'JOHNNY CLAYTON'S SECRETS OF 'SPEED, SPORTSMANSHIP AND SUCCESS'

A)  It is presumed that most people reading this will be decent drivers already.  If you aren't familiar with basic track concepts such as the racing line, oversteer etc. then www.circuitdriver.com has a very good run-through under 'Track technique'.
B)  The points are written with Kart racing in mind, but most are equally applicable to cars.

STARTS

1.  With centrifugal clutch Karts, you can build the revs very slightly immediately before the lights go green.  Prevent any creep with the brake.  Anything more than slight throttle will burn the clutch out.

2.  If the driver behind hasn't got his nose alongside you, move to the inside to block him straight away before you reach the 1st bend.

CORNERING

1. Slow in, fast out.  It's the exit speed that counts!'  This mantra is so important and so often ignored.  Put simply, brake early, then get the power on early.  The higher corner exit speed will be maintained all the way down the ensuing straight.

2. Under braking, don't lock the rear axle and slew the kart into the turn.  Keep the brakes on as you turn in, with the rear tyres slipping slightly to help it turn in (known as 'trail braking').

3. Clip the apex -within a few inches.  Beware rear axle actually hitting the tyre wall (kart track is wider at the rear), which will kick the back end out.

4.  Achieve a slight drift round the latter half of the bend with gentle 'power on oversteer'.

5.  A slight 'check' (counter-steer in to collect the back end) can settle the kart down as you come parallel to the kerb on the bend's exit.  This correction of the slight skid allows the tyres' grip to be used entirely on accelerating rather than on holding the corner.

6.  Scrubbing or skidding the tyres loses more and more speed.  The 'limit' is when the tyres are still just gripping, rather than sliding during acceleration, cornering and braking.  This driver has skidded so much that he is having to steer into the skid to correct the oversteer (back end slide).

7.  Make the corner radius as large as possible.  By using every inch of the road the corner can be made wider and therefore faster.  A perfect corner means drifting out to almost touch the barrier on the outside of the bend, at the limit of tyre grip.

8.  Having exited the corner, allow the kart to 'settle' before re-positioning it for the next bend (if next corner has to be approached from opposite side of track).

9.  As soon as the kart is settled, aggressively reposition it for the best entry into the next corner.

10.  Handle the kart smoothly and gently, coaxing it round corners.  Do not wrench it around corners and 'drive it like you hate it'!

11.  On a sequence of bends, go slower through the first corners so you can set up for max speed at the exit speed of the final bend.  This will give the highest speed down the straight.

POOR CORNERING TECHNIQUE

1.   Inexperienced drivers inevitably throw the kart into the corner too fast and lose too much speed in the ensuing scrub and oversteer.  This means that they are slowest towards the end of the corner, which is exactly when they should be accelerating to get maximum corner exit speed.  Drivers cornering poorly tend to 'bog down' coming out of the corner and are easily overtaken on the inside by a driver using the racing line.  The picture shows a driver who has gone in too fast, overshot the apex massively and is now wide and slow (the kart on the right is on the correct line).

OVERTAKING

1.  The idea is to exit a bend quicker than the driver in front, overhaul him on the straight, and be on the inside by the time you are both at the next corner. Overtaking around the outside of a bend requires a much slower victim (who will also give you 'racing room' rather than drifting wide and pushing you off), as well as a certain amount of luck.

2.  If you are gaining on someone on a straight but can't get past at that point, weave behind them to avoid bumping them (while still maintaining your higher speed).  If you are still going to bump them, dab the brakes instantaneously to nudge your speed down to match theirs.  Remember, karting is meant to be a 'non-contact sport' -it's not 'Touring Car' racing!

3.  If the vehicle in front keeps baulking you by going slower and getting in the way as you attempt to overtake, try the following.  Drop back before the corner, to give you room to take a run at them.  Aim to have closed the gap and got maximum overtake speed as you emerge onto the straight, so you can keep the momentum up during the overtake.

4.  Never rely on another driver to give you 'racing room' as you try to overtake.  Half the time they will be oblivious to your presence and punt you off as you get alongside.

RACECRAFT

1.  Avoid tunnel vision.  When looking for braking points and the apex it requires a conscious effort to look up and to the sides for the marshals' flags.

2.  Look behind on every straight to see if you will be under threat at the next corner! 

3.  If someone is right on your tail as you are braking for a corner, defend your line into a slow corner by turning in earlier to stop them diving up the inside (sometimes called 'low-lining' a corner).  When you do this, beware.  Your exit speed will be slightly lower making you more vulnerable on the next straight -potentially a vicious circle.

3.  If someone defends their line against you in the above manner, 'climb all over their rear bumper' -not literally!  Weave and feint as if you are about to overtake, but at the last minute before the bend, position on the outside for the corner and take the normal line.  They may outbrake themselves as a result of your pressure and you can nip through the inside on the corner's exit.

4. Robust and aggressive overtaking is fine, but if you don't have the skill to overtake someone cleanly, do not just punt them off.  If someone is trying to overtake, give them 'racing room'.  Remember -what goes around, comes around -on the racetrack and in all aspects of life.

5.  Do not tap the driver in front's bumper; it may spin him out, especially if he is turning into a corner.  Forcing people into the tyres when they draw alongside is equally unsportsmanlike.

6.  The best drivers could be described as 'speed dogfight gladiators'.  Fight like a tiger on the track, but keep it clean and don't take the racing off the track.  A good example of the above would be Nigel 'Il Lione' Mansell, and a poor example would be Schumacher, who has had a number of questionable collisions with rivals.

SUCCESS

1.  Winning on the track is a fantastic feeling, but Motorsport is only a game at the end of the day. 

It is not life and death, despite how seriously some people take it.  Life is for running the race that God has laid out for us i.e. serving Him faithfully.  Death is no longer an issue when Christ is accepted into one's life, and Heaven is assured after death.  These are the important things in life, not material success in this transient world or anywhere else:

"I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."        Philippians 3: 14

2.  How can I say the above with such certainty?  I've read the 'owners manual' -the Bible.  If you haven't, I would certainly recommend you do.  You wouldn't drive a new car without reading its manual, so how much more important is the meaning of life itself? 

"You were running a good race.  Who cut in on you and kept you from obeying the truth?"    Galations 5:7

© JOHN CLAYTON