Entry Track Usage Mastery
Master entry track usage—maximize width without sacrificing grip. The difference between fast and slow corner speed starts here.
- Use as much track as possible on entry until it becomes too much
- Make corners as wide and open as possible on both entry and exit
- Poor entry preparation affects speed in mid-corner and exit phases
- Going too wide without grip advantage increases distance without speed benefit
- Time equals distance divided by speed – optimize both factors
- There’s always a limit – respect grip levels and track boundaries
- Track usage on the entry
- My short answer is as much as possible, until it’s too much
- Why we have to prepare as much as we can until it’s too much better?
- We want to make the corners as open as possible until it becomes too much
- As you will see from this, his speed in the middle of the corner is not good
- Imagine if he made it even tighter
- Sometimes it doesn’t necessarily have to be the grass
- It’s not true that you should always use the track to the maximum
- Remember, you need to use up as much as we can on the entry until it becomes too much
- Keep that in the back of your mind all the time!
Track usage on the entry
Now, we already talked about this in other lessons, but let’s define this specifically. How much track do you want to use on the entries?
My short answer is as much as possible, until it’s too much
Our attempt as racing drivers is to make the corners as wide as possible and as open as possible, both on the entries and on the exit.
Now, what do I mean by this. What I mean by that is that, of course, our attempt as racing drivers is to make the corners as wide as possible and as open as possible, both on the entries and on the exit.
Since, in this case, we’re particularly talking about the entries. We have this corner at Francia corta, the last hairpin where these two drivers are are doing different line.
The green is giving up the the entry is giving up some some space on entry is not preparing enough, and that in this corner, in this part of the corner, is going to affect the speed in the mid corner, in the entry, not that much, but in the mid corner and also in the exit most times, is going to affect his speed.
Why we have to prepare as much as we can until it’s too much better?
Well, because at some point there’s a limit. So I said our overall goal as racing drivers is to make the corners as wide opens, as wide open as possible, both on the entry and on the exit.
We want to make it as wide as possible. And ideally, we want to be as close as possible to the inside part, which is the apex, basically, so as tight as possible there.
And it’s open, of course, by, you know, still following, by steel following the grip. Because if we’re going too wide and there’s dirt instead of grip, we then end up making too many meters for no reasons.
Remember time is equal distance divided by speed. So if we make too much speed, and we don’t compensate if we make too much speed, and the distance and the speed if we make too much distance, and the speed is the same. So we make it too wide on the exit and too wide on the entry, and there’s no grip. So the speed is not able to improve increase.
You know, if we’re not able to to do that, basically we’re going to have worse lap time. The lap 10 will be higher. So if we increase just the distance, and we do not increase the speed, the lap 10 will be higher. So it’s going to be worse.
We want to make the corners as open as possible until it becomes too much
So basically, that is all about, you know, we want to make the as open as possible until it becomes too much, because we go beyond the limit, beyond the grip, and as wide as possible on the exit, as open as possible until it goes beyond the limit. All right?
So if we show with the GPS, you know there’s a certain limit. Now the blue is on the limit. You see that is on the limit because there’s a white line here. There’s no curb, right? We can’t use the curve on the braking.
So because of that, we have to use as much as we can. It’s been given to us. And the what has been given to us is the white line beside beyond that. It’s not possible, right?
So in this case, yeah, that’s, that’s what happened. Basically, we are given the white line. We go to the white line. That’s what the blue is doing. The green is not doing that.
As you will see from this, his speed in the middle of the corner is not good
And of course, as you will see from this, look at that, his speed in the middle of the corner is not good. It’s five kilometers. Five kilometers too low. 55 against 60. And these rpms are also low. 500 RPMs less.
So you see all the way throughout the corner, we have lower speed. Not well meet, okay, it breaks a bit earlier. But also the bigger mistake he does, it carries a bit too much speed, but that’s because he’s not holding the brakes at all.
The only thing we want to care about is that the blue is is breaking, besides the braking hard and late, the blue is opening using all the track and the green is slowing it down too much.
He sees RPM, so going to Ives, of course, he’s coming off the brakes and okay, but still, the only thing we want to care about is that the blue is is breaking, besides the braking hard and late, the blue is opening using all the track and the green is slowing it down too much in this moment, as we mentioned from the track map, in this moment, there’s five kilometers difference, right?
It’s five kilometers. Is five kilometers in my world, you know, let’s, let’s clear this up. It’s five kilometers difference between the two. Okay, I will use the delta. Delta can be used as a difference. So again, because of this entry, discrepancy between the two drivers, you know, because of this difference, then we then we also have five kilometer.
Imagine if he made it even tighter
We have five kilometers. So if immediate, imagine if he made it even tighter. If, imagine if he went like that.
Instead of five, it would have been like 10.
All right, now
if he went, give for me, the blue was on the real limit, you know. But let’s say somebody tries to go even wider. What’s going to happen? Well, it’s going to go in the grass. So instead of actually even making the apex, is going to be like, like that.
So that’s what I mean. You have to use as much as you can, until it becomes too much. If you dip a wheel, you go straight, basically. Or you just miss the line, or whatever.
Sometimes it doesn’t necessarily have to be the grass
Okay, so you don’t the difference that this, it will be so much in terms of because you go wide, so there has to be a limit. And sometimes it doesn’t necessarily have to be the grass.
In some places, for example, keeping the same track and we go into turn two, for example, here we need to use the curb. Okay, if I actually zoom out so you can see we need to use the curb here, but we don’t have to use too much.
Oh, it’s not, unfortunately, it’s not very aligned. That lets me change the the satellites. Maybe if I put Bing is better, yes. So you need to use some curb here, but not too much, because if you end up using too much, there’s less grip.
And so you remember, if either is less grip and you make more meters, it’s worse.
It’s not true that you should always use the track to the maximum
So remember, it’s not true that you should always make the you should always use a track to the maximum. Now you should use to the maximum until the you have the maximum grip limit, and until it becomes too much, that the distance becomes too too much.
You know, remember that time equals distance divided by speed, right? If you make this kind of line and it goes super wide, and then you’re, you know, you don’t have the extra grip over there to justify making those meters.
So if you had more grip, or the same amount of grip, you should be able to carry more speed into the corner. But if there is less grip, so we put a nice minus there, if there’s less grip, well then you’re gonna have less speed, or maybe the same speed, and, you know, be able to to carry more, to carry more and get a better lap.
Then I hope it is clear. I hope it’s very clear to you.
Remember, you need to use up as much as we can on the entry until it becomes too much
Okay, so remember, you need to use up as much as we can on the entry until it becomes too much. All right, but definitely don’t want to be doing like the green.
Or, even worse, if you were doing like the red, does
you are making, yes, less distance. Well done. But your your speed is going to be much lower.
Okay, so again, if you look at the time equals distance, I will show you this many times. But if your speed, again, if your distance is low, because you go tight, but your speed is is too low. So you put two arrows down, then your time is going to be too high.
Remember, the lower the speed, the higher the time, okay, the worse the time. Because if you in this moment, the speed of the the red will be so low, the speed of the green will be in between, and the speed of the blue would be the highest, right.
Keep that in the back of your mind all the time!
Keep that in the back of your mind all the time. Remember that the entries are key, and you need to, basically, as I said, open up as much as possible until it becomes too much.
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Alessio Lorandi is the former CIK FIA World Junior Champion, winning against Lando Norris in 2013 & F3 multiple race winner. He's helped 200+ karting drivers worldwide get faster & win WSK titles with BabyRace Driver Academy & now through Senndit, his online karting coaching platform.