Ways to improve the driver?

[RonInSD]

I think we spend so much time and money on improving the car, I was wondering what people do to improve the driver.

I trying to come up with a list of things that people can do to improve their lap time by improving the driver.

1) Get more seat time.

2) Video tape racing sessions.

3) Data Acquisition.

4) Pro racing schools.

5) Exercise program/Driver weight loss.

6) Spend time as an instructor for a SCCA HPDS, PCA or BMWCCA school.

7) Get a good mentor.

8) Play Racing Video games.

I was wondering what people think about my quick list and what other people do to improve themselves as the driver.

[lobster]

Ron, Karts!! Do you have any Kart tracks/schools in your area? What do you race/drive? Lobster

[RonInSD]

Originally posted by lobster:
Ron, Karts!! Do you have any Kart tracks/schools in your area? What do you race/drive? Lobster

I have a 77 BMW 320i ITB. I have been out of SCCA racing for a couple years and I am looking to get back at it. In the last couple years I have been using the car for BMW club races and instructing at BMW drivers schools.

The driving instructing has really helped with reminding me of the basics of driving. In order to instruct a student you have to really work at feeling the car and tell what is going on. You also have to be able to tell the drivers what they need to do to improve their driving.

I did not think about karts. That would be good option. The only kart tracks around the area are dirt.

When I am working on preping the car back to to spec and I also trying to bring me up to specs or down to spec when it comes to the weight part.

[oanglade]

Track time is key, but you have to have a plan. It can't just be driving out there for the hell of it. You have to have ways to check your improvement (via data acq. or segment times or looking at your speedometer or tach at the same point at different places on the track).

Keep in mind that your job is to help the car.

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Ony Anglade
ITA Miata
Sugar Hill, GA

[RonInSD]

After talking with a few racing friends I forgot that it would really be diffrent for each level of driver.

For a true novice just basic seat time is going to help them improve by just getting a feel for the car. They can work on putting togeather a full with only minor mistakes. Working to get down to the apex, working on the line.

Once they driver gets the line down then is when you need to look at timing and the data acq. Simple data acq could be just dual axis g-meter with logging. That way you could work on smoothing out you line and it would show when you on and off the power.

Simple Lap Time are a good way to see improvement overall but it hard to work on one segment and see that improvement with a over all lap time. Data Acq would help with that because it could break down areas of the track if the software had track mapping. There is even some systems with GPS to help keep the mapping "inline."

Video tape is a good tool too but it is hard to compare lap to lap. It would be nice to be able to use data acp to get the best sector times and them look at the line via the video tape so you can see the fastest line you had taken. If the data acq would keep track of the video tape time codes it would be great. You could jump to the video and play it back and watch the video and the data at the same time. I don't like the over lay systems because most don't allow you to easly find the best segments.

I am thinking about taking a pro drivers school because most are geared to novice's. Most require taking their novice program before taking their advanced school.

I guess I am looking for what people are doing or have done to improve themselves as drivers.

[ITSRX7]

Funny that I read this today. Our top team Driver is up at a test day right now. Some perspective? He holds 3 track records in the Northeast and is a past Regional Champion.

The relentless pursuit of those seconds, those tenths and those wins. Granted, we have damn good equipment, but it is nothing without testing and experimentation. He has made changes to the car INBETWEEN qualifying and the race - and he was on the POLE. Think about that.

Without investing too much money, here is what I would do:

- Most tracks have test days prior to race days. Get some seat time.
- Video your efforts with a camera that will get sound and position so you can see your tach. Get a video from a top driver in your class (or with your same model car) and run them side by side and time toe segments.
- Ask a top driver to allow you to follow at a test day.
- Use a pressure gauge and pyrometer to maximize your settings. Camber and toe setting BY TRACK are critical. Corner weighting and ride heights should be checked, recorded and tweaked.
- Learn what the car is doing in corner entry, mid-corner and corner-exit. Learn how to adjust your cars suspension to make it faster and/or more stable for you to drive
- Have a fast driver you trust to run it during a session and provide feedback.

Once you can do all the elementary things above, THEN you can go with data acq. The info it will spit out will mean NOTHING unless you can interpret and make the appropriate changes.

Have fun.

AB

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Andy Bettencourt
ITS RX-7 & Spec Miata 1.6 (ITA project)
New England Region R188967
www.flatout-motorsports.com (http://www.flatout-motorsports.com)