Sim Coaching Discount | Driver61 Sim Pure Pace Masterclass

Paul Jeffrey

Premium
The team over at Driver61 are about to open up applications for their next Pure Pace Masterclass - and our RaceDepartment faithful can get early access and a nice discount too!
  • Second cohort open for the highly successful Driver61 Pure Pace Masterclass course.
  • Discount for RD Premium Members & an offer for Non-premium members
  • Improve your speed and consistency with the help of professional coaches.

Scott Mansell and his team over at the awesome Driver61 website are about to embark upon opening up applications for their second cohort of drivers within their new Pure Pace Masterclass driver coaching programme - and once again RaceDepartment Premium Members will be eligible to sign up first, and enjoy a nice 20% discount on the retail price of the training.

That's a 20% discount which equates to $24.00 off the price of the course - more than a yearly Premium membership here at RaceDepartment!

I ran in the very first Pure Pace Masterclass earlier this year, and despite heading into it with some scepticism, I've found the things Scott had to teach me really made a noticeable impact on my sim racing experience - giving me new tools in which to extract the most performance from myself out on the (virtual) racetrack.

Having enjoyed a very successful first run of the new course, Scott and his team are ready to do it all again - refreshed, improved and enhanced over the original sessions earlier this year.

Want to know what the course is all about? Hear it from the man himself, check out the Driver61 Pure Pace Masterclass website page.

What Do You Need To Participate?
In order to access the course you will need an active subscription to the iRacing service, however all cars and tracks used within the training are free content, so you only need to pay for a 1-month subscription (currently $6.50) if you aren't already a member of the online racing simulation.

Register and get 20% off
Course registrations are open to RaceDepartment Premium Members from today, Tuesday 22nd September via the steps below:
  1. Grab your exclusve 20% discount code here
  2. Register for the course by clicking this link and use the discount code.
What Does It Cost?
The course retails at $119.99, take your $20 discount off the price, and you are looking at a total cost of just $95.99 for RaceDepartment Premium members!

Any non-Premium members of RaceDepartment will be able to gain access to the course with a reduced discount of 8% from Wednesday 23rd September, using the link as above, and you can find your discount code on the 23rd in the spoiler below

d61-rd-advantage

I sincerely enjoyed my time on the course earlier this year, and found genuine improvements to my pace and driving, so I hope any of you who take up this generous offer from Driver61 also enjoy your time on the programme - and most of all, have fun!
 
Addressing the elephant in the room here and I fully expect a ban, but do people genuinely pay for this stuff? It seems... kind of pathetic, no?

I got started with sims in the early 2000's, back when there was zero attempt at making this stuff accessible to the general public. Turning the driving line on was more than enough to get me up to speed and when I raced in leagues under my dad's name, I generally didn't make an arse of myself and most people didn't even know I was only 12 or 13. I really didn't think it was all that difficult.

With YouTube being so huge nowadays, anyone can sit down for 10-20 minutes during a lunchbreak and watch onboard laps of any car at any track, not to mention the countless videos on racecraft, theory, etc. This stuff is all free, by the way.

It kind of blows my mind that people would take things a step further and feel the need to pay for private coaching. Like, if you seriously can't figure out the concept of driving in a circle with the abundance of material already available, that you need to pay someone to be your friend on Teamspeak for an hour to hold your hand around the circuit, this might not be the hobby for you.

Especially since professional drivers are on record saying driver coaching is basically a giant scam and consists of being told "brake later, accelerate earlier."
 
Addressing the elephant in the room here and I fully expect a ban, but do people genuinely pay for this stuff? It seems... kind of pathetic, no?

I got started with sims in the early 2000's, back when there was zero attempt at making this stuff accessible to the general public. Turning the driving line on was more than enough to get me up to speed and when I raced in leagues under my dad's name, I generally didn't make an arse of myself and most people didn't even know I was only 12 or 13. I really didn't think it was all that difficult.

With YouTube being so huge nowadays, anyone can sit down for 10-20 minutes during a lunchbreak and watch onboard laps of any car at any track, not to mention the countless videos on racecraft, theory, etc. This stuff is all free, by the way.

It kind of blows my mind that people would take things a step further and feel the need to pay for private coaching. Like, if you seriously can't figure out the concept of driving in a circle with the abundance of material already available, that you need to pay someone to be your friend on Teamspeak for an hour to hold your hand around the circuit, this might not be the hobby for you.

Especially since professional drivers are on record saying driver coaching is basically a giant scam and consists of being told "brake later, accelerate earlier."

What makes Hamilton consistently faster than Bottas though? A teachable difference in technique perhaps? It's funny because Motorsport coaching has been fairly unheard of up until recently, as if every driver is at 100% of their natural potential as soon as they hit F1.
Tennis players, golf players, soccer players, they all employ coaches to develop their skills, even at the pinnacle of their sport. Serena Williams for example didn't make it as a pro and then decide her game was perfect, so why do we do that for drivers?
 
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Addressing the elephant in the room here and I fully expect a ban, but do people genuinely pay for this stuff? It seems... kind of pathetic, no?

