attempted to really define what specifically a great driver is doing differently than a good driver. Sure, they set the car up better (usually with the help of a more capable team), but what are they actually doing at the limit while driving that’s different? We will hit this from a lot of directions as this story unfolds and break it down to its most basic level, but the point is: If the car slides one end or the other, that is not the limit of speed for the car in that corner. Great drivers have a bag of tricks that actually allow them to take that same car and consistently squeeze out more grip. It’s taking driving to the level of art. That’s what greatness really is. It all starts simply with you and your willingness, your gritty determination to put in the incredible amount of work that takes you there. So then how do we get started?
A complete driver who has all the traits listed above as well as a true athlete’s level of fitness and is driving a car that is well set up for the conditions in that moment can actually appear to be driving at a nearly superhuman level. The superficial take away from that is that they are just somehow “gifted” to that level. When you dig deeper, though, you find that every single one of them put in the work to get there. The bad news then? It doesn’t happen overnight. The good news? Greatness is possible for anyone. I truly believe that, and that is the real reason I felt obsessively compelled and yes, driven to write this book.
To lay down a marker at a true starting point, you really need to figure out who you are before we dive into the finer points of vehicle dynamics. We need to spend time talking about what it is to be a human being trying to do something that is extraordinarily challenging. This “touchy-feely” stuff is not a popular topic and is therefore typically ignored, which is where I think most schools and training go wrong. You see, for this book to be truly effective it can’t just be about the techniques of driving. That would be fine if I were writing software code and knew that input to output would be pure, but filtered through even the most well-meaning human on the planet, information is subjected to dazzling range of interpretation.
You also need to know why. It’s great to be given the perfect techniques of supernatural driving, but to truly get buy in from you, I feel you really need to know why it is the way it is. This way, with enough focused practice, you can actually feel for yourselves what is right. This enables self-sufficiency, the ability for you to simply feel what fast is. To distill it all down, great driving is about your ability to manage your tires. This seemingly simple goal, to be better than the other guys managing tires, is actually a very complex puzzle, because there is a whole car between you and those tires, and it is all done in a very dangerous and uncomfortable environment surrounded by people trying to beat you. I want to help you deconstruct every aspect of driving chapter by chapter and then reconstruct it into greatness…your greatness
In addition to driving myself, I have been teaching aspiring to ultra-successful racing drivers for over 20 years. Along the way, I have observed the human animal: how we listen, think, interpret, visualize – and yes, learn – in a dangerous and therefore stressful environment. I can confidently say that everyone I’ve had the pleasure of teaching absolutely had the best intentions: they all wanted to learn and discover their capabilities. That is where the similarities end. Beyond the desire to succeed, I’ve observed that people diverge to a staggering degree.
It is awesome from one perspective, but daunting from mine, because I must write this taking all that into consideration. One point to make is that my tone here has to be quite frank, almost blunt. I can’t give wiggle room when it comes to laying this out; we naturally gravitate towards the looseness of wiggle room as an excuse not to take something on board or to heart 100% accurately. We will never be great with wiggle room given (just to be kind). So, don’t feel like I’m accusing you and thinking you’re a lousy example of a human being; know that I am just as guilty of this as any of you, and so I often rightly use myself here as the bad example …We are in this together, you and I. I am absolutely as likely as the next person to fall into all of the traps that can affect the outcome. I deal with the same fears and ego-driven mistakes as any person. A great deal of what I have learned to deal with and what has led me to writing this book is observation of students to the point of seeing clear patterns emerge, all the while reflecting on those results with introspection to come up with some clarity on what’s really happening. Then I modify my teaching and measure the new results, continually refining the process. I have now reached the point (after over 20 years) where the “system” of driving I propose here is complete, with only refinements being added now.
That’s great and all, but the problem here is that this is in the form of a book, so I’m left in the dark here with no feedback from you whatsoever; and well… that’s a huge challenge for both of us.
That is something that is far too relevant to and influential on your success or failure to ignore, especially since while I write this with the best intentions, I am not sitting next to you in the car. That puts a much more significant burden on you and your self-analysis; you interpret every word here as a well-intentioned person, but with a unique perspective. Again, and one final time, this is not a criticism of my students, of you, or of myself. It is just reality. You must admit this to yourself… your absolute blunt objectivity is critical.
So, what is the trap we all tend to fall into? You will naturally be attracted to what you feel is important and place less emphasis on what you deem to be not as important. That seemingly innocent priority list will have a profound effect on your success. You need to weigh everything here equally. Since we have a strong ego-driven tendency to put more weight on what we are can relate to, what we already feel we are comfortable with, and what we feel we are already good at, we naturally filter out our weaknesses! We want to focus specifically on our weaknesses and put more (certainly not less) emphasis on them. Don’t fall into that ego-driven trap.
That’s why you and I need to be very careful here. We need to be methodical and spend time talking about things in a specific order to build a solid foundation while making sure we haven’t enshrined some fundamental untruth that later will have a profound negative effect on your abilities, quite possibly forever.
I understand if you are now thinking “come on, enough with the psychobabble, let’s just get to the driving part;” as stated, there are plenty of driving books that do just that. I am not that type of driver or coach. I don’t want to start with any assumption about (unique) you. I have to lay out my method and how I analyze every student I come into contact with in a way that you can objectively self-analyze and use to end up at the driving portion in the right frame of mind, with the back story and therefore self-confidence to know, really know, that you have all the tools necessary for success. Since we are human, the techniques of how to drive the car are only a small part of success; if that were not the case, everyone would be great, right? Many people assume that maybe it’s physical differences between us that separate us, things like our reflexes and eyesight, but I can tell you through experience that they are not that important. The mental side of it is an overwhelming percentage of being able to do this well. It’s not like weight lifting, where you need years to develop muscle mass, or football or basketball, where there are ideal body types. Really anyone can become fit enough to drive one to two hours in a decent racecar – remember that people with real disabilities have become competitive capable drivers. Now, I’m not trying to discount the advantages of fitness (there’s a whole chapter on it later). I’m just trying to point out that the mental side needs continuous work, much more than any other piece of the puzzle, if greatness is ever going to be achieved.
Now you might be thinking that the pro drivers you follow don’t appear to work very hard at being fast. That is just what they want you to think; that’s the image they want. The whole idea, partly born out of necessity, is to project a complete lack of needing practice or preparation; it’s a bit of an ego thing, but it’s more of an image builder and a competitor psych-out tool. There is nothing cooler than showing utter nonchalance, that “whatever” mentality, and projecting that far and wide to the fans and competitors. It impresses fans and messes with the heads of foes. Meanwhile, behind the scenes, they are on top of every single detail about the preparation of the car as well as studying data every free moment, sneaking looks at teammate data, practicing on the simulator, and racing with buddies “just for fun” in their shifter karts. But if you ever ask them about their level of preparation, the official fan club