The High Groove - Cornering 101

[bluengold34_OS]

Great article TC, if you are a seasoned veteran, or a newb, lots of great info in there!

[auburntigersfan]

wow, that helps me out a lot. Thanks for the article man.

[macsomjrr]

Awesome job TC. Thank you, thank you and thank you!

[Al Boyd]

Do you actual brake much on the ovals. I traditional just out of the throttle, turn in and regain applying pressure from the apex out. Of note, only done Daytona, Fontana and Charlotte thus far in the Trucks in the game.

Cheers,

Al.

[mercalnd]

Quote: Originally Posted by Al Boyd

Do you actual brake much on the ovals. I traditional just out of the throttle, turn in and regain applying pressure from the apex out. Of note, only done Daytona, Fontana and Charlotte thus far in the Trucks in the game. Cheers, Al.

There are shorter ovals where you have to brake pretty hard such as Martinsville, New Hampshire, Richmond, Milwaukee, Bristol. They're typically shorter tracks but I also find that using a little brake on 1.5-2 milers like Charlotte and Fontana can actually allow you to maintain your speed on the straight longer before slowing down as opposed to just lifting (obviously without running too deep into the corner). Since deceleration is quicker using the brakes you lose less time reaching the proper cornering speed.

[Hooe]

Not a NASCAR fan at all, but I'm keeping this page bookmarked for when the next Forza game comes out. Good read.

[mwjr]

Fantastic article. Thanks, Terry.

Quick newbie question: is there a trick to determining where the brake mark is on a given track?

[ramenite]

No, braking points vary for everyone.

Braking is about two things. And both will affect your braking point. One is slowing the car down. So if I just don't press the pedal as hard as you, my braking point is going to be sooner than yours.

Second thing is weight transfer. Braking puts more weight on the front of the car. Depending on the setup, you may need a little more weight in the front for it to "bite" into the corner and turn. Brakes aren't JUST for slowing the car down.

These things combined will tell you when you should brake. And you may need to adjust these as the run goes on.

There's one constant you need to be concerned with. Corner speed. HOW you get to that corner speed doesn't matter. Some people like to brake as late as possible, and just use every bit of braking power they have, and have their cars set up to handle the weight transfer for it. Some other people--like the writer--believe in smoother driving, and spread out the effects of the weight transfer and make the car a bit easier to drive.

I'm a follower of the latter. I find if I need to hit a corner at 137, it is a lot easier if it's eased into. I can pick a spot, hit the brakes 1/2 way and get to 137 by my turn-in point. I can also go 20-30 feet past that point, threshold brake(use all my braking power, just shy of locking wheels) and still slow down to 137. But the former, I can hit that 137 lap after lap. the latter? I may get it 1/2 the time, the other 1/2 I get to 134 and have to give it more throttle, or get to 139 and have to break DURING the turn(referred to as trail braking). Neither method is going to give me any real speed advantage over the other. But when I'm in 2nd, and 1/2 second behind 1st and 3rd is on my arse, what method do you think is going to hold up under the pressure?