[TrackClub]

https://www.windingroad.com/articles...eid=8ca1923aa4


Good reading. If you wish to receive Weekly Speed Secrets nuggets of wisdom from Ross, they are only $25 bucks for a year. Worth every penny....

Here's another one. Note both of these are not full issues that Ross publishes every week, but rather short snippets of same.

https://www.windingroad.com/articles...eid=8ca1923aa4

And one more:

https://www.windingroad.com/articles...eid=8ca1923aa4

And another one:
https://www.windingroad.com/articles...eid=8ca1923aa4

[Norm Peterson]

Thanks for the links; I really should be subscribing. Especially after Ross recently sent out five complete issues, I guess to anybody who had gotten onto his mailing list by some other means.

That "12 mph" was all new to me . . . and I'll bet that it applies to the speed differential between two cars at speed on the track (or on the street) as well


Norm

[Badmojo]

I was considering this news letter. I read his latest Speed Secrets book and enjoyed it.

[TrackClub]

Originally Posted by Badmojo

I was considering this news letter. I read his latest Speed Secrets book and enjoyed it.

Yep his books are excellent, but largely with beginners in mind imo. Often what gets discussed in the Weeklies tends to address the finer, much more advanced subjects and techniques, going way beyond what id consider as "school", or "traditional" teachings. Albeit the latter are a must to learn to form a solid knowledge base - no doubt about that.

I have suggested to Ross he needs to write another book He did indicate he may put out something like "The Best of Weeklies" perhaps as an e-book. It would be a must have imo.

A really cool thing about the Weeklies is that Ross facilitates many other experts and pros to publish articles in them - on many various subjects. One can also purchase past issues based on what topics might be of specific interest.

As a single best book published thus far, i like Michael Krumm's "Driving on the Edge" the most. He calls it like it is and dispels many a "myth" based on his extensive racing experience and telemetry data. From fastest lines, braking, proper vision, to race craft, etc. Well organized, with excellent visual aids and easy to comprehend. And not too wordy, or excessively long. This book trumps them all imo - albeit it is best suited for an advanced level driver looking to max the pace vs somebody looking to establish a basic skill level. Again, imo.

[TrackClub]

Added a new link. A good one

[TrackClub]

Some more words of wisdom from Ross. If you havent signed up for Weekly Speed Secret emails, i highly recommend them no matter one's level.

Rely on cheap tricks!
When I travel to various events to coach or do a presentation, it’s surprising and fun when a driver tells me about what helped them improve their driving. It could be something they learned on their own, a technique someone else taught them, or a tip they picked up that I shared. What’s not so surprising is how often it’s a simple thing that made the difference – a “cheap trick,” such as:

Use the dead pedal. Whenever your left foot is not using the clutch (and/or brake pedal if you’re a left-foot-braker), it should be on the dead pedal. If your car doesn’t have a dead pedal, make one. What’s stopping your body from shifting forward when decelerating hard? Your seatbelts/harnesses are helping, but they can’t hold you still, and the steering wheel is meant to change the direction of the car, not support you. If your body shifts forward even the tiniest bit, it means that the subtle/fine movements of the throttle and/or brake pedal are going to suffer. If football is a game of inches, performance driving is a game of fractions of inches – and that includes the movement of the controls.

Tilt your side mirrors out. When was the last time your car ran into itself? Never?! Okay, then make sure you cannot see the side of your own car in your side mirrors. If you can see the side of your car, then adjust them out until you can only see it if you tilt your head in the direction of that side mirror. That way you’ll see more to the side, eliminating blind spots, and being more aware of other cars around you. And this applies to when you're driving on the street, too - maybe even more so.

Stay at full throttle until it’s time to brake. When driving on the street, rarely do you drive up to a traffic light or stop sign at full throttle, quickly lift your foot off the gas pedal, and apply the brakes. Instead, you see what you’re stopping or slowing for, ease your foot off the gas, coast… then begin braking. And that builds a habit of doing that – a habit that often appears on the track. Be aware of whether you lift off the throttle, coast, and then brake for corners – and then stop doing that. Instead, stay at full throttle right until the point where you want to brake, quickly release the gas pedal, and immediately begin braking.

