2005-2006
Daniel enjoyed a wonderful shift in focus to more coaching. He is among the regular teaching staff
at the Porsche Sport Driving School (PSDS-USA) in Birmingham, and
split time between that track and Road Atlanta, where he continues
to teach in the Panoz schools. Private coaching fills every
other day. Daniel co-drove in PCA Endurance races with his students, and coached competitors in PBOC and NASA, as well. During test sessions with his clients' cars, Daniel drove below records at many tracks. He continued to set-up his clients' cars, with the reward of faster lap times for the owners. Daniel's drivers range from up-and-coming young brothers, to a number of accomplished club racers and professionals.
As well, Daniel has Porsche street car owners whom he helped with defensive driving and braking techniques so they could truly enjoy driving their cars.
2003-04
The 2003 and 2004 seasons
were about the gift of friendship resonating long after the
sound of a race has faded away. 2003 began with great excitement. Daniel
joined Jeff Wade to race "Vision II," his beautiful 2003 Cup Car in the Grand
Am series. Jeff had sponsorship from Showtime. The team spent
the early spring getting the car ready. The first Grand Am race
was Homestead. Jeff had not been feeling up to par, and learned
within days of the race that he had brain cancer. The men set
racing aside while Jeff underwent aggressive treatment, with
the goal of returning to the track in 2004. In October of 2003,
Jeff was in remission and drove Vision for the last time, at
Savannah. As 2004 approached, Jeff continued to fight hard against
the disease and think positive: he ordered a new 2004 Cup Car!
He and Daniel watched the start of the Grand Am season with sadness,
but with hope for Jeff's recovery. Jeff died on June 22nd, 2004.
We miss him terribly. No racing experience can ever match the
joy of friendship, for which Daniel is so grateful. See In Memory
of Jeff Wade
2002
We started the season with Max III, the 2002 GT3 Cup car, running the stock engine and transmission and competing against other new cars already sporting upgraded equipment. Given the setbacks of September 11th, we did not compete as much as hoped. Still, the World Challenge GT series brought great exposure, a good time, and continued accomplishment.
The season opener at Sebring meant carnage. Skillful maneuvering keep Daniel clean of the wreckage and he zoomed into 4th place, where he drove hard until the Audi, Saleen, Acura, BMW and Corvette resumed lead positions (note: no Porsches). We were particularly pleased though, that while the field was generally way slower than in qualifying (e.g., Galati, minus 2.357), Daniel performed at only .3 seconds behind qualifying pace. A highlight of the weekend was Speed's "Meet the Starts" autograph/interview event. Hundreds lined up for autographs while the commentator interviewed Daniel, and others, as they penned away.
Lime Rock is always fun, but not when other drivers play nasty. At the start, a 928 Porsche dive-bombed Max III as they zoomed into Turn 1. The hit knocked Daniel back a couple of positions, and left Max III stuck behind a big 'ole Corvette that hogged the track for several laps. After passing the Vette, Daniel chased down and passed the offending 928, but by that time the gap between the leaders and the rest of the field had blossomed. Daniel brought it home in 13th place. A joy within the weekend was reaffirmation that Max III and Daniel consistently outperform GT3 Cup cars that have upgraded engines and re-geared transmissions.
We closed out the Season with a terrific run at Road Atlanta, our home track. The race started with excitement -- Lap 1, Turn 1 – a big ole yellow corvette knocked Daniel into an off-track spin. While the field was full-course yellow for another first lap incident, Daniel swung into pits, got team clearance, and headed back out. His awesome effort brought him all the way back from last into tenth place by checkered flag.
2001
2001 was fun! We continued World Challenge GT competition,
driving at Dallas, Sebring, Lime Rock, Laguna and Atlanta
(twice).
This year, the best show was Lime Rock. First, visualize picturesque
Lime Rock, bathed in a three-day rain. Crews slogged through
a muddy infield all weekend. Die-hard fans outlasted the showers
and dotted the hills with picnic blankets when the sun broke
through on Monday. Speedvision had cancelled Saturday's qualification
due to the weather, so we had Monday morning qualifying at
9:30 a.m., landing the 11th spot in grid with only one practice
session
under Daniel's belt before the 12:00 p.m. green flag.
