Ask Ross
Q&A with Ross Bentley
Q: Can you suggest specific training exercises or drills to help me drive faster in the rain, and adapt to the changing conditions?
Q: “Living in the UK, the combination of all our rental karts being fitted with slicks and reliably crappy weather gives me plenty of opportunity to become a very capable wet weather driver. Whilst my raw pace is actually pretty good, one thing I particularly struggle with is staying consistent and knowing how much speed I can carry through corners on a constantly changing circuit (weather in the UK is so changeable that a track can go from wet to damp to wet again within an hour!). Are there any particular drills or techniques I can use to help adapt faster to this?“
Q: Can you tell me about the Garmin Catalyst?
Q: "I’ve recently heard a lot about the Garmin Catalyst. Can you tell me about it – what it does, and can it help me?" A: First, I was involved as a consultant during the development of the Garmin Catalyst, and yet, I’m not an expert on every little detail of what it...
Q: How do I manage my frustration after having a bad race?
Q: “How do you deal with the frustration after having a bad race? How can we deal with that energy to put it somewhere positive? Your mental imagery course was great for before and during the race, but I just don’t know how to deal with those tough results! In the race itself I’ve been able to deal with the situation and put in some good laps to do the best I can, but it’s so frustrating knowing that I could’ve been so much higher up the order had someone not tried to make (for example) a dangerous move beyond the limits of their tires and grip.”
Q: Can I use the g-load ratings from my data system to tell me I’m driving the limit?
Q: “I always read your content, love racing, and have a quick question on g-force. Are all “g’s” created equal? Meaning, I’m making 1.6g on a high-speed turn but only 0.8g when braking. If I’m more aggressive with braking, should I be able to make 1.6g on braking as well?”
Q: How do I get started in racing?
Q: “I’ve been following racing for many years, and recently I’ve gotten involved with the flaggers and safety crews with the SCCA. This has only turned up my desire to go racing, but I don’t know where to start. What do I do?”
Q: How do I drive fast corners faster, like Turn 8 at Mosport?
Q: “My home track is Mosport (Canadian Tire Motorsport Park). One of the more challenging turns for me is the very fast Turn 8. What I find is that the rear gets loose when I try to brake later. Any help would be appreciated.”
Q: How can I manage being nervous about getting back on track after a long lay-off?
Q: “I haven’t been in a car, on track, for months. I’m going to be in the car for the first time next month, and I find myself super nervous about it – way more anxiety about it than I’ve usually had. It’s to the point of self-doubt and wondering if I should even do it. I’ve had similar situations in the past, and it usually disappears as soon as I unload the car and get on track. But this time it seems stronger. And I know self-doubt is super-dangerous, given the situations racing can put you in. Is there anything I can do to calm my anxiety? I love racing and being at the track, and it’s not something I want to give up on. But at the moment, the nervousness is a bit overwhelming. Thanks for any insight.”
Q: When should I use a double apex in corners?
Q: “Is it better to treat the double apex corner as a single apex corner or is there room for a little more brake release — or quick blip of the throttle — to gain a bit more “mid-corner” speed through the short stretch of track?”
Q: How should I practice and get better at trail braking and my brake release?
Q: “An area I really want to work on is “trail braking” and “brake release.” Do you have some training techniques or drills to use, to focus on & practice on, so I can better feel & use the “end of braking” to best advantage?”
Q: Can you explain how the timing and rate of brake release helps me drive faster?
You’ve mentioned how brakes are useful for more than slowing down, and can be useful for rotating the car and helping me drive faster. Is there something about the actual rate of release beyond, (1) not over-slowing, and (2) keeping some weight on the fronts to steer in the corner? Also, isn’t this “trail braking”?
Q: How do I find the brake reference points on the track?
Q: “One thing I continue to struggle with (even after 20 years of largely amateur sports car racing) is finding and retaining my brake points. What could/should I be doing to create these points of reference from seemingly nothing?”
Q: What is trail braking & how do I trail brake?
Q: “I’ve heard the term trail braking. I’ve been told that the best drivers use it. I’ve been told that I should use it. But I’m not sure exactly what it is, and whether I’m already doing it or not. I think I am, but not sure. Can you tell me what it is, and how to do it?”
Q: How do I find the ideal pressures for my tires for driving on track?
Q: “I’m looking for the formula to adjust my cold tire pressure based on the ambient air temp. I had heard someone at the track mentioning this but missed getting the formula. I have used the pyrometer to ensure I have a tire pressure that gives a very even temp across the tire, let the tire cool overnight and took the tire pressure as my future starting cold tire pressure. At the same time, I recorded the ambient air temp to have record of both. My question is, if on the next time to that track, the ambient air temp is higher or lower than the day I recorded my previous tire pressure, how much do I adjust my cold starting pressure? Of course, I have done all of the above for each tire, arriving at four different starting cold pressures. Is there a formula that will give me the adjustment?”
Q: Explain the difference between blocking & defending in racing?
Q: “When watching racing on TV I hear commentators talk about blocking and defending a pass. I think I know the difference, but can you clarify? What’s the difference between blocking and defending? Where’s the line drawn for proper, fair, safe racing?”
Q: How important is visualizing for race drivers?
Q: “I watched a video of Alexander Rossi closing his eyes and imagining driving a lap of the Long Beach Indy car track. It was amazing how accurate he was. My question, then, is how important is circuit visualization for a driver?”
Q: How can I adapt to driving different tracks, and having different instructors?
Q: “I’m new to HPDE and have done 2 events so far. I live in Colorado and my first HPDE event was at Pueblo Motorsports Park. I drive a modified Miata and my instructor at the time thought I did amazing and that I took all the right lines and everything on the track. I was “in the groove” so to speak. My instructor thought I was good enough to advance to HPDE 2 and I told him I wanted to stay at 1 to be safe because this is only my first track. I then went to my second event at High Plains Raceway and had a completely different instructor. At that track I could not “get into the groove” and went completely off track at turn 10 twice. I kept pushing myself even after because I knew I could do better, but I felt I was not getting any better. What I’m saying is I was extremely comfortable racing at Pueblo and thrown off by High Plains, due to either the elevation changes on the corners or the track having, in my opinion, odd lines. My instructor had taken me in his car around High Plains to show me the lines I should ideally be taking, and I noticed he wasn’t using the entire track width. But the next time I went out I mimicked the exact lines he was using and he said I wasn’t using the proper lines, and it dropped my motivation a little bit. What I would like to ask is how I can adapt myself to become comfortable to different instructors and different tracks?”
Q: How do I know whether I’m too smooth or not smooth enough when driving on track?
Q: “How important is the balance between getting back on the power early and quickly exiting a corner, but making sure that you are smooth?”
Q: What advice do you have for getting rid of motion sickness when riding as an instructor?
Q: What advice do you have for getting rid of motion sickness when riding as an instructor?
Q: How can I drive more consistently at the limit?
Q: “I have a problem driving on the limit all the time. As soon as the car starts move, especially with oversteer on entry, I react immediately and arrest the movement. How do I get past this?”
Q: Does turning the steering wheel more in the middle of a corner make me faster?
Q: “I notice that many of the top drivers turn the steering wheel more right in the middle of the corner, just about the apex. But I never see anyone teach it. Example: Lewis Hamilton’s record lap at COTA on YouTube. I have found myself doing this on the sim and some in my car in real life. In the slow speed turns on entry, they add X amount of steering input, then as they approach the apex and are scrubbing speed, they add more input. This makes sense because as you slow, the tires will take more input. Comments? Good? Bad? Too complicated for amateurs? It seems pretty natural to me on the sim? I presume if it is used during a record lap, it must be faster?”
