Hurley brings experience and panache to the world of road racing, which is one reason he has often appeared in ads for Rolex and Porsche. More than just an image, Hurley’s racing background speaks for itself. He is perhaps the world’s most accomplished endurance-racing driver and has amassed an astounding number of wins in this most intense form of motorsport. Five wins at the 24 Hours of Daytona, three at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and two at the 12 Hours of Sebring are just a few of the most impressive statistics from Hurley’s venerable career. In 1988, he also accomplished the astounding feat of winning a Trans-Am championship behind the wheel of a four-wheel-drive sedan from a rookie team. Currently, Hurley is involved with the Brumos Racing team’s Daytona Prototype, developed for the top class in the Grand-Am Rolex series. In 2005, Hurley was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame. This incredible amount of experience, coupled with a lifelong Porsche affiliation, makes Hurley Haywood the ideal chief instructor for the Porsche Track Experience.
ACCOLADES:

Five wins at the 24 Hours of Daytona
Three wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans
Two wins at the 12 hours of Sebrings
1988 Winner of Trans-Am Championship
2005 Inductee to the Motorsports Hall of Fame

From qualifying the Pano TR on the pole position for the 12 Hours of Sebring to winning races in the IMSA GTP and GTU Series, formula cars to sports cars, Jeff proved to be a driver who could deliver results. He received Rookie of the Year honors in the Trans Am series and has three championships to his credit including an IMSA title driving a Porsche 944S2. He also scored top three finishes at the Daytona 24 Hour and the 12 Hours of Sebring. Starting out as a race mechanic and engine builder, Jeff has done stints as a race team manager, precision/stunt driver for commercials and movies, and television commentator. His teaching experience extends back seventeen years and encompasses racing and safety-training programs of his own design, including the formation of the Panoz Racing School. Throughout his diverse career in auto racing, Jeff has accumulated a wealth of knowledge and experience, which he now puts to use as Operations Manager for the Porsche Track Experience.

Cass got started in SCCA club racing while earning an engineering degree from Georgia Tech and was named Rookie National Driver of the Year in his first year of national competition. Over the past 20 years, Cass has competed in IMSA, Rolex Grand-Am and the American Le Mans series, winning many awards, races and championships. In the early 90s, Cass won the IMS^ International Sedan Touring Car Championship for Nissan, and he then went on to drive the Nissan 300ZX Turbo in the IMSA Supercar series. Along the way, he won an unprecedented three EXXON driver’s awards leading to the EXXON Driver’s Cup award. Over the years, Cass has raced and won in almost all types of road racing cars ranging from single- seaters to current prototypes. Cass finished third in the 2001 24 Hours of Daytona driving a Lola/Nissan Prototype Il car. Racing a Porsche GT3RS to three podium finishes marked an impressive year for Cass in 2002. These accomplishments proved instrumental in helping Porsche capture the Rolex Grand-Am GT class Manufacturers Championship. Cass has been instructing almost as long as he’s been racing and brings a unique perspective to our participants, born from his mechanical and technical background combined with passion and enthusiasm for racing.

Rich has been an Instructor for the Porsche Track Experience (PTX) since 2002. He joined PT bringing his prior experience as an instructor for both the Pano Racing School based at Road Atlanta and the Skip Barber Racing School. During the 90s, Rich was an active sports car racer in various series across the Southern U.S., with experience (and some wins) at tracks including Road Atlanta, Daytona, Sebring, Homestead, Roebling Road, Carolina Motorsports Park, Rockingham, Charlotte International Speedway and Virginia International Raceway. Most of Rich’s racing was in production-based sports cars. During that period, he was active in Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) as a volunteer race school instructor, autocross instructor and elected member of the Atlanta Region Board of Directors. During his 20+ years with PTX, Rich has taught and/or led all the curriculums offered by PTX from the One-Day Precision Class through the most advance programs including the various Masters classes. Rich completed Porsche’s Instructor Academy in Leipzig, Germany, in 2007, earning the designation of Lead Instructor. In addition, he has been involved as a drive instructor or trainer for every significant Porsche product launch in the U.S. since 2002, including the 918 Spyder. He has instructed in Porsche’s Road Show Programs both domestically and internationally. He has implemented and led Sports Driving Schools in Asia as well as Central America. Among his favorite assignments was instructing in Winter Driving Schools in Finland over the course of several years. Rich has also facilitated and led Travel Experience programs in the U.S. Rich’s additional background includes military service and a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from California State University at Northridge. Subsequent to college, he invested 17 years with IBM with increasing responsibilities followed by 10 years of executive experience with a successful spinoff of IBM (Lexmark International). With his array of experience in PTX and business management, he is a valuable member of the PTX Advisory Board along with Cass and Hurley.

One of our Lead Instructors here at the Porsche Track Experience, Doug comes to us with a wealth of motorsports and instructional knowledge. Having grown up literally with a wrench in his hand at his families car building business, Doug is as familiar with building racecars as he is driving them. His understanding of vehicle mechanics and dynamics, give him a multi-faceted view of how to get a car around the track quickly. From qualifying-on-pole in his first ever 1/4-Midget race at age 7, to winning Formula Drift Pro-Am Championships, to Legends Car Championships and now Dirt Late Model, Doug has won more than his fare share of races and accolades. Just a few include Hardest Charger, Pole & Fastest Lap, Rookie of the Year and Qualifier of the Year in a variety of series, cars (Formula, Stock, Drift) and surfaces (both asphalt & dirt). On the teaching side, Doug works in both the private and group instructing arenas and has done so for more years than he’ll probably admit. From time-to-time he also lends his expertise to a variety of the worlds top car manufactures, in demonstrating their prowess to both press and consumers alike. Looking into 2022, Doug will competing in the WRL Endurance Series, Crate Race’n USA Dirt Late Model Series and a few Vintage Sports Car races. While he does still enjoy laying down a smooth, straight and fast lap on the track, if going sideways and learning car-control is your thing, we’ve got just the man for the job.

