Ultimate Speed Secrets
Page 45
What would happen if I turned in 1 or 2 feet later? Earlier? Would I have to change my corner-entry speed to do that? Exactly where would my turn-in reference point be then?
Am I apexing too early? Too late? Is the car at the right angle when I pass the apex and pointing in the direction I want at that point?
Am I unwinding the steering from the apex on out? Am I “releasing” the car from the corner, letting it “run free” at the exit?
Which is the most important corner on the track from a lap time and speed point of view? Which is second most important? Third? And so on.
Which corner do most drivers have the most difficulty with? Which corner can I gain the biggest advantage over my competition on?
In working on the car’s setup, which corner should I focus on first?
Am I using all of the tires’ traction when accelerating out of the corners?
What would happen if I started accelerating sooner? If I squeezed on the throttle quicker? Am I causing the car to understeer or oversteer by accelerating too abruptly or hard? Can I squeeze on the throttle smoother?
Am I holding the car in the corner too long? Can I unwind the steering sooner?
Before I get to the apex, am I looking for and through the exit point and down the straightaway?
Can I carry 1 mile per hour more into the corner? Two miles per hour? Three miles per hour? What will happen if I carry more speed into the corner? Will I still be able to make the car turn in and “rotate” toward the apex? Will it delay when I begin accelerating?
Can I left-foot brake in my car? Do I have the sensitivity with my left foot to do it? Does my left foot have the necessary programming to do it?
Am I “snapping” my foot off the brake pedal, coming off too quickly? Can I ease off the pedal more gently? How would that feel if I did? Just how gently can I come off the brakes?
Am I easing off the brake pedal too slowly, trail braking too long? Is that causing the car to rotate too quickly or oversteer during the entry?
Am I turning the steering wheel too quickly or too slowly? Does the car respond to my initial turn of the wheel? What if I turned the wheel more quickly or slowly? Can I be smoother with the wheel? What would it feel like if I turned the wheel more smoothly? More slowly? More quickly? Do I have slow hands or quick hands?
Am I over-slowing the car on entry? Is that resulting in me getting on the throttle too hard, causing “change-in-speed oversteer”? What do I need to do to make the car turn in with more speed? Do I need to trail brake more or less? Do I need to change my line slightly and turn in earlier or later? Do I need to turn the steering wheel more crisply, or slowly and progressively?
Am I blipping the throttle enough to ensure a smooth downshift? At the right time? Am I blipping it too much, causing the car to lurch forward?
How’s the car’s balance during the entry phase of the corner? How about in the midcorner phase? What can I do to improve the car’s balance? Ease off the brakes more gently? Be more progressive with the steering input? Squeeze on the throttle more smoothly? Make a smoother transition from braking to throttle?
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Ross Bentley knew at the age of five that he wanted to race cars. In his late teens he began racing sprint cars and continued into Formula Ford, Formula Atlantic, Trans-Am, and eventually realized his dream of racing Indy cars. From there his career moved into sports cars and prototypes. He has used his knowledge and experience to coach drivers in road racing, oval racing, motorcycles, drifting, and even drag racing in North America and around the world.
Bentley has focused his life on learning about sports psychology, educational kinesiology, neuroscience, human learning strategies, and coaching for performance. While testing all of these techniques and strategies on himself, he won the 1998 United States Road Racing Championship, driving for the factory-backed BMW team, and the 2003 Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona. As a coach, his drivers have won at practically every level and in every form of motorsport. Bentley is a popular speaker at car club events and works with both individuals and entire groups, drivers, and instructors.
With his education and hands-on experience both as a driver and coach, Bentley is now considered the premier technical and mental coach in motorsport. He successfully applies the same performance-based approaches to the business world (coaching executives, managers, sales people, teams, and so on), and a variety of specialty driver training programs. You can access his website at www.performance-rules.com.
Bentley lives in the Seattle, Washington, area with his wife and daughter. He can be reached at ross@speedsecrets.com.
