Audi club passing rules question

[R Golf]

My students seem to be very happy learning at slower speeds in the rain. Everyone is different. Since you can't change the weather you might as well use it to your advantage. It's similar to wet skid pad testing. You don't need a lot of speed on a wet track to learn car control. The rivulets across the track are a problem on some circuits as well as the sealer like used at Mid-Ohio.

Definite yes to skid pads. Now that is the place for students and advanced drivers to hone their skills in the wet. You can take the car near or to its limits with almost no bad news events afterward. One of our best car control learning tools.

 

[Petey T]

I run our Porsche 718 Cayman S track car with PCA down here in Florida. I run Black advance group with full course passing, mandatory point-bys. Our region has tried turn signals before in the higher groups because two hands on the wheel and it gives you the option to run your A/C which in central Florida where temps are regularly in the 90's can make a huge difference in comfort, awareness, and overall enjoyment.

They have gone back to arm out the window though. Lead car dictates which side they want to be passed on and will usually hold line, letting the trailing car go off line to complete the pass. I don't mind either way.

 

[Cliff]

Definite yes to skid pads. Now that is the place for students and advanced drivers to hone their skills in the wet. You can take the car near or to its limits with almost no bad news events afterward. One of our best car control learning tools.

We will have a wet skidpad at our event at Spring Mountain in a couple of weeks. And now that I think of it, I had better make sure my lower intermediate student, a member of this forum, heads over there to play. You can take the car beyond its limits and learn how it behaves there, and you would really have to work hard to find something to hit at that site (not saying it's impossible - we could get hit by an asteroid too).

 

[stoked_on_spool]

Definite yes to skid pads. Now that is the place for students and advanced drivers to hone their skills in the wet. You can take the car near or to its limits with almost no bad news events afterward. One of our best car control learning tools.

That was one of my favorite parts at the socal Audi Club event at Spring Mountain a year or so ago was when I had my '05 Porsche 911. Driving on track was a blast, but doing the figure 8 in that car on the wet skid pad was just a riot and GREAT for learning car control.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pg5sIO56z68

I'm now an instructor with Audi Club and can't recommend utilizing the skid pad as much as you can. It's something completely different to feel that a lot of socal drivers don't get to explore.

Getting back onto topic though, I for one had not used turn signals for passing until my last event with Audi. It was extremely easy to use and became second nature as the idea with signaling and then staying to the side you signaled is the exact same thing we do in real life while driving. If you signal to the right, that means you're going to occupy the space on the right, just like you would driving on the freeway or autobahn. After the first session, you'll be completely fine and adapt to it. Only once was there an issue where a car's turn signal fuse went out during the event and that car was then of course allowed to use point bye's. It was still extremely easy to navigate with him giving the "standard" point-bye and passing in the direction his arm told you and the newer nationally accepted Audi practice of using your blinker.

Hope this helps some

 

[R Golf]

That is my thought as well. Much easier to hit the turn signal by mistake and/or leave it on in error. Getting caught by a totally surprise pass is one of the more dangerous things in lower run groups, and not a heck of a lot of fun in upper run groups.

Run with many different groups, can't think of one that does this. Really don't like it.
I think they are uniquely trying to fix something that ain't broken.

Just ran a great 2 day Watkins Glen event with Audi NEQ. (video hopefully coming soon) That's my quote above, and I was wrong. No surprise there I guess.

I was very, very skeptical going in to the event having to use turn signals for pass-by's. They said it is an Audi national rule and they want to comply after much discussion within the club. You point your signal in the direction you want the following car to pass you. i.e. If your line is to the left, you put on the right turn signal. If your car does not have signals then traditional point by's are used.

It took me all of one session to become completely used to it. Well not "completely". I did give one point by out of habit, but it never interfered at all.

I wound up liking it better than point by's, or at least as well. The downside is that I thought there is slightly more confusion with multiple cars passing a slow vehicle. They are supposed to leave the blinker on until all cars are passed, but even that really wasn't an issue.

As an aside, NEQ runs a great event and I would recommend anyone trying them out. First time at the Glen in many years. Still an amazing track.

 

[DarkArrow]

Just ran a great 2 day Watkins Glen event with Audi NEQ. (video hopefully coming soon) That's my quote above, and I was wrong. No surprise there I guess.

I was very, very skeptical going in to the event having to use turn signals for pass-by's. They said it is an Audi national rule and they want to comply after much discussion within the club. You point your signal in the direction you want the following car to pass you. i.e. If your line is to the left, you put on the right turn signal. If your car does not have signals then traditional point by's are used.

It took me all of one session to become completely used to it. Well not "completely". I did give one point by out of habit, but it never interfered at all.

I wound up liking it better than point by's, or at least as well. The downside is that I thought there is slightly more confusion with multiple cars passing a slow vehicle. They are supposed to leave the blinker on until all cars are passed, but even that really wasn't an issue.

As an aside, NEQ runs a great event and I would recommend anyone trying them out. First time at the Glen in many years. Still an amazing track.

Weird that your event had it opposite to what I experienced. As Stoked on Spool stated (I was at the same event as him), blinkers were used to indicate the direction/line you're using. Our event leader stated it is to simulate real world driving, where if you have the intention of moving left, you use your left blinker.

Seems weird/dangerous that Audi Club would have conflicting rules, which could lead to accidents if one person indicates right meaning they'll stay on the left (your experience), and the following car might see the right blinker and think that means they need to pass on the left (my experience).

 

[R Golf]

Weird that your event had it opposite to what I experienced. As Stoked on Spool stated (I was at the same event as him), blinkers were used to indicate the direction/line you're using. Our event leader stated it is to simulate real world driving, where if you have the intention of moving left, you use your left blinker.

Seems weird/dangerous that Audi Club would have conflicting rules, which could lead to accidents if one person indicates right meaning they'll stay on the left (your experience), and the following car might see the right blinker and think that means they need to pass on the left (my experience).

That really is odd. I believe Cliff mentioned that his Audi club does it the same way you mention. NEQ said clearly that this was an Audi National rule. You put the blinker to the side you want the passing car to go. They need to get that squared away.

 

[Cliff]

That really is odd. I believe Cliff mentioned that his Audi club does it the same way you mention. NEQ said clearly that this was an Audi National rule. You put the blinker to the side you want the passing car to go. They need to get that squared away.

Stoked On Spool (aka: Bret), Dark Arrow (aka: Jeff) and I were all at the same event. The California chapters are very consistent about signaling a pass. Next month I'll be doing my first ACNW event since the new national rule went into place, and they had their own take on signaling a pass prior to the adoption of the national rule. It will be interesting to see what their rule is now.

 

[tigeo]

This is an interesting read even though it's an older post. I run with the Audi Club PC chapter at VIR since 2020. The turn signals make a whole lot more sense to me than arms out the windows. Can leave the windows up if you want. This thread is somewhat confusing as folks are talking about signaling to the side you will stay on/opposite the passing car will pass on. Not the way we have done it. You signal to the side you want them to pass....much more logical. Easy to do and hands on wheel. The concerns with goofing and hitting your signals is unfounded as in the run groups I'm in you can only pass in designated areas so easy to see if someone accidentally hit their signals. In the events I've done there has been zero issue with this method beyond giving the point to the wrong side.