On both two and four wheels, John Lewis has developed an extensive background in the motorsports industry. As a teenager, John raced off-road motorcycles winning titles on regional and national levels. With a great desire to race cars, he began his career as a mechanic and engine builder, eventually progressing to a position with the factory Dodge race team. Behind the wheel, John has proven to be a championship- level driver in a variety of racing venues from NASCAR Trucks to GT cars and, most recently, in Porsche GT3R. With over 15 years of experience as a driving instructor for some of the top racing schools in the country, John brings a diverse background to PTX.

Originally from London, Chris is known to be a very versatile racecar driver, stating that he’ll race anything with wheels. In his 30 year career, he has raced everything from open wheel formula cars to NASCAR to 800 hp Sprint cars. He has won five National championships, was victorious in over 70 feature races and earned 150 podium finishes. His professional highlights include finishing sixth in the world in the 1991 Formula Ford World Championship and dominating the 1991 H.E.A.T. Champion of Brands Hatch Series, winning 13 of the 20 races. Chris won his last race in the UK in 1992 at the International Trophy Race held at Brands Hatch. In 1993, he moved to the U.S. and, proving his versatility, was awarded NASCAR’s “Most Improved Driver of the Year” in 1998. In 2002, Chris formed his own team, Silverstone Racing Services, and captured two championships in the first two years. That team then successfully competed in the Grand Am Daytona Prototype Series in 2004. In 2006 and 2007, Chris represented the UK-built Radical sportscar, winning 18 races and culminating in another championship. Currently, Chris competitively runs two 2012 Porsche Cup race cars from his Daytona Beach race shop and competes with his clients in national PCA, POC, PBOC, NARRA and NASA enduro races all over North America. He has also become one of the leading coaches in the nation, working with amateur and professional drivers alike.

This second-generation driver followed in his father’s footsteps and began his racing career at the age of 10. He is now a proven winner with over 19 years of racing experience ranging from Formula cars to sports cars and even NASCAR Supertrucks. One of his many accomplishments includes being chosen out of hundreds to be one of the 25 young drivers in the U.S. to participate in the distinguished Team Green’s Indy Car Academy Scholarship in 1996. In 1997, at the age of 20, Owen finished in the top 10 in class in the prestigious Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona and at the 12 Hours of Sebring. With his return to road racing in the American Le Mans Series in 2001, he competed with a Chevrolet Corvette in LMGT at the 12 Hours of Sebring. Owen captured victories in 2002 and 2003 in the Rolex Sportscar Series and the Grand-Am Cup Series. Throughout his many years of racing and instructor experience, he brings a tremendous amount of knowledge along with youth and enthusiasm to the Porsche Track Experience. Owen’s passion for service and excellence is proven on and off the track.

Everything about cars and racing is Shelby’s passion and, over the years, he has dedicated himself to learning everything he can to be a better, well-rounded driver and instructor. Shelby started his racing career in the Skip Barber Racing Series, driving the formula cars and the Mazda MX-5 cup cars. These cars gave him a good foundation to continue onto the Grand-Am series and drive for such teams as Roush Performance and Fall-Line Motorsports in the GS class. Turning his attention to Formula cars, he started racing in the Mazda Road to Indy USF2000 series with Andretti Autosport. Over the next couple of years, Shelby moved up the ladder system from USF2000, ProMazda and on to Indy Lights, still with Andretti Autosport. While in the ladder system, he was given the opportunity to drive in the TUDOR Series competing in the Rolex 24 Hour at Daytona. Shelby also was able to go to Germany to race in the Nurburgring 24 Hour race in a Porsche 991. All this experience has helped shape him as a driver and instructor who helps others develop their craft and get the most out of any car they drive

Jade’s start in motorsport began at the age of 18 at PTX, which kickstarted a rapid growth from Porsche Club Racing to professional road racing in IMSA competition and Pirelli World Challenge. He competed in Porsche Club Racing until he made his debut in Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge in 2009. He went on to drive for various teams, competing in Rolex GT and driving in the prestigious 24 Hours of Daytona in the GT category three times. Jade has raced full time since 2009 in Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge and in Pirelli World Challenge with several wins and podiums to his name. Other career highlights include setting a record number of poles in a single season, obtaining six poles out of nine qualifying attempts during his 2013 season with Multimatic/Aston Martin Racing and working as a development driver on projects such as the Ford Mustang GT350R and 2017 Ford GT. He is currently competing in the IMSA Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge driving for Multimatic/Ford Performance and in Pirelli World Challenge for Racer’s Edge Motorsports.

Adam’s passion for motorsports started at an early age, regularly accompanying his father, who campaigned a wood-framed Morgan 4/4, to nearby Summit Point Raceway. Although the motorsports “hook” was set deep, it wasn’t until he graduated from George Washington University that he first got behind the wheel of a racecar. attending a school at Lime Rock Park. This experience onlv fueled the fire and evolved into a iob at the school he had attended. Over the better part of a decade. Burrows would spend his weekdavs overseeing automobile manufacturer sales training and media and event marketing programs for one of the largest racing schools in the world. On the weekends, he would hone his driving skill and racecraft in sports racers and formula cars at racetracks across the Northeast, like Watkins Glen, Bridgehampton and Mosport. After scoring championships in a variety of junior-level sprint road racing categories, and making several starts in Rolex Sports Car Series, Adam moved to endurance sports car racing full time in 2007. It was a good move, as he won the United Sportscar Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge Championship with co-driver Trevor Hopwood in their rookie season with Turner Motorsport. Following up the championship, Burrows returned to CTSCC in 2008, taking a pair of race wins and finishing second in the year-end standings, driving for Compass360 Racing. However, a career highlight was an invitation to join the factory Kia Motorsport North American racing program in 2010. Once again partnering with Hopwood, Burrows helped push the development of the Kia Forte Koup forward all year long, bringing the brand crucial race finishes and helping the team to a championship in 2011. In addition to working as a driver coach, Burrows career as a consultant in the automotive marketing industry has seen him working with scores of manufacturers through the last decade, designing and developing sales training and experiential marketing events. Burrows is also an accomplished guitar player, skier and avid adventure motorcvcle traveler.

