What we've learned on the track

[Quickurt]

Oh, oh, speaking of wives in the car with you.......my wifey has this threshold for putting up with my driving: as long as there is no tire squealing, she doesn't say anything. Okay, so I haven't explained the Pilot Sports to her.........
So we go to Barber Motorsports Park over Labor Day weekend with an old Formula Ford buddy. Alabama 25, coming into Leeds, AL from the south is GREAT! It would fit right into the TOD. Up one side of a pretty good mountain, over the top and back down the other side. Almost no traffic and I only get about two warnings from wifey about who else is in the car with me and one warning about breakfast coming loose on my leather seat.
We get to the track and talking with Steve and Mona when wifey brings up the neat road and says, "well as long as he didn't make the tires squeal, I didn't yell at him." You guessed it. My buddy takes one look at the Pilot Sports on the Box and says, "I don't think you can make those squeal, can you?"
Some friend.

[944boy]

There are big discrepancies about shuffle steering. PCASDR teaches shuffle steering and to NEVER cross your arms. This is of course assuming a stock car in auto-x and DE. Some schools such as Skip Barber (I believe) teaches crossing arms and to never shuffle steer. I believe you hit the point that it depends on the car, but also the track.

On really small track you have to turn A LOT. On larger tracks such as Watkins Glen, I got smacked for shuffling. In a 944 race car the steering was quick enough for such a large track that I was smoother by not shuffling.

[Topless]

All good stuff so far.

In addition to knowing where the cars are around you, pay attention to who is around you. Whether on the street or track I want to know if there are consistent, attentive drivers around me or are they driving erratically, talking on the phone, weaving, inconsistent speeds, eating a Philly cheese-steak sandwich etc. Create some space between you and erratic or potentially dangerous drivers.

The scuttlebutt in the pits often goes " Give some room to that triple black Box S in yellow group. He moves pretty well through sector one but overcooks turn 6 and is often out of control."

On the street we all know to look out for drunks but someone munching on a Big Mac or falling asleep can be just as dangerous.

[renzop]

The funny thing about technique is that there is no one right way to do anything. Its all really opinion, style and a lot of copy-catting the fast guys. Do what is comfortable to you but listen to what others have to say, you may learn something.

I know two professional tin-top race drivers that have always driven one handed. Jeff Altenberg and Neal Sapp. They grew up near eachother and developed their techniques together while autocrossing. The left hand is at the top center of the wheel. The right hand is free to shift or to help brace the body.

I saw coverage of a Speed Channel Touring Car race at Road Atlanta that had in car camera footage of Neal Sapp's BMW. When they went in car he had one hand on the wheel and the commentator (Calvin Fish I think) said, "ouhhh oh, Sapp must be having a problem, he only has one hand on the wheel." I yelled at the TV screen, "no, that's the way he drives." While I don't think Calvin heard me, after several laps of Sapp's one-handed driving on camera Fish admitted that the car seemed fine.

Regards,
Alan

[pbanders]

Everyone's got a different view on the one hand vs. two hands on the wheel thing. I base my view on what I've seen and experienced in sudden emergency situations. Here in AZ, because of the high heat and high freeway speeds (75 mph limit), blowouts are fairly common. While I don't expect a blowout to happen on my Boxster, it could, and on our Toyota Sienna, fully loaded on a 115 F day, it's probably a higher possibility. I'm pretty sure I don't want to try to keep our van under control if it had a blowout with just one hand on the wheel.

Another situation that's common here is having a driver turn in front of you at an intersection (lots of surface streets substituting for freeways). Again, I want both hands on the wheel.

If others feel comfortable with one hand in these situations, then go with what works for you.

[wconley]

We teach keeping hands at 9 and 3 and personally I don't do it because I think they will forever drive that way. I don't. I vary between one hand, 9 and 3 or 8 and 4 just to stay comfortable. However, if I'm in traffic or on a "demanding/fun" road I always have two hands on the wheel - I may need that fraction of a second. For the majority of drivers, having the hands at 9 and 3 will result in better, more accurate and quicker control inputs. What we teach is sometimes a new way of driving for some and a sense of discipline and repetition for all. As an aside, I never leave my hand on the stick because in my M3, the weight and constant push on the transmission selector "can" result in premature transmission wear. I don't know if the same problem exists for my Boxster but it's easy enough to avoid. From a practical standpoint, using the one hand technique can provide an indirect hazard if you do hit something and the airbag deploys. If your hand is over the top of the wheel, you will likely get a fist in the face. If it's at 6:00 with the fingers on the inside of the rim, you may end up with a broken wrist. YMMV...

