Atlanta women are driving in the fast lane

I have no need for speed.

I also have no need for another activity to remind me that I am a shell of my younger self with little hope for a confident resurrection. Over the past years, I’ve navigated widowhood, lost jobs, financial squeezes brought on by student loans and battling aging, both in my 100-year-old house and in myself. I’ve conquered my world; now I am happy to just sit on the couch. I surely didn’t need others to see that I have become that woman driver who goes 60 mph down I-75 clutching the wheel scared to death.

ExploreMore photos from the Porsche event

So, it was ironic that Porsche North America invited me to the famed Porsche Experience Center (PEC) to drive the 90-minute instructional course designed to showcase the incredible engineering and performance of a Porsche. Frankly, I was willing to just take their word for it.

Not only that, this experience was supposed to be good for me! Exactly how? The event was to empower women on International Women’s Day (March 8). Porsche invited women — mentors and mentees — to experience what it was like driving cars worth more than $100,000 and could go from 0 to 60 in under 3 seconds. The event was a “rewarding experience that empowers women to celebrate their success with those who guided their trajectory,” said Ayesha Coker, director of experiential marketing. Becoming empowered is way too lofty a goal for me at this point in my life. Couldn’t I just aim, like Stella, to get my groove back?

Credit: Tyson Horne / tyson.horne@ajc.com

Credit: Tyson Horne / tyson.horne@ajc.com

I entered the PEC with a little bit of nerves as well as excitement. I was doing something that most of my friends — and certainly all of my guy friends — would love. I just wanted to get out alive — and with dignity intact. But I could do this. I could do this, became my mantra.

My pumped-up enthusiasm quickly waned during the opening remarks after learning what we would be doing — it was a lot more than just going a few laps around the track, AKA “playground.” No, there were six “modules” where individual aspects of the car’s capabilities — and your driving skills were tested. The first exercise was driving the one-mile handling course designed to mimic a winding country road with various curbs and undulations. The other five showcased the car’s performance and served to help the driver navigate such real-world conditions such as rain, ice and windy roads. Each module sounded a little harder and scarier and by the end — the dreaded Kick Plate — I was nearly in tears.

The people at Porsche were wonderful, funny and reassuring. There were two cars, the 911 Carrera S and the all-electric Taycan Turbo S, which has the equivalent of 750 horsepower and can go from 0 to 60 in 2.6 seconds. The car does everything, so not to worry, they said. There was a Porsche driving instructor in the lead car in front of me who would give driving instructions and encouragement via a walkie-talkie. Don’t do anything you don’t feel comfortable with, they said, but enjoy it and relax.

Easier said than done. We entered the track, and my mantra “You can do this” ran through my head nonstop. The car felt secure, handled perfectly, and with each curve, I felt more secure. After a few laps, I was having fun and going wild with speed. Yes, I almost hit 40 mph!

Credit: Tyson Horne / tyson.horne@ajc.com

I became a little bit of a daredevil with the dynamics area where you have to drive around markers, similar to what dogs do in agility training. I pumped the gas and went around each cone tightly, and frankly, could have done this all day. The car was magnificent and even seemed to say “Keep it up. You’re great!”

My confidence bubbling up, the next course was to go fast down a straightaway and brake. One step back. With each try, I got some speed but hit the brake way before I was supposed to. I felt the car’s braking power but just couldn’t pull the trigger and take it to the limit. I didn’t choke, I told myself. And I didn’t. I hit the gas pedal hard and then braked hard. I just did it in maybe 30 feet instead of the long course. But I got it, felt it — and loved it. I didn’t go all in, but at least I was in.

Credit: Tyson Horne / tyson.horne@ajc.com

The Dynamics Area designed to stimulate unique maneuvers encountered during daily driving. Piece of cake. NEXT!

Well, maybe not so fast. The next exercise was the Wet, Low-Friction Circle where sprinklers wet the track, and you drove around in a tight circle. I had to go between 20 to 25 mph to get the full experience of sliding and over-steering on an inward slope of wet polished concrete. I kept going round and round, topping out at 18 mph; do it, I told myself. Faster, said my coach. Did it. Got it to 20 — maybe 21 mph. Enough. Done. I just could get it up to 25 to get the full effect of the braking and understeering. My coach agreed that I had a very strong sense of self-preservation. I took that as a compliment rather than a commentary on my inability to push the car (or myself). I didn’t have time (thank goodness) for the Kick Plate where the track is icy and the vehicle travels over the plate, triggering sensors that move randomly, and it’s up to you to prevent a skid or spin. Pass.

Credit: Tyson Horne / tyson.horne@ajc.com

The women who drove were full of enthusiasm, including Keisha Knight Pulliam, who will forever be known as Rudy Huxtable from the iconic sitcom “The Cosby Show.” Pulliam, who drives a Tesla, said she loved driving the Taycan because she was used to electric cars.

“I enjoyed this,” she told me. “I love cars, and I love driving fast. It was fun, and speed gets your adrenaline pumping, plus I loved being around all these women, these trailblazers.”

Pulliam, who came with her two business partners, believes in empowerment of women. “Your power is yours,” she said. “Only you can give it away. No one can take it from you. You deserve to sit at the table, and if there’s not a seat, build your own table. And, build one so great that others want to join you.”

Credit: Tyson Horne / tyson.horne@ajc.com

She was right. Speed gets your adrenaline pumping. So does getting into a powerful, exotic car and driving around a track. Fine, I didn’t go over 40 mph — but I did go. I did it, got through it, had a good time and didn’t crash. I respected the machine from the start. I didn’t respect my ability to be the car’s partner.

My Porsche experience gave me that. It brought back some confidence. It did empower me to know that I conquered that fear and would, in fact, go back and do it again. Except, the next time, faster.

I think I got my groove back.