Q: “The lap timer has become the post track session ‘thief of joy.’ I would have an absolute magical session with a perfect balance of speed and riding the limits of the car. I’d get out of the car on the highest of highs, then I’d open the phone lap timer. Upon inspection of my times, I’d realize I was some percentage slower than my personal best for the day, and even slower than the daily average.”

Sure, ‘the car is hotter’ or ‘the track conditions have changed in some negligible amount’ whatever the excuse may have been, it didn’t matter. My highest of high went to the lowest of low. Being that I’m not actively competing in time attacks or wheel-to-wheel racing, and HPDE driving (and now instruction) is my fun-time hobby, I turned off the timer.”

Since then, I’ve focused on being smooth, listening and feeling the car, finding the limits in controlled ways, and spending time changing up my line, or trying really radical lines for fun. Currently my metrics for confirming that I’m getting faster include things like observing shift points moving up, required changes in brake zones and pedal pressures, checking tire wear and pressures post session, basically everything other than time.”

When I instruct, I have students who ask about what their lap times ‘should’ be, and my response is usually some line like ‘being smooth is more important than timers. Show me you can listen to the car’s needs before entertaining the needs of the timer.’ I have the luxury of giving these kinds of responses, because I’m teaching DE 1-3 students, not competitive drivers. This situation has been all fine and dandy for non-competitive driving, but at some point I’d like to branch into time attack or wheel-to-wheel with my friends.”

My question: How would you suggest reincorporating the timer into the cockpit without it becoming the ‘thief of joy” again? Or at least minimizing how much joy that bandit takes!”

A: You’re not the only driver who find lap times distracting or a “fun thief.” I’ve coached many drivers of every level who slow down when they’re chasing lap times, or get frustrated when their times are not as good. I’ve also coached most of them into turning that mindset around, and to use the times simply as a form of feedback — not good, bad, or critical, but as just another way of seeing where they can improve.

The first step is to really think about all of the variables that can impact lap times, such as ambient temperature and how that affects engine power, track temp and grip, tire condition and pressures, rubber on the track (some of it is good, but some can be bad for grip if it’s a very different rubber compound), your mental state, what you’ve eaten (or not), hydration, mental and body energy… and that’s not going anywhere near how well you’re performing the hundreds of techniques you use every lap. Are you looking as far ahead as before (which can be impacted by rest, nutrition, and state of mind); are the muscles in your ankles/feet/calves tiring, so that the subtle movements of your pedal use are affected; have your seatbelts/harnesses loosened up; etc.?

Once you consider all of these and realize that lap times are just one simple metric that is influenced by all of those other factors, it’s easier to let go of their importance.

Still, lap times are a good metric, too. It’s what you do with them that matters. Ask questions. If you’re faster, why? If you’re slower, why? If you’re not sure, keep asking and digging for the answers, but if you can’t figure it out, let it go. Whether the lap time is better, worse, or no different, ask why… and then ask, “Did I have fun driving, despite the lap times?” If you had fun and the lap times were better, good; if the lap times were slower and you had fun, good. You don’t need the lap times to tell you whether you enjoy the feeling you get from driving fast on a race track.

The more a person focuses on the results of doing something, the more likely that their performance of the task will suffer. The more a person focuses on their performance — on the task, the act of driving, in your case – the more likely it is that they’ll perform better… and the more likely it is that they’ll get the result they wanted. Kinda ironic, isn’t it?

I’m sure if you slowly re-introduce checking your lap times, but only as a piece of feedback and a tool to trigger some questions that will lead to improvements, you’ll be able to use them to help you in time trials and racing.