Casey started racing go karts in his teenage years. At age 16, after two karting championships, he began driving racecars in SCCA competition in the Spec Racer Ford and Formula Mazda category. As his racing career progressed, he moved into sports car racing. Carden has stood on the podium in regional, national and pro- level competition. He spent time in MX-5 Cup, Lamborghini Super Trofeo and the Continental Tire Challenge series. Carden was the last driver to drive a Porsche 997 in IMSA competition in the Continental Tire Challenge Series. In 2008, Carden began working as a professional driving instructor. He worked for many schools before joining the Porsche Track Experience. After over a decade of experience, Carden is still sharing his passion with those who love being on the track.

Christian’s love affair with racing began at very young age. He could be seen peering through the fence at Road Atlanta watching many of his fellow instructors racing and winning. At about the age of 10, he decided that this was what he wanted to do. Christian’s racing career began while attending the University of Georgia, where he earned a degree in Economics. In the past 10 years, he has raced Vintage Formula Ford, Formula Ford and Formula Continental at the SCCA club level and Formula Ford 2000 professionally with much success. During his career, he has raced at nearly every major track in the United States. He has been instructing professionally in racing and driving schools and provided one-on-one private coaching since 1998. It is evident to his students that he loves what he does.

Sherman was brought up in Hueytown, Alabama’s active stock-car environment. After racing karts and motocross, he moved north to pursue road-racing experience. Sherman started his new endeavor with the Saab factory endurance team in the Playboy and Firehawk series with two wins in his first year. He then moved on to pure racers, including F-2000, Formula Ford, Formula Vee and Sports 2000, with wins and Championships at both U.S. and Canadian tracks. In 1989, a new opportunity with Ray Evernham Racing arose, coaching and instructing oval track drivers hoping to improve their racing skills. During the last few seasons, Sherman has been racing open wheel cars on ovals with the ARDC midgets series, road racing in Formula cars, working as a test and development driver on and off road and coaching race teams and drivers.

From a very early age, John developed a passion for motorsports as he watched Formula One races back in his native Colombia. His passion for racing grew throughout the years and after graduating from high school in Miami, FL, he was finally able to realize his dream. His stint at Skip Barber Racing School confirmed that motorsports was where he wanted to spend the rest of his life. From that point on, John was able to achieve many successes on his way to becoming a consistent winner and front-runner in the different series. Some of his achievements include Rookie of the Year in the Barber Saab Pro Series, Miami Grand Prix winner, British Formula Three front runner, Formula Renault Colombia Champion and two-time winner of the 6 Hour Race in Bogota, Colombia. Even at the age of 50, John still lives his passion on the race track by competing in the local Florida series FARA driving a Porsche GT3 and competing several times a year in his native Colombia driving a West sports car in the local GT series. His passion is evident as a racer and an instructor. His vast experience in motor racing. 16 years of racing instruction and driver coaching makes him a valuable asset to the team at PTX.

Nick began racing go karts in 1991 and competed in over 130 races over a four-year period, including winning a championship in the 100cc sprint class. In 1995, Nick moved up to Formula cars competing in the SCCA Formula Continental class and winning the Central Florida regional championship. 2000 was the debut season of professional racing for Nick, as he competed in the USF2000 pro series (ACC class), finishing third in the championship. This is also the year Nick began a career in automotive marketing and professional instructing, which he still continues to this day, working for some of the largest car companies in the world and the most well-known driving schools out there. Nick moved to endurance/sportscar racing in 2004, competing in the Grand-Am Cup series on and off for several years. Since 2005, Nick has been an instructor for Porsche at its driving school at Barber Motorsports Park and is one of its lead instructors

Steve brings a racecar engineering background to PTX. A mechanical-design engineer by profession, Steve’s background in racing and motorsport was born out of a passion for competitiveness. Steve was first introduced to go kart racing growing up in California while he was already an accomplished national-level road cyclist. Steve’s aspirations to compete in the 88 Olympics were sidelined by a knee injury. However, this setback also rekindled his passion for motorsport. Steve began racing go karts and sports cars in club events, and by the age of 22, he knew he wanted to make a career in motorsports. Steve worked as a mechanic, fabricator and engineer for several professional racing teams while earning his degree in mechanical engineering. Steve’s technical background includes working with showroom stock sedans, sprint cars, Baja desert racers, Formula Atlantic and IMSA GT cars. His personal racing success has come in the form of gearbox go karts, Formula cars and showroom stock derivatives. Now the owner of a mechanical design firm in Atlanta, Steve enjoys working with Porsche owners and enthusiasts and is eager to help them understand the technical side of their driving experience at PTX.

Michael attended and graduated from Auburn University where his discovered his passion for motorsports. While at Auburn, Michael was involved with the university’s Formula SAE Racing Team and assumed the role as the team’s Director of Marketing and Driver. After graduation, Michael has held several positions in the motorsports industry including: Track & Facility Maintenance and Operations, Event Management, Sponsorship Sales, Operations Management, Event Logistics, and Professional Driving Instruction. While working in the industry. Michael has also been active behind the wheel. Michael has been actively racing karts since 2011 at the club. regional and national level in a variety of equipment.

