Develop Handling Skills from the Track to the Street at the Porsche Experience Center in Atlanta
Before we hit the track, we got to tour the facilities. I just stood in awe at the cars that awaited us.
With different driving experiences, find the cars or SUVs that match your performance handling needs. Which one catches your eye? Photo Credit: Porsche
Enter Porsche heaven!
Driving up to the Porsche Experience Center in Atlanta is breathtaking and impressive. Its presence and bold, clean linear design captivates your senses. After approval at the gate and parking upfront, walking up to the Cayennes lined up outside gave me such a rush. Walking through the front door, you’re immersed in this learning facility with history at every turn.
Hey, look, mom! I made it to the Porsche Experience Center!
We were there to hone in on our driving skills and cultivate us into better drivers with an appreciation for performance handling. (It also helps being a big Porsche fan, but it makes it that much different once you’ve put these cars and SUVs to the test at the track. More on that soon!) Porsche is stylish, sleek, clean, intriguing, sophisticated, and luxurious. I also admired their passion for developing skills on the track and having an empowering stance on getting us women to get comfortable with each part of the track. This isn’t a race track, but rather, a way to help you feel confident and informed when you hit the streets in your own car.
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Inside the heritage gallery & more
With historic Porsches on display from classics to race cars, there is something to catch your eye on the way inside. That Miami Blue is my favorite!
It’s official: I’m forever in love with that Miami Blue. Now where are my keys? :)
There’s a wall with scaled and historical model Porsches. The Pink Pig from Le Mans is one of our favorites, so I had to snap a pic.
Keep your hands to yourself, but enjoy the close view of these race cars. Bring a piece of Porsche home shopping the apparel, accessories, and other spoils on your wishlist. Photo Credit: Porsche
I’m sure my husband over at Rev Match Media wouldn’t mind our home decor to include some Porsche race cars. What do you think? Photo Credit: Porsche
Dining with a view of the track and the planes while they take off from the Atlanta Airport. It’s decadence that matches the iconic Porsche brand. Photo Credit: Porsche
Arugula salad, pan seared salmon, and assorted mini pastries for dessert? Check, check, check. It was a delicious hosted lunch!
After all of the Instagram photography was done and done, we finally could dig into these tiny morsels. Guess which one was my favorite!
Inside, there were race cars on display in the Heritage Gallery and a gift shop with stuffed bears to apparel and custom color ways for your Porsche keys. Upstairs, Restaurant 356 created and delivered a delicious three course meal, where we enjoyed the track with a view. Fun fact: this restaurant is named after Porsche’s first model: the Porsche 356. We could watch the mid-and-rear engine Porsches moving through the handling circuit and into the dynamics area. You can’t drive hungry, so after lunch, we split into two groups for the simulator lab and the tracks outside.
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Gamers, it was my first time with this setup, and I didn’t do too bad. I can see why the professional drivers train extensively for their races. You get better with each lap!
Video games are great track practice
With the simulation, we got familiar with driving on a track. I race with my husband with our video games, so it felt second nature to me. Following the lines and accelerating at certain points helped me pull into first for our simulated race session. Although I didn’t have the top race time from our conference group, overall 3rd isn’t too bad. I blame it on the crash at the beginning, but I also take ownership of not accelerating once out of the turns when approaching a straightaway. Well, my coach taught me a lot once I hit the track! I was just happy to be there and improve with whatever tips the coach could help me actualize.
If I hadn’t crashed or took my sweet time on some of those curves, I might’ve had a better time. Guess it is back to the video games for me to practice! :)
It’s your automotive ginger in the Porsche Experience Center’s Turbo room! Clearly, I was fangirling.
With an open mind, I hit the track for the first time ever. I didn’t know what to expect when driving on a track, but I am grateful I went into it full-heartedly. Never been on a track before either? Is your husband a big Porsche fan? This track experience would be an awesome gift for any occasion: holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, etc. It would certainly be well received if it was a ‘just because’ kind of gift, too.
I know my husband would’ve loved to have joined up with us! He would’ve been proud when I sat into the classic silver 911 Carrera S and adjusted comfortably into position. My coach told me what to expect, the rules, and emphasized it was important to have fun. This made me smile. I was about to change my perspective on driving forever and feel more confident stepping off the track.
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What to expect
With six aspects, each area helps you develop a new skill and polish what you already know. Photo Credit: Porsche
The 1.6-mile circuit has six aspects, and the first 5 were experienced in the 911 Carrera S and 718 Cayman GTS . On my first run, this high-powered rear engine car felt in control of the road and hugged each curve like a glove. On this asphalt playground, we got to learn by doing and hit the track quickly without waiting for further instruction. With a one-on-one coach experience, I learned the “why’ behind how the car responded, what I could’ve done to improve the reaction, and helped me work through the next run. Taking off, the 1 mile handling circuit warmed me up to trusting myself, the Porsche, and my coach’s instructions. This helped me get used to those winding roads, but with ease and reassurance with each lap.