I got started with sims in the early 2000's, back when there was zero attempt at making this stuff accessible to the general public. Turning the driving line on was more than enough to get me up to speed and when I raced in leagues under my dad's name, I generally didn't make an arse of myself and most people didn't even know I was only 12 or 13. I really didn't think it was all that difficult.

With YouTube being so huge nowadays, anyone can sit down for 10-20 minutes during a lunchbreak and watch onboard laps of any car at any track, not to mention the countless videos on racecraft, theory, etc. This stuff is all free, by the way.

It kind of blows my mind that people would take things a step further and feel the need to pay for private coaching. Like, if you seriously can't figure out the concept of driving in a circle with the abundance of material already available, that you need to pay someone to be your friend on Teamspeak for an hour to hold your hand around the circuit, this might not be the hobby for you.

Especially since professional drivers are on record saying driver coaching is basically a giant scam and consists of being told "brake later, accelerate earlier."
Yes, you should be banned.

There are worst allocations of money than pay a professional race driver to hold your hand inside a simulated racing video game.

You should be ashamed of yourself! ;)
 
Addressing the elephant in the room here and I fully expect a ban, but do people genuinely pay for this stuff? It seems... kind of pathetic, no?

I got started with sims in the early 2000's, back when there was zero attempt at making this stuff accessible to the general public. Turning the driving line on was more than enough to get me up to speed and when I raced in leagues under my dad's name, I generally didn't make an arse of myself and most people didn't even know I was only 12 or 13. I really didn't think it was all that difficult.

With YouTube being so huge nowadays, anyone can sit down for 10-20 minutes during a lunchbreak and watch onboard laps of any car at any track, not to mention the countless videos on racecraft, theory, etc. This stuff is all free, by the way.

It kind of blows my mind that people would take things a step further and feel the need to pay for private coaching. Like, if you seriously can't figure out the concept of driving in a circle with the abundance of material already available, that you need to pay someone to be your friend on Teamspeak for an hour to hold your hand around the circuit, this might not be the hobby for you.

Especially since professional drivers are on record saying driver coaching is basically a giant scam and consists of being told "brake later, accelerate earlier."
While your opinions tend to be controversial in the community, in this case I guess I see your point. The eSports drivers do not need this stuff, the average hobby driver simracing for fun does not need this stuff either, the eager beginner should just practice and learn basic car control and consistency instead of paying to hear advanced stuff, so not for them either. But I guess some people who have the money to build simrigs with the best equipment available do have the money to spend for some interaction and tips from a pro... This is not for "everyone" for sure. I won't judge anyone paying for coaching, good for them, hope they enjoy it and learn some things, but it's certainly not for me.
 
Addressing the elephant in the room here and I fully expect a ban, but do people genuinely pay for this stuff? It seems... kind of pathetic, no?

I got started with sims in the early 2000's, back when there was zero attempt at making this stuff accessible to the general public. Turning the driving line on was more than enough to get me up to speed and when I raced in leagues under my dad's name, I generally didn't make an arse of myself and most people didn't even know I was only 12 or 13. I really didn't think it was all that difficult.

With YouTube being so huge nowadays, anyone can sit down for 10-20 minutes during a lunchbreak and watch onboard laps of any car at any track, not to mention the countless videos on racecraft, theory, etc. This stuff is all free, by the way.

It kind of blows my mind that people would take things a step further and feel the need to pay for private coaching. Like, if you seriously can't figure out the concept of driving in a circle with the abundance of material already available, that you need to pay someone to be your friend on Teamspeak for an hour to hold your hand around the circuit, this might not be the hobby for you.

Especially since professional drivers are on record saying driver coaching is basically a giant scam and consists of being told "brake later, accelerate earlier."

I think your perspective may be a bit warped due to your prodigious natural talent. Your name is well known across the sim racing landscape as someone who has always been extremely fast across many different sims. You can be faster after 100 laps in a given car/track/sim combo than many of us would be after 1000, maybe even 10,000 laps.

You should enjoy your gift. You should also appreciate that driver coaching probably looks like a different proposition to those of us in the 99%.

Time is also a factor. For many of us (myself certainly included) even the 100 laps can be cost-prohibitive in terms of available free time. Driver coaching can be a real force multiplier for those of us in that circumstance. The investment in coaching can end up being worth it many times over in terms of enjoying the hobby and just general self satisfaction of reaching a level you didn't think possible.

Someone who is quick and has the patience and skills to teach can really show you things you may have never noticed. At the real life event I was at this weekend, I didn't drive because I was volunteering as a corner marshal but I found time to do a track walk with a more experienced driver who also happens to be a good coach. He was pointing things out to me that would have taken me dozens of laps to notice (as well as a couple of things I'm not sure I would have ever noticed). Did it make me feel a pitiful charity case? No. Does it mean I should have put my gear for sale on Craigslist when I got home? No way. It left me excited to try the track for myself next year and see how well I can put his tips into practice. That's the fun for me and the vast majority of us who will never be consistent race winners, leaderboard toppers, etc.

