THINGS TO NOTE WHEN NAVIGATING THROUGH CORNERS BETTER

Today's article will cover some basic but essential things to know, which not everyone might be aware of when cornering. If you're a newbie, I hope these will make your racing experiences "sweeter," avoiding spins, hitting barriers, or worse, collisions. And if you're an experienced driver, perhaps this article could be the key to shaving off some lap times. So, let's get started! 
 

1. Single-Speed Karts 

Understanding your weapon before heading onto the battlefield is crucial. Before stepping into a race, it's essential to understand the kart you're about to use, right? Currently in Vietnam, all go-karts in use are single-speed karts. The most basic way to distinguish this type is through the mechanism used to change speed. Single-speed karts use brakes and throttle to adjust speed, thus cannot accelerate instantly like karts with gearboxes. This means you should not let the speed of a single-speed kart drop too low, especially on challenging sections like corners. 
 

2. Braking Point 

Brakes are crucial for single-speed karts. The braking point is the position before entering a corner where you apply the brakes to create grip for the wheels to smoothly and safely negotiate the corner as fast as possible. Note that single-speed karts only have rear brakes. So, if you brake too hard and for too long, the rear wheels will lock, leading to wheel sliding and loss of momentum. Are you familiar with the sight of karts spinning out when taking sharp turns or slamming into barriers? 
 

Practice multiple times on the track to identify braking points for different corners, or learn from those with better records. If you're skilled enough, try trail-braking techniques to shorten your time. 

3. Cornering Line 

As mentioned above, dropping speed too low when exiting a corner will cost you more time to regain optimal speed. Therefore, this is usually the position where racers take advantage to overtake opponents or reduce lap times. Each corner requires a different strategy. For example, hairpin bends require you to brake hard and later than 90-degree corners. The more experience you have, the easier it is to determine your ideal racing line and plot a more breakthrough track. However, fundamentally, all corners consist of three parts: entry, apex, and exit. The principle is to create the smoothest driving line possible through the apex by coordinating smooth braking, throttle, and steering through the remaining points: braking point, turn-in point, and exit point. You need to commit to corners decisively and smoothly, avoiding excessive and sudden steering that could cause oversteering.

4. Accelerating Back 

Once again, you should actively maintain the kart's speed when driving a single-speed kart. Joe Turney from Tony Kart Racing shares that there's hardly any corner he doesn't accelerate after the apex, except when driving on wet roads. In fact, in normal weather conditions, you need to accelerate back before reaching the apex and accelerate as soon as you exit the corner. However, if you're not good at controlling the kart, make sure the steering wheel is straight before accelerating. However, you should not accelerate and brake simultaneously. If you do, there are only two possibilities: either you don't know how to drive or you don't know what to do next. Determine your strategy clearly, slow down or speed up. Accelerating and braking at the same time not only makes the kart more prone to sliding, causing more time to pass corners but also risks damaging the kart

5. Conclusion

So, you can use the following tips to improve your skills and shorten lap times through corners: 

- Ensure a comfortable sitting position to control the steering wheel well. 

- Learn and aim for your own cornering line for each corner. 

- Coordinate smooth throttle and brake through the apex following the predetermined line. 

- Never accelerate and brake simultaneously, or you'll damage the kart!