Post by Larry Walters on Sept 18, 2006 12:49:02 GMT -5
I hope everyone is enjoying these archived articles as much as I am...
ROAD COURSES: Improving your times.
Sookie - 02:33am Dec 20, 2003 PST
!!AOR-Happy!!
I've never been a fan of NASCAR roads since leaving GPLl, now with so many mods for roads it's either learn or be left out who wants to be left out eh. Here is some good reading a top road driver in our club sent me. After studying it and applying it I gained 7mph after 3 laps and can use the formula to any road track I can now after one night run midfield and have an insight on how to improve further. This person drove in real life and is about fourth fastest and consistent in the club...as follows. !!AOR-Happy!!
1) BE THE METRONOME GRASSHOPPER
This is probably the simplest and most effective way of getting fast around a road course, because its the basis of everything else you do. Find a spot, mark, sign, tree or anything that you can use as your brake point for every corner. AND USE IT FOR EVERY CORNER!
Similarly, try and have a turn-in point, apex, and exit that remains constant. Even to the extent of gear change up points.
The first advantage of having such a consistent and repetitive lap is you will now have a benchmark for everything else you do, whether its a set-up change, or a change of driving style for a particular part of the track.
The other advantage is that it puts a lot of pressure on anybody in front of, or behind you. In his efforts to either shake you off his arse, or get by you... he will start to drive outside his comfort zone. He'll be trying to go deeper under brakes, get the power down earlier etc... and he'll lose his rhythm, start to use up tires and probably, if you keep the pressure on, eventually have an off.
So lets say you can do a dozen or so laps at a particular track and all your lap times a within a few tenths of each other. (Which is easy...if you're TRULY using the metronome approach... and bloody difficult if you're not)
NOW you can start to refine your approach to the track.
Pick a corner that you feel that you could be getting thru faster, and start to try some different ways around it.
(But only that one corner... drive the rest of the track in your metronome mode)
Apart from the obvious fix of braking a bit later ...one of the best ways to get faster is to avoid turning in too early. If you find that you're running out of track on the exits or feel that you are having to wait too long before you can get the power down... its probably 'cos you're turning in too early. Try a later turn in and hitting the apex further along and around the corner.
(Your exit speed is MUCH MORE IMPORTANT than your entry speed to a corner)
BTW it might pay not to get too carried away with late braking if you're getting better exit speeds out of the previous corner you'll being arriving at the next carrying more car speed, and might find your original brake point is still spot on.
Work on that one corner trying out different stuff, and as long as you drive the rest of the track in metronome mode, you'll soon have the fastest way thru sorted.
2) AIM INSIDE WHERE YOU WANT TO GO
Have you got the Kylami track? If you do, go to T3. A fast left hander. Its one of those fast corners that needs a momentary squeeze on the brake pedal as you approach it, and then you need to be back on the loud pedal to get the car to 'rotate' thru the turn. The car will understeer (or push) if you haven't got the power back down.
If you find that you're running out of road on the exit you can bet that its because you've missed your apex. And that will almost certainly be because of drift. Try and find a point INSIDE the apex and aim at that! (Remember that aiming inside the apex doesn't mean turning in earlier tho!)
The lateral drift of the car should mean you're now hitting the apex with power down and instead of running out of road and possibly even having to lift... you'll now be UNWINDING your steering input and accelerating out of the corner.
3) NO SPEED SHIFTS
Make sure you lift all the way off the throttle on change ups. There's nothing worse than staring down the barrel of 20 or 30 laps without 3rd... and 2nd... and 4th
4) A LITTLE BIT OF THROTTLE UNDER BRAKES* <<<<(this is the one that helped me the most along with getting the apex exit correct)
There may be a bit gearbox damage risk in this... but i like to have just a SMALL amount of throttle on while I'm braking hard and changing down for corners. It seems to make the car more stable, especially if its a corner you're approaching at high speed
ROAD COURSES: Improving your times.
Sookie - 02:33am Dec 20, 2003 PST
!!AOR-Happy!!
I've never been a fan of NASCAR roads since leaving GPLl, now with so many mods for roads it's either learn or be left out who wants to be left out eh. Here is some good reading a top road driver in our club sent me. After studying it and applying it I gained 7mph after 3 laps and can use the formula to any road track I can now after one night run midfield and have an insight on how to improve further. This person drove in real life and is about fourth fastest and consistent in the club...as follows. !!AOR-Happy!!
1) BE THE METRONOME GRASSHOPPER
This is probably the simplest and most effective way of getting fast around a road course, because its the basis of everything else you do. Find a spot, mark, sign, tree or anything that you can use as your brake point for every corner. AND USE IT FOR EVERY CORNER!
Similarly, try and have a turn-in point, apex, and exit that remains constant. Even to the extent of gear change up points.
The first advantage of having such a consistent and repetitive lap is you will now have a benchmark for everything else you do, whether its a set-up change, or a change of driving style for a particular part of the track.
The other advantage is that it puts a lot of pressure on anybody in front of, or behind you. In his efforts to either shake you off his arse, or get by you... he will start to drive outside his comfort zone. He'll be trying to go deeper under brakes, get the power down earlier etc... and he'll lose his rhythm, start to use up tires and probably, if you keep the pressure on, eventually have an off.
So lets say you can do a dozen or so laps at a particular track and all your lap times a within a few tenths of each other. (Which is easy...if you're TRULY using the metronome approach... and bloody difficult if you're not)
NOW you can start to refine your approach to the track.
Pick a corner that you feel that you could be getting thru faster, and start to try some different ways around it.
(But only that one corner... drive the rest of the track in your metronome mode)
Apart from the obvious fix of braking a bit later ...one of the best ways to get faster is to avoid turning in too early. If you find that you're running out of track on the exits or feel that you are having to wait too long before you can get the power down... its probably 'cos you're turning in too early. Try a later turn in and hitting the apex further along and around the corner.
(Your exit speed is MUCH MORE IMPORTANT than your entry speed to a corner)
BTW it might pay not to get too carried away with late braking if you're getting better exit speeds out of the previous corner you'll being arriving at the next carrying more car speed, and might find your original brake point is still spot on.
Work on that one corner trying out different stuff, and as long as you drive the rest of the track in metronome mode, you'll soon have the fastest way thru sorted.
2) AIM INSIDE WHERE YOU WANT TO GO
Have you got the Kylami track? If you do, go to T3. A fast left hander. Its one of those fast corners that needs a momentary squeeze on the brake pedal as you approach it, and then you need to be back on the loud pedal to get the car to 'rotate' thru the turn. The car will understeer (or push) if you haven't got the power back down.
If you find that you're running out of road on the exit you can bet that its because you've missed your apex. And that will almost certainly be because of drift. Try and find a point INSIDE the apex and aim at that! (Remember that aiming inside the apex doesn't mean turning in earlier tho!)
The lateral drift of the car should mean you're now hitting the apex with power down and instead of running out of road and possibly even having to lift... you'll now be UNWINDING your steering input and accelerating out of the corner.
3) NO SPEED SHIFTS
Make sure you lift all the way off the throttle on change ups. There's nothing worse than staring down the barrel of 20 or 30 laps without 3rd... and 2nd... and 4th
4) A LITTLE BIT OF THROTTLE UNDER BRAKES* <<<<(this is the one that helped me the most along with getting the apex exit correct)
There may be a bit gearbox damage risk in this... but i like to have just a SMALL amount of throttle on while I'm braking hard and changing down for corners. It seems to make the car more stable, especially if its a corner you're approaching at high speed
