YOu could probably talk about how autoX prepares you to make evasive manuevers and control the car. I practice apexing on every corner since it teaches you to be smooth and make limited inputs but it wont read well in article.
Wayne Henry
East Tenn Region, SCCA
2006 MX-5 Limited
the rest of the garage:
1984 Mazda RX-7 GSL-SE
1996 Toyota 4runner
Yeah, if you mention "practicing" and "public road" in the same article, it won't look good to a lot of people no matter how you describe it... even though a lot of technique can be practiced safely on your drive into work.
As Wayne said, I would emphasize the reaction time and driver skill improvements as they relate to everyday driving. I personally have been saved from two wrecks that I can remember because a) I was looking ahead and reacted to what I saw without hesitating and b) I knew exactly how far I could push the car I was driving before I would lose control.... comes in really handy when animals and inattentive drivers cross your path. Braking skills are also improved greatly... you learn to brake at the threshold of lockup and you learn what the car feels like just before the wheels are about to lock... you learn you can't lock the front tires and still expect them to steer the car, etc., etc.
Basically, you learn what your vehicle is going to do when it is put into non-standard situtations and you learn how to react to them. Pilots practice stalling their aircraft so that they know what an impending stall feels like and how to react to it... automobile drivers shouldn't be any different.
I agree with Wayne and Dave. Practicing apexing and car positioning while driving on the street needs to be emphasized as a mental exercise while abiding by all traffic laws and driving safely. Practicing fast enough to have significant tire slip angles means you will be unsafe on the street even if the speed limit is not broken.
One thing that can be practiced on the street that can actually make you safer while doing it is proper hand position on the steering wheel. You can also practice turning the wheel fluidly with the minimum amount of input to achieve the result you want without having to correct by turning the wheel the opposite direction.
I would also like to add a caution for those who pilot front wheel drive cars that have suspension tuned to make the car rotate better while autocrossing. A car set up to rotate in slow speed tight radius corners can become a handfull at higher speeds when evasive action has to be taken in an emergency especially under braking.
dfoulk wrote:I would also like to add a caution for those who pilot front wheel drive cars that have suspension tuned to make the car rotate better while autocrossing. A car set up to rotate in slow speed tight radius corners can become a handfull at higher speeds when evasive action has to be taken in an emergency especially under braking.
Uh, yeah... been there, put that one in a ditch.
Mark Pilson
03 Z06 - Sword
09 Mustang - Club
01 Excursion - The safe you dropped from the 10th story
Kind of like Disney put it if you could come across that you practice your driving by autoxing you could come across better in the eyes of more people......but then it wont be the article that you want so just say that you go 90 around every corner to pracitce autoxing and slalom the broken yellow lines
I heard Carpenter say that moving the back and forth car from the white line on the right and to the yellow on the left (while staying in your lane of course) is a good exercise to get you used to the track/width of your vehicle. I tried this technique before I drove Chris's WRX at the Subaru Challenge. I think it helped me a lot. Just don't do it when a lot of cars or present because they might think you are snockered up.
Having said the above, you can still practice smoothness; try to keep your eyes sharp for proper lines; and drive ahead of your hood.
It is funny to follow folk sometimes and see what little is known about proper lines, apexes and smoothness. Truck drivers are usually the best since they are trying to preserve momentum; it makes them dangerous at times but if you understand the game....
I am amazed at times when I avoid a situation that I realized was coming long before it happens so that I can stop, swerve or whatever the appropriate move.
Wayne Henry
East Tenn Region, SCCA
2006 MX-5 Limited
the rest of the garage:
1984 Mazda RX-7 GSL-SE
1996 Toyota 4runner
thrdeye wrote:........although I don't really have too much of to watfh
You really shouldn't eat while you type Chris
BTW: I'll be bringing my camera to film my runs. Do you have the necessary cables to transfer footage between cameras? I only have the iLink/firewire cable that hooks my camera to a the firewire port on my mac. If you don't already have one, I can check prices on camera-camera cables. Not sure right now if I have the RCA hookups on this camera (it's new to me).
Last edited by Williampreza on Wed Mar 03, 2004 8:29 am, edited 2 times in total.
Not that I am a particularly good ax'er. I did several schools at Road America. One of my instructors was a track record holder in both vintage and Porche Club. The most valuable thing he taught me was visualization of the circuit before and after every run (especially after).
Immediately after completion of your run (car off, sitting in the paddock), remain seated in your vehicle, strapped in, helmet on. Close your eyes and re-run the course several times. You will begin to recall minor incidents (losing grip coming out of a turn, apexing too early, braking too late) as you repeat your run.
This may sound silly, but imagine doing this after running twenty laps on a 2.4 mile 14 turn road course. The events playback in slow-mo detail. You begin to realize what happened and how you reacted. What did I do? What could I have done? What should I have done? We would re-run several times and I would vocalize each turn, shift, braking, vehicle upset, etc. He would tell me what had just happened and why (holding a track record means you know the track pretty intimately).
The same applies to autocross. Sit in your car and rerun several times, eyes closed, hands on the wheel, imagine braking, imagine when and how much lock you applied.
While waiting in the paddock fo ryour next run, re-run the course before you get the wave to stage your vehicle.
Ride with others and re-run their run. It is amazing how much we can absorb in 20-40 seconds. After you re-run their run a couple of times, you will be amazed at the questions you will have. Why did he brake so early there? How did we manage such exit speed here? Will me vehicle react the same way if I try this?
Just remember. Close your eyes. Strap yourself in. Put your hands on the wheel. Repeat. Repeat. Learn. Go faster.
Kilt (carless this year)
ps. What is the rule on Karts? I know you have to push them to the start line at most events. Does ETR allow them?
thrdeye wrote:........although I don't really have too much of to watfh
You really shouldn't eat while you type Chris
BTW: I'll be bringing my camera to film my runs. Do you have the necessary cables to transfer footage between cameras? I only have the iLink/firewire cable that hooks my camera to a the firewire port on my mac. If you don't already have one, I can check prices on camera-camera cables. Not sure right now if I have the RCA hookups on this camera (it's new to me).
I have the RCA cables...so hopefully your camera has teh ports....my camera is not firewire capable.
Chris Harp
2009 Mazda RX-8 | 2018 Toyota Tundra | 2011 BMW M3
Hmm.. Just checked and I've got an S-video port and some other kind that I've never seen before. Looks kindof like an 1/8" stereo plug opening, but I wouldn't bet on it. Anybody know anything about Sony Handycams? Harley? Michael? (It'd be nice if I had the instruction manual at this point. Relatives.. )
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