Personally, after vision, I think one of the best things we learn from the track, or simply taking a car control clinic, is potential. Many people have an accident simply because they don't know their car will stop, or drive around an accident. To quote a friend of mine, "If a meteor hits your car, that's an accident. Everything else is driver error!" Once a driver becomes aware of the potential handling qualities of their car, and a confidence in themselves to extract and make use of it, they can often save themselves considerable expense if not outright pain of an accident.

[Quickurt]

Originally Posted by wconley

"If a meteor hits your car, that's an accident. Everything else is driver error!"

We need a clapping hands emoticon!!
It got on my nerves, because I already knew what ABS will do for you, but every exercise and every time through at the BrumosU school was a box (square of cones) you had to get stopped in. Every student was admonished to at least "touch" ABS each and every time in the box. The second exercise ended in a sharp left turn with the stopping box just at the end of the corner, so you had to brake hard through the corner and get it stopped before you got back straight. Each of the students came back in line with some very big pie plates for eyes!!
I thought it was the best exercise of the event, as it really taught just how hard you could brake while continuing to control the car. I'm quite certain it will save at least one Porsche trip to a body shop.
I know it's a chance of getting an a**hole cop, but I heavily suggest every one of you go to a large vacant parking lot and run up to top of second gear, stand on the brakes as hard as you can and maneuver the car while standing on them. Just remember to push in the clutch as you are coming to a stop.
I really think it is imperative that every driver of a modern car, with the phenominal ABS brakes most have, understand just how hard you can be stopping the car, while avoiding an accident. You owe this to yourself and anyone who may be riding with you. The jerk who put you in the position of needing the skill will also appreciate it. Do it again when raining.
Hell, print this out and show it to the cop, if one happens to see you and gives you a hard time. Where else are you going to learn the most valuable skill you need?

How many have attended a "defensive driving school" like Bob Bondurant or Skip Barber and what did you learn there?

[larryshomework]

Originally Posted by Quickurt

So we go to Barber Motorsports Park over Labor Day weekend with an old Formula Ford buddy. Alabama 25, coming into Leeds, AL from the south is GREAT! It would fit right into the TOD. Up one side of a pretty good mountain, over the top and back down the other side.

QK - I live in Birmingham so I drive 25 frequently. There's a great section just south of Leeds well before you go up over the mountain. The hairpin on the top of the mountain is pretty fun and the flats south of the mountain are not bad either.

I don't know if you stopped at 29 Dreams but it's a motorcycle resort at the bottom of the mountain on the south side. Interesting place and worth a drop in if you're cruising through.


To keep this on topic, there are some great tips here. I did the BMW one day M-school and learned quite a bit in one day. Amazing how much more there is to learn. The looking ahead thing is one of the most valuable things I learned - that and proper braking. Now if I could get the heel/toe thing down...

[Quickurt]

Originally Posted by larryshomework

QK - I live in Birmingham so I drive 25 frequently. There's a great section just south of Leeds well before you go up over the mountain. The hairpin on the top of the mountain is pretty fun and the flats south of the mountain are not bad either.

I don't know if you stopped at 29 Dreams but it's a motorcycle resort at the bottom of the mountain on the south side. Interesting place and worth a drop in if you're cruising through.


To keep this on topic, there are some great tips here. I did the BMW one day M-school and learned quite a bit in one day. Amazing how much more there is to learn. The looking ahead thing is one of the most valuable things I learned - that and proper braking. Now if I could get the heel/toe thing down...

The heel/toe thing is VERY dependent on your pedal set up. The Box pedals seem perfect for either method, depending on the size of your feet. Smaller feet are usually attached to smaller legs, so, use the ball of your foot on the brake, pivot your leg to put your heel on the throttle and practice the amount of throttle needed to bring the rpm up to make downshifts silky smooth. You should be able to release the clutch as fast as you do upshifting without jerking the car around because of miss-matched engine speed.
For those with feet the size of mine (they go with my bear paw hands, but I didn't get the matching pleasure that sometimes accompanies these two ) use the ball of your foot on the brake pedal and the right side of the bottom of your "wide foot" on the throttle.