Cal Club Autocross Forums

Try this.
Come up to the start line and say to yourself, "I'm a badass, I'm the f****ing man! I own this sh*t!!!"
haha

Sorry but the curse words were appropriate.

I tried to sit at the line Sunday telling myself not to be afraid of a shopping kart. It didn't work.

PAX class had more shopping karts than a Double Coupon day at Vons.

Joey Schilling wrote:Try this.
Come up to the start line and say to yourself, "I'm a badass, I'm the f****ing man! I own this sh*t!!!"
haha

Sorry but the curse words were appropriate.

I distinctly remember when you started you didn't wait for the start line, or keep it to yourself. You started this with your competitors the moment you rolled into grid! :king:

Funny this was, by the end of that first year, you were someone to contend with.

Dan Shaw wrote: I'll say this, I can -NOT- remember a course in video. I remember mostly the entries to the corners I need to pay attention to. I try to take snapshots of the entry of corners in my head and know which way I need to be going. The rest is looking ahead as far as I can to make sure I don't get lost between my memory and how fast things are coming at me.

Kind of an odd side-note...I used to play high speed games with lots of obstacles, like Need for Speed: Most Wanted. The part that helps here is you get used to reacting to things faster and staying focused on looking far enough ahead that immediate hazards become less important and your brain learns to filter them out. I did do this around a week before the last 2 races and it helped make sure I was alert/my brain was used to processing information that fast. This last event I didn't. Did not place as well and felt a bit more lost.

Might be worth a shot to help tune your reaction time to things.

Hi Dan, I didn't really meant you when I wrote the above post, it was more a generic comment since I have heard that from many people (closing their eyes and running the whole corse in their mind) - I can also do that too but only after many - many runs...
I don't know how fast you were two weeks ago but at this last practice event you were really flying - I was at section 3 working and I was commenting to Richard how nice your lines were and how fast your miata seemed that it was going... what was your best time?
Sometimes when I want to keep my reflexes "alive" I hit the MB2 go kart place which is close to my house...I might try the video games too it kind of makes sense that it would help...

Aaron Goldsmith wrote: Depends, are you Marshall or are you Christine? Do you need to pump yourself up or calm yourself down. I can only go fast if I feel like I have huge amounts of pressure on me and I've really pumped myself up. Being pissed about a mistake I made at the beginning of a run usually makes me significantly faster at everything after that.

The 96 corvette still had it's radio and speakers in it. I used to play Limp Bizkit's "Break Stuff" with the bass turned up really loud.

I also had one incident where I accidently dumped a Dr. Pepper on my lap and all over the car. That resulted in a couple really fast runs. (at a ProSolo)

I also had some great runs after a problem I had at a ProSolo where the throttle was getting stuck at the end of the straight. After 2 runs dad fixed it and my 3rd run was really fast and aggressive because I was so pissed off. I also broke a swaybar linkage durning that run so my 4th run ended up being really wild and crazy.

I've learned how to not need the extreme measures mentioned above as much. Now I have a tendancy at national events to jump up and down a couple of times before I get in the car to get the blood flowing. And then I clap my hands a couple of times as I get to the start line.

Quoc-Viet Dang wrote:

Michael Palero wrote:Hardstyle or other electronic music.

Techno & Vietnamese Coffee & sandwiches

Those damn Viet sandwiches always cut the roof of my moutf.
I used to bump the J-Pop super high energy stuff, but I would always end up looking for the nearest ditch to drop into.
That, and J-Pop is damn embarrassing to listen to.

Also, it helps if you have an actual radio and not a Honda Factory Radio Delete Plate.

2 red bulls, jump up and down a few times, shake your head vigorously and clap your hands.

Or get lined up next to Leslie Cohen at the Prosolo challenge. Being scared pantless seemed to help me go faster

Love the fact that Tom and I are putting enough pressure on Steve for him to start getting "serious!" Steve has always said that he doesn't do National events because he has trouble doing it in three. We're hoping he'll at least do the ProSolo.

I have real short term memory issues so I totally concentrate on Key Cones during the course walk. That and Corner Entries ... exits pretty much taking care of themselves ... if you keep the next corner entry in mind.

If the course sees fast, it's because you aren't supplying your brain with information soon enough, ie. look ahead.

Interesting to see ... and backed up by photos, how many fast drivers DO look at Apex cones ... instead of say the corner exit. I presume it's because they know the course and they feel that it's key to get extra close to certain cones. I think the apex's they're looking at are mainly in the slow corners.

Some folks start looking for those Apex's a little early.

I'm pretty even keeled, so getting too pumped up or too mellowed out throws me off my equilibrium. If I'm shaking when I come off the course, that usually is a good thing, but I wouldn't want to be shaking (or too chill) before I even took off.

One thing I have noticed, though, is before I run I need to feel a little uncomfortable, like there's something more I should be doing. If I'm comfortable, I start to take things for granted and don't put all the work into prepping I should. So I guess you could say the way I prep is to stress myself out a little bit. .

I tape the picture below to my dashboard, looking at it just gets me fired up



..and sometime I pretend that the lady below is waiting for me at the finish line and I only have seconds to get there.

I imagine that this guy is chasing me with his spear.....

Steve Ekstrand wrote:I imagine that this guy is chasing me with his spear.....

