At 38, racer Patrick Long is the only American Porsche factory driver, still has plenty of years left as a sports car racer. After all, his mentor, fellow Porsche shoe Hurley Haywood, scored a podium finish in the 2012 Rolex 24 At Daytona at age 64. But Long has seen a quantum shift in professional racing since he began his top-level pro career in the American Le Mans Series in 2003, when he was 21. And it makes him feel just a little bit old.
That quantum shift: online racing and coaching, specifically using iRacing. “I absolutely wish I had access to laser-scanned race circuits to utilize on simulations as an up-and-comer,” Long tells Grassroots Motorsports. For new drivers, he says, “it’s a huge tool.”
Photograph Courtesy Porsche
