Ford has cut the proverbial ribbon on a new Performance Racing School at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in North Carolina. The new school will be the home of the GT500 Track Attack, a new class dedicated exclusively to the just-as-new Shelby Mustang GT500, and owners of the Shelby GT500 will have complimentary access to the school.
On top of that, Ford will provide loaner models of the GT500 for use on the track as part of the deal. On the other hand, you'll have to pony up for travel and room accommodations. For more information on how to register for a class, you can visit Ford’s official Performance Racing School website.
Two locations instead of one
Ford has made no bones about its plans to open a new performance school headquarters in the East Coast to complement the existing Ford Performance Racing School that’s been open for more than 10 years at the Utah Motorsports Campus.
It makes sense from a logistics standpoint, especially for those that live on the East Coast. With the opening of the Ford Performance Racing School at the Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, North Carolina, those who live on the East Coast won’t have to travel all the way to Utah to get the full school experience.
The Ford Performance Racing School experience
Ford Performance will eventually build up its class programs. The GT500 Track Attack will be the first school to open in the new location, and those interested will be immersed in a variety of sessions, including traditional classroom time, road course exercises, and of course, the always sought-after drag race experience. The curriculum is warranted, especially for a car like the Shelby Mustang GT500. Demonstrations on the muscle car’s capability will be a part of the experience. More importantly, you get to learn how to use and properly control the muscle car.
The Shelby Mustang GT500 is the kind of car owners need to learn how to drivel
There’s a reason why Ford is opening up a class that specifically teaches students how to properly drive — and race — a 2020 Ford Shelby Mustang GT500. The muscle car is a savage, both on the road and the track.
The engine is mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission that sends all that power to the two rear wheels. With that setup, the Shelby GT500 can sprint from 0 to 60 mph in a mind-bending 3.3 seconds and hit a quarter-mile in less than 11 seconds. Needless to say, it’s the kind of car you can’t just hop into and expect to know how to properly handle and drive. It’s easy to mishandle, so knowing how to properly drive should be a priority among new owners of the model.
That’s why the GT500 Track Attack is the first class that will be offered at the new Ford Performance Racing School in North Carolina. Not only will instructors teach you how to properly launch the car, but they’ll also discuss and demonstrate ways of proper braking, cornering, and the car’s overall driving dynamics. You’ll also be immersed in the muscle car’s multitude of driving settings. In total, the 2020 Shelby Mustang GT500 comes with five programmed driving modes:
-* Normal
-* Sport
-* Drag
-* Track
-* Slippery
The entire class can be accomplished in a single day but if you want to stick around for another day, you can spend time with a Mustang GT Performance Pack at an extra cost. Let’s not get it twisted, though. The opening of the Ford Performance Racing School in North Carolina is big news because of the first class it’s offering, one that’s specifically tailor-made for the mighty Shelby Mustang GT500.
There are other model-specific racing schools all over the U.S. and Canada
It's not the only school of its kind in North America. The Ron Fellows Performance Driving School is an exclusive two-day program that teaches you how to drive different versions of the Chevrolet Corvette sports car. The Chevrolet Camaro Driving Academy in Vancouver, Canada has a similar program. Other performance car brands like Lamborghini, Ferrari, and BMW all have similar driving schools scattered across the U.S. and Canada.
These schools offer different classes and programs that cater specifically to a certain model, but the all-around objective remains the same.
Some of us already have an idea on how to properly drive performance cars like the Shelby Mustang GT500, but for those who don’t have the cursory skills or wherewithal to handle such a powerful car, racing schools like the new Ford Performance Racing School in North Carolina are ideal places to get your feet wet and learn how to unlock your machine’s full potential.