HPDE Rules & Regulations
“Open Top” Vehicles – Convertibles, Targa, and T-tops
High-Center of Gravity Vehicles (SUV/CUV)
CUV/SUV Approved Vehicle Participation List
Age & Licensing
- All adults, 18 years or older, holding a full (not provisional or learners permit), valid driver’s license may participate in PCC-ACNA driving schools.
- Minors, under 18 years old, holding a full, valid driver’s license (not provisional or learners permit) may participate in PCC-ACNA driving schools WITH a parent/legal guardian signing the Minor Release and Waiver of Liability and Indemnity Agreement at the start of the event and witnessed by an Event Official.
- Teens may participate in dedicated Teen Driver Education events with a learners permit, provisional or full license.
Audi Club (ACNA) membership
Drivers and instructors participating in “high speed” events such as High-Performance Driver Education (HPDE or DE) and Lapping must be current members of ACNA. Membership is not required for visitors and guests who have not paid the event registration fee, including those who want a track familiarization ride as allowed by the event rules.
Members can contact ACNA at admin@audiclubna.org to confirm your membership number or renew the membership at https://audiclubna.org/join-2/ .
If you are NOT currently a member you may join online at https://audiclubna.org/join-2/. You do not need to own an Audi to join! (Non-Audi owners are welcome to join as Associate Members.)
If a registrant’s membership is not current and valid at the start of the event, the registrant will be asked to join/renew ACNA as part of the on-line event registration process. Membership in ACNA also allows participants to take advantage of all membership benefits, which may include special activities and opportunities at Driver Education and other events.
Typical Event Info
- Five run groups: Group 5 – Beginner (Green), Group 4 – Novice (Yellow), Group 3 – Intermediate (Blue), Group 2 – Advanced/Solo & Instructor (Black) and Group 1 – Expert/Solo & Instructor (Red)
- A minimum of four, 25-minute run sessions each day (8 total) along with associated mandatory classroom sessions. Depending on the track, time of year, and other factors (e.g. safety considerations), run sessions may be added, removed and/or lengthened, shortened for a given event
- Groups 2 and 1 (Advanced/Solo, Expert/Solo & Instructor) are passing anywhere with a point by as long as everyone follows event, track, and safety rules (i.e., everyone behaves)
- Groups 4 and 3 (Novice & Intermediate) may have passing zones expanded during a given event based on group behavior and are eligible to be solo’d based on instructor feedback, track conditions, and other factors
- Group 5 (Beginner) will spend time completing skid pad and car-control exercises, and additional mandatory classroom sessions before joining the other groups for full lapping sessions.
- Event T-shirt included with fee for certain events.
Driver Level/Group Guidelines
The following are general guidelines for run group assignment. Final assignments and/or adjustments made during an event will also take into consideration attention to safety, driving ability, on-track behavior, and adherence to event rules & regulations. Driver/Safety Schools include those by other car clubs, such as PCA and BMWCCA, and/or professional training schools, such as Skip Barber. Final Run Group placement is at the discretion of the Event Coordinators and Chief Instructors.
- Group 5 – Beginner (Green) = 0 – 4 days (no R-compound tires)
- Group 4 – Novice (Yellow) = 5 – 14 days (R-comp w/ prior approval. Contact Event Coordinator providing previous instructor as references and other related experience.)
- Group 3 – Intermediate/Solo (Blue) = 15 – 29 days. If you have never attended our events and are registering for this group, please provide past experience that is equivalent to the PCC-ACNA Group 3 (Blue) in the MSR Resume section. Anyone with no previous Group 3 experience indicated may be assigned to a lower run group and assigned an instructor for at least one check-ride.
- Group 2 – Advanced/Solo or Instructor (Black) = 30+ days (Advanced/Solo) or Instructors. If you have never attended our events and are registering for this group, please provide past experience that is equivalent to the PCC-ACNA Group 2 (Black) in the MSR Resume section. Anyone with no previous Group 2 experience indicated may be assigned to a lower run group and assigned an instructor for at least one check-ride.
- Group 1 – Advanced/Solo or Instructor (Red) = If you have NOT previously instructed for PCC-ACNA prior to registering, please check the “Instructor Program” information found under the “FAQs” section on the website for instructions.
Instructor Deposit: We require a $100 “deposit” as part of your registration. Please see the Refunds and Cancellations section below for additional details. This policy is in-place to reduce the number of last-minute instructor cancellations which adversely affect the attending instructors, event planning and finances, student participant experience, and have had a detrimental impact on the success of our events.
We appreciate and thank our instructor corps who have supported our events and contributed to making the events successful!
Vehicle Restrictions
Note that specific tracks may have their own rules and regulations that supersede our club rules. In other words, even if our club allows a specific type of vehicle, you may not be allowed to participate at an event based on the venue’s rules.
“Open Top” Vehicles – Convertibles, Targa, and T-tops
Convertibles (e.g. roadsters, cabriolets, spyders) lacking rollover protection are not permitted in ACNA High Performance Driving Schools (HPDE, lapping, or any events held “at speed”). Vehicles with removable hardtops or retractable hardtops are considered to be convertibles and those lacking a rollover protection system are also not permitted at high-speed events.
