Interview with Member David Stone

Hi David, I know that most of the racing community would be quite familiar with you and know your racing history, but maybe you still want to summarise the main points of your racing career so far.

Well, I’ve been doing it for a while. Initially I raced motocross as a teenager in the late 1970s – notably unsuccessfully, as I couldn’t get out of C grade. That’s because I crashed a lot – and found that I couldn’t master the necessary speed and daring required to be really fast.

My first car motorsport car event was at Oran Park in October 1983. It was a lap-dash in a Peugeot 504 road car. I was slow but I loved it. So, I participated in as many lap-dashes, hill climbs and motorkhanas as I could – as I wanted to improve. I also went rallying in 1984-5 firstly in another Peugeot 504 and then a Mazda RX2. Again, like motocross, I wasn’t fast enough on dirt – so I just concentrated on asphalt events. I remember receiving my first trophy and $5 prizemoney in 1985 following a class win at an Oran Park GP lap-dash in 1985 in my then Datsun 240Z. Yes, prize money happened even in club events then.

I gained my full racing licence in 1986 – with my first CAMS log-booked racing car. It was a Triumph Dolomite Sprint. Being fully licenced was a big deal for me – as it meant I could now actually race in doorhandle-to-doorhandle events. I raced various cars with plenty of mixed results. I became strongly aware that motor racing is very character building.

I started racing in historics via Group N in 1992 in a Cortina GT. It was a really good car – and clearly the best racing car I had owned up to that point. However, the most significant moments for me in the 1990s was racing at the Bathurst 12 Hour events in 1992 and 1993. In those two production car events I was the lead driver for the Hyundai Racing Team in a Lantra. Whilst our team had some difficulties in both races, I did experience a lot of laps at my most favourite track. We did win our class in the Lantra at the 1993 Sandown 6 Hour – and received $3000 in prize money! Wow!

Cortina GT, Oran Park - Photo lance ruting

For the remainder of the 1990s, I raced Datsun 2000s. The first one in Group S and then a little later the ex-David Mingay car that I restored for Group O. The Group S Datsun was really successful – as it won every race contested in 1996, and led every lap that year except four.

I returned to Group N in 2002 with an XY Falcon GT. What a beast! It was powerful and heavy and a real a challenge to drive as all my prior racing was in only light four cylinder or rotary powered cars. It was an outstanding car – no DNFs in 65 starts. It won many races with the highlight being a flag to flag win at Bathurst in 2010.

Other significant events included a return to production car racing that included four Bathurst 12 hours races in 2007-10. I was the lead driver in the Alfa Romeo Racing Team in a 159 contesting the diesel class. Three finishes in the top 20 outright along with class wins were highlights. Finishing that event is always an achievement. One year the team ran two Alfas and also fought off the Holden Racing Team in a thrilling class battle.

The sale of my Falcon in 2010 and the Bathurst 12 hour subsequently transitioning to a GT3 event meant a I needed a new car. So I bought an MX5 for the Mazda Cup Series and to contest a host of other sports cars event. The MX5 was fabulous – 155 races, over 20 wins and only five DNFs.

About five years ago I decided to take a big step and race in the USA. I bought a Crossle Formula Ford over there and based it with a team just outside of LA. I ran the Crossle in historic racing for two consecutive years at a big event at Sonoma in California. It was a very tough track and with very big field of 45 FFs. I finished in the top 10 eventually – and was very grateful for the experience.

Listening to this extensive “Racing CV”, you have gained a lot of experience in different types of cars and on various tracks around the world. How do you describe the fascination of driving race cars and what are the type of cars you enjoy racing most?

I was hooked on cars and racing from the age of five. I started to watch the annual Bathurst 500 from 1968. And my dad would take me to watch racing at Warwick Farm, Oran Park and Amaroo. At the end of those events spectators were usually permitted entry into the paddock area. I made sure I looked at every racing car there – imaging what it would be like to drive and race. Each month I bought a copy of Racing Car News. I read every edition from cover to cover including all the classifieds – yes, I was dreaming of the day.

My dad also taught me how to drive by age 10 – about when I was tall enough to reach the pedals in his Chrysler Royal. Sometimes I would drive alone in an adjacent paddock practicing drifting and perfecting my double-shuffle down changes trying to heel & toe. I wanted to be race ready.

Once I started racing, I was very conscious to be accurate, extremely smooth on steering and throttle inputs where possible and worked hard to feel the point where max grip started to diminish. I often imagined that I had a big bucket of water on the passenger seat – and the object was to drive as fast as possible without spilling a drop. To this day I still love being very close to or on the traction limit and feeling the car moving around a little. If I’m floating without effort – then I’ve got it right. For instance, places where I feel that today are T1 and Corporate Hill at SMSP and T2, McPhillamy Park and Skyline at Bathurst. At Oran Park it was cresting the dog-leg – and at Amaroo it was the top of Bitupave Hill and the fast Mazda House right hander. Yes, all fast corners that have big consequences.

Interestingly, being on the limit is very peaceful. I never feel stressed or rushed – and there’s plenty of clarity for feeling and observation. At Oran Park I could often pick out my girlfriend watching from the fence at the Dog-Leg or my friends spectating at BP corner. Today’s newer tracks with their greater run-off areas make this type of observation harder.

hyundai lantra, bathurst - photo Alan Mcconnell

The cars that I enjoy the most are those that have very accurate steering. I like a pointy set-up as I want to use the least amount of steering lock as possible. I raced a March S2000 car in Group R for about five years – and it had fantastic accuracy. Formula Fords can be like this too. I found my Mustang initially very hard to drive with power steering as the steering inputs were not linear to the front wheels. Once that was sorted, the Mustang was relatively nice to drive. And I did love the acceleration on my Falcon GT at Bathurst. Mountain Straight with about 500hp at full throttle in 2nd, 3rd and 4th gears for about a kilometre uphill was fabulous.

