There are a few things you can do to improve your driving lap times. With persistence and determination, you can strive to keep improving. Not only do you need to put in the hard work, but you also need to be smart about it. Here are 5 tips to get you started:
Fitness
You might wonder how fitness can have any impact on your driving performance. In today’s professional race car drivers need to be super fit for peak performance. Race car driving can be extremely physical and intense. The temperature can get hot and the driver needs to keep his concentration levels peaked throughout the race. An average temperature of the car cockpit is around 60 C or 149 F. While each time the driver engages the brake, it puts a G-force equivalent to 100 kg on the driver. Imagine having to withstand such physical strain in repetitive motions while trying to focus on the lap time. It is extremely tough on the body. For that, fitness is crucial. If you want to improve on your lap times, you have to physically fit and maintain that level of fitness.
Focus on where you are going
This tip sounds simple enough and you would imagine that a race car driver would naturally be focused on where they want to go. However, most drivers tend to get caught up in what is happening around them. They are more worried about maintaining lines or looking out for other cars. You would see a significant improvement in your lap times if you focus on where you want to go and look far enough ahead to prepare for what is coming.
Circuit knowledge
You might think you know everything about the circuit, but there is something new to learn about the circuit every time you do a lap. You might have limited opportunities to do laps, so every time you are on the lap, try to make the most out of it. One of the best things you can do is study the circuit and talk to drivers who have had experience on the lap. You will learn about which parts of the track are tricky, which parts have the best grip, and more. Your lap time will improve significantly if you can get very familiar with the circuit..
Don’t be afraid of making mistakes
When you afraid of making mistakes, you tend to stick to safety. Fear of making mistakes might be due to fear of losing or fear of damaging your car. In terms of improving your lap times, that means you are not ready to take some risks to improve. You don’t have to be reckless in your driving, but take some calculated risks to see if you can discover something you didn’t think was possible. Even your attempt of trying something different is unsuccessful, you might have learned something useful that might help you improve in some other aspect of your driving.
Understand your car
You have to develop a “feel for your car”. This is something that will come from driving enough laps with the same car and paying attention to what the car is “communicating” to you. Once you get used to a certain response from the corner, you will better predict how the car will respond in specific maneuvers. Another advantage of really getting to know your car is that you start to notice any mechanical issues with your car which you can fix to improve lap times.
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