BMW to introduce its Driver Training programme and a Formula BMW Racing Center at Bahrain?s new Formula One race track

Manama (Bahrain). BMW is promoting driving safety in Bahrain. In time
for the first Formula One Grand Prix on 4th April 2004, the BMW
Performance Center Bahrain will open its gates in this Arab Kingdom.
The entire spectrum of BMW's renowned Driver Training courses in BMW M3
cars will be on offer here. At the facility adjoining the newly built
GP track, racing driver courses with Formula BMW models will also be
available. The new BMW Performance Center Bahrain is set to be one of
the most modern facilities of its kind in the world and is the first to
be opened in the Middle East, a region with a strong affinity to cars
and a burgeoning enthusiasm for motor racing. For the very first time,
the BMW Performance Center Bahrain unites the programmes of BMW Driver
Training and of the Formula BMW Racing Center under one roof, with the
emphasis being placed primarily on driving safety in road traffic. The
new building, which boasts conference rooms, a gym, exhibition areas
and a restaurant, is being erected right next to the race track. A
terrace affords an excellent view of the circuit. This exclusive
project has five backers: BMW M GmbH as the organizer of BMW Driver
Training worldwide, BMW Group Middle East as the sales office
responsible for this region, the Bahrain International Circuit, BMW
Motorsport with the integration of the Formula BMW Racing Center, and
Spooner Motorsport Developments as the operators of the new complex.
BMW Driver Training courses will take place on the grounds of the new
BMW Performance Center. Training for very advanced participants will
involve the GP circuit as well, where the Formula BMW driving courses
will also be held. The vehicle fleet will initially comprise BMW M3
models and Formula BMW race cars. BMW Driver Training: car control at
any speed. The driver is, and will remain, at the centre of all activity
on the road. Motorists are ultimately responsible for keeping their
vehicle under control, despite the growing number of safety systems
designed to actively assist them. This principle applies to all speed
levels, in built-up areas, off the road and on motorways. BMW has been
systematically putting this insight into practice for 26 years now. In
1977, BMW was the first car manufacturer to embrace its responsibility
towards motorists by setting up a Driver Training scheme for
all-comers. Ever since, BMW Driver Training courses have been teaching
drivers to recognize hazardous road situations in good time and to
avoid them or, if the worst comes to the worst, prevent them by means
of targeted manoeuvres. In setting up a BMW Performance Center in
Bahrain, BMW M GmbH is pursuing the globalization of its BMW Driver
Training programme. In addition to the 63,500-square-metre centre at
Munich Airport, which was inaugurated in 1997, BMW deploys some 80
highly qualified instructors at various test and race tracks and other
suitable facilities in Germany and other countries. These include
Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Japan, Canada, Malaysia, Russia,
Singapore, Switzerland, South Africa and the United States. The key
prerequisite for individual training of participants is to offer a
broad range of courses. This ensures that both beginners and experienced
drivers at varying levels of skill can get the most out of their
training course. The core of BMW?s Driver Training philosophy is a
graded training programme that enables driving skills to be perfected
step by step. This programme consists of six systematically progressing
levels of training: - Compact Training for beginners and less skilled
drivers prepares participants for typical situations and hazards in
urban traffic. - Advanced Training builds up on these skills and
introduces drivers to critical situations, such as driving at the limit
with under- and oversteer. - Intensive and Perfection Training on
closed-off circuits are aimed at superior car control in critical
situations faced in off-road driving and at motorway speeds. - Beyond
these levels, there are also the Race Track Fascination and Race Track
Experience courses for more ambitious drivers, offering specialist
training in dynamic driving. Special skills are also taught in courses
such as All-Road and Off-Road Training with the BMW X5, or the Winter
Training programmes held in Austria, Canada and Lapland, as well as
courses in economical and environmentally aware driving. Satellite
navigation is a further area of tuition, while Adventure Tours through
Tuscany and Africa guarantee sheer driving pleasure in the company of
professionals. For motorcyclists, BMW offers on- and off-road training
courses at various levels, mainly in Germany. Beginners? courses are
held at BMW's Driving Safety Center in Munich. More advanced riders can
also take training courses in Mainz and outside Berlin, while seasoned
sports riders can even train on the famous North Loop of the
Nürburgring. Courses in handling the BMW C1 are held at the
company's main site in Munich. Formula BMW Racing Center in Bahrain.
Experience on the race track has traditionally furnished invaluable
insights for BMW's Driver Training scheme, and indeed BMW?s first chief
instructor came from the motor racing world: in 1977, Rauno Aaltonen -
known to the rally world as the "Flying Finn" - brought his
rich fund of knowledge and experience to bear. Bahrain will similarly
witness a symbiosis between safety-conscious driving in road traffic
and on the race track when the very first racing driver school in the
region is incorporated into the BMW Driving Safety Center. It will
follow the example of the Formula BMW Racing Center in Valencia, Spain,
and offer a more extensive programme of training. This will range from a
sampler course to training towards a racing licence, all the way to
intensive courses lasting several days and qualifying sessions for the
Formula BMW talent promotion scheme. BMW Motorsport Director Mario
Theissen said: "With our race series in Germany and Asia, now
extending to Britain and the USA in 2004, our Formula BMW talent
promotion scheme is going more and more global. The establishment of a
further Formula BMW Racing Center in Bahrain is another milestone in
this venture. We hope that our involvement will provide a further
impulse for the expansion of motor racing in the Middle East. The
commitment and success with which Bahrain launched its bid to host a
Formula One Grand Prix is evidence of the interest and potential that
prevails in this region." Robert Bailey-McEwan, Managing Director,
BMW Group Middle East, said: "With the Formula BMW Racing Center,
we are initiating the search for the Arab World's first F1 driver and,
we hope, its first F1 champion. What better place can there be than the
Middle East?s first F1 venue for the nurturing of a home-grown Arab
champion?" Press Contacts: BMW Group Middle East: Rania Rostom,
rania.rostom@bmw.com, phone +9714 313 2600 BMW Driver Training: Jochen
Müller, jochen.mueller@bmw.de, phone +49 89 ? 382 68778 Formula
BMW Racing Center: Heike Bartsch, heike.bartsch@bmw.de, phone +49 (0)
89 - 382 33115 Spooner Motorsport Developments: Paul Spooner,
www.spoonermotorsport.com, phone +44 (0) 797 493 1386