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» December 11, 2009
 Road Racing Driver’s Club (RRDC) ‘Safe is Fast’ Young Drivers Symposium (ORLANDO, FL)
In association with the 2009 Performance Racing Industry trade show, the RRDC hosted a half-day seminar designed to present information to a broad audience of motor sport insiders touching on driver preparation, mental skills, physical fitness, and driver safety. Drivers from a wide variety of motorsports disciplines, including karting, Skip Barber, Jim Russell, Star Mazda, drag racing, SCCA club racing, Legends racing, Late Models and professional sports-car racing, participated in the four-hour workshop, featuring industry experts.
The Workshop Faculty included:
- Bobby Rahal (RRDC President, and workshop moderator),
- Jim Leo, President of PitFit Training Inc. ( speaking about physical fitness),
- Townsend Bell, President of Townsend Bell Inc. (speaking about sponsorship/branding),
- Stephen Olvey MD, Vice Chairman for Clinical Affairs, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine (speaking about driver safety),
- Michael Zimicki, President, Sliderule Motorsport Inc. (speaking about integrated driving), and
- Jacques Dallaire, Ph.D., President of Performance Prime (speaking about mental preparation).
The workshop was made possible through a grant from the FIA Motor Sport Safety Development Fund.. Each participant took home a comprehensive workbook, which expanded upon the points made by each speaker. "I'm extremely pleased with the RRDC's first effort in organizing this symposium," said Rahal. "The lecturers were absolutely the best and are true leaders in this industry. The information was concise, and having the workbook to take home just cements what the young drivers heard here. The fact that everybody was very attentive for four hours, didn't move and didn't fall asleep speaks a lot to the quality of the presentations."
"I thought it was very beneficial," said 18-year-old Brett Smrz, of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, a Jim Russell and Skip Barber series racer who also received an RRDC-supported Team USA Scholarship this year. "What I learned about safety and mental preparation in the four hours I was here will help me step up in my career." His mom Shirley Smrz added, "I thought the symposium was very informative and the information invaluable. I know my son is going to take a lot of this with him to help him further his career."
Said Nathaniel Steele, 21, of Syracuse, N.Y., an FRCCA (Formula Race Car Club of America) racer and a marketing/communications college major, "I learned a lot from Dr. Dallaire. He had a lot of good mental tips, which are very important. It was great to learn so much about safety as well as getting advice from the experts."
Over 150 drivers, parents, media, and RRDC members attended the workshop and participants completed a program evaluation on a 5-to-1 scale; Outstanding (5), Excellent (4), Good (3) Fair (2) and Needs to Improve (1). Each rated five categories independently and the overall evaluation was as follows:
1. Educational Value (88.5% outstanding; 11.5% excellent);
2. Organization (87.4% outstanding, 12.6% excellent);
3. Professionalism (94.3% outstanding, 5.7% excellent);
4. Presentation (86.2% outstanding, 12.7% excellent, 1.1% good); and
5. Speakers (90.8% outstanding, 9.2% excellent).
The F.A.S.T. is Safe workshop will be repeated in association with the Long Beach Grand Prix on the 17th of April and with the 2010 running of the Indianapolis 500.
» November 20, 2009
 Lyn St. James Driver Academy (PHOENIX, AZ)
Founded in 1994 by Lyn St. James, the Women in the Winner’s Circle Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization that focuses on worldwide activities and programs for driver development, advocacy, diversity and education, particularly for women who aspire to become race car drivers. The Foundation is dedicated to making a difference and reaching the point in time when “opportunity” and "diversity” are no longer concerns – they are taken for granted.
The Foundation’s mission is to provide leadership, vision, resources and financial support to help create an environment of opportunity for women’s growth in the automotive and competitive motorsports fields. Established in 1994 through the Women in the Winner’s Circle Foundation, the Complete Driver Academy is the most comprehensive educational and training program of its kind for talented women race drivers who aspire to the professional levels of motorsports.
The Academy has a two-fold purpose:
1. identify potential champion women drivers who have demonstrated success on the track and have a desire to pursue a career in professional motorsports; and
2. create an experience that will provide the tools to further women drivers’ careers in motorsports as well as enhance their lives on and off the track.
The Academy is comprised of three invitation-only weekend sessions with interim assignments, which participants are expected to complete.
Session One: Physical and Mental Preparation – Dr. Jacques Dallaire of Performance Prime has been an integral part of this component of the program since its inception. Again this year, Dr. Jacques made his way to Phoenix to work with the young women racers who were part of the 2009 program. This session was focused on the physical and mental preparation that is required of a champion driver, where drivers learn how mental skills directly impact personal performance and how to better control their mind in the face of significant challenges in the competitive environment. They experience a physical workout and learn how to develop an effective fitness plan, as well as undergo physical testing to create a baseline for improvement. The group gains knowledge in preparing the mind for competition and receives MindShaper™ Software to be used as a tool in improving mental skills such as focus, concentration, and reaction time.
