To everyone who hasn't taken any sort of course or had some instruction on driving your BMW, particularly teenagers - believe me, it makes an incredible difference. I am a fervent reader of the Roundel and so am very acquainted with the almost monthly letter requesting advice on how to more effectively modify the performance of one’s car. In all honesty, until I took the safety school, I would scoff at the consistent response: take a driving school. After my experience at the Windy City Safety School on the weekend of April 11th, I know that the 325e (yes that’s an e, as in slow) is capable of things I had not even considered ever attempting.

Do you have any idea how fun it is to whip a 13-year old car through a slalom and slide it around a skidpad again and again? I knew from the description that the school would involve some sort of driving activity, but was amazed at what we actually did. Beginning with the skidpad, we learned the limitations of our cars and what it feels like when you are about to lose traction and what to do when you actually do. This progressed into throttle steering and eventually experimenting with both oversteer and understeer. (I almost looped my car!) A braking box was set up so that one had a reasonable distance to accelerate after leaving the skidpad. These cars stop fast. It’s amazing how quickly you can shave speed off of your car by quickly squeezing the brakes. These two alone were extremely entertaining, but while the participants went to get lunch, the courses were changed to include a slalom, emergency lane change, and curved braking boxes. Did I mention that it was raining much of the day?

In any case, all three of the afternoon exercises proved to be tons of fun and educational as well. The classroom sessions were also, believe it or not, very interesting and very useful. I now know and understand far more about the way my car will behave in a given situation and why it is doing so. To be honest, what I learned in a single day from Randy Everson’s classroom instruction and from Ben, my in-car instructor, puts to shame what my Driver’s Ed teacher taught me in an entire month. I now feel far more confident in my ability to handle an emergency situation as well as in my knowledge and understanding of what my car is capable of. In short, I am plugging the Safety School to all the green teenage drivers out there - this is a chance to both learn more about your car and to have fun doing it. For everyone else who hasn't taken any sort of real driver’s training, this is a great place to learn. There isn't a more fun or incredibly nice group of people anywhere than the folks who volunteer to organize, run and instruct at these events. Have fun!

Jordan Von Kluck - 17 years old