Besides being a driver you also moved to being a coach and sharing all your experience with other drivers. What motivated you to become a driver instructor?

Soon after attaining my racing licence, I was asked to instruct at a Fiat Car Club day at Oran Park. And for whatever reason it was easy for me - and with some amazement my students improved immediately. From that moment I knew I had something offer anyone who asked. So, for the next 30 or so years I volunteered to help – sometimes even to those I was racing against. I enjoyed seeing the improvements in others – and that led to more drivers asking for advice. After a while I figured out how to frame driving concepts and skills in different ways for different people. Of course, I was doing it pro bono. However, when I left almost 40 years of corporate life about 12 months ago, I decided I would establish a business around doing something I enjoy a lot – driver coaching and instructing.

mustang, smsp - Photo Campbell armstrong rider

I understand that you have put in a lot of effort to become a professional instructor and that it isn’t just a “teaching by gut feeling” thing. Can you share with us what path you have chosen?

In Australia, virtually anyone who has worn a helmet and driven at a racetrack could call themselves a coach. There’s no criteria, syllabus or rules relating to instructing or coaching in this country. Whilst I often bristle against bureaucracy, I do think the lack of any regulation or framework is inappropriate. Sure, there are many instructors here who know what they are doing but I believe it’s just too loose.

So, to ensure that I can be the best coach/instructor possible, I have enrolled in an American based Instructor Certification course. The peak American racing safety body is the Motorsport Safety Foundation (MSF). The MSF believed some years ago that it proper driving instruction/coaching was required particularly for novice drivers. They also believed it crazy that someone who just purchased a track day licence could simply go and drive on a racetrack at any speed without any in-car instruction. Further the MSF felt that a specific syllabus was required for novices – and that syllabus ought to only be delivered by instructors who were suitably accredited.

The MSF course is in three stages. The first is online – about three hours of training with an exam at the end. 90% is the minimum score. The second stage is a weekend of instructing with real students under the direct observation of the MSF Course Trainers. My student Jack was an absolute novice. I instructed him in his modern Mini Cooper at Road Atlanta in July for two days straight – covering about 200km per day. There were also non-racetrack role-plays with the MSF Trainers acting out various scenarios. It was exhausting and quite challenging, and I learnt quite bit. And yes, Road Atlanta is a fantastic track. The third stage is another weekend at either Road Atlanta or another track where I will be tested directly on-track by Trainers pretending to be students with different psychological profiles. They will assess my ability to deliver the MSF instructing syllabus in an effective way – plus rate my ability to find the best way for the student to quick and safe around the particular racetrack. Crucially, the Trainer will also want to see how I instruct/giude him as a student when he deliberately spears off the road at 100mph+ aiming at a wall or put the car in a high speed spin. Yes, it’s highly stressful and confronting. I’m told that less than 50% of Instructor candidates pass the test. The MSF have prescribed high standards to ensure that drivers only get the best instruction. I am already benefitting from the MSF training course and will be back soon in the USA to complete the final stage. I would consider it to be major achievement to pass.

You already helped several drivers with your coaching, what is generally their response to the progress they make? Can everyone benefit from this?

Universally those I’ve coached tell me that track days/racing has become way easier as well as faster. The big gains are pretty rapid early. I focus on three key things initially to develop skilful habits: vision, correct car placement and maximum braking effort. Any driver who looks at the required things at the right time, positions the car in the optimal spot repeatedly and presses the brake really hard (when needed) will be fast enough to have fun and be safe. This also applies to road drivers – as I have students who want to improve their competency when on the road. I teach them the exact same racing skills but on the road – and without breaking the law.

For more experienced racers there are also the opportunities for coached improvements. These are typically; refining a particular corner(s), passing and/or defending strategies, mindset change and maintaining concentration.

And there are occasions that my driver might be better driver than me. That’s not unusual in professional sport. I offer another set of eyes offering a second opinion – plus I review the driver’s data. As a current racer it’s easier for me to hold a driver accountable than his team’s (non-racing) engineer/family etc.

If drivers are interested to work with you, how do they best get this started? Are there specific events where you provide this service?

It starts with a conversation. I need to know what a driver wants to achieve. His or her goals/objectives only matter – not mine, and certainly not other peoples. I usually have a face to face meeting first to build understanding and rapport. From that initial discuss I write a plan for the driver to execute. Most of the time it’s specific tasks to be undertaken and mastered at a track day or race meeting. Sometimes I’m at the track with the driver too – that always enables immediate feedback. However, I do ask my drivers to have a GoPro camera in their car and where possible fit a simple and inexpensive VBOX data logger. That way I can review the video footage and data to check my driver’s progress. I have a subsequent meeting with my driver either face to face or over Zoom when reviewing their “homework”.

As a Swiss, I have to ask you why your company is called “Eiger” - for me this is a famous mountain in Switzerland and has not really any connection to Motorsport

I decided to title my coaching business “Eiger Racing HPDE” for good reason. Firstly, Switzerland is a favourite place for me – as I’ve been fortunate to travel there on many occasions at different times of year. It’s beautiful, the people are very civilised and it has the right peaceful atmosphere for me. The Eiger mountain is impressive, imposing and deserving of a lot of respect. It’s about 4 000m high and has a reputation of being very difficult to climb. I first discovered it as the theme to the 1970s film “The Eiger Sanction”. I see racing a lot like mountain climbing – challenging and fun with a sense of achievement but punishing and potentially tragic if things go wrong.

See also www.eigerracinghpde.com.au

Thanks a lot David for sharing this interesting information with us and all the best with you further career, both as a driver and as a coach!

Francis Meier