Speed Secrets Podcast

Steve Smith joins me to talk about racing Porsche Boxters in the World Racing League, why endurance racing is so much fun, and how he and his teammates have turned their racing efforts into a serious fundraising program for charities.

Steve is a co-owner of Big Mission Motorsports, a 2-car team that races in the World Racing League. Besides focusing on winning races, the team has raised over $10,000 this year alone for the Salvation Army of El Paso County, Cancer Research Institute, and the Semper Fi Fund. The team also rents seats for endurance races, so if you're interested...

To learn more about Big Mission Motorsport, check and follow:

• Web: bigmissionmotorsports.com
• Facebook: bigmissionmotorsports

Be sure to check out World Racing League at http://www.worldracingleague.org

Big Mission Motorsports sponsors/partners:

• JHL Constructors - www.jhlconstructors.com
• Option1 Consulting - option1consulting.com
• GT-Racing - www.gt-racing.com
• Wine Country Motor Sports - winecountrymotorsports.com
• Enterprise Truck Rental - www.enterprisetrucks.com
• Licensed to Steele, a novel by Noland Mattocks

Michael O’Neal joins me to talk about his experience at the Monterey Historics (he had just gotten back from the event), Porsches, his adventures in buying and restoring his ’72 911, autocrossing, what being a solopreneur is all about, how anyone can build a business in motorsport, and what he loves about driving. And you’ll move his passion for everything he does.

Michael’s business is the Solopreneur Hour and Solo Lab, where he helps solopreneurs (and I believe, any entrepreneur) with advice, coaching and resources. That’s when he strictly working. And when he’s not (although the lines are blurred between “working” and his hobbies), he’s playing the drums, mountain biking, playing racquetball, working on his Porsche, and most importantly, driving. He’s a multi-time autocross champion, and avid track day geek.

“Spectacularity” is the new word that Michael invented today!

Check out Michael’s world here:

Solohour.com

Sololab.com

Artoftheinterview.co (not .com!)

Instagram: _rennch_

Twitter: @solohour

Facebook: facebook.com/solohour

Kenton Koch joins me to talk about car control, how to develop these skills, what driving the limit takes, and the difference between cars with aerodynamic downforce and those that don’t. We recorded this conversation between races at the Trois Rivieres round of the IMSA Prototype Challenge event, where Kenton dominated both races.

Kenton is one of the best up-and-coming young sports car drivers, having won in every form and class of racing he’s competed in, from Skip Barber Racing Series to the Global MX-5 Cup, and IMSA Prototype Challenge to winning his class at the Daytona 24-Hour race. And get this: his Winning Percentage over the past 4 years is 52 wins out of 75 races, or 70%! There are not many drivers who can claim that!

Learn more about and follow Kenton at:

Web: kentonkochracing.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kentonkochracing

Twitter: @KentonKochRacin

Instagram: kentonkoch

Michael Zimicki joins me to talk about driver coaching. We dive into the question of how many true, pro coaches there are (as opposed to just how many call themselves coaches), what great coaches do, and what you should look for if and when you look to hire one. Oh, and we talk about what the best drivers do differently.

Mike has coached drivers such as Graham Rahal, Danica Patrick, Jon Fogarty, Ryan Hunter-Reay, and many, many more big names; he’s also coached drivers you’ve never heard of. The bottom line is he’s one of the best. Follow him on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mfzcoach/, and on the web at https://www.sliderulemotorsports.com.

In this episode I introduced my new program called The 30-Day Zone Challenge (okay, not the coolest name ever, but it does the job). You can sign up for 30 days of email coaching at no cost (since you’ll be Beta testing it) at https://speedsecrets.com/zone.

TJ Fischer joins me to talk about racing with asthma, his asthma awareness campaign, late braking, the mindset that the best drivers have, the importance of the right coach, and how to get up to speed quickly.

TJ currently competes in the Pro Mazda series, part of the Mazda Road to Indy program, driving for Team Pelfrey.

You can follow TJ though his podcast, I Hate Racing Radio (on iTunes, Sound Cloud, or his website), and learn more about his asthma awareness campaign at ProjectO2.org, as well as www.tjfischer.com.

John Drysdale joins me to talk about his experience in his first season of amateur club racing – about what he’s learning, what’s surprised him and what hasn’t, and most importantly, what’s helping him the most. Whether you’re moving into club racing, or up from one run group to another in HPDE and track day events, John’s experience is relevant.

John lives in Nova Scotia, Canada, and races at Atlantic Motorsport Park. 2017 is his first season of competitive club racing, and he’s sharing his experience in a blog called “Four Seconds” (the amount of time he felt he needed to find to become a competitive racer).

You can follow along with John’s adventure by going to RocketRacingMotorsport.com.

Robert Pool joins me to talk about how to practice to improve your performance in anything, the book that he and Anders Ericsson wrote, and the research that Ericsson is known for worldwide. We’re talking about “deliberate practice,” the new science of expertise, and clarifying the “10,000 hour rule.” Oh, and what you hear Robert talk about will help you be a better driver (if you use what he talks about).

Robert is a science writer who co-authored the book, Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise, along with Dr. Anders Ericsson, who is considered to be the world’s leading authority on why some people excel, and others don’t.

Follow the work that Robert and Anders Ericsson are doing by going to PeakTheBook.com. And be sure to read Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise. It’s one of the three most important books ever written.

Ryan Staub joins me to talk about the fun stuff – risk and insurance for the track. Okay, that’s not all we talk about because that would be boring (but important stuff to know). We also talk about the car club scene, where younger drivers are participating in performance driving events, and the cultures that the best HPDE organizations have.

Ryan Staub is a member of the Audi Club of North America, BMW Car Club of America, Porsche Club of America, SCCA, and just about every other motorsport club you can mention. He gets around and knows his stuff. He’s also the VP - Motorsports Practice Leader of Lockton Affinity Motorsports insurance.

To learn more about Lockton Affinity Motorports, go to LocktonMotorsports.com.

Allen Berg joins me to talk about his experience racing F3 against Ayrton Senna and Martin Brundle, how he made it to Formula One, and his transition into coaching drivers today. During our conversation we share a few stories about when we raced against each other, and the similar experience we had at our first “big” drivers meetings – Allen at the 1986 Detroit Formula One Grand Prix, and mine in my first Indy car race in 1990. Of course, I ask him one of my favorite questions: What is it that the best drivers do that others don’t?

Allen and I raced against each other in our first years of racing, and then he went to Europe where he made it into Formula One, driving for the Osella F1 team in 1986. He then raced in Latin America before coming back to North America and establishing what I believe is the best open-wheel racing school in the country, Allen Berg Racing Schools.

To learn more about Allen and his school, go to AllenBergRacingSchools.com.

Terry Earwood joins me to talk about… well, a little of everything about driving: drag racing, Sebring, road racing, autocross, instructing, the Skip Barber school, teaching cops to drive, and the 39,000 drivers he’s instructed. Oh, and we laugh about the funniest things we’ve seen drivers do.

If you’ve spent any time around Terry you know this episode will make you laugh, as he’s one of the funniest people you’ll ever meet. For decades, he was the chief instructor for the Skip Barber school – now he’s one of the lead instructors, as well as helping put on driving events for BF Goodrich. In fact, Terry suggests you go to the BFG Garage at https://garage.bfgoodrichtires.com, or @BFGoodrichTires.