Hi! My name is Pinocchio. I am so named because I have severe peripheral neuropathy. Essentially, I cannot feel or move any part of my body below my knees. Without braces, I walk with a marionette's gate - like a puppet on strings - else my feet drop when I walk and I fall down. Because I cannot move my ankles, feet, and toes, I push down and lift up my feet using my thigh and hamstring muscles. I "locate" my right foot on the peddles using sensations in my knee joints; think of a blind person compensating for the lack of visual input by developing super sensitive hearing.
I use only my right foot when I am driving so manual shifting is out. I could do it, but it would be pretty tough to know where my right foot is, if i didn't hold my left foot still and on the floor: something to do with how I know where my feet are in physical space. Thankfully, Porshe's PDK system is absolutely incredible, and I manage to negotiate Thunderhill Raceway at a considerable pace...catching and passing numerous other beginning drivers at a recent HPDE put on by the Audi Club of North America, Golden Gate Division (A great group of people, by the way).
I am a beginning high performance driver and a first time Porsche owner. My second, 3-day, HPDE event is coming up in April at Thunderhill Raceway. My goals are to perform smoother pedal and steering inputs and to turn in a little sooner or use trailing brakes, its up to my instructors, to nail the apexes.
You have heard of mid-life-crisis Porsche purchases. Well, my 718 Cayman S was a response to a late-life-crisis. I have wanted a Porsche since I was 16 years old. I guess 50 years is long enough to wait. I am 67 years old and live on the Monterey Bay in Northern California. I think I will be driving HPDE events regularly. Eventually, I want to be able to run Laguna Seca - a nearby race course where, unlike Thunderhill Raceway, walls are a very real issue. I cannot afford to have my daily driving car smacking into barriers.
Dog Speed
I use only my right foot when I am driving so manual shifting is out. I could do it, but it would be pretty tough to know where my right foot is, if i didn't hold my left foot still and on the floor: something to do with how I know where my feet are in physical space. Thankfully, Porshe's PDK system is absolutely incredible, and I manage to negotiate Thunderhill Raceway at a considerable pace...catching and passing numerous other beginning drivers at a recent HPDE put on by the Audi Club of North America, Golden Gate Division (A great group of people, by the way).
I am a beginning high performance driver and a first time Porsche owner. My second, 3-day, HPDE event is coming up in April at Thunderhill Raceway. My goals are to perform smoother pedal and steering inputs and to turn in a little sooner or use trailing brakes, its up to my instructors, to nail the apexes.
You have heard of mid-life-crisis Porsche purchases. Well, my 718 Cayman S was a response to a late-life-crisis. I have wanted a Porsche since I was 16 years old. I guess 50 years is long enough to wait. I am 67 years old and live on the Monterey Bay in Northern California. I think I will be driving HPDE events regularly. Eventually, I want to be able to run Laguna Seca - a nearby race course where, unlike Thunderhill Raceway, walls are a very real issue. I cannot afford to have my daily driving car smacking into barriers.
Dog Speed
