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Well, i figured you guys would for sure find this interesting. Ok last October at VIR was my last track event i did. up until 2 weeks ago at Texas world Speedway. in October at VIR, I was not driving well. was worried about the car spinning, was worried about wrecking, I just couldn't get clear minded. and I did a lot of second guessing and debating in my head on what I should do next for this turn, am I doing this and that right. and there for drove poorly, So I went to Texas world speedway, with a slight feeling that sim racing had helped me just a bit.. but not much I went out for my first session of course not knowing how I was going to stack up. and immediately I noticed I was driving 100 times better than I had ever before. My thought process was fluid. I wasn't second guessing my self. if the car oversteered I didn't think about correcting it, I corrected it. I was driving the car at its limit most every turn. I was setting up people and passing. I was no longer worrying my self to death about everything. I was defiantly driving better than I had ever before.
what's your alls opinion? |
Absolutely! There is so much going on mentally when you are trying to drive at the limit. Sim racing gives you a mental workout very similar to the real thing. I noticed it a lot while racing karts. It was most noticeable in the spring when we would first start racing after taking the winter off. Other drivers would be all over the track while I was as smooth as ever from the first lap on. Another thing I've noticed is a heightened ability to avoid on-track incidents. In situations where other drivers would get caught up when someone would spin at the front of the pack, I was almost always able to avoid any contact at all. There is no doubt in my mind that sim racing is useful as a training tool for real driving. I've experienced it myself. There are enough professional drivers who talk about using simulation that there should be no doubt in anyone's mind. I can remember discussions on RAS years ago where certain people wouldn't believe it, but it's true. --
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great comment Pat, that some my experience up even more. i was just so shocked at how it could only have been sim racing that helped me so much. | ||
I have only been sim racing since last Nov 07. I have been autocrossing for almost 5 years and have been to 3 high speed driver events @ VIR. The last VIR event I went to was last month and I do believe that sim racing kept my mind sharper than if I hadn't done anything at all. I felt like I never had any time off. One thing I have noticed is that I drive better in "real life" than I do in sim world right now. On the track, I was consistently faster than most in my run group . In sim racing, I am just the opposite ;) . I am having a harder time adjusting to the lack of "feel" in sim racing. Also, setting up a car is something new to me and I feel that the sim world is helping me get a better understanding of how a setup can affect a car. | ||
i couldnt agree with you more, i drive 100 times better in real life. and it puzzles me. but yea its got to be the lack of feel, we depend so much on the feel of things in real life. that when we get into a sim. were requiring more from our visual sense, and it just doesnt work out as good | ||
Great stuff guys! | ||
I find that sim racing helps me even in non-racing activities involving competition and/or concentration. Mental and task-related preparation, focus during the competition, and especially recovery from setbacks and mistakes. Also the ability to focus on the task at hand but still have another part of my brain looking at "the big picture". | ||
and especially recovery from setbacks and mistakes Now that is something I can agree with wholeheartedly :). | ||
Call me crazy but in real life driving it helps too. I don't race on track or any of that. But i can recall instances where just knowing how a car was going to react before it does has probably saved my life in more ways than one. Accidents on the highway!! OMG I've dodged plenty. But some cases i've seen accidents happening and just knowing how my car would react and how theirs would(physics wise) kept me from getting wrecked and possibly injured. Also blizzard type siutations knowing when to hit the brakes and when to just not panic and let the car right itself, all comes from this. The closest thing i've had, to on track racing is BMX when i was a wee lil lad. So i credit it all to Sim's. Where else could you get the spin and counter spin practice legally? lol | ||
yea man, it helps lol ha i raced a season of BMX, when i was like 14 broke my coller bone, and said forget that lol | ||
LMAO Oh my god i had more injuries from that in a span of 3 years, than 20 years of hockey. From a fractured jaw(also knocked unconscious), cracked knee cap, to skin removal from awesome bike chains it good ole pile ups! Must say i had a ton of fun doing it. But man it was painful! lol |