No, this isn’t about how to psych-out your competitors (which is the opposite of what CVR AutoX is all about), or about how to visualize your perfect lap (which is something everyone should do). Instead, this is my annual offering of ways to responsibly refine driving skills in the off-season while making street driving more engaging and fun.

Let’s face facts, driving a Porsche or just about any “nice” car on the street can be an exercise in frustration. They are far too composed and capable to traverse public roads in a responsible civic manner near any of their limits. It’s like riding a race horse in a pony ride coral. To change that narrative try challenging yourself in different ways. Re-read the February 2020 installment of Pylon Place for ways to refine your Vision, Car Placement, and Steering skills. Adding to those, here are two more ways to refine your driving skills while making day-to-day errands and trips more rewarding, engaging, safe, and fun.

First, use the absolute bare minimum steering wheel angle to safely negotiate each corner. Challenge yourself at the start of each drive to set a new low angle record for each corner. Can you make that turn with only 5 degrees of turn instead of 7? If you can’t tell the difference, count it as a tie. This challenge does several things to sharpen your driving that will directly translate into lower AutoX and track lap times. It forces conscious evaluation of your line through each corner. It forces your vision far ahead (“looking through the corner”) to visualize the absolute largest radius. It calibrates you to inch-perfect car and tire placement.

As a deeper refinement, think about, then explore how a gentle lift of the gas or a touch of the brakes can transfer more turning power to the front wheels. This can shave off even more steering wheel angle. Practicing this skill also raises your awareness of making just one steady turn-in steering input (the rate varies with the radius), holding that minimum steering angle steady all the way through the turn, and concluding the turn with one steady unwinding of the wheel. Of course, please be responsible by setting hard rules (follow traffic rules, never cross the yellow line, abort if there is an oncoming car). Never surprise or jeopardize others.

Second, practice getting the highest MPG for a trip. Getting great fuel mileage may sound like a strange goal for driving your sports car or SUV but I assure you that the skills honed by this goal will directly help you lower lap times at the next AutoX or track event. It will also directly benefit the environment and I find it to actually be great fun because it requires tremendous use of many advanced driving skills. Maintain momentum through corners, scrub-off the least amount of speed (use the least steering angle) and apply violent smoothness for the best results. Refining your “street craft” will help manage traffic to avoid being impeded through corners. Plan ahead and hang back before corners so you don’t lose precious momentum and MPGs due to unnecessarily slow traffic.  This “street craft” will directly help your “race craft” at your next go-kart or track outing. A classic example is to hang back going into Lime Rock’s West Bend and carry big momentum through the Downhill to pass on the Straight.

Applying all of these driving skills I have been able to average 31% better MPG than my sporty car’s highway MPG rating (31.5 MPG vs. 24 rating) on my last trip to LRP and back. On my last highway round-trip in my sporty SUV I achieved 25% better MPG (21.4 MPG vs. 17 rating), and on my last towing to LRP and back I got 25% better MPG by employing these skills. When they say “your mileage may vary“, this is a big part of what they are talking about. At the next AutoX event, “your lap times may vary” if you apply these driving skills well!

The 2021 AutoX schedule is already firmed up. Please join us on: May 22, June 26, July 17 (all in Hartford), August 7 and September 11 at Lime Rock Park, finishing with October 9 in Hartford (which will include a Run Off event). Sign up now for all six events to get the $40 registration rate so you don’t accidentally get closed out. You may cancel at any time before the event for a full refund or credit. Go to the cvrpca.org AutoX web page for the MotorsportReg.com link.

There are just three months left to practice these mind games before the first AutoX. Refine your Better Driving skills now and then look ahead, minimize the steering wheel angle for each turn, and smoothly carry momentum to go Faster at the May 22nd AutoX!