! Scares the crap out of em! Not to mention pulling close to 4 g's in the corners is pretty tough on the bod.

 

From what I can gather of shifter Karts, there isn't much of anything you can drive that compares to the experience.

 

what would happen if you just all of a sudden took matters into yer own hands? IE pass up the pace car? do they got some sort of shut of switch for "cars on the loose" haha

 

Here, at the Kansas speedway, several companies advertise and make it a point to let you know you DON'T follow the pace car like the "other experience" you get to pass all you want, 10 laps all by yourself. They do stagger the starts, so you never really "race" any 1 person.

 

The RPDE sucks. Got it.

Now, tell us more about these shifter carts.

JH

 

125 shifter karts are the closest thing to a formula one car for pound per pound performance. If you've never seen them it will blow your mind from what you used to think of a go kart. 0-100 and back to 0 in 7 seconds, faster than any car you will ever drive most likely. Guys bruise ribs all the time just frome changing directions so fast. 15K red line 46 hp out of a 125 motor entire kart weighs 200lb. 6 speed tranny with a bump shift. Most people can't hold their head straight when they are first learning how to drive, everytime you change gears, brake or turn there head is bouncing like a bobble doll, good times........

 

Man i'm gonna make shure my son inlaw reads this, he's big into nascar and he's wanting to do that driving experiance, sounds like it would be more fun to do the ride along.

 

or go to the RIGHT track. Cheaper to. Last guy who did it said it was $600. You get the "school" part, a ride along (you drive, they have a safety kill switch) then they let you loose.

 

Like most things that USED TO BE more fun - I'm sure it has a lot to do with their insurance company putting the clamp down on letting just any old coach potato nascrap fan behind the wheel and cutting him loose.

 

So nobody else thinks it isn't a good idea to just let a bunch of ametures loose with a 700hp NASCAR on the track? Of course you're going to follow a pace car.

When I've done driving experiences, they've always told my groups that if you want to go faster, follow the pace car closely, take the same line as he does, and don't "hang back" thinking you'll get a fast run down the straight trying to catch him. Do this, and the pace car will go faster and lead up to some great speeds. And in every one I've been in, a good portion of the chuckle heads take different lines, hang back and then catch the pace car.
Me? I followed the dude as close as I could, kept the same lines, and passed the other cars on the track with him leading me. Including passing on the hi side in Turn Four at Bristol, between a slower car and the wall. I still don't know how I fit in that slot without KY, but damn it was fun!

That same weekend, during the street car track time, a guy in a Cobra kit car who knew everything and a kid in his dad's Cutlass who knew everything, both spun and totaled their cars. By not following the same line the pace car took, and they both wiped out when they hung back and tried to get a good run to catch the pace car. Both hit the wall because they were going too fast, and both cars were destroyed.
There's a reason it's "The Richard Petty Driving Experience" and not "The (Fill in your name here) Driving Experience."
Brad

 

I had the chance to do a "NASCAR Experience" thing at California Motor Speedway a couple years ago, it was totally the most adrenaline pumping thing I ever did. We didn't follow a pace car, they staggered us out on the track and we passed other cars on the track that were still down low coming up to speed. We actually reached speeds up to 165 mph. I was supposed to go 10 laps and my "instructor" said what the hell....run a few more. We ended up running 15 laps. I guess the track and the personnel make all the difference.

 

Well Brad, I am glad you enjoyed it, but your examples dont' fit with what happened to me. I was told to follow the pace car, which I did the only variation being that I held the line better since he was watching me in the mirror he was moving back and forth. I was not going outside of what he was doing. I was also told not to get too close to the pace car, but to creep up till the pace car waved and that meant I was too close and to back off, we were told repeatedly that if we crept up the pace car would slow down because he was not comfortable with us being that close, we were told repeatedly to follow at exactly 4 car lengths (wich was actually more like 6) and to stay exactly in his line or else he would slow down. The guy that strapped me in the car contradicted all of this and told me to push the instructor so he would know I was comfortable with the speed. We had two driving sessions one 8 lap one 10 in between we were suppposed to receive instruction (although i don't know how we are going to be evaluated since we might as well have been on a tether) the only instruction I received was quit creeping up on the instructor, to which I answered "the other guy told me to do that" Also there was no way that the students driving had much direct effect on the speed (other than slower) since at all times there were two instructors and two students on the track, they always maintained equal spacing and stayed on opposite sides of the track from each other, there was no way you were going to pass a slower student, which means if there was some panzy on the track at the same time as you, you were had to go as slow as that person....