The Kick Plate can be challenging, but it’s worth the extra practice. Are you prepared to react and adjust successfully? Stay safe out there. Photo Credit: Porsche
After I got comfortable not using brakes around the track, and instead, discovered I could hug the lines a bit tighter with better handling and control. I felt one with the car after a couple of laps. I hit the kick plate, where the car goes over the plate and kicks you left or right randomly. This simulates what its like when you skid or spin, so you can learn how to correct and steer into it and out into safety driving forward. I enjoyed this part, because it helped me overcome my fear of driving in the rain. I feel more confident with what to look for, how to ease off the brakes and gas, and handling the steering wheel to get the car to react the way I need it to in order to recover.
The slaloms were one of my favorite aspects of the track. Taking this part fast and precise is worth the trust you put into the drive and your coach. Photo Credit: Porsche
I’ll admit that the dynamics area with the launch control and slaloms were one of my favorite parts of the track. I enjoyed taking wide turns around the cones, while maintaining a rhythm with the speed to weave in and out without moving a cone in sight. After feeling connected to the track in this first car, we switched it up and met our second coach. I hopped into the mid-engine 718 Cayman GTS in a vibrant yellow, and I had felt something different about this one. The weight felt more centered from where I sat in the car, and it responding a lot differently to the way I drove. It felt like I morphed into the movie Cars and was one of the race cars.
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This gives you a glimpse of the handling circuit in reverse. Photo Credit: Porsche
My coach couldn’t believe how quickly I picked up handling the mile circuit, slaloms, launch control, and low speed kick plate attempts. He said I was a natural and he felt confident in my driving skills, so headed over to the low-friction handling circuit. This polished concrete surface with tight curves with on-and-off camber corners ignited such a thrill into my drive. I significantly improved from my simulation race to the first car on the track to this car. I preferred the handling of the Cayman, and my coach enjoyed me taking those corners confidently and swiftly.
Porsche engineers these cars to take turns at various measuring curves, so you can experience the car’s responsiveness. Photo Credit: Porsche
This particular area of the track doesn’t have the same measuring twists and turns, so when you’re driving, you’re reacting to these changes as you go and correcting when need be. Since it is so tight and requires a quick, smooth reaction, it made my day to know I could drive the hell out of that Cayman. Again, let me reiterate that this is not a race track, but my coach wanted me to test my abilities and the car responsiveness to different driving conditions and courses.
After that, we spent the remaining time on the wet, low-friction circle. It felt liberating to drift the Porsche with a combination of throttle and steering. Adjusting as you go, it’s easy to get started, but it takes a finesse that would require more practice on my behalf. However, it was exhilarating to test the over-steer capabilities on the wet polished concrete.
Think your SUV can take these angles like the Porsche Cayenne? Take a look at the independent suspension in action here on the off-road course.
off-roading in the cayenne
Switching gears, we joined a drive partner with a different coach, who took us to the off-road circuit. This is separate from the track and within it, which was built for testing the engineering and safety technology behind the Cayenne’s capabilities. I have never been sideways, up so high, and angled so forward, let alone teetering on 3 wheels in off-road conditions. I am amazed at the independent suspension, which allows the Cayenne to maneuver different terrain, weather conditions, and angles without giving into the elements.
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I’ve test driven other off-road SUVs and trucks, but this one takes the cake for me. Living in Texas, you have to keep an eye out for flash floods. With the door seals and technology to keep water out of the Cayenne, it not only pushes water away from it in 19” of water, but it also helps you stay dry without water flooding the cab. With the various camera views, drive modes, and the personal security felt from driving this off-road instilled the need for an SUV like this in my life. Learning how to drive in these harsh conditions through the coach driving in the Cayenne, it gave me an appreciation for what I could do if I were encountering these on my own.
Thanks Porsche for hosting us during our Porsche Experience Center in Atlanta visit! We had a blast.We appreciate you empowering women to feel confident, inspired, and excited to take control of her drive.
the perfect gift for a porsche lover
If you’re seeking to feel more confident in your everyday driving, purchase a Porsche, or try something new with a loved one, visiting the Porsche Experience Center in Atlanta, Georgia, is one I’d highly recommend. It gives you the savvy skills to drive safely even if you skid or spin in inclement weather. Moving from Florida to Texas, this is a big boost in how comfortable I feel driving in icy conditions versus how I felt about driving beforehand. Experiences range from $365-$975, depending on your personalized drive experience and lasts 90 minutes.
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buy a porsche, live the experience
If you purchase your own Porsche, whether it is a sporty 718 Cayman GTS or a luxurious off-road Cayenne to drive through the Texas Greenbelt, did you know you can schedule a special new car delivery onsite here? Oh, yes! Porsche is all about creating experiences. Buy a Porsche, pick it up with an unveiling, and you can even test your purchased model on the track before you go home in yours. Although you won’t be driving your new Porsche on the track, driving one just like it will help sweeten the deal when you get on the drive home.
You can bet this will be a future car purchase. I am ready to handle this and that on the road. Are you ready to take the experience?
drive smarter with new, improved skills for daily driving
While purchasing is on the back burner for me at this time, I am full of excitement and inspiration. Leaving Atlanta, I’m grateful to experience this with my fellow A Girls Guide to Cars journalists, and I invite you to invest in your own driving development at the Porsche Experience Center.
Thank you for hosting us & the swag!
We received the coffee mug in a swag bag. I purchased the enamel pins and the cute ducky for my son.
Disclaimer: This is a paid opportunity with Porsche and A Girls Guide to Cars. They hosted our media drive and lunch. All opinions and thoughts are my own.