Coaching 86s

Normally, I coach for Hooked on Driving. I’ve also coached for a variety of other HPDE organizations, but not often. 2 weekends ago I did my first private coaching gig. I was asked by a driver who runs in the GT86 time trial series if I would be interested in doing some private coaching for some of the drivers in the series. I thought that sounded like fun and a good learning experience on both sides, so I agreed.

How much does one charge for such a thing? That’s a very good question! In my day job, I sometimes get honoraria for giving talks or reviewing grants. Those events might run $250-$1000 per day, and usually on the low side. If a company wants my services, I’d probably charge $250 per hour. But that’s my professional side. Performance driving is a hobby. So I decided that I would charge a hobby rate: $400 for the day for a group of 4.

So what does $100 get you? 2 sessions of me in the right seat, some chatting before and after each track session, and a group online telemetry analysis review a few days later (I brought my Aim Solo DL with me each session). Would I do this again? Sure, see my prices in the For Hire link at the top. You can also rent a car from me.

So let’s take a look at what one of the GT86 drivers learned. I’m particularly proud of what this driver was able to accomplish in one day.

The blue traces are a couple typical laps from his first session. The red traces are from his second session. I was in the car both times. Between those, he had one or two stints where he was working alone. The track is Thunderhill West. For some reason, Aim Solo thinks the start/finish line is on the straight between T2 and T3, so that’s where the left hand side of the graph begins.

The first thing to notice is that the red line is higher everywhere in the speed graph. He’s faster everywhere. Well except for 5900-6600 feet. We’ll get to that later. Let’s discuss the turns starting from the beginning (or rather T3).

• T3 (500 ft) – There are 3 big changes here. The most obvious one is that his minimum corner speed is higher. Over the course of the day, he learned that he didn’t have to brake so much and therefore carry more speed through the entry. He also gained confidence in using the brake pedal to set speed rather than just scrub speed. This is why the shape of the curve is more U-shaped than V-shaped. He’s blending cornering and deceleration. Finally, the upward slope of the red line is higher, meaning he’s getting the throttle down more fully albeit slightly later.
• T4 (1300 ft) – He brakes and accelerates at pretty much the same place, but he’s going much faster. This is mostly an improvement in confidence. An improvement in technique would also show him backing up the corner. Something to learn for next time.
• T5 (1800 ft) –  The downward slope of the blue line shows that he used to brake for this corner. But now he just lifts off throttle a little.
• T6 (2500-3200ft) – The red line starts to decelerate gently and then aggressively. He’s going very fast here and is a little worried about the upcoming corner. So unconsciously, he’s starting to lift before applying the brake. He could easily gain time simply by keeping his foot at 100% throttle. It’s fine with me that he doesn’t. If your self-preservation instincts kick in at the highest speed part of the track, I’m totally okay with it. The more important and impressive thing is that his minimum corner speed is 15 mph higher. Amazing!
• T7 (4000 ft) – We didn’t really work on low speed corners, and you can see that there isn’t much difference in time from 4000-4500 ft.
• T8 (4700 ft) – Confidence gets him accelerating over T8 rather than decelerating.
• T9-T10 (5200-5900 ft) – Although we didn’t work on low speed corners, you can see that his minimum corner speed is higher. Not only that, but it’s happening later. He’s clearly trail-braking to make that happen. Now all he needs to do is move all that deceleration and rotation earlier in the corner. Sadly, it’s much easier to say than do, and he’ll be working on this skill for a long time.
• T1 (6700-7400 ft) – The blue trace is actually higher than the red trace. Yes, he could go faster, but our attention was on how to drive T1 faster, not how to drag race down the main straight. Honestly, I would prefer if students never used 4th gear. Look what he does here. It’s smashing. He previously applied brakes, then accelerated, then braked again. The red trace shows him turning this complex of turns into a single turn.
• T2 (8000 ft) – On the way into the carousel, he’s going so much faster that he bleeds a bit too much speed on the entry. Oh well, it’s an overall gain as shown by the time graph. Again, something to work on next time.

Wow, right? He gained 8-10 seconds over the course of the day. Partly it was increasing confidence, but there were changes in technique too. They go hand in hand. You can’t really trail-brake until you gain confidence. And once you gain confidence, it improves your trail-braking.