The "slow in, fast out" myth., Great article. Options

[FASTFATBOY]

I have always thought the more entry speed you could muster the faster your were.

When I first started in HPDE's a buddy who is much faster would bark for me to turn in much sooner than my mind would allow, he would say it twice before I would turn in.

I have since learned the faster the entry speed allows you to turn in earlier.


http://jalopnik.com/5937814/why-the-slow-i...w-To-Drive-Fast

Discuss.

[Al weyman]

Erm, I go in too fast I'm off the track, probably more relevant to slick shod cars but worth a try I guess.

[StanIROCZ]

There are similarities of this "slow in fast out" rule to the late apex; it is more important to leave a corner fast into a long straight than it is to enter the corner fast. If you leave a corner fast you carry that extra 1mph for a long period of time which will make a big impact on your lap time.

Following rules of the traction circle this rule is not correct, but corner entry is probably the hardest and most dangerous place to take time off your lap. A predictable braking system and lots of seat time are necessary. I find myself accelerating before the apex often because I came in too slow – which is part of safely learning to go fast by slowly building confidence to brake later and carry more speed into mid corner.

I have been privy to many data sets and been teammates with some of the top drivers in the world — such as Lewis Hamilton, Dario Franchitti, Scott Dixon, Will Power and others. What is common among all of them is the philosophy of using a slightly earlier turn-in, releasing the brake and rolling a lot of speed to apex. I have also driven with drivers who concentrate on corner exit and do not focus as much on rolling speed into the turn. Despite some of these drivers being very quick, they can never quite match the top guys, especially when on new tires (the extra grip is more readily available if you can take advantage of it on entry).

before the above quote:

They brake at the same point, but as they approach the spot where they must begin to turn in they start reducing brake pressure far more rapidly, to roll more speed to apex.

<snip>
Rolling speed like this also helps the balance of the car. Because when we release the brake we effectively flatten out our machine's platform, meaning the front and rear wheels have a far more equal weight distribution. So there is more load on the back of the car and therefore more rear grip, which enables you to carry more speed in.

Releasing the brakes more rapidly doesn't seem to agree with the theoretical perfect corner and the traction circle. I can't quite grasp this. Either way it seams like it is a couple steps beyond my current driving ability and from the sounds of it most of the best amatures.

[mr.beachcomber]

Basically the Lloyd article should be an eye-opener for most entry level racers; however, if you're running first in your class and don't have to stop for a change of tires or brake pads, slow in - fast out seems to work best in club racing for former street vehicles that don't want to rotate. Like everything else in racing, your line basically boils down to the combined characteristics of your tires, brakes, and the vehicle's weight balance plus the driver's skill level. (HP is nice and a broad torque band is nicer, but in club racing, the driver determines how best to use advanced techniques like trail braking to rotate the vehicle, late braking to pass, and fast in-fast out to cut down lap times to affect the outcome of any race.)

In my experience, the most difficult thing to teach a novice driver is brake modulation. (They seem to get the"go fast" part fairly easily!) Once they can properly modulate their brake pressure, these "advanced" techniques become so much easier to grasp and execute.

Still Lloyd's technique works great. Corvette Racer John Greenwood used it to great advantage in IMSA GT Racing back in the '70's. (Of course, he was on BFGoodrich T/A street tires that wore like iron and had an L-88 BBC w/600+ HP on tap in a C3 Vette that like to hang out it's rear end during cornering!) (IMG:http://www.frrax.com/rrforum/style_emoticons/default/beerchug.gif)