breljohn

I find it's one of the hardest things to do.
In all honesty, I don't even know where to start working on that (focusing on brake pedal release but not sure I'm doing the right thing)

Veloce Raptor

But it's where there is so much potential !!!

Paul Solk

So this is turn 9 to 11 in my car and it's a great example of "decent" looking data and room for improvement in the same image...
Top is throttle, bottom is brake. My brake is much better than it used to be, not great but the two traces "used" to look very similar. Brake is now a nice quick application to a consistent pressure then a slight trace on the back end as it falls off. but throttle still goes 0 to 50 to 90 to 60 to 100 rather than introducing patience, even coast, waiting and getting directly to 100... If I look at steering input I would bet each one of those throttle inputs also generates a steering input. So that tells me I am still over slowing then feeling the need to get back to throttle then having to wait to go full. Plenty of room for improvement even though all of that is probably 5 feet. Happy to see no brakes in 10 but a little too much speed correction. Now here is the thing, even if those changes only result in .1 from a timing perspective this isn't all about lap times it's also about getting the lap time in the "right way" which even here on a lap record lap I am not...
That's just my critique of my own data but I am very green to the data interpretation side still. It is a skill set unto itself that people like @ProCoach @chas911 @Frank 993 C4S possess on a different level altogether which is what helps them achieve that "next" level.


Here is the visual representation of the car and data together

bcp2011

Thanks for sharing!!!

ProCoach

It IS one of the hardest things to do!

Everyone does single axis tasks well, and they all eventually get to full throttle.

But the last frontier is going in, rolling speed, carrying speed into the apex and to the point where you can start a quick(er) progression to WOT.

Of course, the best drivers go to WOT coming out before even they are sure they're going to make it!

But the place to start is to break it down into smaller skill executions with targeted, safe and incremental improvements.

Then, put it all together. I've been working with some drivers for years to get each one the best it can be. Others "get it" right away.

Brake pedal release area and rate of release is perhaps the most significant difference between good and great drivers, but start with the basics, things like:

1) crispness and consistency throttle off to brake pressure on, Long G can be a coarse substitute.

2) brake pressure on to max brake pressure (on longer, straightline, at least in the beginning, brake zones) within .35-.5 seconds, Long G can be a coarse substitute.

3) brake pressure doesn't vary more than 3-5 percent over the longer zones, ALWAYS higher initially (unless significant lateral loading from exit of previous corner). OK if the trend line is down within a margin of 10-20% over the length of the maximum braking BUT BEFORE initial release and tapering off. NO "pulsations" should be present due to faulty heel-and-toe or manually modulating to "adjust" the length of the brake zone because you braked too soon, etc,

4) examination of the effectiveness of your brake release area and rate using Combined G (gSuM) and Lat G superimposed.

And the list goes on and on.

You MUST break it down into the smallest pieces, make those pieces of the BEST quality, then put it back together to REALLY make progress, without adding risk.

That's why this nebulous "braking softer" and other subjective assessments consistently underutilize the available grip and hence, the driver is operating under the limit, sometimes with quite a margin.

Testing and validation with data and video to provide objective information also allows the obverse to be true. It shows you where there is NOT margin to push and you ARE close to the limit! Put those areas to bed.

In the end, the way the car is asked (or told) what to do can and does have a significant effect on how well the platform (car) accepts that input. HTH.

the_vetman

SOB! I can't even come close to that...

breljohn

Great info, thank you so much, Peter!
Now to apply that on track...

DTMiller

I don't think 2:15s are done alone; that's usually the benefit of some significant teamwork based on the videos I've seen.

ProCoach

Actually, high 2:15’s and low 2:16’s can be done solo. Here’s a 2:14.733 that according to the data was aided to the tune of about .12 seconds by a fortuitous tow through T3-T4 and about half that out of the T5. No teammates to work with here... just good timing.

Tyler is a wonderful driver and the son of a longtime SCCA racer and Sports 2000 class pilot, Vic Kicera.

It’s all about COMMITMENT, but still smooth as butter!

I would recommend Stevan McAleer or Jonathan Goring to help get a stock Miata around Watkins Glen quite a bit quicker.