John started his racing career more than 30 years ago. After several years of SCCA racing in the early 80s, John saw the appeal of endurance racing and started racing a Porsche in the Firehawk Endurance series. Success at this level led to the IMSA Camel GT series where John drove for and managed a team which participated in the Rolex 24 at Daytona race for seven consecutive years. The team was rewarded with two class wins as well as many podium finishes. During this time, John also enjoyed a career in the corporate world working in Germany for the company which is now Fisher Scientific. John currently spends time on the track racing vintage cars including vintage Porsches, Chevron sports racers and Spice TP Prototype cars. John has been instructing for five years and takes great pleasure in working with and teaching students to achieve their potential as drivers.

Andre has been racing for two years and boasts a racing background as both a driver and team chief for BMW CCA Club racing and PBOC. Before that, he worked for 14 years as a Driver Education Instructor for various clubs, private coaching, and as a chief instructor.

Andrew Pinkerton is a racer from Birmingham, Alabama. His career has seen him compete in open-wheel, sportscars, prototypes, and go-karts. Racing in series like IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge, Mazda MX-5 Cup, World Racing League, SCCA, NASA Club Racing, and USAC 24-hour Go-Kart Races. His expertise extends beyond just driving, Andrew is actively a race engineer, strategist, and driver coach. Winning races and executing a successful race is a team endeavor that Andrew understands and continuously works with teammates to improve. If you don’t see his name on a timing screen as a driver look for him on top of a pit-box at any race track in the country.

As a seasoned competitor with over 20 years of experience, Aaron has fostered a positive and supportive environment for both clients and employees. Starting on two wheels as a young kid with motocross, Aaron transitioned to circle track racing as a teenager before finding his true passion in Sportscar racing. Working with Skip Barber Racing School in the early 2000’s helped the move into owning and managing Crucial Motorsports. Crucial Motorsports has a long history of supporting racers and manufacturers in the pursuit of winning. Aaron enjoys coaching drivers from the very beginning of their journey here at PTX all the way to the top levels of professional racing.

Casey Stallings lives in his hometown of Pell City, AL. He grew up in a family involved in NASCAR but was drawn to road racing at an early age and began competing in the SCCA at the age of 16. Since then, he has become an accomplished driver, earning divisional Championships in 2011 and 2013. He has also set track records at some of the most challenging courses in the U.S., including current SCCA track records at Road Atlanta and Barber Motorsports Park. Beyond racing, his career has included precision driving for film as well as tire development for Goodyear Racing. He has driven and instructed for many of the most prestigious sports car brands in the world and has offered his experience and expertise to students of the Porsche Track Experience since 2014.

Chris has spent over eight years as an instructor through both private coaching and the Porsche Track Experience USA and has racing experience that stretches 18 years. As far back as 2002, Chris was winning races and was named the Skip Barber Western Division Champion. He went on to the Formula Dodge National Championship in 2003 and 2004, followed by the Firestone Indy Lights, also in 2004. In 2005, he went on to compete in the Barber Dodge Pro Series, the Toyota Atlantic Championship and the SCCA Spec Miata National Series (which he continued to participate in for 2006 and 2007). 2008 found him as the champion of season 2 of the Speed Channel’s Racing Reality Show “Setup,” as well as a participant in the Rolex Sports Car Series GT Class. In 2009, he went on to compete in the Grand-Am Koni Sports Car Challenge, followed by appearances in the Continental Tire SportsCar Challenge ST Class in 2010 and 2011. He was named “King of the Streets” in 2011 at the Rock Island Grand Prix and “125cc Master Shifter” in 2012, 2013 and 2015. His most recent race was the ChampCar Endurance Series in 2019.

David was born into a Motorsports family. Both his mother and father were active members of the Atlanta PCA. Autocrossing and Hillclimbing led to Sportscar Racing. David, however, didn’t begin his motorsports career until the age of 35. As a student at UGA David became a stand out member of the Rugby team. Although he graduated years ago he still holds many school scoring records. Rugby led him to Boulder, CO where he found his second passion, downhill ski racing.  At the age of 34 , beat up and worn out , he returned to Atlanta and took up golf and tennis. These sports were fun but he longed for the adrenaline rush Rugby and Skiing had provided. David borrowed his brother’s FV and went to an SCCA Racing School. The die was cast. David has raced on most of the eastern tracks in a wide variety of cars. 10 years ago David became a professional instructor at PEC Atlanta and has instructed at many racing schools across the country.  He is excited to bring his talent and passion to Porsche PTX.

Doug’s racing career began in karts and quickly moved on to Formula Fords and Formula Continental. As a full-time driver in the ultra-competitive USF2000 series for three seasons, he began competing in the Grand-Am Sports Car Series and driving in Historic Sportscar Racing events across North America. His instructing career began in 1999 at the Justin Bell GT School, followed by several years as a lead instructor at the Panoz Racing School. He currently races several historically significant prototypes at major racing events and venues and instructs high-performance driving programs throughout North America.

Eli has an impressive, 31-year-long resume of racing experience. His extensive racing background consists of Vintage and Rally, Carrera Panamericana, Elf-Winfield Ecole de Pilotage, Mexican Formula K, Formula 3, Sports Prototipos Nissan, British Formula Ford and Formula Renault 93, and U.S. Indy Lights. He made the top five and podium in over 60% of his career finishes. His extensive racing experience also includes 16 years of teaching as a private coach at Premium European, American and Asian Marques and, of course, Porsche Track Experience USA.

