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Speed Secrets Merch
Got questions? I’ve got answers. This is where I post answers to the many questions I receive. You may find the answer to a question you have here (you can use the “Search” tool to the right, or just scroll through the pages and pages…), but if not, you can email it to me (use the big red button to the right).
Q: With limited time between autocross runs, should I spend time analyzing data or do mental prep?
Q: “I am an avid autocrosser, running a Porsche 914 race car. I only have 10-15 minutes between runs. I always have a course map (either provided by the organizers or drawn myself from a morning course walk), and my past habit is to close my eyes and carefully rerun the last run in my mind, making note of what went well, and where I think I can improve. That’s also very good for just calming me and putting me in a peaceful state of mind for the next run too. Is that perhaps better prep than worrying about the data? Your insights would be appreciated.”
Q: When should I left-foot-brake? And where should I position my left foot?
Q: “Should I be left-foot-braking in autocrossing where I will not be downshifting and/or on the big tracks for corners that do not require a gear change? If so, where should I position my left foot? Also, any suggestions how to minimize the chances of accidentally pressing the clutch when I really wanted to (and needed to) hit the brakes with the left foot?”
Q: How do I know I’m progressing if I have 3 different HPDE instructors telling me different things?
Q: “My question to you is, how do you progress while having three different instructors in three different events. Yes, they were all helpful in their own ways, one even guided me to your books, but it is hard to track progress without any basis. My only basis to know I am progressing is becoming able to drive my car comfortably at the limit of my tires. I don’t have any information gathering devices to know track times, but I have taken videos of my events. Any advice?
Q: What’s better for learning – endurance or sprint racing?
Q: “I’m wondering if I should start by getting my competition license and doing sprint/club racing first, or endurance racing with series like AER/ChampCar. I get a lot of conflicting info about this and I’m wondering what’s your take on it. Endurance racing offers more bang/buck seat time and a lot more passing (and being passed), but sprint racing seems to be about raw speed in which it allows you to make decisions passing some very competitive people.”
Q: How do I improve my racecraft – passing, being passed, setting up passes?
Q: “My race results have been very inconsistent. I am far less experienced with racing and I’ve found myself unknowingly putting myself in committed situations/lines that may result in contact when making a pass or defending. I think it’s part impatience/not knowing when to concede, part being off my line, and part not anticipating other drivers lines. Would it be possible to cover some of these concepts and perhaps divulge some exercises I and others can do to improve the bumper-to-bumper aspect of my driving?”
Q: How can I improve my braking footwork?
Q: “As I’ve gotten quicker, I’ve been able to hone my technique and get tangible results. One area that I just can’t seem to get comfortable with is braking. I’m starting to chase tenths, and I feel like I’m leaving a few tenths out there because of sloppy braking. There’s no real consistency. Sometimes I even miss the brake pedal and that’s a terrifying half-second as I then frantically get my full foot on the pedal into threshold braking, and blow the rev-match for the downshift because my foot is not in position. And of course, the lap is now gone… What gives?”
Q: How do I adapt to a new (rear-engined) car?
Q: “I’ve recently bought a 991 Carrera after owning (and tracking) a 1999 Porsche Boxster for 6 years at various PCA DE events. In light of the obvious bump in horsepower and the different placement of the engine, I was wondering if you had any tips on how to approach taking the 991 out on track coming from the Boxster.”
Q: How can I get better at remembering what I felt when driving on track?
Q” “Something I’ve been pondering lately goes well with improving the mental game, I think. I guess it’d be called mindfulness? I go out in the car for an HPDE session with a plan of a few things to work on and I think I do pretty well sticking to that – most times anyway! 🙂 But then I get out of the car and while I can remember certain moments from the session, like a huge pucker factor moment carrying too much speed into a turn, the rest of it is all a blur. Is there some sort of corresponding technique to visualization for this?”
Q: Why should I start racing in an open-wheel car?
Q: “Hey, I have a quick question. I can’t remember if I read it from the book you wrote or one of your online conversations/blogs, but I think somewhere you stated that starting in an open wheel car was the best way to start off racing. Is there any specific reason why this is the case in your eyes?”
Q: Should I use ABS or Threshold Braking on the track?
Q: “What’s the preferred method of braking in a lightly-modified car (i.e., track brake pads and 200 tread wear tires)? Should an advanced driver engage full ABS or try to utilize threshold braking? I sense that my utilization of threshold braking is leaving too much stopping power on the table.”
Got Questions?