 

Yes retrorod the personnell make all the difference, what you and Brad described are closer to what I expected, but we didn't get that. It wasn't jsut me either, there were several other people who were extremely dissappointed and said so at the track before we all left.

 

I did the 'experience' at Daytona 3 years ago and there was no crowd at all due to inclimate weather moving in. The driver was real cool and I offered him $200 to hit 180mph. We ran a bunch of laps and got to 168 and the rush was incredible. We ran so many laps I just gave him the $200 and the picture is hanging on my office wall as I write this email.

I have heard other people complain about the cost and bad attirude of the instructors but I bet your attitude and the customer backup has a great effect on your 'ride'.

Kermit

 

I did the RPDE in Chicago last weekend with my brother in law. I personally had a blast. Ran 138.35mph. I thought the King's experience which sounds like you did the last 10 laps were to be run solo.

 

Kermit, I completely agree with you that your attitude can and will affect your experience. I know that I don't sound it in this post since I am bent out of shape, but I am a pretty happy go lucky type and usually have a way of making people around me have fun. I honestly don't think my attitude had much influence as I think there was only a couple of times the richard petty staff actually talked to me and it was only to call my name and tell me to line up, oh and to put my helmet on for me, yes the guy wouldn't even just hand me the helmet, he stood there and held the helmet straps and made me bend down and stick my head in while he held it, It was just weird. I never actually spoke to my "instructor" so he never had a chance to experience any attitude if there had been any. The "students" were pretty much cattle prodded around from one line to the next, very impersonal.

Strato, I did the kings experience and the last 10 laps were run just like the first 8.. behind the pace car only slightly faster. My top speed was 139 on my last lap. I forget what my first lap was but they went about 1/2 second faster per lap to get down to the fastest of like 43 sec @ 139. You can imagine how slow we were going to start to be able to increase the speed 1/2 sec per lap to finally get to 139. In talking with other people it sounds as though the program used to be different, (which would lead to my expectations being different from what I got), the old program let you "drive" the track more. One person suggested that they were told by the staff that they do it different now so that people would feel like they "progressed" throughout their experience. Progressing felt like going from a tricylce to a bike with training wheels

 

I think it really comes down to expectations. If you have never done any type of racing or competitive driving than you probably would enjoy this, you get to go fast and drive on a "real" track. But if you have driven anything more than a "street" car you will probably be dissapointed. I was dissapointed on many levels which brought me to write this post. The driving was week but the way we were treated and herded around was terrible, and then trying to sell us a picture of us standing next to the car for 20 bucks or whatever it was, what a joke, $800 bucks you can throw in the picture.

 

My experience was a Charlotte (Lowes)Motor Speedway several years ago and it was great,,,,I like Brad had a thrill and ran with the instructor and was able to pass a car or two,,,

Being in the Heart of nascar country might make a difference in instructors i dunno,,,

We were treated great and we were lucky enough to meet Harry Gant the day I was there,,,

I was able to run close to 146mph and that was fast benough for me,,HRP

 

mark martin probably wouldn't enjoy it much either, but since i had never been in a roundy car before i loved the hell out of it. i have been back and hope to go back again.
dan

 

I am glad to hear you all enjoyed your experiences, sounds to me like luck of the draw stuck it to me. The part I find interesting is that its sounds as though all of you (Dan how about you?) got to pass people which sounds to me like they must have been running it totally different than what I got.

 

I went to SEMA a coupla years ago and figured while i was there i'd do the exact same package.....Had a ball and it went by way to quickly...Had i not taken it i would've blown the 800 at a blackjack table....Would i do it again?....Probably not....But when i'm laying on my deathbed at least i know that was one thing crossed off my list......Next time is the 400 dollar, 20 minute ride in a genuine B-17 that rolls into my town each Memorial Day

 

Have never done the Petty experience although have known people who have. Have done laps at Lowes in a street rod at Goodguys and Daytona in an older Ferrari (365GTC) at a private club session. Back in the early 70's I attended a SCCA driving school to get a race license to be able to race sports cars at tracks like Road Atlanta. Spent a coupe of days at Bob Bondurant's school, learned a lot and it was definitely fun. Don't think the Richard Petty Experience could improve on that, so guess I will save my money for other fun things. Besides getting too old and too chubby to climb through windows.

 

Send Petty a letter and tell him how you feel in a very professional manner. If he really is "The King", he might have some issues with his name on something you found so poorly done. I doubt he'll close "the experience", but you might see a refund.

 

I wouldn't give 800 dollars for the entire NASCAR industry.

 

got any pix of your kart

 

I don't have any pics of the kart on the computer. I will be selling this kart to purchase a new one price is $3500 I will get some pics up.