Progress at the PCA Zone 7 Autocross Weekend
I asked ChatGPT to summarize the results of the weekend as it related to the programming work we’re doing in RaceCoach.
The July 11–12, 2026 PCA autocross weekend at Salinas provided a useful test of both my driving and the RaceCoach analysis workflow I have been developing.
The weekend used separate morning and afternoon course configurations on both days. That made the event especially valuable because it required quick adaptation, disciplined course learning, and consistent execution across changing layouts.
I competed in P-05 in my 2013 Porsche 991.1 Carrera S, car number 353.
Saturday: Strong Progression, but Inconsistent Execution
Saturday’s event was PCA-GGR AX5 and Zone 7. I finished:
- 13th overall by combined raw time
- 6th in P-05
- 20th overall by PAX
My combined raw time was 77.704 seconds.
My best morning time was 37.683, and my best afternoon time was 40.021.
Saturday Morning
My morning runs were:
39.311
38.440
37.683
39.704
The first three runs showed strong progress. I improved by 1.628 seconds from Run 1 to Run 3.
Run 3 was clearly the best execution of the morning. Run 4, however, was 2.021 seconds slower. That suggests I crossed the line from productive aggression into over-driving, made an execution error, or lost time in one major section.
This is exactly the kind of comparison that RaceCoach should help explain. The useful analysis is not simply that Run 4 was slower, but where the time disappeared and whether the cause was braking, minimum speed, positioning, throttle delay, or excess distance.
Saturday Afternoon
My afternoon runs were:
41.598
41.102
40.645
40.021
This was a much cleaner progression. Every run improved:
- Run 1 to Run 2: 0.496 second
- Run 2 to Run 3: 0.457 second
- Run 3 to Run 4: 0.624 second
The total improvement was 1.577 seconds.
The most encouraging point was that my largest gain came on the final run. Unlike the morning, I was still improving without losing control of the process.
Saturday Competitive Position
The P-05 winner, RJ Harrison, recorded a combined time of 73.998. I finished 3.706 seconds behind him.
However, I was much closer to the middle of the class:
- 0.266 second behind Sid Huey
- 0.330 second behind Peyton Chen
- 1.009 seconds behind Dylan Huey
That means only a small improvement on each course would have moved me from sixth to fourth in class.
Another useful benchmark was Doug Brekke, who was driving another 2013 Carrera S in O-05.
I beat Doug by 0.423 second in the morning, but he beat me by 0.551 second in the afternoon. Our combined times were separated by only 0.128 second.
That comparison reinforced an important point: the car was capable of running near my target pace. The remaining gap was primarily in execution.
Sunday: A Major Step Forward
Sunday’s LPR AX5 and Zone 7 event produced a much stronger result.
I finished:
- 5th overall by combined raw time
- 3rd in P-05
- 8th overall by PAX
My combined raw time was 86.384 seconds, with a combined PAX time of 83.620.
This was a significant improvement in competitive position compared with Saturday.
Sunday Morning
My morning runs were:
DNF
45.852
44.147
43.075
After the opening DNF, every clean run improved.
From the first clean run to the final run, I gained 2.777 seconds.
The last step, from 44.147 to 43.075, was worth another 1.072 seconds. That is especially useful for analysis because it compares two clean runs after I already understood the course.
The main question for RaceCoach is what changed between those two runs. The likely areas include earlier throttle commitment, better placement before the offsets, less steering correction, and improved momentum through the transitions.
Sunday Afternoon
My afternoon runs were:
DNF
44.442
43.309
The final run improved by 1.133 seconds over the first clean afternoon run.
Again, my fastest run came last.
Because the afternoon session provided only three runs, there was likely still more time available. The progression had not yet flattened.
Sunday Competitive Position
The P-05 results were:
RJ Harrison: 83.276
Dave Dunwoodie: 86.012
Peter McMillan: 86.384
Homer Pitner: 93.299
I finished only 0.372 second behind Dave Dunwoodie for second in class.
The gap was nearly identical on the two courses:
- Morning: 0.173 second
- Afternoon: 0.199 second
That consistency matters. I was not losing badly on one course and recovering on the other. I was approximately two-tenths behind a strong benchmark on each configuration.
The gap to RJ Harrison remained larger:
- Morning: 1.389 seconds
- Afternoon: 1.719 seconds
That defines two separate performance goals.
The immediate goal is to find roughly two-tenths per course and move ahead of Dave.
The longer-term goal is to close the approximately 1.5-second-per-course gap to the class leader.
Saturday Versus Sunday
The weekend progression is clear.
Saturday:
- 13th overall raw
- 6th in P-05
- 20th by PAX
- 1.460 seconds behind Dave Dunwoodie
Sunday:
- 5th overall raw
- 3rd in P-05
- 8th by PAX
- 0.372 second behind Dave Dunwoodie
I reduced the combined gap to Dave by 1.088 seconds from Saturday to Sunday.
That is probably the strongest measure of the weekend. The improvement was not just against the field in general. It was against the same experienced P-05 competitor driving a GT4.
What the Weekend Showed
The clearest strength was my learning rate.
Across the weekend, most of my clean run sequences improved substantially. The strongest examples were:
- Saturday afternoon: 1.577-second improvement
- Sunday morning: 2.777-second improvement
- Sunday afternoon: 1.133-second improvement
The clearest weakness was consistency under pressure.
Saturday morning Run 4 was a major regression after my best run. That indicates the final push was not controlled enough.
By Sunday, that pattern had changed. Both morning and afternoon ended with my fastest runs. I was learning, adapting, and still executing cleanly at the end of each session.
That is a meaningful change.
RaceCoach Analysis Priorities
The most valuable comparisons from the weekend are:
Saturday Morning Run 3 vs. Run 4
This should identify why the final run lost 2.021 seconds.
Saturday Afternoon Run 3 vs. Run 4
This should show what produced the final 0.624-second gain.
Sunday Morning Run 3 vs. Run 4
This isolates the last 1.072-second improvement after the course was already familiar.
Sunday Afternoon Run 2 vs. Run 3
This should explain the 1.133-second improvement on the final run.
These comparisons should help determine whether the gains came from earlier throttle, reduced coasting, better minimum speed, cleaner positioning, or shorter distance.
Conclusion
The weekend provided strong evidence that the current coaching direction is working.
The focus on momentum, avoiding over-driving, getting the car pointed earlier, and reducing the delay before throttle commitment appears to be producing measurable improvement.
Saturday showed that I could find speed but did not always retain control of the process.
Sunday showed a more mature version of the same driving: steady learning, faster final runs, and a much stronger competitive result.
The next step is not simply to drive harder. It is to make the Sunday pattern repeatable: improve each run, protect momentum, and finish the session with the cleanest and fastest execution of the day.