Found it. Will respond there.
No. First off because, in view of the aggravation you seem to give yourself
over this issue, it would be very cruel to toy with your sensitivities like
that and, secondly, because it's there in black and white (red and blue,
actually).
I have here on my computer a set of laps you posted on your site
corresponding to your previous GPLRank. If I compare any of this set to a
corresponding fast lap of my own, the G-G plot is telling. In slow to medium
speed turns I'd estimate you have at least 10% more area "under the curve"
than I do. That means, in slow to medium speed turns, you corner close to
the limit of adhesion for longer than I do. What's more, at e.g. Watkins
Glen, you make almost as good a use of available traction as Gregor Huttu
did in his earstwhile 1m03s record lap in those types of turns. Where Gregor
and, to a certain extend, myself make up time on you is the fast stuff and
using more of the road/better lines.
This leads me to conclude you're suffering a perception/confidence problem.
Not 100% sure, but at the very least it's also consistent with you always
saying "When I push any harder, I fall off"(1) and your relative N2k2
performance(2).
Whether this is due to your rig, your perception of the game "reality" or to
some physical/neurological problem, is hard for me to determine 100% sure
without actually physically present as you drive, but I'm fairly confident
my deduction is correct. Let's check...
I think it's safe to assume there's nothing wrong with you physically to
prevent you from doing well in the sim, as you would have trouble perceiving
the dimensions of your car and your position on the road in real life too
(you're not prone to "parking accidents" or "kerb scrapes", are you?).
I also find it hard to believe there is something seriously wrong with your
setup. IIRC you use a TSW2, which is as competent as non-FF wheels get,
basically, and I assume any persistent fault with your computer wouldn't go
unnoticed by yourself either.
Which leaves your perception of the game reality and your approach/attitude
to driving. These can be worked on by observing how other drivers go about
their business, but the catch is you can't do something unless you believe
_you_ can do it (or work up to it). You need to be able to pick up on what
someone else does differently or take in some advise (solicited or
otherwise) and visualize how you will apply this to your driving ("I can see
myself doing that"). I think this is one of your major stumbling blocks.
Perceiving what the car is doing now and then predicting what the car will
do in response to a control action goes hand in hand with confidence. You
can see the makings of a vicious circle here (1 bis). In your case, I'm
confident that if we can find an angle to even just eat away at the negative
feedback, subsequent improvements might surprise you.
Sorta like that, but without the dress code. <g>
Jan.
=---
Remarks:
(1) It's natural for people to push where they're confident. Trouble with
doing so in a racing car is: areas where you are relatively confident are
areas where you are _already_ using a lot of the available traction. In your
case, any more than "nearly all" (for your chosen line) means exiting the
racing surface.
(1 bis) It therefore follows it's safer to push where one is not so
confident as less of the traction budget is already spent there. Indeed,
some of the places you seem ill at ease at can be taken (a lot) faster by a
(small) adaptation in approach. However, this is where the vicious circle
nature of confidence comes into play. Unless you are really, truly, utterly
convinced and confident you can go _a little_ quicker (no use scaring
yourself witless) at location X by taking action Y before you actually go
out and do it, you will second guess yourself as you make the control
action, cramp up and go off regardless of how close to the limit you would
have actually been, thus reinforcing the "slow down" (or "stay away from the
edges") trigger for this location.
Have you read those Keith Code books I told you about ("Twist of the wrist"
volumes I/II and "The soft science of road racing motorcycles"), BTW? -He
deals with this sort of stuff a lot and is better at explaining stuff you
can do to prevent it happening (and draws better diagrams than me;-)). If
they're not in your local library have them transferred from somewhere else.
It's worth the hassle if you read them with an open mind.
(2) It's interesting to note your relative N2k2 performance is better at
places which are (nearly) flat out (Daytona, Michigan, Texas), which have
relatively shallow banking (IMS, Pocono, Homestead) or where overall speeds
are low (New Hampshire, Bristol) and less so at places where confidence at
pre-empting the car is a must to keep your speed/use the banking to full
effect (Darlington, C***te, Atlanta).