Eric comes to PTX with a multi-faceted business and motorsports background. Growing up the son of an auto mechanic in Southern California, Eric got stung by the motor sports bug at a very early age. Drag racing, along with riding and racing motorcycles on the deserts and motocross tracks of California, dominated. However, the seed for his road racing and Porsche ownership desires was planted after attending his first road race and watching Porsches dominate. Motorsports eventually took a back seat to school, family and a career with UPS. His career at UPS spanned 30 years and included a multitude of experiences and responsibilities. While he has worked in almost all facets of the organization, it was his early days in operations and human resources that spawned his desire to work with and train people. Eric began autocrossing with the Atlanta-area PCA and SCCA, accumulating many first-in-class finishes. Road racing Porsche vehicles or sportscars followed with several first place and podium finishes at various tracks in the Midwest, Northeast and Southeast areas. His combination of business, training, motorsports and Porsche ownership experience, along with his enthusiasm to teach and work with people, help participants get the most of their PTX experience.

Geoff’s passion for motorsports began early while attending many races at the legendary Road America in the 1970’s. He was fortunate to witness Can-Am, F5000, Indycar races, with many driving legends demonstrating their unique talents. Since the early 1990’s Geoff has competed both at the club level as well as in Historic sports car races. Geoff loves competing in his vintage IMSA GTU RX7 or his Ralt RT5 Formula Atlantic. He also enjoys his role of driving instructor at various club level and track events.

Greg completed a career in the U.S. Air Force serving as a Pararescueman and Combat Rescue Officer, he accumulated over 3000 flight hours of which 100 were combat, over 1200 High Altitude jumps HALO, and was credited with saving over 270 lives. In his civilian career he coordinated the worldwide contingency medical support for NASA. The joke is he went racing to relax. He has raced Porsche’s since a teenager in California, to becoming Instructor with the Porsche Club of America, Porsche BMW Club, Audi Driving Experience and Panoz Racing School. Currently he is racing a vintage Porsche 914-6 GT.

Jack began his motorsports career in 1997, competing in SCCA Autocross Solo II. After winning many autocross events, he quickly stepped up to track day driver schools and has been hooked ever since. After three track weekends, he completed his SCCA Race School and began racing. As an amateur racer, Jack competed and held racing licenses with Sports Car Club of America, BMW CCA Club Racing and Porsche BMW Owners Club, claiming many top-five finishes. Jack currently races in the ChumpCar World Series, racing a Porsche and a BMW. Jack brings years of knowledge and experience to help build a better driver. He is the National Driving Events Chairman for BMW CCA, Chief Instructor for Heart of Dixie BMW CCA and an ambassador to the Motorsports Safety Foundation. Jack also organizes and runs Tire Rack Street Survival schools for teens, instructs and teaches classroom for many clubs weekend events and professionally coaches. He is a National Instructor with BMW CCA, PCA and PBOC, and he joined the Porsche Track Experience in 2015.

Jake comes from a family with a large background in motorsports. Both his grandfather and grandmother were accomplished race car drivers as was his father and uncles. As a result he gained his love and passion for racing at a young age. Jake began his racing career in Spec Miata where he earned numerous victories, championships, and track records. Utilizing this success and experience, he was able to drive and race many different types of cars including a Porsche GT4 Clubsport, Ligier GT4, Radical RXC prototype, BMW’s and Ferraris. He started his coaching career in 2012 and his ambition and enthusiasm to teach others has only grown!

Keith can attribute his interest in automobiles to two factors. His interest in cars was piqued when first viewing a Lamborghini Countach on the cover of Road & Track magazine. His interest in motorsports was derived from following the career of Canadian Formula One driver Gilles Villeneuve. Keith was raised in Calgary, Alberta and now lives near Toronto, Ontario. After racing go karts, Keith campaigned his own Formula Ford 1600 in Western Canada. In 1986, Keith moved to Mexico to race in the CAR series. While in Mexico, he started a 10-year relationship working as a gopher for the North American F1 races with the Williams Formula One team. 1991 saw him being accepted to the mechanic/driver training program at the Spenard-David Racing School at Shannonville, Ontario. One year later, he became a full-time employee of the newly named Bridgestone Racing Academy, where he rose to the position of assistant chief instructor. In 2000, he started a seven-year instructor relationship with the Panoz Racing School at its locations in Sebring, Texas, Road Atlanta and at Mosport. In addition, he has had opportunities to work with Saab, Audi, Lamborghini, Mercedes-Benz, VW and, until recently, was the chief instructor with the Ariel Atom Experience.

Kevin most recently competed in the Pirelli World Challenge Series in the #88 Outlier/Scion Racing Porsche Cayman in the Touring Car, or TC class. He was not only the Team’s lead driver, but also a principal in the team in charge of race operations.

He is a well known and respected motorsports veteran and one of the highest rated automotive personalities in the United States. He is a highly sought after racer, coach, driving instructor and automotive facilitator. Kevin’s impressive resume brings over 30 years of practical racing experience as well as formal education, and he is widely regarded as one of the top drivers and coaches in the country. He draws from direct experience racing a range of cars from Pirelli World Challenge, to Indy Lights, and Grand-Am sports car competition. Krauss, a former open wheel champion, has a wealth of knowledge from his extensive career. That coupled with his business acumen and formal education has served him well.

