im looking to learn the basics of learning to drive a mid engined single seater but want some instruction! wheres the best place to go for this?
i originally wanted to do a hillclimb school but the cars must be road going with tax an mot!
if i was to book a 20 minute session on a track day.what would be the outcome when they cant sit in and see where im going wrong? cheers

Video and Data Logging is the best way in a single seater

you could always asked to be followed by the instuctor

hi austin man. would i have to pay extra for the instructor to be following in a course car? as opposed to sharing a seat in a 2 seater?

Get yourself down Morecambe arcades, there's some good driving simulators down there and all single seat.

Hi dan you have more down force and tyres than a seven but the corner apex track surface etc is the same for every car you have to get out there and learn the hills tracks etc everybody will give advise but you have to drive it to learn about the car if its not scaring the crap out of you your going too slow also the other peoples time give you a target and a measure of where your at nothing wrong with being slow when you start
Cheers ALI

The instruction path has been established since the 1950s in the UK it was Jim Russell school that started it, first and most important stage is tintop instruction teaching the basics ie. when to brake and when come off the brakes, when to start turn-in, where to aim to clip the apex, when to feed in power. Then how to deal with a series of bends only then do you progress to a single seater.

You will gain more from a couple of hours dual instruction in a tintop than 10 hours in a Formula Ford.

Tintop instruction is certainly good, but you cannot beat the sensation in a sports racer or single seater. Everything seems to happen so much faster and the errors are much more costly. Therefore, you need to go out with people you can trust, and follow their lines, watch where they brake, and learn from that. You would not believe how fast you can end up going just by driving around following the good lines, braking way before you think you could.

In short, a school is about the only way to learn single seaters. I am on a slow learning curve with my own sports racer, and hate going out with day trackers. The other guys in our F Libre, single seaters most of them, are much more friendly to dice with, mainly because of the danger factor, and potential for mahem.

Scope where you plan to drive, and who you plan to drive with. You must have people you can trust around you, when in single seaters. It is deadly otherwise.

The basics can be taught in any car, once you have them there are plenty of fast, light and capable tutition cars with 2 seats that you can learn 90% of what you need in and will translate directly to your chosen car. After that its up to you and as mentioned data logging and expert analysis of that data.

[Edited on 6-9-13 by loggyboy]

add fuel check tyre pressures and wheels nut torques, get in strap up the belts start engine and DRIVE IT LIKE YOU STOLE IT

I would get it out on track take it easy and perhaps when at a track day meet up with a friend who is more experienced in track driving to follow there lines to get used to car,

failing that on the day look for the quick cars and have a chat with them to see if they would go out in front of you etc to follow there lines,

you will be surprised you can pick things up from this, bad habits as well so take what you want,

there's no substitute for seat action,

good luck I'm sure it will be fun

sean

im doing the blyton day on the 20th of this month, but it will be my first visit there and my first ever time behind the wheel of the radical so not ecxpecting much really. im just going to use it as a test day for oulton park on the 8th november where ive agreed for a bit of tuition.
at blyton i will probably try to follow andrew jacks round for a few laps and try to keep up.then possibly a few others until i get familiar with its handling etc

There's no gold medals, and I need to keep it on the island, so lets go and get some valuable seat time. I'm waiting for axle and prop, still need some wets and think I might swap the sump for that big one I made, dyno got cancelled as did set up session.

I would not take anybody in the Radical for instruction. It slows you down so much, and your car won't handle as well as with one person. You end up slower than a lot of other people, and too fast in other sections - you never seem to get any momentum, which you need for the extra weight you now carry. For instruction in the car, take a tintop. Just my 2p.

quote:

---

Originally posted by RK
I would not take anybody in the Radical for instruction. It slows you down so much, and your car won't handle as well as with one person. You end up slower than a lot of other people, and too fast in other sections - you never seem to get any momentum, which you need for the extra weight you now carry. For instruction in the car, take a tintop. Just my 2p.

---

I've not been before but it looks a fairly straight forward circuit from the videos I've been watching , I think you will be having issues with people holding you up in corners more than anything else .
I had an hour in a gt3 rs at oulton last year as I hadn't driven anything mid engined with a lot of power and coming from only front engined rwd cars it was a worth the money . I'm no stig but I've not spun the kitten since then .

There should be a good mix of stuff there but being a bit narrow it could be a bit of a convoy if passing is restricted to certain parts of the circuit .

I could be wrong but some circuits don't allow slicks either

[Edited on 7/9/13 by froggy]

ive seen radicals at blyton before so they must allow slicks! i hope so anyway
thanks guys. like a said i, will use blyton as a test and get some help at oulton park where the circuit is faster and wider. i love oulton park. especially the back half of the circuit through druids and lodge!

Use a ‘Pace Car’ system for the single seated lapping sessions. This helps you to learn the racing line and this actually helps you to lap faster and more smoothly than you ordinarily would.