Spend more time at full throttle. Can you stay at full throttle for even a fraction of a second longer before you start braking for every corner (see previous point)? Can you get to full throttle just a fraction of a second longer when exiting corners? Are there places on the track between corners where you think you’re going to full throttle, but you’re not – or your mind decides not to go to full throttle because it knows you’re going to lift off again in a fraction of a second from now (without you being consciously aware of this)? A few fractions of a second add up to a lot! Can you spend even one or two percent more of the lap at full throttle?

Wait to get on the throttle until you’re able to go to full throttle. You’ve been told to never coast (I even wrote that in my Speed Secrets books). But there are exceptions to every piece of advice, and sometimes you’re better off to hesitate for a fraction of second after coming off the brakes before beginning to apply the throttle. Why? To allow the car to finish changing direction (rotating), so when you do begin to apply the throttle, you can go all the way to full throttle (without having to ease up to avoid running off the track at the exit of the corner).

Release the brakes slower. That’s it. Just be aware of how quickly you release the brakes, and slow it down a little. Be a little smoother and more deliberate with how you take your foot off the brake pedal.

Think of reference points as index points. (A hat tip to Peter Krause for this one). Rather than thinking of reference points as a place where you need to do something, think of them as indicators. A reference point could be the end of some painted curbing, but your turn-in point may be half a car’s length before it. So, you’re indexing your turn-in point off the end of the curbing, but you don’t actually do something right at that point.

Focus on the EoB (End-of-Braking) as much or more than that BoB (Begin-of-Braking). As you approach a corner, look into where you’re going to end your braking (that point where your foot is completely off the brake pedal). That’s the EoB, and it’s more important than the BoB. If you’re focused on where you begin braking, you’re not focused enough on the corner up ahead.

Lighten your steering wheel grip. On a scale of one to ten, with ten being that you’re gripping the steering wheel as tightly as you can, hold the wheel with no more than a four grip. Hold the wheel with just enough effort to ensure your hands don’t slip – and no more. The lighter your grip, the more sensitive you are to the feedback through the wheel. (Hint: Ensure your steering wheel is designed to assist with this – check out https://www.steeringwheelguy.com)

Complete downshifts before turning into corners. Never, ever, ever, ever… turn into a corner before you’ve completed your final downshift. And by complete, I mean having the clutch fully released and engaged and your left foot back on the dead pedal. That must be done before you’re allowed to turn the steering wheel.

Get good at the fast corners. It’s the fastest corners that usually intimidate drivers the most and that means that if you get good at them, you have an advantage over others. Often, if you need to slow for a fast corner, do it early. In our desire to take fast corners faster, we often leave our braking later and later, until we have the nose of the car loaded up as we turn in… making for an uncomfortable feeling (and a lower overall grip level). Instead, make your speed adjustment early, and then get back to power almost at the point where you’re turning in. That’ll make the car better balanced and give it more grip to handle the fast corner.

Imagine before driving. Prior to going on the track, take at least ten minutes to relax and imagine what it is you’re going to do when you get there. Track time is expensive and limited, so make every second of it count. Taking a few laps to warm up, getting up to speed, and then starting to think about what you want to change or improve is a bad investment. Do some mental imagery of what you’re going to do before you even think about starting your engine.

Based on what I’ve been told by drivers all around the world, relying on these “cheap tricks” will improve your driving.

[2010REDSS]

TC,

Thanks for posting all this. Damn, just got back home from Road Atlanta and catching up on the Forum and wish I would have read this post b4 I hit the track...

I've worked on my car over the winter and it performed fantastic, now I gotta work on the driver again.

Some great tips here. This will help b4 I hit RoadAmerica in May. Gonna subscribe!

[trohde78]

Great post. Thank you!

[TrackClub]

My pleasure, guys!
Can't stress enough how useful these weekly emails are. They go way beyond most of what Ross has published in his books, imo. Albeit the latter are clearly very useful nevertheless.

Another cool thing about the Weeklies is that one can purchase past issues, bases on specific subject, or interest. If my memory serves me right they are 50 cents each, or something like that. In any case less than a cup of coffee anyway A great resource indeed!