Melvin Sancho Hodges II is a native of Berkeley, California who grew up loving automobiles, cycling, and downhill skiing. He relocated to Atlanta, Georgia to attend Morehouse College, and it was while he was a student there that his love for sportscar racing led him to working on pit crews in Motorola Cup competition. After graduating with a degree in English, Hodges gained firsthand knowledge of vehicle dynamics, race craft, and team dynamics by working as a tire man, a fueler, and a jack man on pit crews in American Le Mans, Grand-Am, Grand Am Cup, and World Challenge series across the United States and Canada for three seasons. His willingness to learn and constant desire to contribute during this era gave rise to him being mentored by some of the most accomplished professionals in the industry, and to this day he has the unique ability to tap into those resources for guidance, information, or unknown details surrounding stories the masses think they know the whole of. Ever the competitor, Hodges was also racing on his own during this period, beginning in karts and ultimately in SCCA Spec Miata before hanging his racing helmet up in the mid 2000s. Since then, Melvin has used his talents to help individuals and organizations as a liaison to reach goals intertwined in the automotive space ranging from devising, introducing, and managing social media campaigns for professional racing teams, to planning and executing annual “Race Car Days” at a local school to illustrate how science, technology, engineering, art, and math (STEAM) are applied in the field of sportscar racing. Eventually, Hodges’s activities led him to the Porsche Experience Center Atlanta, where his eye for detail and performing at the highest level led to him being named Assistant Chief Instructor and an inaugural Specialist on Porsche’s New
Vehicle Delivery Team. In both roles he was handed the keys to some of The Brand’s most exclusive vehicles and guests, and his stellar record remained unblemished until his departure from the facility. Melvin is a proud husband and father of three sons, and when he is not coaching at a track, he is likely precision driving on a movie set or working as a Subject Matter Expert for major automotive manufacturers. He enjoys traveling, writing, and making connections between individuals or groups that he thinks either do have, or will have, remarkable synergy to reach new heights in whatever their pursuits are.

Mike (aka Spike) joined our ranks in February of 2014 from a somewhat different path. Spike’s instructional foundation and need for speed were developed and satisfied through a 30-year career in the United States Marine Corps (active/reserve), where he spent over 20 years flying and instructing in both the F-18 Hornet and TA-4J. He has served around the world and flown the F-18 in both land- and ship-based operations. After leaving active duty and transitioning to flying for a major airline and the USMC reserves, his passion for the sport of performance driving began in 2002 after attending a Panoz performance driving course at Road Atlanta. He continued to gain experience on the tracks in the Southeast region and has been a performance driving instructor since 2012. In 2015, Spike began to race in endurance events in a BMW 325i and in 2016 added racing in the Spec Miata series with SCCA; since then, he has continued both and plans to add vintage racing when time allows. Spike’s organizational/risk-based approach to performance driving/racing mirrors his aviation experiences/real-world operations and focuses on a foundation of education, experience and goals. His “horizon to hood” approach combined with a strong desire to aid in driver development makes for an energetic and positive approach to performance driving. Mike is ready, willing and able to assist in your desire to improve your driving skills and approach to the sport.

Nabil’s instructional foundation stems from a 30-year career instructing in the corporate sector for major retail and healthcare corporations. His career in motorsports began in 2004 when he attended his first driver’s school at Road Atlanta. One session behind the steering wheel is all it took to begin his journey. He first participated in track days with the National Autosport Association (NASA) and within 2 years became a driving instructor for NASA. He has remained an active driving instructor and coach ever since, instructing for several organizations and eventually creating one of the best instructor education programs in the nation. He started competing in Time Trials racing in 2006 and finished in 2nd place in the SouthEast region. Nabil began organizing track day events in 2008 and founded one of the nation’s premier track day clubs in 2013 receiving numerous accolades for the expert level driver instruction program it provides. Nabil is also an avid endurance racer having competed in ChampCar, World Racing League (WRL), and the American Endurance Racing (AER) series. With 36 races completed since 2016, he has been on the podium 14 times, including 3 overall wins. Nabil brings his passion for instruction and motorsports to the Porsche Track Experience.

Born and raised in Australia, Nick grew up visiting race tracks from the moment he could walk. He competed in his first kart race at the age of seven and rose through the national ranks, winning championships along the way, and eventually competed internationally for the factory Tony Kart team. Graduating from the prestigious Silverstone Race School in 2001, he went on to compete in British single-seater championships and was employed as a professional test driver and driver coach. Now with over 20 years coaching experience, Nick has been incredibly fortunate to grow his partnership with Porsche and has represented the brand globally in the U.S., Australia, and Italy. He is passionate about helping professional drivers and amateur enthusiast hone their racing skills whilst having fun and staying safe.

Orlam Sonora born in Miami, FL from Cuban parents, is fluent in English & Spanish and has 33 years experience in motorsports. Orlam started racing as a teenager and is a product of racing school training. In 1988 Competed in the Elf Winfield Pilot Elf Competition in Circuit Paul Ricard driving Formula Renault. 1990 competed in the Jim Russell racing school World scholarship Festival in Donington Park England, with 1 race win and 3 podiums & 2 fastest laps. Orlam has over 30 race wins throughout his career racing in Formula Mazda, Mexican F2, Mexican Sports Prototypes, the 24 hrs of Mexico, Mexican Touring cars, American LeMans series in the LMP2 class and Grand Am in the GT class. Orlam currently is racing in the Florida based FARA series (Formula Auto Racing Association) in a Daytona Prototype and a Radical. Orlam also has 30 years experience as a Racing Instructor and driver coach working as an instructor at Skip Barber racing school, Jim Russell racing school, Mid-Ohio Racing school, Justin Bell racing school, Start racing karting school and the Safer Driver Academy Teen defensive driving school. Orlam Sonora also has worked with every major automotive manufacturer since 1989 as a Pro-Driver, Facilitator, Product Specialist and Show Producer, helping them launch new products to the public and train dealership personnel.

Ever since he was born, Patrick Wilmot has been surrounded by racing. He first visited Road Atlanta before he was a month old, and his first few years of life were spent watching his father vintage race Shelby Mustangs and Trans-Am Mustangs all over the Southeast. Although he grew up with racing in his blood, Patrick didn’t start his racing career until he was 16. After three years of racing four-stroke karts, he moved into SCCA Club Racing, where he would race a 1984 Ford Mustang finishing top three in points in the next four years. In 2012, he became a professional instructor for Skip Barber Racing School one-on-one driving coach. Patrick joined the Porsche family in 2014 and currently races professionally in Pirelli World Challenge.

