Trip To The Skidpan

[peterb]

After a nasty scare when I got sideways driving into my garage (!) in the snow, we went to the skidpan on Saturday. National Driving Centre in Croydon (found easily by web search). Not a particularly glamorous location, but an interesting, well-run and fun experience.

We drove a front drive Primera with ABS switched on and off and a rear drive Sierra without ABS. We had 30 mins in a classroom plus 90 or so in the cars. Cost was £120 for the two of us.

Instructors were both ex-Police and the skidpan and training are apparently modelled on Hendon. Slipperiness comes from an oil/water mix and there are different road surfaces. The pan itself is quite small, but I never found this to be a problem and they made a fuss of it being purpose-built.

The course covered various techniques, including:

- thinking about “exit routes” (e.g. mounting a clear pavement) rather than just braking;

- learning to feel when the back is going to let go;

- correcting rear-wheel skids in both FWD and RWD cars;

- taking effective lines into and out of corners to minimise chances of skid;

- using ABS effectively to steer around an obstacle;

- cadence breaking;

- steering out of a locked-wheels skid by releasing break pedal.

We learned a lot and had a good time. Even Mrs B, who was reluctant to go, has been telling all her friends about it.

[TheTazman]

Yep I have done the exact same course at the exact same location. Well worth doing as it does help point out what you should be thinking about etc.

Was a little gutted they wouldn't let me take my own car on just to see how it reacted under skid conditions blah blah..

[ricky_is200]

Thanks for the info guys. Might have a look at giving it a go.

[TheTazman]

Here is the link to their web address:

http://www.nationaldrivingcentre.co.uk/p3_skidpan.html

[Steve]

perhaps we could get a few of us to attend this place.. mini meet thing.. very reasonalble prices too!

i'll go

[Brian Berry]

Years ago having just passed the driving test I hit a patch of black ice in my Morris 1000. By instinct I put my foot on the brake and finished up in someone's front garden, uninjured but with a broken rear spring.

I later attended the police advanced driving at Maidstone and as part of the course went on the skid pan. I am now convinced that every driver should be given skid pan training as part of the driving test.

[Claire G]

I was thinking about doing a skid-pan course too after my little spin in the snow. I'll post the details in the events forum and see if we can get a group to go!

[tony_hetherington]

I'd most certainly be up for that too !!

Price seems very reasonable considering what you get out of it

[javaboss]

I have to say that I would probably be quite interested. The back just stepped out when I crashed my car and there was absolutely nothing I could do. I keep thinking that if I had learnt how to control oversteer I might have been able to save it!

[Claire G]

Could you register your interest here please guys:

http://lexusownersclub.co.uk/forum/index.p...ST&f=24&t=4086&

Thanks!

[tonb]

I can thoroughly recommend it - I did one up here in the hinterlands ... well, Elgin to be precise, and the guy that ran it also trained Grampian Police. Dealt with the usual under/over steer and how to catch it - but also stuff like total-loss of control (ice), aquaplaning, cadence braking and braking to avoid an object (pensioner, child etc) who has walked in front of you.

I did it when I still was a FWD guy, and am thinking about doing it again now that I have the IS200.

B)