TAG Heuer has long been one of the iconic brands associated with motorsports, and I’ve enjoyed my partnership with them, now in its third year. Racing is all about time. Who has the quickest lap time? How long until I need to pit? How far am I down? How much of a lead do I have? Time is a precious commodity that once wasted can never be recovered.

This past season, time became even more of a theme. Pat Long, Jim Jordan and I joked that no matter where we were in the world, we lived in three distinct time zones.

Time Zone No. 1 was Porsche Time. In the Porsche Time Zone, if an appointment was supposed to start at 12:00, you needed to be ready by 11:50 at the latest, because being only 10 minutes early was barely acceptable. But we are Americans after all, and can’t be expected to match the Germans when it comes to obsessive compulsive promptness.

Time Zone No. 2, TAG Heuer time is the most amazing, at least in Europe. Before the Nurburgring round of the FIA World Endurance Championship, I was invited to visit the watch factory and meet the employees. Since I’m used to Porsche time, I was in the lobby of the hotel early for our 9 A.M. pickup. Jim and I were waiting and we joked that the TAG Heuer driver was going to be late. Then, at exactly 9:00.00, the Porsche Panamera rolled up to the front door! Not one second early; not one second late. TAG Heuer time is the exact time, which I guess is the right time zone for the finest watchmakers in the world.

Time Zone No. 3, for me at least, is Hollywood time. Hollywood time is whenever. Or never. Or maybe. It might actually be all three at once. It was refreshing that during the season I did not have to deal with Hollywood time. Well, at least until I started my next movie project right before the season ended…

It’s been rewarding to take some time to reflect upon last season. I was actually on the podium at the two most important 24 Hour races in the world – the Daytona 24 Hours and the 24 Hours of Le Mans – and I was able to win a WEC race at Fuji.

Was it a perfect season? No. I still keep reflecting on my night stint at Circuit of The Americas, which had to be the low point of the season. I struggled at night and we didn’t win a race we could have won. But I also think that I took that result, and the feelings I had, as motivation for a better result at Fuji next time out. Who knows, we might not have won at Fuji if I’d done better at COTA? I never want to feel that disappointment I felt at COTA again, but being human I probably will. In the end, I guess it’s all part of the process of the competition, both within my head and on the track.

The drivers I shared a car with were consistently amazing. Marco Seefried and Pat were a joy to work with. They were so different, but each brought their unique set of talents to the team. I love endurance racing for this reason – all three drivers have a role and it takes a great race by all three in order to win. I want to recognize our engineer Jacque one more time for his hard work in keeping us focused and on the right priorities, too.

The end of the season also made me take time to figure out my future. There was a heavy toll taken on my family this past year while I competed in the WEC. My three kids are all at an age where they need a father’s attention and guidance. They are a little too young to really enjoy the track. I also know that an experience I miss with them now will be lost forever.

So I’ve made the decision to walk away, at least from full-time driving. The timing just seems exactly right, in the Heuer way. Not too soon, not too late. I’m still going to be involved with Dempsey Proton Racing in the WEC, where the No. 77 car will compete in the GTE-Pro Class. I’ll attend when possible, and I know when Silverstone comes around I’ll miss it very much.

Will I race again? At this moment I can’t say for sure. I’m very comfortable with my decision to walk away from competitive driving, although I hope to sneak away for a test day or two to keep my skills up. It really is time in my life to put my family first, so I guess any racing would depend upon its impact on my kids. No matter what, I will be keeping track of the team’s progress and I’m excited that Pat Long will be racing in the sister car, along with my friend, Khaled Al Qubaisi, and David Hansen.

I plan to continue this column. RACER magazine has decided that I can stay connected to motorsports by continuing to share my experiences and observations. Often when competing in a series you’re prohibited from saying how you really feel, but now that I’m not racing I won’t have such limits.

Christian Reid and the Proton squad were amazing. In three Le Mans 24 hours and also a full WEC season, there was never a DNF with my car. Thanks so much to the whole team for this amazing result.

Finally, let me take a moment to thank all my friends at Porsche. The Porsche team has welcomed me and supported me in so many different ways, and the success I had in 2015 would not have been possible without their help. When I shared with them my desire to stay on as a team owner, but not driving, they took a deep breath and then figured out a way to make it work.

Get the whole story in The 2016 Season Preview Issue of RACER magazine, on sale now.

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