Page 56 - Mar2023

Tr a c k R a t s

a c ol umn f or Vint age and Moder n Rac er s

(or t hose t hinking t hey Might l ike t o giv e it a Go)

By Shar on St ew ar t

Fast Feet Cure Bad Knees

Recently the Stewarts were fortunate to spend a
day with Andy Pilgrim as our coach. Pro racers have
t
skills I don? fully understand. Andy was able to set
reference laps in our car ? one for me and one for
hubby, tailored to our current skill levels. The goal
was to give us targets that were attainable, but not
too easy.
I go out and try to set consistent lap times that are
just a wee bit quicker than before. Andy Pilgrim gets
in someone else?s car, goes out and sets a 2:17 lap
time, exactly as intended. He can also set a 2:24, a
2:37, or any other number the car is physically
capable of achieving. On the first try. Golly. Wow.
When I overlay my data lap on top of the one that
Andy set for me, I have what he calls ?knees?. His
speed trace ( top right--see the pointy places?)
shows a line going up, then turning down abruptly.
Mine ( at right) looks more like a gentle,
curvy-humpy, thing.
Knees are bad. Knees mean the driver is spending
time between on-throttle and braking. It should
always be one or the other, even when you aren?
t
stomping the pedal like an army boot on a
cockroach.
56