[TrackClub]

Very good musings from one of the Weeklies contributor on tires. Some excellent points there worthy of pondering by any track rat. Enjoy (par # disappeared on copy and paste, so you'll just have to wing it when he refers to them):

Random observations on high performance and race tires and how they are being used by many amateur drivers and crews, from a sports car engineer who has made all these mistakes (and many more) and continues to make mistakes with his tires. Every. Single. Weekend. So, I really don’t know “how” to do it. I’ve just had enough time to do it wrong - a lot. (Ed. Note: Jeff is also much too modest.)
The tire that produces the most grip - for at least one foot longer than your stint or race - is the best.
There is no substitute for high-grip, new tires. You will get beaten by a driver who can afford to run new tires each race, assuming they follow #1 above.
People so often try to set up a car on worn-out tires and fool themselves into thinking they learned something, when in fact they “learned” something that’s wrong. Now instead of just not knowing the answer, they “know” the wrong answer. That’s MUCH worse.
No one can tell you what the “best” tire is for your 2008 Range Rover Time Attack car with the “twin turbo extra boost kit” and the “special deluxe aero package” that you’re taking to the Drift Nationals in Moab next week. Best advice is to see #1 above.
If you can’t afford to abide by #2, you will get beat by those who can.
People get pick-up (clag, build-up) on their tires and get scared because it feels like they have a flat and have zero grip. And what do they do? Slow down. And that only makes it worse. I see the pros get more aggressive in the right spots and work very hard with the steering wheel and brake to clean the tires – they scrub the pick-up off the tires. It’s not easy, but the people who slow down never fix the problem.
Very few drivers can actually “feel” the tires. By that, I mean on a detailed level - like feel the outside front tire start to make grip as you turn in; then feel the slip angle build; then feel the load in the hands and make small pressure adjustments to the wheel based on those loads in the hands; then feel the tire start to lose grip with a slight vibration in the hands; then know that’s the limit and make a change with the wheel or brake before the tire goes over the limit and really slides and kills the whole corner. The small group of people who can do this? They are ranked as the best in the world.
I see too many people worried about what anti-roll bar or springs or cool shocks to get when they need to focus on #7 first, before any of that other stuff matters.
There is nothing better for learning than running on old, worn-out, no-grip tires. Understand #2 above is for winning, but “old-tire practice” is for getting better so you can win.
People really struggle with getting their tires to come up to the hot pressures they want. It’s so simple, I just don’t understand why people struggle. Start with the pressures too high when the tires are cold (high enough so you are sure they will heat up past what you are targeting for your hot pressures), go run some laps, come in and bleed the tires down to the target pressures, go run more, and at the end of the session, stop and bleed down to the target pressures. Now, let those tires cool in the shade right next to your set of new tires. Read the cold, cooled down pressures from the 1st set and put those pressures in the new set. Now, either set will produce the desired target pressures on the car. Just never lose the “sample” set pressures and you can leapfrog multiple sets like this.
So many people don’t get the “good” out of new tires. They go the same speed as on the old tires and can’t figure out why. See #7. That’s why.
People forget that tires are springs with no dampers on them. Pump up a tire and it gets stiffer, just like installing a stiffer spring.
The air in a tire is what gives it structure; not enough air and the sidewall overheats because it flexes as the tire rotates, compressing it between the wheel and road. Pretty soon, the sidewall tread joint fails and the tread comes out, leaving you with two sidewalls to use to get back to the pits. Ouch.
I see people who think street tires with the same rating, size, and DOT markings are all the same. That’s like saying all grass-fed USDA 8 oz, ribeye steaks taste the same. It’s all about the preparation and ingredients, just like tires.
Softer is not always better. Remember the qualifier in #1 - a tire that lasts one foot longer than your stint. Tire grip changes every lap. The goal is the max grip over the course of the required life of that tire. Soft tires may fall off too soon and a harder tire may give the max grip across the desired time frame.
I see people forget that the tire is likely the single most important and influential component of the mechanical grip and handling on the car.
Heat cycles affect a tire more if that tire is closer to an out-and-out racing tire. People worry about heat cycles on a tire that’s good for 20,000 miles on the street car...that’s not important. However, on a high-performance race tire that’s good for 150 miles, one heat cycle will cost you a lot of grip.
I wonder why people don’t use the tires to tell them about their set-up or driving? Accurate tire pressures will tell you if you’re using the fronts harder this session or if that rear anti-roll bar change helped or hurt. It’s easy to read tire pressures, but people ignore it and that’s a shame.
Race tires are expensive….see #2, though.
The best drivers are great on worn-out or end-of-stint tires, and then use every bit of the new tire grip. Why? See #7.
Karting is a great way to learn about tires. Why don’t more car racers go to the kart track and work over and over on #7? Could be the best money spent! Forget that new exhaust or data system. Learn how to feel the tires.
Wonder why people don’t even look at their tires and see what the surface looks like, then try to relate that to how the car handled? Everyone has a camera in their phone...seems strange that drivers on a track day or club event are not taking pictures of the tires to go with their post-session notes.
I see people take the checkered, do a “cool down” lap to the pits, then check tire pressures. That is a total waste of time. There are no cool down laps - the in-lap should be the best lap of the weekend until the pit entry for many reasons, not the least of which is that the tire pressures will actually mean something!
Why do people buy rain tires then decide to not go out on track when it rains? Because it’s unsafe or they may damage the car? Rain driving is the best thing for #7 and heck, you’re going slower, so anything you hit will be at a lower speed and thus not as dangerous. Big missed opportunity by so many people. When it rains, the track should be packed with people learning and working on #7.
People take tire temps and think that is so important, but fail to understand what they’re doing. The temps only show you a small indication of what the tire did on the last corner before the pits. That’s it - really not super informative. For sure, it’s pretty much useless to say that your tires are running hotter than last week if you’re at a different track where the pit lane is longer or shorter or the last turn is not as tight. You are seeing a small slice of information - very small - and it’s a bad idea to base your set up changes on 2% of what the tire is going through. The best thing to do is take good tire pressures immediately after coming in, as they change more slowly than the temps do. So tire pressures give a better indication of the work load of each tire - then see #22 and do that.
This is how I see it and what I observe people doing with tires. I learn more about this stuff every day I spend at the track, so I could be completely wrong, here.
- Jeff Braun

