joseph mitro

all you racing guys can shed some light for my ignorant mind... does trail braking mean you brake into the turn, leave your foot on the brake through the turn, or what?

and while I'm asking about topics i'm ignorant about, how does everybody heel-and-toe? i have tried with the inside of my foot on the brake and the outside touching the throttle but it's kind of dangerous because the bite on the brake pedal is precarious, plus the two pedals are far apart. I have also tried with my foot at an oblique angle where the arch of my foot steps on the brake and the toes blip the throttle, but it's kind of a weird angle. how do you guys do it?

iloveporsches

Normal braking goes like this: You set up for the turn, and do all of your braking in a straight line. When you start to turn your foot is off of the brake. Ok method, but not the fastest.

Trail braking is where you do most of your braking in a straight line, but gradually come off the brake as you enter the corner. Allows for a smoother transition and faster lap times.

I heel-toe the way you first described. I have pretty big feet though so I feel comfortable doing it.

944Fest (aka Dan P)

I'll try to make it simple.. Basic beginner high perf driving has you brake, lift, and THEN turn in. Trail braking is when you are still braking a bit (NOT 100%) when you turn in. The result is a loose rear end and some sliding. You really need to be ready to catch a slide when you practice this technique. Make sure you TELL YOUR INSTRUCTOR you intend to try this BEFORE you do it. If not, He'll make you pit next time around so he can clean out his shorts. From what I understand, this is FAR trickier in a 911 variant than in a 44 based toy.

Geo

Heel/Toe:

http://www.se-r.net/general/heel_toe.html

pedro951

i heel toe with my toes on the brake then i rotate my foot sideways & blip the throttle with my heel

porschefig

i do this also (i have fairly thin feet)
i find it ackward to get from that position to letting off the brake and getting back on the foot feed.
(i'm trying to figure out the "proper" way but the "rotated foot" method is more natural)

P.S. I spose i'll hear a lot of "forget what's natural and do what's right! " (sounds logical to me!!! )

cheetah chrome

there was a great video on the OT boards a while back of a pro 996 driver doing laps at the ring. it had a peddle cam and had a bunch of really good shots of him heel/toe'n it. it was amazing how fast he could slow that car down and perfectly rev match the downshifts.

Danno

As you may notice, when you turn into a corner, the cornering forces build from 0 to maximum-G over a certain length of time, say... 0.20 to 0.50 seconds depending upon the corner. The idea is you want to do a criss-cross function of letting off the brake and converting the longitudinal friction into lateral cornering forces such that the tire is always being used at maximum-grip. There's no dead time when it's not braking and not cornering. Anyone who's fast and are getting FTD will tell you they're trail-braking. It's easily worth 1-2 seconds per lap.

jim944s2

One of the more enjoyable driving books is the 'Porsche high performance driving handbook' (or similar name) by Vic Elford. You'd enjoy it and get a lot out of it.