...that's right Steve, you better run ...

I have short term memory issues

... see, the Thread is about getting Energized, not memorizing the course!

I get energized by knowing that the 710's are useless cold so I overdrive to get them warmed up ... over driving the Vette gets your attention real fast = Energized. I find I need to "sit up on the wheel," to get with the program. If I'm sitting too far back I tend to relax.

Karen has these eFusjon energy drinks which I find taste better and are better for you then Red Bull. We drink one before we run to get a bit of edge. She has four different types, some without caffeine. Ask her for a free sample next time.

Mako Koiwai wrote: ... see, the Thread is about getting Energized, not memorizing the course!

I guess I don't want to be energized, I want to be calm and focused.

Thank you everyone for posting your comments. Now that I think about it, I have two problems going. On one hand I'm very nervous, anxious and probably a little shaky before the runs. Never mind no sleep for a couple of nights before the events. On the other hand like I mentioned, my brain seems to be half a sleep when actually trying to drive the car.

Steve A.

Now before you go beating yourself up too much.........

You are regularly a top 10-15 PAX performer. That doesn't sound like the jitters or nerves impact your results that terribly. In fact, nervousness prior to any sort of competition is a good thing. Your body is getting ready to perform. Your senses are heightened. Certainly it can be used positively, or you can be overrun with nerves....typical result is a less than your best effort.

In the comments I hear suggestions such as focus, concentration, walking the course alone (and spending the entire 15 minutes thinking about the course, not discussing all the topics that take away your attention). Deep breathing, visualization.....all these things that can add up to your "pre-race routine". KJ said that he claps his hands. I've seen Bill Schenker stretching.....getting ready to "run the race". Self talk is important. Thinking success instead of "Man, I'm a mess"!

There is always a crowd around you when you do your course walks. They regularly ask you how YOU would drive the course. I know, because I'm one of them.

Final comment................No Clumping!

Tom Dobyns wrote:There is always a crowd around you when you do your course walks. They regularly ask you how YOU would drive the course. I know, because I'm one of them.

I really don't mind walking with others on my "alone" walk so long as the conversation is limited to sharing thoughts about what's ahead on the course. I admit, if the conversation is on anything but the course, I've just taken a meaningless course walk. ;)

Steve Abbott wrote: Never mind no sleep for a couple of nights before the events. On the other hand like I mentioned, my brain seems to be half a sleep when actually trying to drive the car.

A good night's sleep makes a huge difference - some of my worst driving has been on little to no sleep.

Sleep deprivation. By last Sunday I had two nights in a row of less than four hours of sleep. Seemed to work.

I honestly don't know the answer to your question Steve, but I think the key is to relax. I get the adrenaline shakes after my runs, but oddly enough - I wouldn't exactly call myself a calm person in general - I'm really relaxed at the start of the runs.

Don't let Max know though. I work very hard to ensure he's high-strung. ;)

Mike

Edited to add: Leonard's response was not posted when I started this message. Too funny!

Re-edited to add: I owe all my dumb luck to a great Clumping habit I developed years ago. You should try it. (Hi Bill!)

Barco sometimes would get to the race with only a couple of hours of sleep.

Then there was the National Tune Up Event at Topeka where he had been up all night, was probably still drunk, kept falling asleep in the car ... had to be woken up by Tom B to move forward in the grid line ... and still won.

Mako Koiwai wrote:Barco sometimes would get to the race with only a couple of hours of sleep.

Then there was the National Tune Up Event at Topeka where he had been up all night, was probably still drunk, kept falling asleep in the car ... had to be woken up by Tom B to move forward in the grid line ... and still won.

Ah yes the famous "I won the practice!"


I find that my best drives have come when I've been most relaxed. When I let the pressure get to me I have a hard time.
I try to walk the course 2-3 times and then zen out by going through it in my head. One time I fell asleep waiting in grid at the Atwater National Tour...I won by 9/10ths that day!

Christos Adam wrote:

Dan Shaw wrote:
Hi Dan, I didn't really meant you when I wrote the above post, it was more a generic comment since I have heard that from many people (closing their eyes and running the whole corse in their mind) - I can also do that too but only after many - many runs...
I don't know how fast you were two weeks ago but at this last practice event you were really flying - I was at section 3 working and I was commenting to Richard how nice your lines were and how fast your miata seemed that it was going... what was your best time?
Sometimes when I want to keep my reflexes "alive" I hit the MB2 go kart place which is close to my house...I might try the video games too it kind of makes sense that it would help...

No problem, didn't feel 'picked out', but thought I'd mention it. I usually pause as I walk and start over from the start, run it through to the point I've walked to, and repeat as I go so I get it as memorized as I can.

Thanks for the compliments, but I know I wasn't as fast as I needed to be. I ran down to a 49.0xx but I know there was at least .5 out there somewhere. When I see Ryan B. running the Solstice into the 47s on street rubber I know I've got work to do. New tires are coming so that should help.

Forgot about MB2! Not quite fast enough for me tho...also no real distractions there for me. I have to work on my focus on course.

Have Ryan drive your car next time

Mako Koiwai wrote:Have Ryan drive your car next time

You know, I hadn't actually thought of that...fantastic idea though. }:)

Nothing like see what times the car is capable of