Facebook: www.facebook.com/JVBRAUN602
Twitter: @jvbraun
Instagram: @jvbraun

[wnta1ss]

TrackClub, tried reading post #10 and the format getting messed up then seeing continued references to numbers makes it hard to read. Wondering if you tried printing it to a pdf, would that save the formatting so it could be read like the original? Just a thought, definitely not trying to give you a hard time.

[Norm Peterson]

I had the same problem.

Try this (edited in Word). I'm not sure of the paragraph numbering past #18, so if it's wrong I will fix it.

1. The tire that produces the most grip - for at least one foot longer than your stint or race - is the best.

2. There is no substitute for high-grip, new tires. You will get beaten by a driver who can afford to run new tires each race, assuming they follow #1 above.

3. People so often try to set up a car on worn-out tires and fool themselves into thinking they learned something, when in fact they “learned” something that’s wrong. Now instead of just not knowing the answer, they “know” the wrong answer. That’s MUCH worse.

4. No one can tell you what the “best” tire is for your 2008 Range Rover Time Attack car with the “twin turbo extra boost kit” and the “special deluxe aero package” that you’re taking to the Drift Nationals in Moab next week. Best advice is to see #1 above.

5. If you can’t afford to abide by #2, you will get beat by those who can.

6. People get pick-up (clag, build-up) on their tires and get scared because it feels like they have a flat and have zero grip. And what do they do? Slow down. And that only makes it worse. I see the pros get more aggressive in the right spots and work very hard with the steering wheel and brake to clean the tires – they scrub the pick-up off the tires. It’s not easy, but the people who slow down never fix the problem.

7. Very few drivers can actually “feel” the tires. By that, I mean on a detailed level - like feel the outside front tire start to make grip as you turn in; then feel the slip angle build; then feel the load in the hands and make small pressure adjustments to the wheel based on those loads in the hands; then feel the tire start to lose grip with a slight vibration in the hands; then know that’s the limit and make a change with the wheel or brake before the tire goes over the limit and really slides and kills the whole corner. The small group of people who can do this? They are ranked as the best in the world.

