Q: “I’m ‘studying’ about the art of racing, mostly karting. What actually separates a champion from the rest of the field? You’ve said that what separates drivers is the release of the brakes. In karting, I see a lot of drivers brake in a straight line, turn in (with brake pedal) and move to the throttle. So, if I’m right, the best drivers brake in a straight line but at the turn in point they do not release the brake pedal but slowly release pressure on the brakes. How would a karting champion handle this transition? Racing is about fine-tuning your driving style, but what is perfect driving? You see drivers so close in lap-time, but what tip would you give someone to be a tenth faster than everybody else?”

Q: “I have a question for you – it’s about the ‘tire chatter’ I experience a fair amount of at Sebring. It’s most notable at Turn 7, and to a lesser extent at Turns 5 and 10. Other drivers have described this as me needing to reduce corner speed a bit, as well as not ‘throwing the car in there quite so aggressively,’ but I was wondering if you had other ideas. My setup is that I run a Ford Focus ST with some engine and suspension mods, and Maxxis Victra RC-1 tires. In experimenting on Turn 5 a bit I found that if I relaxed my hands a bit at the apex and let the car run out a bit more to track out, that I could reduce the amount of chatter, but the chatter is still there. I don’t see too much opportunity to do that sort of an adjustment at Turn 7.”

Q: “Can you comment on the differences between warming up street tires and brakes versus slicks (for track day guys using 200 treadwear tires & general knowledge)?”

Q: “Why are new track surfaces faster and why do they seem to like old tires? I race regularly at two north Texas tracks (Eagles Canyon and MSR Cresson), both of which have new surfaces. Cresson just received a new top coat and immediately became over a second faster. ECR is essentially a new track. Both tracks are at least a second faster on high heat cycle tires compared to stickers. What is it that makes newer surfaces faster, and why would old tires add to the speed even more?”

Q: “I am having trouble with brake bias adjustment. During a stint, are you supposed to advance the bias toward the front or toward the rear?”

Q: “In a chalktalk you did earlier this year there was a statement: get 2/3rds of the braking done in the first 1/3rd of the brake zone and the last 1/3rd in the last 2/3rds of the brake zone. I want to make sure that I got that right.”

Q: “How should I prepare for my first track day? It’s organized by a car club – I think they call it a HPDE event.”

Q: “Can you address the g-load differences between cornering and braking. Should tires be able to achieve equal lateral and longitudinal loading?”

Q: “I understand that a consistent turn-in is an important concept for novices, but I wonder if we spend too much time thinking about it as people progress through the spectrum. Just as we move from straight line braking to trail braking, should we be de-emphasizing turn-in as something to expect to be consistent? Or, am I missing something more fundamental?”

Q: “I wonder how much braking or braking transition points have to do with the changes in tires. I wonder if techniques have evolved with the tires? And does it vary with the type of car.”

Q: “I’m ‘studying’ about the art of racing, mostly karting. What actually separates a champion from the rest of the field? You’ve said that what separates drivers is the release of the brakes. In karting, I see a lot of drivers brake in a straight line, turn in (with brake pedal) and move to the throttle. So, if I’m right, the best drivers brake in a straight line but at the turn in point they do not release the brake pedal but slowly release pressure on the brakes. How would a karting champion handle this transition? Racing is about fine-tuning your driving style, but what is perfect driving? You see drivers so close in lap-time, but what tip would you give someone to be a tenth faster than everybody else?”

Q: “I have a question for you – it’s about the ‘tire chatter’ I experience a fair amount of at Sebring. It’s most notable at Turn 7, and to a lesser extent at Turns 5 and 10. Other drivers have described this as me needing to reduce corner speed a bit, as well as not ‘throwing the car in there quite so aggressively,’ but I was wondering if you had other ideas. My setup is that I run a Ford Focus ST with some engine and suspension mods, and Maxxis Victra RC-1 tires. In experimenting on Turn 5 a bit I found that if I relaxed my hands a bit at the apex and let the car run out a bit more to track out, that I could reduce the amount of chatter, but the chatter is still there. I don’t see too much opportunity to do that sort of an adjustment at Turn 7.”

Q: “Can you comment on the differences between warming up street tires and brakes versus slicks (for track day guys using 200 treadwear tires & general knowledge)?”

Q: “Why are new track surfaces faster and why do they seem to like old tires? I race regularly at two north Texas tracks (Eagles Canyon and MSR Cresson), both of which have new surfaces. Cresson just received a new top coat and immediately became over a second faster. ECR is essentially a new track. Both tracks are at least a second faster on high heat cycle tires compared to stickers. What is it that makes newer surfaces faster, and why would old tires add to the speed even more?”

Q: “I am having trouble with brake bias adjustment. During a stint, are you supposed to advance the bias toward the front or toward the rear?”

Q: “In a chalktalk you did earlier this year there was a statement: get 2/3rds of the braking done in the first 1/3rd of the brake zone and the last 1/3rd in the last 2/3rds of the brake zone. I want to make sure that I got that right.”

Q: “How should I prepare for my first track day? It’s organized by a car club – I think they call it a HPDE event.”

Q: “Can you address the g-load differences between cornering and braking. Should tires be able to achieve equal lateral and longitudinal loading?”

Q: “I understand that a consistent turn-in is an important concept for novices, but I wonder if we spend too much time thinking about it as people progress through the spectrum. Just as we move from straight line braking to trail braking, should we be de-emphasizing turn-in as something to expect to be consistent? Or, am I missing something more fundamental?”

Q: “I wonder how much braking or braking transition points have to do with the changes in tires. I wonder if techniques have evolved with the tires? And does it vary with the type of car.”