Expert Advice

I face a common scenario when coaching: a driver makes some progress in driving a track faster and feels that they’ve gone as fast as they can, but still wants to go half a second faster. I suggest to that driver that they go back to the hotel, think about the progress they made that…

Is there any amount of money that could convince you to get behind the wheel of a 200-mile-per-hour, bomb-on-wheels racecar for an entire season– 16 races? OK, I’ll assume you’re humoring me, and named a price. Here’s the catch, you’ll have a 10-percent chance of dying that season. This was the dangerous and exhilarating world…

If you’re reading this, you must be a lighting quick driver, and you just finished a fast lap testing, qualifying, or racing. (If you’re not, I give you permission to pretend you are for the duration of this short introduction.). So you have the speed, talent, and determination. But are you in great physical condition…

In the field of motorsport, there are many good personal and technical resources available to drivers, at whatever their level and wherever the venue – HPDE or professional formula, GT and sports car racing, and EVERYTHING in between. The key is efficient, repeatable, and expedient marshaling of these resources to chart a very limited, highly-detailed…

You’ve been participating in HPDE and track day events for years, and now you’ve decided to tackle wheel-to-wheel racing. And now… how do you prepare for this step? What should you expect? I look at racing this way: there are three main areas that you have to learn. How to drive your car fast How…

Hi All! I haven’t done a Success Tip for some now time so here is No.3. This post is based on one of the most powerful yet short Success Tips out there. It is based on your obsession. What Happens To Us As we go through life, we pick up certain beliefs that slowly eat…

The end-goal of any given student attending a racing school may well vary considerably from others in the very same class. Some come for the purpose of beginning a lifelong career in racing, others with a desire to challenge and improve their driving skills, and still others out of the pure pursuit of a new,…

The Benefits of Racing School & the Steps that Follow There’s one thing you need to know before you set foot inside a racecar – once you finally get theopportunity to push yourself and a car to the limit around a racetrack, you’re going to want to do itagain. Many might say that the experience is…

Allen Berg moved from Alberta, Canada, four years ago, setting up his school at Auto Club Speedway, in Fontana, California. Since then Berg has expanded, with courses at other tracks in California and Arizona, including regular operations at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Berg, who briefly raced in Formula One, says a factor that distinguishes his…

Excerpts from the book “DRIVE TO WIN”  by CARROLL SMITH Make a List of Sponsors and Benefits of Sponsorship The basic idea is to make a list of corporations or individuals whom you think might be interested in sponsoring your effort and a list of the benefits to them of that sponsorship. If you cannot…

Excerpts from the book “DRIVE TO WIN”  by CARROLL SMITH How Do I Go About Finding a Formula Racing Sponsor? It’s as if people think that finding a sponsor is like finding a drugstore. The usual whine is, “I know that I have the talent, dedication, and balls to get to Formula One or Indianapolis…

My first taste of racing came when my Dad took me to a Can-Am race in about 1969 to Edmonton International Raceway. This was during the period when McLaren was dominating this iconic series. I remember that Denny Hulme won with Bruce McLaren finishing right behind him in second, with Jackie Ickx a distant third.…

Excerpts from the book “DRIVE TO WIN”  by CARROLL SMITH The business is so demanding and the competition so fierce that you cannot afford to give anything away. This means getting yourself into peak physical condition and keeping yourself there. This, by the way, is not because driving the racing car takes much in the…

Excerpts from the book “DRIVE TO WIN”  by CARROLL SMITH Racing Drivers are Risk Takers There has never been a successful racing driver who did not possess a high degree of intelligence. The (non-racing) journalists who have propagated this particular old saw seem to feel that a person of normal imagination is just not going to…

It is a fact that people are attracted to cars in strange ways and is safe to assume that it’s just how we are wired as human beings. The strength of affinity might vary from one person to the other, but we really can’t help but to stop and admire a wonderful car every now…