Braking late, hitting apexes, and powering out of corners: The goal of driving a car quickly requires keeping the tires at their limit at all times. Having good car control is a crucial skill in the development of a driver to not only drive a car fast, but also to have the ability to get up to speed quickly in a new car and on new tracks. However, without self control and discipline, having good car control can actually work against you.


For those who want to improve their craft as a driver, this is a great read to understand more about car control and how it's an important tool for a driver to make a car go fast:

http://www.motoiq.com/MagazineArticl...r-Control.aspx





Enjoy!

 

Thanks, Billy!

This has always been number 1 on my list of improvement priorities and goals.

 

Good read, thank you for sharing!

 

Great article!

Didn't know you were half Japanese, good to know another half asian...

Ron

 

Cool article. I just started doing HPDE's last year, and I completely agree in terms of pushing the limits of the car. Instructors in HPDE's frown upon "overdriving" the car, but how the heck can you find the limit if you don't exceed the limit? Getting good at trailbraking involves practicing trail braking, which leads to a loose rear end and countersteering, which means inevitably you're going to be seen as an "aggressive" driver.

I don't blame instructors for valuing their own life (I don't think I could be an instructor), but at some point you have to push the boundaries of what's safe/easy/comfortable to become a better driver. You can't become the best if you never go off course or lose control, as you really don't know where the limit is. It's a catch 22 of sorts.

 

Gravel/rally driving has been one of the most beneficial tools for me for building car control.

Drifting/wet driving is a close second.

 

Great article. As a DE instructor, it is tough to let someone push the limit too far, as my life is in their hands.
That said, latitude needs to be given if someone is methodical in their approach to building up their skills.

 

i read.
im faster now.
thanks

 

There is a time and a place for doing what this article suggests. HPDE 1 is not it. If you want to go out and find the limits of grip and loop it, autox is perfect for this. If you are solo qualified and know you have space and want to slide the car a bit that's fine but you can certainly find the limits of the car with out overdriving and putting someone else in danger. Having an instructor in the car is there to teach you how to be safe on track, learn the line, and once you have that down start working on pace. If your instructor is comfortable with your skill level he will let you push the car.

 

Totally agree with all the points, thanks for sharing Billy!