Learning how to drive a Porsche on snow and ice

Sliding sideways on a sheet of white, thinly snow-covered ice in a 430-horsepower Porsche 911 Carrera 4 GTS while headed straight for a snowbank confirmed that notion – it's hard to imagine this being a great year-round car. But Porsche is out to show it can be. The key is in learning to handle the car, winter tires and the Porsche stability management system.

Canadians purchase far more SUVs than sports cars. Porsche sold about five times more Cayennes and Macans than 911s in 2015, according to numbers collected by Good Car Bad Car, an online sales data tracking website.

Given Canadian winters and the SUV craze, this shouldn't come as a surprise. But high-horsepower, fun-to-drive Porsche sports cars don't have to be put away for the winter.

"Camp4 started before we had Macan and before Cayenne, so it was something to show … vehicles you can drive year round," said Patrick Saint-Pierre, of Porsche Cars Canada. "Yes, they are very sporty, very engaging – but you can do that if you live in a Nordic country or somewhere tropical."

The Mecaglisse race track, about two hours north of Montreal and east of Mont-Tremblant, Que., is in a valley, surrounded by mountains and covered in snow and ice. The track is flooded every night to ensure there is enough ice. Mecaglisse has hosted Camp4 Canada – a winter driving experience where guests learn to drift and get out of a skid while driving a fleet of new Porsches – for six straight years. And it's not SUVs being put to the test – these are Porsches people dream about buying.

The program started in Finland in 1996 with the launch of the Carrera 911 4 – the all-wheel-drive option. It was so successful, Porsche expanded it to Switzerland, Italy, China and Canada.

The course consisted of two days of driving in small groups led by instructors. The featured cars were a 911 Carrera 4 GTS, a Cayman GTS and a 911 Carrera GTS – all with 1.5-millimetre studded winter tires.

Walking to the cars, my heart was racing. So was my mind. How was I ever going to keep this pricey car out of a snowbank? We weren't even there yet and instructors were reminding us to walk slowly and to bend our knees down a gentle, icy slope on the track. Confidence inspiring? Hardly.

The instructor demonstrated a few techniques and then it was my turn behind the wheel. I proceeded slowly, but eventually gained the courage to just listen to the instructor, and hit the gas when he said so. To my amazement, the rear end slid forward and then I regained control, the car slithering around a cone without touching the snowbank. "Good job, Jordan," the instructor said over the radio. What was I so worried about?

Most of the day was spent playing with the stability management system disengaged, which allowed the car to spin. Near the end of the day, it was activated, allowing drivers to understand how much more control is gained. Knowing when to hit the gas and turn the wheel is what kept me out of the snowbanks, and once the stability management was engaged, the car became almost impossible to spin. If you ever lose control on ice, it will be brief.

"You get to understand some techniques, but I think really it is a chance to explore your limits, the limits of the car and really get a chance to appreciate what is a Porsche," Saint-Pierre said. In other words, how to have fun with a high-performance car.

Camp4 Canada runs until Feb. 25 and has a starting price tag of $5,295, which includes three nights stay at a five-star lodge plus meals.

Costly, yes, but Saint-Pierre said clientele ranges from customers to people looking to buy a Porsche to "people who may not be able to afford a Porsche, but they like the chance to dream and drive one and see what it's all about."

The writer was a guest of the auto maker. Content was not subject to approval.