Me learning the rapid transition from understeer to power oversteer in the wet. That tail swings out fast! Moral of the story: go easy on the gas during those rainy days...

One of the first things I did upon getting my FD was take it to the Buttonwillow Performance Driving Clinic. Held at Buttonwillow Raceway near Bakersfield, CA, the clinic is a one-day class on how to drive fast and safely in any type of car. The first 2 hours featured a classroom session that covered basic safety and driving dynamics. Special emphasis was placed on driving smooth and on minimizing weight transfer, termed "happy patches", which refers to the contact patches of the tires. The rest of the day consisted of various exercises aimed at developing car control techniques, culminating with fun hot lapping around the track. The first exercise was a run around a dry skidpad where one learns the lateral traction limit of his or her car (you bring your own). An instructor rode along and explained what was happening. Once the driver is comfortable, he or she then forces a spin, using the handbrake if necessary, to give you the feel of losing control. After that we moved on to "Loop A" of the course where we are taught the braking zones, apexes, and gear selections are recommended. Everyone is encouraged to be conservative, slow in, fast out, and no passing is allowed initially.