MikeJim

As an instructor, I have always encouraged students to make smooth steering, brake and throttle inputs. My feeling has been...the less you can do to upset the car, the better off you'll be.

A few weeks ago, I was able to ride shotgun in a Ferrari Challenge car at Watkins Glen with current Pirelli World Challenge series points leader Jack Baldwin.

Baldwin is a legend. He's won five pro championships, a Daytona 24 Hour, two 12 Hours of Sebring, and has victories on just about every major road course in America. He has championships in Trans-Am, IMSA, HSR, and Grand-Am. He ran in two International Race of Champions.

He's also one of the roughest drivers I've ever ridden with (and fastest). He literally saws on the wheel. The inputs are dramatic and violent. The car lurches. He says he's "looking for grip."

Not all fast drivers are rough drivers. Not all rough drivers are fast. And not all smooth drivers are slow. What are your thoughts on smooth versus rough?

PS- Jack will try to wrap up the Pirelli World Challenge Championship this weekend in Houston.

DCP

When I first got my Spec Miata, I had several good drivers of the type drive it with me in the car. Two of them are near the top of the local SM drivers. I was stunned by how one was smooth on inputs and gentle on brakes while the other drove aggressively.

It made it clear to me that there is more than one way to be fast.

Charles A. Toupin

I was racing against JF Dumoulin (2 times Daytona 24 winner) 2 weeks ago at Mt-Tremblant in the same class (SP2 cars) and when I was behind him I could see that his driving style was quite different than mine. He was hustling the car, I could see him at the top of turn 2 counter steering like crazy and using very different lines in other parts of the track.

I ended up being faster, but that was mostly due to the car, not the driver(s).

c.

RickBetterley

If fast includes getting the car to the finish line - does that make a difference in the 'which style is faster' debate?

esscape26

I would have to say that for longer races, you can't keep that up (or you better add an aerobic conditioning component to your racing). I bet you can't do that stuff in certain types of cars, either.

tkerrmd

some drivers and instructors vs say racers are not driving at the ragged edge

in a DE I always leave plenty on the table, it is a DE

in a race or a race car driver, pushing the car near and too the limits is more the norm. to someone in a DE situation where all is smooth as it should be I think there is a big difference vs a race car driver

not sure the quote but if you feel smooth you may not be going your fastest?

zweebach

I've heard most instructors encourage smooth inputs. While coming up the learning curve on car control, this type of behavior will help to keep the car settled and predicatable. In more advanced instruction scenarios, I have heard instructors say that when closer to the limit, one would expect to be sawing at the wheel more and at times giving abrupt inputs - this may be violent inside the car, but the result will be that the car appears to be smoothly navigating the course from the outside.

I have also tried to rationalize that a smoother driver is easier on equipment and less likely to overwork tires and brakes.

Sean F

sometimes I like it smooth, sometimes I like it rough

GuyIncognito

it's easier to learn with smooth inputs vs rough inputs. so I think it makes sense to teach it that way on a DE/race school standpoint and then change technique (or more accurately, add that technique to your skill set) as your experience, confidence, and speed improves.

remember the old saying, "slow corners fast hands, fast corners slow hands"? in a sense that is smooth vs rough, applied to the same driver, car and circuit but in the context of different corners.

Veloce Raptor

yes

MikeJim

As always, VR says it best.

himself

IMO, there are 2 kinds of smooth: inside and outside. As I see it, inside the car smooth doesn't really matter as much. It's the outside of the car kind that makes the biggest difference.

-td

FrankyV

It's all a mystery to me as I have tried it smooth and rough and it all comes out slow. I have had the best drivers along with me and/or reviewing my videos and they say "Here, here and here, got you an easy second" Uhh..thanks, but where are the other 3?

Nizer

First thing I think of when Tremblant and smooth vs rough show in the same thread:

Manifold

Some of the very fast drivers I've ridden with were smooth, others were rough. My sense is that both styles require a lot of skill to be fast.