It's my firm belief that if you're ever invited to any type of performance-enhancing driving school, you go. No questions asked. When BMW does the asking - and offers up their entire line of M series cars for you to do the learning with - you do not refuse. Out in the desert, right by where one of the world's biggest music festivals takes place in the Coachella Valley, there is a beautiful, state-of-the-art track facility called Thermal Club, and let me tell you, it truly is one of the best private tracks I've been to (and they're not done building it yet). It's a place where money comes in handy but on most days (six, in fact) it's used as the West Coast base to host the BMW Performance Driving School. The BMW Performance Driving School consists of a few different programs, in either a one- or two-day offering, ranging from Car Control, Teen training, M School/Advanced M School, Drive Experiences and customizable Corporate Events. I took part in a hybrid event, one that combined the M School with a Drive Experience, taking each one of the M-series cars on four course setups, including a drag race, short course drive, autocross and full hot lap course. After a brief safety meeting, our group hit the drag course for our first activity of the day. Here we were flagged with an old school hand flag, able to pick up speed only through Second gear before immediately needing to land within the stop box for an official win (or loss). This wasn't my best test of the day; I'm used to the traditional clutch pedal versus a brake stand and paddle shifter, but this was fun nonetheless. Next was the short course drive, which rotated people through each M model on half of Thermal's shorter road course. It's one long sweeper into a couple S-turns before dipping back out into the paddock for a driver's change. An easy way to get a better feel for the performance capabilities of the car before the autocross and hot lapping session. The autocross is where the action picks up, and as it's been famously said, the clock "doesn't lie." Here it's all about smooth steering input and patience; lay on your driving skills too thick and you'll go slower. Two laps around a Third gear course for the fastest time. I'd managed a 34-second lap towards the end but one of the faster people in the group hit a 32-second lap. Then again, he was a seasoned SCCA driver. As luck would have it, we saved the best for last: hot laps. Taking all the lessons from the previous three courses, you put them all to the test on the road course. We each took turns playing 'Follow the Leader', though the group can only go as fast as our slowest driver. Good thing we had people that could keep up. This is where you really feel how well-balanced an M3 truly is. It's (not surprisingly) smooth, powerful as it should be... and if I had the funds and paperwork made available at the end of the day, I'd have purchased one on the spot. A really fantastic automobile that's gotten better with each generation. To end the day on a high note with, BMW put a lucky few of us in a M3 for a drift ride-along with one of the school's instructors and resident drift expert, Adam Seaman; you wouldn't expect an M3 to be able to slide around with such ease, but it does. Whether you own a BMW or not, the BMW Performance Driving School is an excellent way to get behind the company's premiere line of cars to learn more a car's handling and to enjoy one of the finest tracks on the West Coast. (Additional photography: Josh Chow of Drive Marketing; special thanks to Jai Huang at BMW USA)