8. I see too many people worried about what anti-roll bar or springs or cool shocks to get when they need to focus on #7 first, before any of that other stuff matters.

9. There is nothing better for learning than running on old, worn-out, no-grip tires. Understand #2 above is for winning, but “old-tire practice” is for getting better so you can win.

10. People really struggle with getting their tires to come up to the hot pressures they want. It’s so simple, I just don’t understand why people struggle. Start with the pressures too high when the tires are cold (high enough so you are sure they will heat up past what you are targeting for your hot pressures), go run some laps, come in and bleed the tires down to the target pressures, go run more, and at the end of the session, stop and bleed down to the target pressures. Now, let those tires cool in the shade right next to your set of new tires. Read the cold, cooled down pressures from the 1st set and put those pressures in the new set. Now, either set will produce the desired target pressures on the car. Just never lose the “sample” set pressures and you can leapfrog multiple sets like this.

11. So many people don’t get the “good” out of new tires. They go the same speed as on the old tires and can’t figure out why. See #7. That’s why.

12. People forget that tires are springs with no dampers on them. Pump up a tire and it gets stiffer, just like installing a stiffer spring.

13. The air in a tire is what gives it structure; not enough air and the sidewall overheats because it flexes as the tire rotates, compressing it between the wheel and road. Pretty soon, the sidewall tread joint fails and the tread comes out, leaving you with two sidewalls to use to get back to the pits. Ouch.

14. I see people who think street tires with the same rating, size, and DOT markings are all the same. That’s like saying all grass-fed USDA 8 oz, ribeye steaks taste the same. It’s all about the preparation and ingredients, just like tires.

15. Softer is not always better. Remember the qualifier in #1 - a tire that lasts one foot longer than your stint. Tire grip changes every lap. The goal is the max grip over the course of the required life of that tire. Soft tires may fall off too soon and a harder tire may give the max grip across the desired time frame.

16. I see people forget that the tire is likely the single most important and influential component of the mechanical grip and handling on the car.

17. Heat cycles affect a tire more if that tire is closer to an out-and-out racing tire. People worry about heat cycles on a tire that’s good for 20,000 miles on the street car...that’s not important. However, on a high-performance race tire that’s good for 150 miles, one heat cycle will cost you a lot of grip.

18. I wonder why people don’t use the tires to tell them about their set-up or driving? Accurate tire pressures will tell you if you’re using the fronts harder this session or if that rear anti-roll bar change helped or hurt. It’s easy to read tire pressures, but people ignore it and that’s a shame.

19. Race tires are expensive….see #2, though.

20. The best drivers are great on worn-out or end-of-stint tires, and then use every bit of the new tire grip. Why? See #7.

21. Karting is a great way to learn about tires. Why don’t more car racers go to the kart track and work over and over on #7? Could be the best money spent! Forget that new exhaust or data system. Learn how to feel the tires.

22. Wonder why people don’t even look at their tires and see what the surface looks like, then try to relate that to how the car handled? Everyone has a camera in their phone...seems strange that drivers on a track day or club event are not taking pictures of the tires to go with their post-session notes.

23. I see people take the checkered, do a “cool down” lap to the pits, then check tire pressures. That is a total waste of time. There are no cool down laps - the in-lap should be the best lap of the weekend until the pit entry for many reasons, not the least of which is that the tire pressures will actually mean something!

24. Why do people buy rain tires then decide to not go out on track when it rains? Because it’s unsafe or they may damage the car? Rain driving is the best thing for #7 and heck, you’re going slower, so anything you hit will be at a lower speed and thus not as dangerous. Big missed opportunity by so many people. When it rains, the track should be packed with people learning and working on #7.

25. People take tire temps and think that is so important, but fail to understand what they’re doing. The temps only show you a small indication of what the tire did on the last corner before the pits. That’s it - really not super informative. For sure, it’s pretty much useless to say that your tires are running hotter than last week if you’re at a different track where the pit lane is longer or shorter or the last turn is not as tight. You are seeing a small slice of information - very small - and it’s a bad idea to base your set up changes on 2% of what the tire is going through. The best thing to do is take good tire pressures immediately after coming in, as they change more slowly than the temps do. So tire pressures give a better indication of the work load of each tire - then see #22 and do that.