Skills
Types
Subscriptions
Speed Secrets Merch
Got questions? I’ve got answers. This is where I post answers to the many questions I’ve received. You may find the answer to a question you have here, but if not, you have two options: If you want the answer immediately, sign up for my SpeedSecrets.ai app (think of it as “Google on steroids, focused solely on performance/race driving”), or email it to me.
Q: With limited time between autocross runs, should I spend time analyzing data or do mental prep?
Q: “I am an avid autocrosser, running a Porsche 914 race car. I only have 10-15 minutes between runs. I always have a course map (either provided by the organizers or drawn myself from a morning course walk), and my past habit is to close my eyes and carefully rerun the last run in my mind, making note of what went well, and where I think I can improve. That’s also very good for just calming me and putting me in a peaceful state of mind for the next run too. Is that perhaps better prep than worrying about the data? Your insights would be appreciated.”
Q: When should I left-foot-brake? And where should I position my left foot?
Q: “Should I be left-foot-braking in autocrossing where I will not be downshifting and/or on the big tracks for corners that do not require a gear change? If so, where should I position my left foot? Also, any suggestions how to minimize the chances of accidentally pressing the clutch when I really wanted to (and needed to) hit the brakes with the left foot?”
Q: How do I know I’m progressing if I have 3 different HPDE instructors telling me different things?
Q: “My question to you is, how do you progress while having three different instructors in three different events. Yes, they were all helpful in their own ways, one even guided me to your books, but it is hard to track progress without any basis. My only basis to know I am progressing is becoming able to drive my car comfortably at the limit of my tires. I don’t have any information gathering devices to know track times, but I have taken videos of my events. Any advice?
Q: What’s better for learning – endurance or sprint racing?
Q: “I’m wondering if I should start by getting my competition license and doing sprint/club racing first, or endurance racing with series like AER/ChampCar. I get a lot of conflicting info about this and I’m wondering what’s your take on it. Endurance racing offers more bang/buck seat time and a lot more passing (and being passed), but sprint racing seems to be about raw speed in which it allows you to make decisions passing some very competitive people.”
Q: How do I improve my racecraft – passing, being passed, setting up passes?
Q: “My race results have been very inconsistent. I am far less experienced with racing and I’ve found myself unknowingly putting myself in committed situations/lines that may result in contact when making a pass or defending. I think it’s part impatience/not knowing when to concede, part being off my line, and part not anticipating other drivers lines. Would it be possible to cover some of these concepts and perhaps divulge some exercises I and others can do to improve the bumper-to-bumper aspect of my driving?”
Q: How can I improve my braking footwork?
Q: “As I’ve gotten quicker, I’ve been able to hone my technique and get tangible results. One area that I just can’t seem to get comfortable with is braking. I’m starting to chase tenths, and I feel like I’m leaving a few tenths out there because of sloppy braking. There’s no real consistency. Sometimes I even miss the brake pedal and that’s a terrifying half-second as I then frantically get my full foot on the pedal into threshold braking, and blow the rev-match for the downshift because my foot is not in position. And of course, the lap is now gone… What gives?”
Q: How do I adapt to a new (rear-engined) car?
Q: “I’ve recently bought a 991 Carrera after owning (and tracking) a 1999 Porsche Boxster for 6 years at various PCA DE events. In light of the obvious bump in horsepower and the different placement of the engine, I was wondering if you had any tips on how to approach taking the 991 out on track coming from the Boxster.”
Q: How can I get better at remembering what I felt when driving on track?
Q” “Something I’ve been pondering lately goes well with improving the mental game, I think. I guess it’d be called mindfulness? I go out in the car for an HPDE session with a plan of a few things to work on and I think I do pretty well sticking to that – most times anyway! 🙂 But then I get out of the car and while I can remember certain moments from the session, like a huge pucker factor moment carrying too much speed into a turn, the rest of it is all a blur. Is there some sort of corresponding technique to visualization for this?”
Q: Why should I start racing in an open-wheel car?
Q: “Hey, I have a quick question. I can’t remember if I read it from the book you wrote or one of your online conversations/blogs, but I think somewhere you stated that starting in an open wheel car was the best way to start off racing. Is there any specific reason why this is the case in your eyes?”
Q: Should I use ABS or Threshold Braking on the track?
Q: “What’s the preferred method of braking in a lightly-modified car (i.e., track brake pads and 200 tread wear tires)? Should an advanced driver engage full ABS or try to utilize threshold braking? I sense that my utilization of threshold braking is leaving too much stopping power on the table.”
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