{"id":41320,"date":"2022-07-19T07:00:29","date_gmt":"2022-07-19T14:00:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/speedsecrets.com\/?p=41320"},"modified":"2024-03-23T08:07:18","modified_gmt":"2024-03-23T15:07:18","slug":"q-how-do-i-improve-my-corner-entry-speed-when-driving-on-a-racetrack","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/speedsecrets.com\/q-how-do-i-improve-my-corner-entry-speed-when-driving-on-a-racetrack\/","title":{"rendered":"Q: How do I improve my corner entry speed when driving on a racetrack?"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"Q<\/strong>: \ufffd\ufffdHow do I improve my corner entry speed?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

A<\/strong>: There\u2019s a difference between anticipating<\/em> and expecting<\/em> something to happen, and often corner entry speed is dictated by our expectations \u2013 we expect the car to do something that we don\u2019t like or want! It\u2019s okay to anticipate<\/em> that happening, but if you expect<\/em> it to happen, you\u2019re likely to over-slow for the corner.<\/p>\n

It sounds like there\u2019s a fine line between anticipating and expecting, but it\u2019s important to know \u2013 and use \u2013 this difference. Picture Helio Castroneves turning into Turn 1 at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. If he expects that his car is going to understeer just after the initial turn-in, he\u2019s going to ease out of the throttle just slightly. But he doesn\u2019t do that. Instead, he turns in and then deals with what the car is doing. Sure, in the back of his mind, he knows that it\u2019s possible that his car will understeer, so he\u2019s ready in case it does. But he doesn\u2019t lift \u2013 he turns in flat, senses what the car is doing, and makes adjustments, if needed.<\/p>\n

Okay, you might not be asking about Turn 1 at Indy, but same thing applies to any and all corners. The fastest drivers know what\u2019s possible for the car to do after the initial turn-in, but they don\u2019t expect it.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s the answer to your question from a mental game perspective, so now let\u2019s look at it from the driving-technique side.<\/p>\n

What slows you down and makes your corner entry speed too slow? Brakes! So, begin by braking lighter. Yes, I know, driving fast is all about braking late and hard for corners, right? Not always. In fact, less often than you might think.<\/p>\n

As you approach a corner that you want to increase entry speed for, first look into the corner, for the End-of-Braking (EoB). It\u2019s not some exact spot, but it\u2019s usually beyond the turn-in point, somewhere between there and the apex. By looking into the area, you\u2019re planning ahead. (Remember, the EoB is no different from approaching a red light on a highway; you don\u2019t focus on where you\u2019re going to begin braking, but instead you focus on where you need to be stopped, and you manage your braking from that end point).<\/p>\n

Begin braking (your BoB, Begin-of-Braking) where you usually do. But this time, brake slightly lighter. If you used a \u201c9\u201d pedal (a \u201c10\u201d is maximum braking, or threshold braking) in the past, use a \u201c8\u201d pedal this time. As you get to the turn-in point, begin to slowly and deliberately release the brakes with the intention of carrying just one or two MPH more entry speed. You can anticipate that the car might do something \u2013 likely understeer a bit \u2013 but you don\u2019t have to expect it. With this approach to using slightly lighter braking, looking further into the corner towards the EoB, and being smooth with the brake release, your car will have more grip than in the past when you had it standing up on its nose from all the hard braking. With the car more balanced, it\u2019ll have more overall grip, and you\u2019re likely to find that the extra speed is easy to manage. In fact, it may tell you that you could carry even more speed on the next lap. If so, take the same approach: use a \u201c7\u201d pedal, look into the EoB, release the brakes smoothly as you turn in.<\/p>\n

At some point, you will reach the limit and begin to carry too much speed into the corner. How do you know? First, if your entry speed causes you to delay getting back to throttle exiting the corner, you probably went too far. If you\u2019re carrying so much entry speed that it\u2019s hard to get the car to turn towards the apex, you may be entering too fast; or you may just have to change the timing and rate of release of the brakes to help you rotate the car.<\/p>\n

Ultimately, once your corner entry speed is up and fine-tuned, you may want to compress your brake zone \u2013 move your BoB in a car length or two, and brake harder (take it up one level, from a \u201c7\u201d to a \u201c8,\u201d or \u201c8 to a \u201c9\u201d). By doing so, you extend the length of the straightaway a little, and keep your corner entry speed up. However, you may find that this approach is not as fast as braking a little lighter because the car is not as well balanced. Try it and see.<\/p>\n

Again, it\u2019s okay to anticipate and be prepared for what the car might do, but don\u2019t expect it. Drive it into the corner and learn what it does, then manage it in a calm manner.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Q: How do I improve my corner entry speed when driving on a racetrack?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[57],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-41320","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ask-ross"],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/speedsecrets.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41320","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/speedsecrets.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/speedsecrets.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/speedsecrets.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/speedsecrets.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41320"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/speedsecrets.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41320\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":41322,"href":"https:\/\/speedsecrets.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41320\/revisions\/41322"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/speedsecrets.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41320"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/speedsecrets.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41320"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/speedsecrets.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41320"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}