This is how I see it and what I observe people doing with tires. I learn more about this stuff every day I spend at the track, so I could be completely wrong, here.
- Jeff Braun

Norm

[TrackClub]

Thx guys and thank you Norm! I am vacationing at the moment and only have access to my phone which is a bit of a PITA...

[TrackClub]

Today's Weekly Secrets. Highly recommend to sign up for these nuggets of wisdom that arrive in my mail inbox every Tuesday. For peanuts!


Speed Secrets Weekly

#320
June, 2019

Hi

One of the most amazing things we do as performance/race drivers is find the ideal compromise between corner entry speed, minimum speed in the corner, and maximum exit speed. Too much speed early in the corner and we'll be slow exiting it; too little speed entering a corner and we'll never make up the difference, no matter how early we begin accelerating.

I wrote about this topic in the last issue, and this week, Andrew Rains takes it to another level.

Many of you know Andrew from his role as Marketing Director at APEX Pro (who make that cool device that helps you know if you're driving at or near the limits of your car). In addition to that role, Andrew's a racer, a coach, a data geek, and as you can tell from his piece below, he knows how to dig into and explain a very complex driving topic.

I encourage you to read Andrew's article at least twice, and take the time to internalize what he's saying. It'll make you a better driver.

Enjoy!

Minimum Corner Speed and the Fuzzy Dice Approach
by Andrew Rains
​​​​​​​
Min Corner Speed
“Min Speed” is a common term used among racing coaches and drivers. I do not remember hearing this term until I got to know guys who really knew how to flintstone their car around the track faster than most. What is so important about the minimum corner speed; what can you learn from it; and how does the minimum speed of the corner change your approach to the turn? Minimum corner speed is the point in the corner where the vehicle’s speed is the slowest (pretty simple eh?). Put another way, it is the point where the car is most dedicated to cornering.

I asked my former race engineer and current FCA Calibration Engineer, Evan Maynard, for his definition of Min Speed:

“Maximized min corner speed is important because it allows you to decrease the time spent in, and out of the corner - something that is especially crucial when trying to decrease lap time. Optimal min speed is achieved through a combination of calculated brake application (timing and magnitude) smooth (and minimized) weight transfer, an adapted driving line, and appropriate throttle application.”

Here’s a quick quote from IMSA Pro Robby Foley (he shares the Turner M6 in GTD this year with Bill Auberlen!)

“I hear the term min speed thrown around a lot and find that people mean different things by it. I always aim to reach my min speed at the point where I can then go back to throttle. I see a lot of people under-drive/over-slow the entry and roll a high min speed across the corner, but then they’re delayed on getting back to throttle. A lot of times people focus too much on min speed in corners where getting to throttle soon is more important, and many times people focus too much on getting to throttle sooner when the focus of the corner should be a higher min speed.”


Image
Image
Min corner speed shown above is 45mph in turn 7 at Road Atlanta – great example of a slow corner!

The min speed is the point where the speed trace’s (second image above – speed in mph vs. distance in feet) slope changes from negative to positive. This point comes near the apex of the corner.

How can we use min speed to track our performance and make decisions about how to approach a corner? The two items below will help you in your search for additional minimum corner speed:

1) Is the corner a “slow corner” or a “fast corner”?

Having some form of data acquisition is requisite for determining this, so let’s assume you have access to a speed trace. Sometimes we drive “fast corners” like “slow corners” when we are still learning the track, the car, and starting to approach our limits. This can be a huge issue as we gain confidence and min speed increases!

I like to look at an aggregate of min speeds – take 2-3 drivers data over several laps and find the average min speed of the corner. Many times you will find a corner you approach as “slow” (trailing off the brake deep in the corner) is actually “fast” and requires a focus on balance!

A “slow corner” is a turn where your goal is to keep the weight on the front tires, thus helping the car rotate mid-corner. Usually the min speed in these corners is under 60 mph.
Driving a slow corner as a fast corner will cause understeer on corner exit and keep the car from rotating properly mid-corner. You usually lose valuable tenths down the following straight as a result.
A “fast corner” is a turn where the car is willing to rotate with a minor amount of steering input, and therefore our job is to create a balanced platform – min speed is above 60 mph!