Pippa started racing go karts at age 13 and competed in various categories for seven years, including racing at the FIA Formula A European and World Championships and the Suzuka World Cup. Pippa is the only British female with an international karting win to her name. In 2005, Pippa moved into open wheel and spent two seasons in Formula Renault before graduating to World Series by Renault in 2007. Over the next two years, Pippa became the first female driver to score points and earn a pole position in series history. In 2008, she finally had her first taste of Porsches, adding three Carrera Cup UK race weekends to her resume before moving to the U.S. to continue in open wheel in 2009. She is one of two female race winners in Indy Lights history the only female pole position winner at IMS in any category, and she holds the record for the most poles by a female driver in a single season of Indy Lights. In 2011, she made her first Indianapolis 500 start and now has four additional Indianapolis starts to her name. She is currently listed as the second-fastest female qualifier of all time. Pippa continues to race at the Indianapolis 500 and, over the past three years, has added broadcasting, coaching and instructing work to her name.

Back in high school I took auto mechanics as a vocation and have been passionate about cars ever since. After working in both repair shops and car dealerships, I moved from St. Charles, IL. to Florida in 1973. I began working in the construction industry, and obtained my General Contractors license but missed being involved with cars. I got Involved in motor sports in 1988 and won several races with numerous podiums as well. I have continued racing, teaching, and coaching ever since. Having been involved with many various car manufacturers over the years thru high performance track days as well as facilitating, my skills cover a wide range of areas. My passion shows in my work ethic and character.

Beginning his winning ways in SCCA Solo II and Porsche Parade National Driving Events, R.L. accumulated Regional and Divisional titles that led to sponsorship by one, then another, international tire manufacturer. He built and set-up cars that brought him top five National Championship finishes, then the National Championship to his team, in a Porsche 968. Being the first to compete in a Porsche Boxster, R.L. and his Boxster were featured on a nationally televised auto show. As a road racing competitor with Porsche Club of America Racing, he has raced his 944, 944S and 944S2 to class lap records at Barber Motorsports Park and Road Atlanta. A threat in any race he enters, he has a 44% winning percentage and has finished on the podium in 69% of his races. R.L. is the only two time Southeast Division Champion in the Porsche 44SuperCup series, and the only repeat champion. As a PCA Club Racing mentor and instructor, R.L. uses his excellent communication skills to help less experienced racers and drivers excel. He’s now ready to share his knowledge and techniques with the participants of the Porsche Track Experience.

Tiresa’s love of cars began at a young age as she spent time with her father in the garage, at motorsports events, and going for high-speed thrill rides. In her teens, she began drag racing. She has been on an autocross course so many hours that she has earned the nickname “AutoX Queen.” Her first time on a road course was at Barber Motorsports Park; she knew immediately she had found a new passion. Many years, many tracks and several track cars later, Tiresa enjoys sharing that passion for motorsports through driver instruction and club racing. She also participates in teen driver training schools, manufacturer’s representative trainings and motorsports-related charity events.

Todd grew up in Anchorage, Alaska, where he first competed on two wheels racing motocross. A terrible accident shifted him to four wheels, where he started racing a Formula V. With little knowledge, he did quite well, and that landed him in California, where he attended the Jim Russell Racing School at the historic Laguna Seca racetrack. After competing in their highest series (Russell Pro Mazda Series) and finishing second in the championship, he moved to Connecticut where he worked as an instructor for the Skip Barber Racing School for over 21 years. While there, he raced in the highly competitive Barber Dodge Pro Series where he came up short of the championship two years in a row (second place). He narrowly missed the championship by just four points the first year and seven points the following year. From there, Todd was able to compete in select events in the Indy Lights Championship in 2000 (Scott Dixon was the champion that year) and also shifted his attention to sports car racing. Todd has raced a variety of sports cars over the years in the Continental Tire Challenge Series and the Rolex Series (now the Weathertech Series). He recorded wins at Daytona, Sebring and Watkins Glen with podiums at many other events. Todd continues to share his passion for the sport by teaching others how to improve their driving and/or racing skills. In the last few years, he has also moved into an officiating role as a race director for IMSA, where he manages several of the single make series that IMSA sanctions. In 2016, Todd was the race director for the highly competitive Porsche GT3 USA Championship.

After graduating with a degree in business management, Jeff started his career in the airline industry. He quickly realized the “Racing Industry” would have a more stable platform in which to promote a career. Fortunately, Jeff found a career in the automotive and driving school industry in 1991 as the manager of the Road Atlanta and Panoz Racing School. Very quickly, Jeff got the “bug” and started racing in 1992. In his very first year of racing, he won his SCCA region championship in the very competitive spec racer class. Jeff raced in various show room stock classes over the next few years but focused most of his time and energy on building the driving school. In 1999, Jeff started his own business and developed and managed the Saab Aero Academy at Road Atlanta from 1999 to 2008. During that time period, Jeff was also director of corporate events for the Panoz Racing School. Jeff has been teaching off and on since 1992 for various driving schools and manufacturers. Jeff worked with the Porsche Driving Experience when it first started in the U.S. at Road Atlanta until 2005, when he started a family, which required more of his time at home. Now that Jeff’s son is older, he is able to travel more and has enjoyed working regularly for the Porsche Track Experience for the past few years.

Jay is the Porsche Track Experience off-pavement specialist. His varied background brings not only technical off-road driving skills but also high-speed driving techniques on loose surfaces. After attending an off-road school, Jay was hooked on teaching, exploring new terrain and developing new driving and recovery techniques. If you want to learn how to take a Cayenne to Moab on the Rubicon trail or drive a Carrera 4S fast on loose surfaces, snow or ice, Jay’s instruction will give you the skills you need. Jay’s passion for off-pavement driving and instructing dates back over 13 years. During that time, he taught for the military, the Tim O’Neal Rally School and provided professional training services to Porsche and other manufacturers in North America and Europe.