The standing start disintegrated into a full-course yellow
when a Corvette flipped in front of Daniel. Our in-car camera
shows
Daniel's swerve to miss the bouncing tires, as the Corvette
settles in the dust. On the restart, after disruption when
a BMW and
Corvette in front of Daniel took each other out, Daniel fell
into pace some distance behind, Justin Jackson, driving a 2001
Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car. The chase began. Lap after lap, Daniel
closed in on Jackson. The track announcer soon picked up the
chase, and the huge Trinitron TV screen followed as Daniel
closed in to set up his pass. The crowd roared as Daniel nipped
at Jackson's
rear bumper, and then flew by him coming down the hill into
the home stretch. Anyone who has driven Lime Rock will appreciate
the location for that pass! Daniel brought it home in 6th position
(Jackson finished in 7th). Max II finished as the third Porsche.
Daniel's best lap-time was only 8 tenths off the winning Audi,
and 6 tenths off the fastest Porsche. Having run only two races
this season (Sebring and Lime Rock), we were thrilled to be
in
14th position overall, just behind Derek Bell.
At Laguna, Daniel handled a triple-duty weekend: he not only
tuned and drove Max II, but also conducted data analysis and
coached drivers for Dick Barbour's American Le Mans Team (Car
No.15).
Daniel qualified 1.6 seconds off the Pole, and was set for
a fabulous race. Then, our friend, Justin Jackson, driving
the
#79 Porsche 911 Cup car, experienced engine failure. Justin
had run the whole season and was in the chase for overall points.
Before you could blink an eye, Daniel had turned the keys to
Max II over to Justin so that he could compete. Everyone worked
feverishly to adjust the car for Justin and he made it to grid
just in time for the announcers to explain the switch. The
rules
required that Justin start last. Justin made it to 13th position,
winning enough points to stay hot on the heels of Jimmy Adams
as they jostled for 6th overall. We were happy to have been
able to make Max II available to Justin Jackson and congratulate
him
on the ride.
Laguna ended on September 9th, 2001. How quickly Life brought
us all a wake-up call. We are endlessly grateful for our safety
and good health, and send heartfelt prayers to everyone connected
with the events of September 11th. Although we managed to finish
only four races this year, Daniel earned enough points to place
17th overall out of 61 entrants. But more than anything, we
counted our blessings.
2000
For the New Year, we bought Max II, one of
only 30 RSR 993s built in 1998. We renamed the team Max-Racing
after Daniel's
son, Max,
and joined Speed World Challenge GT. Daniel closed out the
season ranked 16 of 77 drivers, and that was without competing
in every
event. We raced at Charlotte, Mosport, Lime Rock, Sears Point,
St. Croix, Dallas, Atlanta and Laguna Seca.
A turning point occurred at Lime Rock. A moment exists in the
life of car and driver, like that for scalpel and surgeon,
skis and skier, brush and artist, of unity. When the human
knows the
tool. When the unexpected yields to the expected. When uncertainty
makes way for mastery. So it was at Lime Rock for Daniel and
Max II. Almost imperceptibly, they merged. A second of gentle
yielding, and then cooperation and respect and rhythm. A great
transition, arriving subtly, and then felt surely. Daniel drove
with precision and Max II responded. Each time they took to
the track, thousandths, and then hundredths, and then tenths
of seconds
fell away. Seconds with complete lifetimes. The birth and death
of a turn. From track-in to apex to track-out. From threshold
braking to feather throttle to full throttle to braking again.
Where grades flatten-out and vision tunnels-in. Asking about
position and times negates the experience. One does not ask
a mother cradling her newborn how many centimeters she reached
in the sixteenth hour of twenty hour labor. So, indulge us.
A
final statistic must suffice: from 23rd to 13th. Numbers inconsequential,
unless someone is counting. A genesis, though, worthy of sharing.
At St. Croix, Daniel recorded the fastest race lap of any Porsche,
and finished nicely, notwithstanding being hit by a Corvette.
Hitting, it seems is part of the World Challenge experience,
which we encountered again at Sears Point, Laguna Seca, and
Las Vegas. In Dallas, Daniel took a hit of another kind--heat
stroke.
He finished the race in 7th position before going to medical
for two pints of IV fluids.
2000 put 30,000 miles on the rig, countless hours under the
car, and brought spectacular moments on the track with growth beyond measure.