How would you go about getting faster when you have no one’s data to compare to, or no one faster to follow? I am one of <10 KA100s at CAKC and have the track record by 8 tenths. All these guys are very new to karting and far off the pace. I am struggling with improvement and not sure where to go from here. How could I analyze my data to find where I can gain time without knowing the theoretical fastest times for each sector? I know there is a lot of time to find, I just don’t know how to find it on my own.
That’s a pretty good flex, actually. 
If you only have your own data to compare against, I would look at your split times across all the laps and find your own theoretical best lap, and figure out what you did differently in each sector to give you that optimum time.
For example, did you brake a bit later into turn 1 on lap X and pick up a tenth compared to your best? Note that and move through each corner.
You can view your split differences in real-time on the MyChron if you have splits and sector times set up.
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That’s what i’ve been trying to do. My theoretical best is 4 tenths quicker so I can definitely do at least that. I am struggling with using RS3 analysis and the split times with CAKC bc the track is not coded into the Mychron and it keeps glitching. But I will work on it.
Not as much as I would like it to be, the guys are really slow… only a couple have ever raced before.
Retitled in case anyone is in a similar situation to me
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I have no buddies to race with so I just do laps against the clock
I would say try to make a new lap record. Make a goal to your self. Try to improve your lap record 0.2s for example. If you cant make it - start figuring out what is limiting you go faster - You or the chassis ? Does the kart start sliding or what ? Why isnt it going like on rails ? Why do you need to lift here and there? Theres a ton of lap time in chassis adjustments - do your self a favor and try all kinds of set ups. Always hit the set up with maximum attack - try to make a new lap record. You will soon see from the lap times what works for your chassis , driving style etc
For me everytime I have made a personal lap record I congratulate myself for job well done. I try to stay on the attack for few more laps and make mental notes what the kart does on entry, apex, exit - what part is limiting me to go faster. And start making plans for next set up
This is the situation I’ve found myself in the last couple of years getting up to speed in KZ (the “I have no one to compare data with” part, not the “I’m way faster than everyone else” part - I wish!). My approach has been mostly looking at split times in the data, comparing certain laps across sessions or even within the same session to find where the differences or inconsistencies in my driving are, and reviewing onboard video both of entire sessions and picking out laps where I feel (and data shows) that I do things well and where I don’t so that I have concrete things to focus on for the next session.
One thing to note regarding sector times and theoretical best laps - in my experience with Race Studio, by default it seems to create way too many sectors in a lap which paints an unrealistic picture of what your true theoretical best lap is. When I’m setting up a track for data analysis I’ll make most sectors to be just before the braking zone to a corner, include the whole corner and continue until the next braking zone where I’ll start my next section, and if it’s a whole complex of corners that flow into one another I’ll combine them all into the same sector. For me this seems to give me a more realistic idea of what my true theoretical best is and also makes it easier to identify potential areas for improvement.
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Tj is there a good RS3 analysis video you recommend? I’m not sure what’s wrong with mine but I literally can’t get the track map to work with the sectors. It keeps freezing and not letting me create custom sectors. The videos I’ve watched don’t match what my screen shows.
Mine isn’t great but I do have one.
Do you prefer the RS3 or RS2 analysis?
The hardest thing for me is to correlate what is actually faster. For example I was analyzing sectors this morning, and my fastest sector 3 i locked the absolute hell out of my rears and dropped almost 2k rpm and it was 1.5 tenths quicker than my second quickest sector. i’m not sure what to even take away from that, brake later maybe? I had a later apex bc of the lock up, maybe that’s why. it’s just hard to pinpoint the “why’s”
For me RS2 just because it has less features so is less cluttered and easier to motivate for me. I don’t really use the features of RS3 ever.
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Find your most inconsistent corner coming onto a straight and make it consistent.
Find your most inconsistent slowest speed corner and make it consistent.
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I am in a similar boat, it’s not often that I am driving the KZ with someone who’s just a little faster.
On top of what has already been detailed in the thread, here are a few things I work on to directly improve race results, not just outright speed.
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Being fast on the first laps. The guy who whooped us all at the last club race ran the same lap time on lap 2 and the last lap. The rest of us took a few lap to get to pace. Some of that is the natural jockeying in the pack, but some is due to not being immediately “on point”.
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Trying significantly different lines, braking points, throttle pickup points in a systematic way during a session so I can overlay the laps and see what insights I can pick out. Usually the results are predictable but every now and then a nugget of new info presents itself.
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Work on consistency. When I am dialed I can run within a few tenths every lap. A big component here for me is having the kart fitted to me and setup in a way that gives me confidence. Tentativeness and/or being uncomfortable leads to inconsistency.
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Playing with gearing. If you can run roughly the same lap time with 2 or 3 different ratios (more common in a shifter), you should understand what the strengths and weaknesses of each ratio are such that you can make a strategic choice based on conditions and your goals (quali, race from front, race from back of pack, etc.).
Hope that helps.
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Try to only work on improving 1-2 things during a given session. Changing more than that and you’ll lose your baseline and your focus. You can’t just say “this session I’m going to go faster” it needs to be specific like “I’m going to try braking later into turn 7 and turning earlier into turn 13”.
Also using the +/- Best feature on the MyChron is the best on-track feedback tool when by yourself. Run enough laps to get up to temp and have a baseline for the session and then start trying your changes and you can see right on the dash if it’s better or worse on the Mychron. Then continue to dial in from there. Use video to capture what you did and review afterward.
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