Driving a fast corner as a slow corner (assuming you are still approaching the same min speed) will create over-rotation on entry and force you to over-slow the corner or spin!
To recap the above statements:
Slow corner = trailing off brake as you approach the apex – this helps rotate the car and allows you get back to power. The slower the corner the later in the corner you will fully release the brake pedal (remember – smooooth release).
Fast corner = the faster the corner the sooner you must be off the brake pedal – with plenty of rotation at your disposal (a byproduct of the inertia created by more speed!) your goal is to stabilize the car. In super-fast corners, this means shifting the weight rearward as soon as turn-in!
2) To build confidence and carry more min speed, approach the corner in the technically correct way whether you are 1 mph under the target min speed or 20!

Now that we have an idea of what corners are “fast” and “slow,” we have to go out there and drive them the right way! Every corner has its subtleties. But the fundamentals are the same everywhere, so let’s talk priorities:
In faster corners, prioritize balance. Sometimes, this means lifting off the throttle instead of braking or committing back to power sooner. Sometimes, it means being patient before going back to power! In fast corners, the End of Brake (EoB) is closer to the turn-in point than the apex – sometimes it’s before turn-in, and sometimes there is no braking!
The slower the corner, the more we prioritize rotation. If you struggle in slower corners, get to know some quick autocrossers! In slow corners, your EoB point is closer to the apex of the corner. Ask yourself, “Am I releasing the brake pedal as I turn the wheel?” Focus on the EoB first and use that to establish your initial brake point.
Notice I emphasized “priority.” The reason for this is that balance and rotation are important in fast and slow corners – we simply prioritize balance in fast corners and rotation in slow corners.

The Fuzzy Dice Approach
Think about the Fuzzy Dice hanging from the rear-view mirror. It takes hard braking to get them to touch the windshield at 30 mph. At 100 mph, a big lift off the throttle might be enough to get them to touch the windshield.

When you go back to power at 30mph, the dice will fly towards the back of the car quickly. When you commit back to power at 100mph, they might not even move!

If the target min speed for the corner is 30 mph and you are approaching at 130mph – maintain vMax as long as possible, brake at threshold, and release the brake pedal as you turn to help rotate the car. Don’t brake so late that the balance of the car is off and you miss the apex!
If the target min speed for the corner is 100mph and you are approaching at 130mph your priority is balance. Putting weight on the front tires will make the car rotate with gusto. Do NOT brake at threshold; brake early and light. Over time, you might move the initial brake point around but focus on the EoB point that creates the most balance at the apex of the corner. Finding the EoB will help you determine how much initial brake pressure you need (hint…probably not much).
So what did we learn? Keep the Fuzzy Dice in mind when thinking about min speed and how to approach a corner!

- Andrew Rains
Website: apextrackcoach.com
Facebook: /officialapexpro/
Instagram: @officialapexpro

"Race cars are neither beautiful nor ugly. They become beautiful when they win." – Enzo Ferrari
"Auto racing began 5 minutes after the second car was built." - Henry Ford

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Focus on not getting worse.
At the track, do you focus mostly on improving what you’re not doing well, or fine-tuning what you’re doing well? Is your attention on getting better, or not getting worse?

In striving to be an even better driver, both approaches are valid. But I read something recently that got me thinking more about this. Often, improving is not just about doing more things right. It’s about doing fewer things wrong.

The New Yorker had a piece about how Japanese companies grew to dominate many industries in the ‘70s, stating: “Japanese firms emphasized what came to be known as 'lean production,' relentlessly looking to remove waste of all kinds from the production process, down to redesigning workspaces, so workers didn’t have to waste time twisting and turning to reach their tools. The result was that Japanese factories were more efficient and Japanese products were more reliable than American ones. In 1974, service calls for American-made color televisions were five times as common as for Japanese televisions. By 1979, it took American workers three times as long to assemble their sets.”