INDEX
Ackerman steering, 25
adaptability, 236–237, 244, 266–267
aerodynamics, 25, 42–43, 68, 118, 235, 254
downforce, 26, 31, 35, 42–43, 59, 73–74, 81, 196, 248, 264, 267
anti-dive, 25
anti-roll-bar adjustment, 28
anti-squat, 25
apex, definition of, 75
aquaplaning, 126–127
assertiveness vs. aggressiveness, 201–202
believing in yourself, 186–192
blocking, 131–132
brain integration exercises, 140–143
brake bias, 41
fade, 241–242
braking, 19, 32–33, 43–44, 47–48, 58, 61, 66–67, 76–79, 84, 96, 102, 114, 130, 210, 212–213, 249, 256, 261–262, 264, 302
pressure, 19, 59
late, 106–107
left-foot braking, 62–67
trail braking, 44–45, 47–48, 55, 60–62, 68, 77–78, 85, 99, 257
bump steer, 25
business of racing, 319–325
camber, 102
negative, 23–24, 28
positive, 23, 28
caster angle, 24
change of speed, 83, 111–113
coaching, 192
self-coaching, 223–225
comfort zone, 195–196
communication and records, 306–308
computer simulation, 173–174
concentration, 181–182
confidence, 135, 170, 190, 196, 199, 208, 219–220, 260
consistency, 196–197
controlling the car, 252
corner,
entry, 45, 51–52, 55, 58, 60, 62, 71, 76, 94, 99, 102, 105–108, 112–119, 121, 153–154, 215–216, 223, 237–238, 240–241, 243, 257–258
exit, 51–53, 55, 71, 92, 99, 102–105, 216, 240–241, 243
midcorner, 51–53, 55, 71, 76, 116–119, 216, 239–240, 243, 259
radius, 80–81, 86
weight, 28
cornering, 43–45, 48, 72–79, 92–94, 102–103, 106, 110, 125, 129, 250, 259–260, 275
prioritizing the corners, 87–91
speed, 93–95, 99, 105–107, 113–114, 154, 215–216, 223, 249, 252, 257–258
data acquisition, 300–305
equipment, 300–301
reading and interpreting, 302
double-clutching, 21–22
downshifting, 18–22
heel-and-toe, 19–20
drafting, 42
driver types, 281–284
driving at the limit, 10, 13–14, 35, 48–51, 53–54, 57, 59, 78, 80, 94, 97–98, 101, 112, 118, 138, 155, 202, 211, 217, 251, 253–256, 260, 263, 271–273, 289
driving errors, 152, 210–216, 229–230, 253
driving styles, 235, 267
driving subconsciously, 138, 160–161, 197
driving the ideal line, 51–53, 68, 75–77, 80–86, 97–98, 100, 120, 124, 144, 193, 247, 252, 256
dynamic balance, 41
endurance racing, 276–277
engine torque vs. horsepower, 20–21
engineering feedback, 286–290, 307
fear, dealing with, 202–203
flags and flag marshals, 317–318
focusing, 180–182
on your performance vs. competition, 193–195
footwork, 58–71, 117–118
> front-wheel-drive race cars, 133
gearbox, 242–243
going faster, 257–262, 265
hand-eye coordination, 144
handling, 246–247
intensity, 200–201
learning, 228–233
formula, the, 221–223
stages, 226–228
styles, 225
the track, 95–101
managing expectations, 174–175, 195
mental imagery, 101, 138, 159, 162–172, 174–176, 185, 192, 208–209, 218, 250, 273
mental toughness, 175–176
mirrors, 17
motivation, 203–204
neutral steer, 38–40, 98
oval racing, 8, 66, 104, 212, 246–248, 320
oversteer, 25, 26, 38–43, 48–49, 69, 98–99, 106, 112, 115, 133, 155, 211, 217, 235, 239–242, 245–248, 258, 265, 267–268, 287
passing, 128–131
Performance Model, the, 135
performance state of mind, 177–178
perseverance, 204–205
personal image and public relations, 324–325
personality, how it plays a role in driving, 183–185
physical conditioning, 314–316
pit stops, 276
polar moment of inertia, 134
positive reinforcement, 199–200
practicing and testing, 263–269
preparation, 205–206, 327
pressure, dealing with, 198–199
qualifying, 270–273, 306
race car drivers, what makes a great one, 277–281, 285
race car seat position and comfort, 9–11
race team dynamics, 290–299
building and operating your own team, 298–299
racing in the rain, 123–127
reading the gauges, 13–14
rear-wheel-drive race cars, 133
reference points, 74, 78, 101, 213–215, 307
ride height, 25
road course racing, 72, 104, 106, 246–248, 259, 320
road racing, 8, 82–83, 262, 270
roll stiffness, 27
safety, 309–313
harness, 313
sensory input, 136–137, 144–157, 159, 179, 213–215, 251, 265–266, 287–288, 331
setting goals, 190, 195, 209, 234
shifting, 22
shock rate, 27
skid-pad training, 155
slip angle, 31, 33–34, 49–50, 124, 256
speed sensing, 152–154, 249–250
sponsorship, 322–324
spring rate, 26
steering
angle, 71
technique, 108–111
wheel hand placement, 15–16
with your feet, 48, 69–70
taking risks, 202
throttle
balanced, 77
-break-throttle transition, 302
histogram, 305
progressive, 77
tire
contact patch, 34–35
rain, 124–125
temperature, 28–29, 34, 274
toe, 24–25
traction, 30–44, 97–98, 254–255
circle, 44–45, 47, 73, 76, 79, 254–255
sensing, 155–157, 249–250
unit number, 37
transitions, 119
turn-in, definition of, 54
turns
radius, 102
rotation, 108
set, 108
understeer, 24, 26, 38–43, 48–49, 67–69, 98–99, 106, 115, 125, 133, 155, 217, 235–240, 244–247, 258, 265, 267–268, 287, 304
upshifting, 18, 20, 22, 242
vertical load, 34–35, 37
vision techniques, 120–122, 146–147
visualization, 120, 122, 138, 161–162, 173, 176, 197, 222, 244–245, 257
walking the track, 96–97
weight transfer, 35–38, 40–41, 43, 71, 113, 126–127, 211, 212
wheel rate, 26
winning, 207–208
First published in 2011 by Motorbooks, an imprint of MBI Publishing Company, 400 First Avenue North, Suite 300, Minneapolis, MN 55401 USA
Copyright © 2011 by Ross Bentley
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