Sessions Two (Business Seminars and Media Training) and Three (On Track and Technical) will follow on the heels of this initial training opportunity.
» October 13, 2009
 Michael Waltrip Racing Team Performance Program (CORNELIUS, NC)
In early October, Mr. Steve Hallam (Director of Competition for Michael Waltrip Racing – NASCAR) and Dr. Jacques Dallaire of Performance Prime met to discuss the development and implementation of a comprehensive team performance program that could be undertaken at the MWR facility in Cornelius and the Performance Prime offices in Concord, NC. The fruits of that discussion and a subsequent meeting with Mr. Cal Wells (CEO of MWR) yielded the most ambitious Team Program we have undertaken to date. Since it’s inception in early October, Dr. Dallaire has worked on a face-to-face basis with the four MWR contracted/associated drivers for 2010 (Martin Truex, Jr., David Reutimann, Marcos Ambrose in Sprint Cup; and Trevor Bayne in the Nationwide series), along with approximately 55 other members of the team including the Senior Management Team, Crew Chiefs, Car Chiefs, Race Engineers, and all of the members of the over-the-wall crews and road crews that travel to the race events. The overall program touches on such areas as: the development of mental skills; communication; team cohesion and culture; physical preparation, and nutrition, amongst other topics. The MWR Team Performance Program also enlists the expertise of UNC Charlotte specialists Dr. Timothy Lightfoot (Director of the Exercise Physiology Laboratory) and David Ferguson from the Department of Exercise Science and Ms. Tracy Bonoffski (nutrition specialist). In addition to the one-on-one and small group activities noted above, Dr. Jacques is scheduled to undertake two educational seminars that will be directed to all other members of the MWR team (approx 180 individuals) and any spouses who are interested in attending. The goal of these workshops is to share with the broader group of team members information concerning “Mental Skills for Performance… and for Life”.
» September 25, 2009
Lyn St. James Need for Speed Seminar (PHOENIX, AZ)
Dr. Jacques Dallaire made the trek west to Phoenix to participate in the inaugural Lyn St. James “Need for Speed” Training/Fantasy Camp. The Camp provided the opportunity for a number of like-minded women executives to come together to experience the challenges of performance driving in a controlled environment, such that they were allowed to safely push their own limits. Dr. Jacques kicked off the Camp with a presentation dealing with Mental Skills and Performance Driving. Armed with some effective ‘mental game’ tools, the participants readily engaged the classroom and on-track components of the Camp experience and had a blast!
» September 24, 2009
 Performance Seminar - Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants (Ft. LAUDERDALE, FL)
Dr. Jacques Dallaire of Performance Prime was again enlisted by the FlCPA to present information dealing with performance in today’s competitive and challenging business environment, as part of their 24th Annual Accounting Show. The presentation was well received and in the post-seminar evaluation conducted by the FlCPA, participants rated the seminar information as being highly relevant to their job (4.46 out of 5 vs the overall Accounting Show average of 4.01). The feedback reaffirmed that the development of mental skills remains an important part of the solution to dealing with the challenges offered by the current business environment.
» August 20, 2009
 Richard L. Robertson & Associates Seminar (CHARLOTTE, NC)
Dr. Jacques Dallaire spent the afternoon with a group of lawyers and legal assistants from the Charlotte legal firm of Richard L. Robertson and Associates, discussing Mental Skills, Performance, and the challenges offered by the current economic environment. In the competitive and sometimes adversarial world of the law, it is important for legal professionals to be able to bring their "A" game to their jobs on a daily basis. The group came away with a clear appreciation for how mental skills influence performance and the knowledge and 'framework' they acquired during the seminar armed them with strategies and tools to improve their effectiveness.
» August 10, 2009
 UBM Aviation Seminar (LONDON, ENGLAND)
Dr. Jacques Dallaire made his way to London, England to participate in a three-day training and planning meeting undertaken by the Senior Management Team of UBM Aviation, a division of the publically traded UBM (United Business Media) conglomerate. Peter von Molke, CEO of UBM Aviation enlisted Dr. Dallaire's help after becoming aware of his performance focus and his success with a wide range of clients from many walks of life. The Senior Management Team, consisting of nine executives drawn from across the globe, spent the first day of the meeting participating in a group seminar delivered by Dr. Dallaire.
