SDC BEGINNER DAY
2026 Beginner Day Schedule
May 23rd @ Streets of Willow
October 4th @ Buttonwillow Classic
First Timers - Beginners - Intermediate - Advanced
🏁 SDC Beginner Day x BigTime – May 23
Big Announcement
Our May 23rd Beginner Day is getting a major upgrade—we’re partnering with our friends at BigTime to bring you our biggest Beginner Day yet.
This will be our 7th Beginner Day, and we’re taking everything that makes this event great and turning it up.
What to Expect
🚗 Beginner Program (First Timer & Beginner Groups)
If you’ve never been on track before, this is the perfect place to start.
Our full Beginner Day Program is designed to make you comfortable, confident, and safe on track. You’ll learn from our professional coaching staff led by Michael Johnson, with structured sessions both on and off track.
🏎️ Intermediate & Advanced Groups
For experienced drivers, we’ll have dedicated run groups so you can focus on what matters most—seat time.
BigTime Experience
With Jeremiah and Zach from BigTime, we’re bringing new energy to the event with activations designed to bring more people out and showcase what track days are all about.
An exciting way to introduce friends, family, and new drivers to the world of motorsports—and why we all love it.
🎟️ Ride Along Packages
Get in the passenger seat of the cars you’ve seen on the BigTime channel.
Our Ride Along Packages include:
Passenger laps with Jeremiah & Zach
Exclusive merch pack including a tee, poster and more
A one-of-a-kind track experience
Registration coming soon through BigTime website
🎉 Event Activations
We’re building this into a full experience on and off track:
🎧 Live DJ / Music
🌮 Food trucks
🕹️ Racing simulators
🤝 Sponsor & partner booths
📍 Location
Streets of Willow
Why You Should Be There
Whether it’s your first time on track or you’re a seasoned driver, this event brings together:
Professional instruction
Quality track time
Community and atmosphere
A unique spectator-friendly experience
This isn’t just a track day—it’s a full introduction to the SDC experience.
See You There
We can’t wait to bring this event to life with BigTime and the entire SDC community.
May 23rd. Don’t miss it. 🏁🔥
![Streets of Willow CW - Beginner Day 5/23/26 [Saturday]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fffbb6941e64f18218cebf3/c8e03a62-a066-4ab0-8088-e14a1046541c/Title.png)
![Breakfast & Lunch Ticket - Beginner Day 5/23/26 [Saturday]](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5fffbb6941e64f18218cebf3/a01c6c4f-ccb6-45aa-a1ec-3c00d63e9e99/Enthusiest.png)
Head Driving Coach: Michael Ryan Johnson
Michael Ryan Johnson (@MJDrive22). Michael brings to our drivers a wealth of experience having coached at a number of schools including Palmer Sport in England and the Porsche Experience Center in Los Angeles. Michael’s coaching style is driver focused and data driven, utilizing data acquisition systems to establish where your driving is strong and identify areas of opportunity. Michael’s driving background includes everything from kart racing where he was three times national champion, to international formula car competition. Michael continues to race sports cars actively and recently finished on the podium in the 14 hour race at Daytona and the 24 hour race at Virginia International Raceway.
Driver Groups
A ) First Timers (Green Group) - For First Time track drivers. This will be a coaching heavy day, with a gradual build up of speed throughout the day. Between each driving session will be classroom sessions where the group will discuss different elements of safety, etiquette and the fundamentals of high performance driving. After this class, drivers should be ready to sign up for a regular track day and run safely and comfortable in the Beginner Group.
B ) Beginner (Yellow Group) - Drivers who have 1-5 track days. This will be a coaching heavy day, with a gradual build up of speed throughout the day. Between each driving session will be class room sessions where the group will discuss different elements of safety, etiquette and the fundamentals of high performance driving. After this class, drivers should be ready to sign up for a regular track day and run safely and comfortable in the Beginner Group to Intermediate Groups.
C ) Intermediate (Blue Group) - For drivers who simply want to lap, without class room sessions or coaching. Low Intermediate & High Intermediate groups. Limited to 25 drivers. Point by passing only.
D ) Advanced (Red Group) – For drivers who simply want to lap, without class room sessions or coaching. Limited to 20 drivers. Open passing group.
Curriculum
Group A&B: Beginner Groups (Green & Yellow)
A low speed, low stress introduction to track day driving with a focus on good driving technique, safety and learning the proper way to drive on the track while getting professional track coaching. We prepared this day to be how I wish my first track day went.
Session 1 – Low speed reconnaissance laps, Lead follow.
Classroom – Overview to track driving, safety, starting slow and building up speed
Session 2 – Braking exercises
Learning about our cars braking system, hard braking effort, feeling ABS
Session 3 –Driving Lines (lead follow session, including point by’s)
Driver vision & track awareness, point by’s, flags
Session 4 – Throttle technique, Using the throttle and weight transfer.
Session 5 – Car control, catching slides, what to do if things go wrong.
FAQs
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At minimum a Snell/SA approved helmet. Racing gloves, Balaclava and racing shoes are recommended. We can assist with ordering from our partner shop Sparco. Long pants, close toed shoes, t-shirt or L/S shirt.
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Please refer to the tech form below & our Beginner Handbook. We highly recommend scheduling a pre track inspection from one of our partner shops.
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Our day will start at 8am and end at 5pm. We recommend drivers to show up to the track by 7am. We will group drivers based on experience. Each group will have assigned professional coaches to work with. There will be staggered sessions through-out the day with alternating classroom instruction and on track lapping. A detailed email will be sent out prior to the event with your full schedule and rules of the event.
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General tools are helpful, such as a tire pressure gauge, torque wrench for wheels, lots of water & snacks. Layered clothing is also recommended. Please talk with the shops we have available to work with.
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Feb 7th, 2026 @ Streets of Willow
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Check out the beginner handbook!
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Find our Policy here: https://www.socaldriversclub.com/terms
