I used to have a 997. I never tracked it or did an HPDE, it was just a day driver that I enjoyed very much. I got married, had kids, had to sell the car. I show pictures of it to my kid and try to convince her that I used to be cool.

Recently I did the Porsche Experience Center thing in a new 992 C4S. It was my first time really pushing a car like that and holy crap I cannot stop thinking about it, it was incredible. I feel foolish for how much opportunity I wasted by not doing something like this with the car I drove for years.

So if I bite the bullet and get another 911, how can I chase that high? I’m not interested in competing, I just want to safely enjoy occasionally taking the car closer to its limits and to learn to drive comfortably like that. Is an occasional HPDE the way to go? I see my local PCA chapter charges $300-400 for an event, how much more do I need to budget for other costs? (I don’t even know what those are… insurance?) Will they be similar to the Porsche Experience Center…?

On the other hand it suddenly feels silly to get another car like that and just use it to go to the grocery store. My driving these days is all short distance, high-traffic, and hilly. I work from home and there is no joy in the driving I do right now. Frankly the car that probably makes the most sense is a small luxury suv.

Is there a good argument for getting a boring practical car and doing the occasional “arrive and drive” event instead to scratch that itch?