Just my 2 cents.
 
After all, whatever floats your boat i guess, i can see points on both sides...

But i also think, an important component in sim racing is different, than real life, that gives you the opportunity to practice without the need of active driver coaching: If you fail, you don't have risks of high costs and painful injuries. :D

Driver61 actually is a useful channel for learning some fundamentals for beginners to get on pace and i don't think, it's a scam to offer driving coaching for simulations, but i also don't think, it's the most necessary stuff. ^^'

This stuff is all free, by the way.
You also find quite much of this free useful stuff on the original (non sim racing) Driver61 Channel, some detailed track guides, explanations of braking, traction circle etc.

An example:

Considering practice on own acquisition of rich avaiable knowledge is not talent based stuff, btw...it's just...Knowledge. Many (sim)drivers don't even know their true own potential, because they never thought about reading some basics about tyre grip, differential, tracks and aero etc...^^
 
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....Especially since professional drivers are on record saying driver coaching is basically a giant scam and consists of being told "brake later, accelerate earlier...."
"Dumb enough", "don't need it", "anyone can (with free vids)".

Many of these comments are a little bit short sighted imo - in regard to the massive spectrum of where each individual driver is in their learning curve... where they are, and where they want to go, will be different to each of us.

In effect, there's a view by some that's saying you can teach yourself, and become better from copying others (vids, free tutorials etc). I guess that many of those people wouldn't leave their bad habits behind (though they might be fast-er), 'cos whilst you're copying, you're still in your own bubble of what you believe is right, with no-one to correct that. Of course there will be improvements, but possibly no eradication of inherent faults.

We all learn in many different ways... I'm old git that ran (with some friends in the 70's) a karting school - we set it up to help kids that were on the streets doing bad stuff originally (mechanics, driving etc), and soon had some well-off parents that sent their kids to us. The ones that we couldn't teach any more, we passed/recommended to guys better than us... we knew our limits, and that we were simply part of being part of a ladder that could move them on, and that the learning curve never stops. You might be incredibly gifted and that's a delight to watch, though for every gifted person, there are potentially others that are better at learning to be better. Graham HIll was no megastar, but he learnt how to be, as did his son to a great extent.

Re professional drivers saying it's a giant scam, and those that believe it, history of motorsport is littered with driving geniuses, you just have to do some homework:p.... I wonder how Rob Wilson (and many other instructors) made a living - he coached Mansell and other drivers whilst they were still in F1. Senna said he was the the one competitor in all of his motorsport history that was the one he wanted to beat.
To imply or say others won't benefit from (paid?) instruction is wrong imo, though obviously, it depends who's doing the teaching;)

End of waffle, and simply my opinion:p

Edit: Re the above mention with the coaching link, Terry Fullerton was the guy, but meh, brain cell not working :p
 
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If ppl drove like it was real life, sim racing would be very different
Yes, but then why booking a coaching by a racing driver for sim racing, if this is the case?

was only an opinion ;)
That doesn't protect your point.^^ (Neither mine ;) )
And again, very important: Knowledge of fundamentals has nothing to do with being gifted, they are out there for free to be informed about. :) "with free vids"
 
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Addressing the elephant in the room here and I fully expect a ban, but do people genuinely pay for this stuff? It seems... kind of pathetic, no?

I got started with sims in the early 2000's, back when there was zero attempt at making this stuff accessible to the general public. Turning the driving line on was more than enough to get me up to speed and when I raced in leagues under my dad's name, I generally didn't make an arse of myself and most people didn't even know I was only 12 or 13. I really didn't think it was all that difficult.

With YouTube being so huge nowadays, anyone can sit down for 10-20 minutes during a lunchbreak and watch onboard laps of any car at any track, not to mention the countless videos on racecraft, theory, etc. This stuff is all free, by the way.

It kind of blows my mind that people would take things a step further and feel the need to pay for private coaching. Like, if you seriously can't figure out the concept of driving in a circle with the abundance of material already available, that you need to pay someone to be your friend on Teamspeak for an hour to hold your hand around the circuit, this might not be the hobby for you.

Especially since professional drivers are on record saying driver coaching is basically a giant scam and consists of being told "brake later, accelerate earlier."
Well, people hire coaches for stuff. Yes you can say it's a bit lazy if you want but unlike YouTube videos, a coach should provide you with individual feedback on what you do. I do not know about the specific guy but I wouldn't define this pathetic. If i had to criticize something though, "Pure Pace Masterclass" sounds a little pompous to my untrained ears.
 
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Yes you can say it's a bit lazy if you want but unlike YouTube videos, a coach should provide you with individual feedback on what you do.
This is a pro-point, indeed.
Sometimes there are situations, someone just can't get a clue of what is done wrong.

Is it worth a full coaching...i don't know...like stated, whatever floats your boat. :)
I do not know about the specific guy
His channel is definetly helpful with several topics, especially for beginners and he explains things pretty comprehensible. Also the free track guides are pretty detailed and not just focus on the actual line, but hotspots on the tracks to avoid or take.
 
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