Convertibles with factory-installed rollover protection (either fixed or deployable) meet the ACNA minimum requirement for high-speed events and are acceptable, subject to approval by chapter leadership and event staff (Event Master, Registrar, Safety Steward and/or Chief Driving Instructor) and provided that vehicles with fixed protection meet the broomstick rule as stated below. Targas and t-tops are not convertibles and are therefore acceptable; roof panels must be installed.
Driving with the soft-top up or the hard top installed is strongly recommended; otherwise, SFI and/or FIA approved arm restraint system(s) must be used and is recommended in any case. Note that this prevents the use of point-by passing signals. Full-face helmets or effective eye protection if wearing an open-face helmet is also strongly recommended. For convertibles without factory-installed rollover protection to be allowed at ACNA high-speed events, the minimum requirements are:
- A four-point roll cage consisting of a main roll bar behind the front seats with two rear triangulated braces must be installed.
- Minimum four-point harness with ASM (anti-submarining) technology must be used. Equivalent equipment (harness and seat) is required for driver and passenger.
- Enforcement of the “broomstick rule” is required for all occupants. Minimum clearance (with helmet on) is two inches below a straight edge, placed from the top of the roll bar to the top of the windshield frame.
Please contact the specific Event Coordinator(s) and Tech Coordinator for clarification if you have questions.
High-Center of Gravity Vehicles (SUV/CUV)
Only certain high-center-of-gravity vehicles (SUV-Sport Utility Vehicle, CUV-Crossover Utility Vehicle, SAV-Sport Activity Vehicle) are permitted at HPDE or HPDC events at the discretion of event staff (Event Master, Registrar, Safety Steward and/or Chief Driving Instructor) provided they have a NHTSA 4 Star or better rollover rating for the exact year, make and model of vehicle (https://www.nhtsa.gov/ratings).
If a vehicle does not have a NHTSA star-rating, it may be allowed if it meets ALL of the following:
- Model Year 2006 or newer
- Equipped with electronic stability control
- Static Stability Factor (SSF) of 1.20 or greater for the exact year, make and model of vehicle https://www.nhtsa.gov/file-downloads?p=nhtsa/downloads/Safercar/. Where SSF data is not available or calculable, achieving 0.90 g or better on a 300-foot diameter dry skid pad as documented by a reputable source (e.g. Car & Driver road tests) is acceptable.
All participating vehicles must use “street” tires which have UTQG 201 or greater, and may be limited to slower run groups at the discretion of event officials (Event Master, Safety Steward or Chief Instructor).
Vehicles that do not meet the above criteria and pickup trucks, vans and off-road type vehicles such as Jeep Wranglers and Ford Broncos are not permitted.
Helmets
Helmets must be worn by all participants during all in‐car sessions other than low speed (50 mph or less) teen clinics, driver education, low speed autocross, track familiarization sessions and touring laps.
All helmets used in ACNA events require the current or immediately prior Snell Memorial Foundation certification sticker or FIA certification sticker. At the time of certification update, helmets meeting the second prior certification standard will be permitted a use grace period through the end of that calendar year. Use of Snell Motorcycle (M) rated helmets is not permitted.
Snell Certifications
Application | Rating | Valid Until |
SA | 2015 | 31-Dec-2026 |
SA | 2020 | 31-Dec-2031 |
EA | 2016 | 31-Dec-2027 |
FIA Certifications
Standard | Valid Until |
8859-2015 | 10 years from DOM* |
8860-2010 | 31-Dec-2028 |
8860-2018 | 10 years from DOM* |
* The date of manufacture (DOM) can be found on the FIA sticker in the helmet.
FIA does not initially assign expiration dates upon release of a new standard. Once FIA has issued an expiry for a given standard, that date takes precedence over the DOM date shown above. For helmets that have both Snell and FIA certifications, the later expiration date takes precedence.
Car Sharing
In order to maximize your driving time, drivers are strongly urged NOT to share with someone in the same run group/level. It is possible to share with a driver in a different run group, however, due to group scheduling there still is the possibility participants who share will miss some on-track time due to the logistics of swapping drivers, instructors, etc. If you would like to share, please note the other driver’s name on your registration.
Group 1 (Beginner) drivers should NOT share a car as doing so significantly reduces the benefit of the Group 1 program impacting the amount of exercise and driving time.
We try to accommodate car-sharers, but you may miss runs sessions if you chose to car-share.
Refunds and Cancellations
All cancellations within 21 days of the event will not be refunded or credited. If a participant registers within 21 days of the event and then cancels, the same policy applies.
If circumstances (i.e., acts of god or nature) force the cancellation of all or part of this event, the event coordinators reserve the right to retain a portion of the registration fees to satisfy obligations stemming from fixed and/or unrecoverable event costs. Our goal is to have all refunds completed within 6-8 weeks after the event.
Instructor “deposits” will be refunded after the event and when student evaluations are completed. Instructors who cancel within 21 days of the event may not be refunded or credited at the discretion of the Event Master and the Chief Instructor.
Final Note
Please remember, PCC-ACNA driver schools are first and foremost driver education events with a focus on safety. They are NOT racing schools. Aggressive or reckless driving will result in expulsion without refund from the event and possibly suspension from future events.
Drivers are financially responsible for any and all damages they make to the track facility and its parts.
Run group rules (e.g. passing zones), driver run group assignment adjustments, and other event logistic changes may be made at the discretion of the Event Coordinators and/or Chief Instructors to help ensure the event is safe and enjoyable for everyone. All event staff are VOLUNTEERS, so please be patient and, if possible, lend a helping hand.