Presumably you aren’t able to feel what the kart is doing yet then, so it sounds like some free practice days just testing different setups and getting a feel for the changes and how they affect the kart could be beneficial.
If your budget doesn’t allow you to do test days, then it might honestly be worth giving up a couple race weekends to save that cash for an open test day where you can try a lot of things and have some free sessions to not worry about the race or traffic.
Knowing how to brake late and and hit an apex is just one aspect of going fast. Learning how the kart works, feels, and changes and then adapting to that is going to take your skillset to another level.
I’ll have a chassis tuning video out here soon that should be helpful, just haven’t had any time to work on that lately.
Ok, I see what you’re saying. I always thought of the turn there as later but I didn’t realize I was braking while turning. Do you think I should brake earlier and get in the throttle earlier? It’s a really weird turn, you catch air on exit
Should I brake earlier to get on throttle earlier, or do you think I can brake harder? Or just get in throttle earlier because I’m not actually at the limit. I’d be able to test these things if I had practice days.
My process is normally, feel the track out, find the karts limit for the weather that day, try and figure out lines, I may try 2 different lines at times. And than start braking later and getting on throttle earlier, basically decreasing the amount of time I’m rolling
If you can brake harder, brake harder. If you are at the limit of the brakes (probably not, as there is no hint of any lock-up yet), then you have to back the braking zone up a touch to optimize your throttle input and get on throttle earlier.
A lot of my coaching sessions revolve around getting the driver to brake later and later until they lock up and miss the corner. Until you find that point and can consistently play on that limit, you’re not getting the most out of the brakes.
It really depends on the engine, but the lower is the power, the earlier you want to be on throttle so you keep the revs.
For example in OK Senior or KZ you can use the gearbox or the exhaust valve to have more acceleration than with the other engines, so you can trailbrake. But you dont have as much benefits than in a car.
In the case of Elias, he is running a LO206 (It seems or some sort of low power 4 stroke). He need to be super early on throttle (between the turn-in point and the apex depending on the turn) so he can keep the revs up. Also, a good consequence of that early throttle and low power is that he is going to get good rotation without having too much trouble to keep it tight, so it helps tightening the turn radius.
EDIT : @elias See this braking. See how the kart seems to stutter on the brakes ? That is not the track, that’s “micro-locking” the brakes. You dont do that, so you are not at the limit
Copy, agreed. But that’s not to say trailbraking is a no-no in karts in general, and really fast guys do trailbrake a bit even in a low hp application like 206. You’re doing it a bit in that video, even in the rental.
But yes, I agree. Need to work on braking harder and finding the limit of the brakes. Always try to shorten the braking zones if you can and extend the acceleration zones.
I’ll reiterate that I think some free practice days would be beneficial as well, as we have a lot of posts happening here in a short time and I don’t want that to get buried…
When I was learning I was trying to get at least one practice day a week alongside my race day on Sunday. Testing big setup changes to find out how a kart feels in different conditions, practicing my driving and experimenting with lines and braking outside of the stress of a race day.
I know you’re on a tight budget, can you find $400 to put something together. A used PC and a non-fancy but competent wheel should be doable for that amount. Maybe even less if you are willing to compromise on the prettyness of things.
I think there are times when I do that, just not at that corner, which is an important one as it leads to the longest full throttle section. It’s downhill and has a drop at apex so braking is difficult. I should make mental notes of when I feel those lockup’s, you can see a few in the latest video but not many. I think I also focus too much on keeping the kart on track during practice, I never push it past it’s limit, only towards its limit. So maybe that’s limiting me.
What series or track would anyone recommend I try in order to learn more
Doesn’t have to be any special or particular track. The goal is just to get exposed to different corners, surfaces, and corner combinations. And if it isn’t familiar to you, you are forced to learn the track by using your brain rather than relying on muscle memory.
Thats true, prices are crazy. I’m talking really low spec though… Like Gen2/3 i5, 16GB of Ram and a GTX1060 which is my setup. Wheel wise, grab an old force feedback sidewinder and turn laps.
Personally, without a doubt, a day in the kart. A sim rig is good for keeping hand-eye up to speed but it’s damn near impossible to replicate actual seat time. Just show up with a plan. Don’t just turn laps all day. First couple sessions get in the groove and get your consistency down. Then start experimenting. Whether it’s with kart setup changes or driving changes, have a plan going into each session. That’s how you’ll make the most out of a practice day.
The best drivers I know can work on their own karts, and generally have developed their own idiosyncrasies with regard to set up. Some have complex asymmetric setups, other just go “give me full castor and I’ll deal with it”.
If you’re worried about cost, yet you are paying for awning space and a mechanic to run L206? I can understand at race events you may want your life a bit easier, but if costs and doing test days is so expensive, run yourself. That’s what makes karting awesome. You can develop this deep knowledge yourself. Sure, when the time comes and you feel you need that support from a mech and awning, I have nothing against it, but it sounds like your curtailed your learning process somewhat.
Does anyone remember the video by Aussie Col Fink\K-Racer about a decade ago about observation? I think it could be a helpful one but I cannot find it…
To me, trail braking is keeping the brakes until the apex, like on a bike or a car