It’s a Minefield Out There
The results of tough economic conditions, the increasing number of cars on the road, and the rapidly deteriorating condition of roads, streets and highways has meant that more people are in a hurry, driving while distracted, taking outrageous chances to get through traffic, and are being less courteous than ever before.

Real-world Experience Over Computer Simulation
The Internet makes it easy to attend driver safety or defensive driving classes is order to obtain discounts from
auto insurance companies and even to wipe your driving record clean of a minor traffic infraction. Not without merit, these courses provide the basics for beginners and those needing a refresher course. If you commute in heavy traffic regularly and feel you need an edge out there protecting yourself from "Road Warriors" and other distracted drivers who multitask at highway speeds, developing invaluable accident-avoidance skills in a low risk environment is a bonus while participating in a fun sport called autocross.

A Safe, Controlled Environment
Despite the fact that you have mastered Burnout Paradise on your Xbox 360, nothing replaces the experience of real-world exercises perfecting emergency maneuvers. Instead of routinely taking your car out at night on a deserted road and practicing doing doughnuts, and learning to control the trajectory of front-wheel, rear-wheel, and four-wheel power skids, a safer, more effective way to hone skills beyond
defensive driving is by participating in autocross.

Learn How You and Your Car Respond
Autocross emphasizes car handling and driver skill where you can use your every-day commute car in a timed event around a circuit of orange cones, making tight turns, slaloming, accelerating and braking to finish without knocking over any cones in as short a time as possible. The sport does not involve wheel-to-wheel racing with other competitors on the track, it is very safe and can be enjoyed by anyone of driving age. One lap on a typical autocross courses take forty to seventy seconds to complete, and with an array of closely-spaced turn elements to improve reaction time and coordination, it ramps up your driving skills, gets the senses heightened, and the blood pumping.

More Than Defensive Driving
Injuries and damage to vehicles is rare while providing a hands-on method to learn the driving and maneuverability characteristics of your car on surfaces as varied as parking lot asphalt, concrete airfield apron, dirt or gravel, and either dry or wet. As you master each autocross element, you will get to know what your car feels like when it is slightly out of control and practice methods of regaining control. Mastering the art and science of braking, making sudden turns, and maneuvering around objects will strengthen your armamentarium of real-world defensive driving skills, while you learn to dominate the course.


Respond to and Avoid Danger Automatically

Defensive driving involves keeping an eye on
the other driver, predicting his next move, and not being there when he makes it. Time on the autocross course is well-spent since it trains your body to react when an obstacle pops into your way, or to anticipate the unexpected. You often don’t have time to think about it, and if you have practiced similar maneuvers on the course, in a real situation your body will react almost automatically. Your muscles will remember what to do. You will remember how your vehicle feels when it loses rear traction on a curve and how to correct it automatically. The skills you learn while enjoying the challenges of autocross are the same ones that can keep you safe when a cell-phone-distracted account rep runs a stop sign into your path.