From an early age Charles has had a love of automobiles and motorsports. In his childhood years his passion was fueled by car magazines and motor racing on TV with a special interest in Formula One. As a young adult he purchased a BMW 2002, which he auto-crossed and was a founding member of the Blue Ridge Chapter of the BMW Car Club. A few years later he restored a 1972 BMW 3.0CS which he drove in his first on-track education experience. He has owned many performance automobiles including Porsches, BMWs and a Ferrari, most of which have been driven on a race track. Charles is a graduate of the Skip Barber Formula Racing School and raced in the Skip Barber Formula Series for several seasons. He campaigned a BMW M3 in Club Racing for several seasons and is a class winner. He has owned and tracked multiple Porsches including his current GT3 RS. He is currently Chief Instructor for the Northeast Chapter of the Porsche Club of America where he enjoys instructing and coaching at a variety of tracks in the US and Canada.

A Southern California native, Kyle has been racing for over 29 years and still races competitively at racetracks throughout the U.S. He started at the young age of 18 racing 130 MPH ZIP Superkarts on some of the most famous tracks in the western United States. After winning the 1989 Bridgestone Superkart Championship, Kyle went on to try his hand at Formula cars, competing in the Bridgestone Formula 2000 Canadian series. After a successful run in Formula cars, Kyle then found a calling as a professional driving instructor working for many of the famous schools including the Marlboro Racing School with team Penske. Kyle’s path in racing took him to wherever an opportunity would show itself, tuning a wheel in everything from Sports Car Endurance Racing, Formula cars and NASCAR Trucks, to name a few. He has driven on everything from ovals to road courses and even in the California desert. Kyle’s last professional race series was in the Pan American Indy Lights, where he ran with former Formula One drivers. The Indy Cars series raced in Mexico on famous racetracks like the Formula One track in Mexico City. Kyle is still very active in the racing community, working as a driving instructor/coach, and currently runs a 750 HP GT-­-1 car at the club level. Kyle tested For Richard Childress Racing (RCR) last year in a Camping World Truck at Rockingham Speedway and was in the USA Network show.

Joe has had a fascination with all things automotive since before he can remember. As a youngster, his father introduced him to racing, attending events at Firebird and Phoenix International Raceway. When he was 12 years old, he got his first ride in a Porsche and was instantly hooked. As soon as he could afford it, Joe purchased his first Porsche and began competing at local autocross and time trial competitions. He moved on to SCCA and Porsche Club racing, winning races wherever he went. During this time, Joe discovered his passion for teaching high-performance driving to other enthusiasts. He has been providing in-car instruction for over 15 years and was honored to be added to the PTX team in 2012. When he is not teaching for PTX, Joe may be found coaching drivers and racers around the country or playing at tracks near his Colorado home in his 100k+ mile Porsche GT3.

Rod’s racing and instructing career is a direct result of his attendance at the Porsche Driving Experience at Road Atlanta when the program began in 1999. Many returns to PDS as well as attending the Panoz Racing School have led to years behind the wheel competing and winning races in a wide variety of race cars. Rod instructed at the original Porsche Driving Experience as well as the Panoz Racing School, Audi Driving Experience and the Ford Racing School. Rod has been a competitive athlete all of his life and was recently inducted into his high schools sports hall of fame.

Born and raised in Barcelona, Spain. Axel began karting as an early teenager with some successful races, and then moved in to regional races in the Renault Clio Cup in Spain. The hobby turned into a lifestyle worldwide teaching and coaching on all 5 continents dealing with challenging nationalities. Axel has provide precision and stunt driving international for publicity industry for 20 years. Worked for BMW and Maserati as an instructor in Spain. Has been an International certified Porsche AG instructor in Leipzig for worldwide programs. Regularly instructs in PTX highest driving programs, Winter Experience for 15 years in Finland and Canada, including GT3 Cup Car Racing experience programs specially adapted with rally studded tires and adventure tours on the Porsche Travel Club experiences in Africa.

Geoffrey’s 20 years of racing experience began at the age of 10 with Kart racing, which continued until he was 16 and graduated to sports cars. He competed in the SCCA spec Miata, HSR in Porsche cars and the 911 RSR at Daytona (where he placed 2nd overall in 2006). Along with his racing experience is 15 years of private coaching at the Porsche Experience Center, Panoz Racing School and Porsche Track Experience USA. He has also worked with Porsche as the former operations manager and as the assistant chief driving instructor at Porsche Experience Center Atlanta.

Kevin’s love for all things automotive goes back to watching the auto-x events his mom used to take him to as a kid. Back then it was simply free entertainment, but little did his mom know it was laying the foundation for an exciting career path. A precision driver and instructor for the past 10 years, Kevin’s experience extends beyond the racetrack to include off-road driving and rally driving: While only traveling at a walking pace in many 4×4 vehicles, an entire science lies in understanding the vehicle’s capabilities and sound driving techniques to drive it safely through difficult terrain; in rallying, being able to constantly adjust to changing conditions, control a vehicle at high speed on a loose surface and drive with confidence on an unknown road places unique demands on a driver. Having started competing in regional stage rallies in 2005, Kevin has several top-three finishes to his credit. When not actively competing in rally events, Kevin keeps his car control skills sharp by driving in local ice time trials and instructing at the Team O’Neil Rally School. Whether leading a group of 4x4s through the treacherous Rubicon Trail, introducing a new vehicle to market or piloting a rally car down a slippery stage road, Kevin’s diverse background is an asset to any team.