Funny title aside, I’m genuinely curious for some input here.
Back to the track these last two weekends heading to NCMP. A track I know pretty well. One thing I’ve noticed since I’ve been back is my inability to brake consistently. At least that’s my theory. I feel like I am over braking in big corners, like I70 corner and Turn 1. It also feels like the kart gets super unstable under braking, often having the rear come out on me. This continues on corner exit, where unless I roll into the throttle, I’m losing the back end.
I’d hate to blame this on kart setup, as I know my driving needs tons of improvement, but the only change I made for what I normally run at NCMP is putting longer rear hubs on (115mm). Normally my kart runs the standard 50mm hubs it came with. Did NOT get a chance to test this theory as it started raining yesterday.
I know longer rear hubs will stiffen my axle, effectively losing some flexibility under braking, but I’d have a hard time believing that this change would have such a dramatic effect on the way the kart handles. Which brings me back to my driving. I have lost tons of confidence in the kart and feel like I’m in the way out there.
Any help here would be greatly appreciated, and if mods need to put this in the Driving Video Feedback thread, please do.
I can’t speak to the specifics of KZ setup but the thing that stands out is how you still aren’t using the whole track enough, so you aren’t really driving the kart near its limit, and because of that the kart is always going to be sort of unpredictable and difficult to diagnose since it isn’t flexing and working as hard as it needs to. In that sense your driving seems consistent at least.
Doubling your rear hub length is quite the change though.
Also are track conditions green? If it rained or it had been a significant time since you were last out the track conditions probably are quite a bit different which could be a big change in feeling or lap time.
I’ve coached hundreds of people and raced over 400 cars at this point. Here are some of my thoughts:
Use the entire track (specifically on exit) – if you are “choking off” the track by not using everything on entry and exit you are essentially diagnosing a false problem. Use the whole track.
Inconsistent braking – go back to day 1 driving school and make sure all of your braking points are being done in the same place. Place a cone on track if you need to for reference. Ensure your system is bled and everything is working correctly. Mechanical consistency is the precursor to driver consistency.
I often find going back to basics before diving into a giant setup change is the best way to eliminate variables quickly. Driver error is the cause of a lot of problems in my coaching experience. Others can speak to setup specifics much better than me when it comes to karting, but I always start with driver consistency and mechanical consistency.
If possible I would have a driver with trust worthy feedback have a go and compare. But make sure your basics are in order first with regard to braking in the same spots every time.
I’ll just chip in here to say to remember to push yourself back in the seat at the braking points - you want your weight as far back as you can get it and putting some pressure into the foot rests will help you do that as well as help the chassis work for you more.
Also, and this came up for me recently - brake fluid on these karts truly are consumables that have a finite life, and it may not be 100% obvious that it’s a problem (e.g,. the brakes still work technically, just at a far reduced level both in feel and outright performance). If you’re doing everything correctly’ish and nothing much has changed on the kart, it’s possible that your brakes just need some maintenance - flush the system with new fluid (easier than it sounds what you get the hang of it), and make sure the pads didn’t have something weird happen with them. Good luck!
I’ll echo the recommendations to bleed the brakes, check the pads (make sure correct compounds are installed), and dial in your bias. Looks like too much rear.
Also double check front alignment, as the chassis looks a bit twitchy.
Braking at the top of the hill into I-70 on coldish tires is always going to be sketchy. You need to brake after the crest of the hill so the kart isn’t unloaded when you go to hit the brake pedal.
Start going off the track on purpose to realize that it isn’t that bad. For real. During braking drills with my clients sometimes I just have them brake later and later until we literally miss the turn and go off the track, because I need them to get over that fear and realize truly what the limit is. You can’t dance on the limit if you don’t know where it is.
My son did this when we started, with no prompting. Tight hairpin at end of straight and he just kept going deeper and deeper until he lost the kart. He wanted to know what the limit was. Did similar when we jumped to a different brand with different brakes.
FWIW Jake I was at NCMP this past weekend and struggled with being able to modulate my brakes and I was well off the pace. I found I had to use a reverse pressure curve to my brake application compared to normal; meaning I’d start soft and then have to roll on pressure as the brake zone continued which is backward for me.
I chased a couple chassis adjustments and bled the brakes but still the issue remained. I was finally going to chalk it up to the tires being too old and throw on a better set, but the rain took away that chance.
One thing worth mentioning is that cool, green NCMP and hot, gripped up NCMP are two very different tracks. Like two completely different race tracks. The level of grip change that NCMP goes through is extremely frustrating because it makes it almost not worth practicing unless it is a weekend where a ton of karts at the track or after a dry week of karts putting rubber down.
Chris, this was my first thought when you mentioned lack of braking grip.
One way to get comfortable with going to the edge of the track is to find a corner where there is a bunch of run off and just go faster and faster through that corner until you naturally start to run wide or spin out.
It’s all about seat time and building visual references. In that one corner pay attention to how fast you are coming into the turn. Where you are braking. Where you are turning in. Where you are getting on throttle.
If you are not using the whole track on exit it try getting on the power earlier. Getting on power early will naturally move your kart wide on exit.
Fear is defeated by doing the thing we are afraid of and then learning we are not going to hurt ourselves or our equipment once we step over that limit. In order to step over that limit safely we need an area of track where there is adequate run off so if we make a mistake nothing happens.
Once you know if you make a mistake you will not get hurt of cause financial damage to your machine you can start to play with that limit. Over time this will build confidence. If you have any questions please message me directly and I’d be happy to explain any other things I can.
Any time! I’m new to Kart Pulse and I really think this is a great community. A lot of people here with experience who are apt to help. Not a lot of ego either like other forums. I love it.
I’m about to find out if I forgot how to drive over the off season. I was not able to get any practice in and first OVKA point race is Sunday. Fortunately, we will have 2 race day practice sessions prior to qualifying.
I find that it doesn’t go away, like riding a bike. But the muscles do. That will likely be noticed (sore).
It occasionally occurs to me how batshit crazy it is that we throw ourselves at walls at high speed, intentionally just missing, and do so with staggering precision, over and over again, within fractional second consistency.
There is an art, it says, or rather, a knack to flying. The knack lies in learning how to throw yourself at the ground and miss. … Clearly, it is this second part, the missing, which presents the difficulties.
