Richard Petty Driving Experience says you can skip the clutch pedal

With manual transmissions being phased out of everything from Fords to Ferraris, it's no surprise that beginning on Thursday, the Richard Petty Driving Experience will no longer require the use of a clutch pedal to learn how to drive a stock car.

With the company's "Can't Drive a Manual? No Problem" campaign, the driving school will allow students to get behind the wheel of a stocker and be push-started so no shifting will be required. The school says that now, every driver's full attention will be on the instructor, driving lines and gradually increasing speeds on the oval.

"We're excited to announce that anyone with a valid driver's license, shifters and nonshifters, now have the opportunity to participate in any of our driving programs," said Rick Fedrizzi, president and COO of Richard Petty Driving Experience.

The reason for the new campaign has to do with more people wanting to get the driving experience, including corporate groups that may not be full of driving enthusiasts.

"The number of standard-transmission drivers has been shrinking, but I've seen nothing like what I've seen in the past few years," said Fedrizzi.

To get out on track, the school uses Range Polaris ATVs with push bumpers in front. They get behind the car and push up to 25 mph, which is when you can pop the clutch in fourth gear without damaging anything. Once you're in gear on the track, the only thing to do is hit the gas pedal. Fedrizzi says so far, no one has had a problem putting the car back into neutral for the track exit.

It's a double-edged sword for us enthusiasts. On the one hand, getting more people to experience driving a race car is a good thing. They may take up the hobby themselves. On the other hand, how much of the real racing experience can you get using only the throttle and steering wheel?

By Jake Lingeman