The big takeaway here was that the Japanese companies were more focused on not getting worse, rather than on getting better. If you’re anything like me, you immediately think about how to apply this to track driving! In the case of the Japanese TV makers, they didn’t look to make better products. Instead, they focused on making the same TV, but with fewer mistakes.

How does this apply to driving, or more specifically, improving your driving? You probably know that I’m a cup-half-full kind of guy, so looking at the negatives is not in my DNA. However, it’s possible to focus on a problem without focusing on the negatives. Frequently, I’ve suggested experimenting with various parts of your driving as a way to find new ways of improving. But perhaps simply doing less of what’s wrong would make a bigger difference. For example, instead of focusing on how to drive half a second faster for one lap, maybe focusing on consistently driving at your current pace would provide a better result. If your lap times are moving up and down by more than half a second, perhaps you’d make a bigger improvement just by being more consistent. Focus on reducing the variables, the ups and downs.

What does it take to be more consistent? First, figuring out where the inconsistencies are. This is where data acquisition can be super helpful. Overlap three, four, or five laps and look at where the biggest differences are. Those areas are prime for improvement.

Once you’ve identified where the biggest inconsistencies are, then you need to figure out why. Your data might help, but if not, look at – and listen to - in-car video. Do you see variances in the line? The timing of when you begin and end braking? Are these caused by not looking far enough ahead, or in the wrong direction? Are your basic skills not well-enough programmed, so you’re doing different things each time? Is it because of the way your car handles?

How can you make fewer mistakes, rather than trying to improve your skills? This is like improving by doing less, rather than doing more. For many drivers, this produces the best results. Maybe even for you.

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Speed Secrets Glossary
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“Gurney, Gurney flap”: Also called a “wickerbill,” this is a small lip sticking up from the trailing edge of a wing. It adds a significant amount of downforce by increasing the negative pressure behind and below the wing, although it does also increase drag. Dan Gurney is credited with inventing it, and therefore it's named after him.

“Splitter”:
 This aerodynamic device is placed on the nose of certain cars to increase downforce on the front of the car. Typically, it’s a relatively flat surface that sticks out from the nose of the car, parallel with the ground.

“Spoiler”: A spoiler is attached to the trailing edge of a car to increase its rear downforce. The difference in air pressure between the front/top of it and the area behind and below it creates the downforce; it also increases drag, but is designed to provide more of the former than the latter.

“Undertray”: Many race cars (and some street cars) have a flat surface under the car that steps or slopes up toward the rear, generating less air pressure below the car than above it. This results in the car being “sucked” down to the track, increasing tire traction. This aerodynamic design creates little to no drag.

“Wing”: Essentially an upside-down airplane wing (or do airplanes have upside-down race car wings?), the downforce created generates downforce and pushes the tires down onto the track with more force, resulting in more traction. Once again, wings generate drag, so the goal is to have it create more downforce than drag. Most wings are adjustable, allowing teams to alter the amount of downforce on the car.

But Wait, There's More...
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I was just ten years old when the Ford versus Ferrari battle was at its peak at Le Mans, but I was heavily invested in Road & Track magazines, so I knew all about it. And I loved the Ford GT40s! To this day, it's my favorite car. I read everything I could about that car, I built models of it, I drew it, I dreamed about racing at Le Mans one day in it (I haven't accomplished that last one yet, although I have driven real race versions of the car).

When I heard about the upcoming Ford v. Ferrari feature movie coming out, I was cautiously excited. Hey, Hollywood has messed up some racing moves, right? And yes, they've done a great job with a few, too. I hope this one - along with The Art of Racing in the Rain, which is due to be released in August - fall into the latter category. Watching the trailer for Ford v. Ferrari, I can't tell if there's going to be too much "Hollywood" in it or not. Obviously, we won't know for sure until we see it, but until then, check out the trailer for the movie at https://youtu.be/zyYgDtY2AMY.

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Copyright Ross Bentley, 2019
The fine print... Opinions expressed here are entirely mine and/or of the contributing author(s), and are meant to be used at your own risk... and all that other legal stuff that usually goes at the bottom that no one tends to read anyway. But it's here, right? So it's all up to you now. You're responsible, okay?
Ross Bentley
Speed Secrets Weekly
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