The seminar touched on such topics as mental skills and performance, the influence of anxiety on performance, communication, team cohesion, and much more. The seminar was followed by two days of planning meetings where the group tackled a host of issues geared toward making the company stronger, more agile, and more competitive in the challenging economic climate going forward. Over the remaining days of the meeting, Dr. Dallaire was able to spend time individually with each member of the Senior Management Team to help them to develop a personal performance model. The ACT Model process that they completed is designed to allow them to more effectively bring their "A" game to their job every day as senior managers, and to better understand how to assist other staff to bring their best performance to their part of the UBM Aviation equation. The work is ongoing and the potential exists to expand the program into the UBM corporate structure and other divisions of the UBM group.
» June 30, 2009
 Mazdaspeed Driver Development Program Seminar (JOLIET, IL)
At the invitation of John Doonan, Manager - Motorsports Team Development and Jim Jordan, Manager - Alternative Marketing for Mazda North America, Dr. Jacques Dallaire attended the Autobahn race to present a seminar dealing with Mental Skills and Racing Performance as part of the MazdaSpeed Driver Development Program. The seminar was attended by young and established drivers alike and the feedback clearly indicated that participants in the seminar came away with a much better appreciation of the role mental skills play in shaping driving performance, together with some useful tools that they could use that very weekend as they rolled to the starting grid of their respective race events. The plan going forward calls for additional seminars as part of the ongoing MazdaSpeed Driver Development Program at selected race events in 2010.
» June 11, 2009
 24 Hours of Le Mans (LE MANS, FRANCE)
Dr. Jacques Dallaire made his way to France and Le Mans to attend the 2009 edition of the World's most important and storied endurance sportscar race. His visit was prompted by the recent addition of racer and television/motion picture star Patrick Dempsey as a Performance Program client and together with longtime client and co driver Joe Foster, Dr. Dallaire was on hand to follow up and support the two teammates as they tackled their first ever Le Mans race experience. The trip was a highlight for Dr. Dallaire as this was his first Le Mans race experience. Le Mans rookies and co drivers Dempsey, Foster, and Team Seattle Racing's Don Kitch Jr. wielded the #81 Advanced Engineering Ferrari F430GT to a 9th place finish in the competitive LMGT2 Class - 30th overall. A great performance in their maiden trip to the 77th running of this iconic race event.
» May 27, 2009
Florida Institute of Certified Public Accountants Seminar (ORLANDO, FL)
The Florida Accounting and Business Expo, the semi annual meeting of the FlCPA, was held in Orlando at the Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center. Dr. Jacques Dallaire was invited to be one of a number of guest lecturers at the meeting, where he spoke about mental skills and performance in the current economic environment. The seminar was well received and the evaluation conducted by the FlCPA following the conference demonstrated that on average, the group of attendees rated the seminar as a 4.38 out of 5.0 regarding "Relevance to Job". The average rating for the other presentations, taken as a whole, was 3.87 out of 5.0. Dr. Dallaire is scheduled to repeat the presentation at the FlCPA Annual Accounting Show in Ft. Lauderdale in late September.
» May 21, 2009
 Women in Insurance and Financial Services (WIFS) Seminar (CHARLOTTE, NC)
The North Carolina Chapter of the Women in Insurance and Financial Services organization held their meeting in Charlotte at the Carmel Country Club and group President Sonda Frattini invited Dr. Jacques Dallaire to address the topic of Mental Skills for Performance and for Life. The group included both veterans and newcomers to the field of insurance and financial services, and the women assembled actively participated in a seminar designed to share with them a mental framework to more effectively deal with the pressures evident in the business environment today. The seminar was also designed to give participants practical 'tools' that they can use as they meet the challenges of the current economic marketplace.
» March 25, 2009
 Speedway Club Seminar (CONCORD, NC)
Lowes Motor Speedway 'Speedway Club' staff members joined Dr. Jacques Dallaire for a team seminar focused on Mental Skills and Performance in today's challenging business environment. The seminar, in addition to discussing the control of mental skills, touched on such other topics as stress and performance, communication, and team cohesion. Ms. Wanda Miller, Speedway Club General Manager enlisted Dr. Dallaire's help to give her 'team' a competitive advantage in delivering 'top drawer' service at arguably the premier private club in the city of Charlotte, and one of the most successful in the nation.
» 24 January 2009
 GrandAm Rolex 24 at Daytona (DAYTONA BEACH, FL)
With the top 4 cars seperated by a mere
10.6 seconds after 24 hours of intense racing competition, the 2009 edition
of the GrandAm Rolex 24 at Daytona was a real barn burner! Congratulations
to overall race winner and Performance Program alumn Buddy Rice (and his #58
Burmos Racing Daytona Prototype teammates David Donohue, Antonio Garcia, and
Darren Law) and to GT Class Winners, #67 TRG featuring Performance Program
alumni Patrick Long, Andy Lally, and R.J. Valentine (along with teammates
Jorg Bergmeister and Justin Marks). This year's field included 43
Performance Program alumni.
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