Driving Skills 101

[havahockey]

Since we got the Lower Links 101 thread going, how about some people (with experiance) post some general driving tips so us flatbill wearing, truck jumping, pedal to the metal, punk kids have less of a chance rolling our trucks?

Tip #1 - Don't drive your truck near Austin, he likes to nerf.

Race-Dezert Anonymous - Step #1:
"Hello, my name is Jason. And I'm a Race-Dezertaholic."

[Eric_M]

"Tip #1 - Don't drive your truck near Austin, he likes to nerf."

would you like to share with the rest of us what happenes when austin spots you and you try and run from him jason??


stupid people shouldnt breed!

[havahockey]

He is relentless like a lion hunting his prey.

For the record when he was chasing me in Barstow he never caught me until I came to a stop, then he nerfed me :)

Race-Dezert Anonymous - Step #1:
"Hello, my name is Jason. And I'm a Race-Dezertaholic."

[hxckidd]

that is true but jason was trying to hide behind other trucks, like a little kid. lol just take the nerf and get it over with.

[havahockey]

So anyways...Driving Skills 101...

(punches people hijacking thread)

Race-Dezert Anonymous - Step #1:
"Hello, my name is Jason. And I'm a Race-Dezertaholic."

[TRDshaunTRD]

PRERUN, even if you go out every weekend, things change out there all the time especially when it has been raining or very windy or even due to a high volume of people.

"Those who risk nothing, are nothing."

[dezerts10]

personally i have talked with dan vance a he has told me some useful things. like dont let off at thwe lip of the jump. keep the front up by throttleing in the air so ya dont do a nose dive. i have tried these but unless your jumping something huge or at least something relativly big like a table top type thing i found just hit it and usually its ok no matter what you do. if you ride a dirtbike its bacially the same thing brake to bring the front down throttle to big the front up.


Gregg

[In_the_works]

I believe it's also as important NOT to be gassing it when you land. Very hard on the drivetrain. Anyone back me up on this? Or am I full of $#!+?

'96 F-150 4x4 ex cab
'02 Maico 250
'03 Sonoma
Look at me! I'm a member.

[Brian Mapes]

Yea, and same with braking. And i would assume steering too, if you have the wheels cranked hard could break a steering component. but only if you land hard enuf.

You gots to pay da cost to be da boss. - Snoop

[Donahoe]

Tip #3 Dont listen to me... I crash ALOT!

NEVER LIFT!!!!!

[desertracer]

From my minimal experience driving our car and ridin shotgun for many more miles I have learned a few things. As far as jumping what was already said, it is like a motorcycle, keep the power on through the lip of the jump, set the suspension and don't let it unload before you take off, then once in the air try to match wheel speed with the speed relative to the ground. Key is don't pin it, found out the hard way that bus boxes don't like this. In the whoops try to stay on the gas. We have found it better to be in a lower gear at a higher rpm than a higher gear with lower rpm. It keeps the weigh transfer towards the back and allows the front end to float over the bumps. Don't try to over correct, the biggest problem seems to be over driving the car, let it track where it wants to go and make small adjustments from there. Other than that just learn to read the terrain and know what you car/ truck can handle and push it to that limit without going to far over.

MDR #112

[In_the_works]

Would braking in midair work to bring your nose down in a truck? I know it works with dirtbikes because you use the rear brake and it stops the rotation of the rear wheel and forces the front down, but would it work with braking 4 wheels at the same time?


'96 F-150 4x4 ex cab
'02 Maico 250
'03 Sonoma
Look at me! I'm a member.

[Brian Mapes]

Lets have some one go big and try it.Hah

You gots to pay da cost to be da boss. - Snoop

[drtdevil93]

yes it works. a couple things ive picked up on:

if you have a good amount of anti-dive in the front, dont hit the brakes in the whoops, or when you are going to hit something you dont want to.
like said before, in the whoops, lower gear-higher rpm. if you need to slow down engine braking is more effective this way.
if hitting something is inevitable, slow down as much as you can, and get back on the gas before you hit it.
i agree with not overdriving the truck. it needs a little independence. if it wants to veer to the right a little, dont jerk it the other way. smoothly put pressure in the other direction.

erik

[desertracer]

Like drtdevil93 said when you get on the brakes too hard as a last resort to escape something you end up doing more harm by allowing the front suspension to dive right into the object and it also takes away from the amount of up travel you have to actually absorb the bump. I could not agree more with the fact of getting on the brakes hard then punching it to fly up over the bump.

MDR #112

[evan_clanin]

i was always told bye my grandfather who raced along with my father to tap the brakes right befor a big lip and it will compress the suspenion a little bit

Can blind people be dyslexic when they read Braille?

[curt]

From my viewpoint as a mechanic, sometimes 40mph is faster than 50mph. Look at any regular non factory class, how many people even finish? Knocking the speed back 10% and having no problems is way faster than sitting by the side of the road fixing something. Parts fail drivers, but more often drivers fail parts. The fastest truck doesn't always win, the fastest one who survives does. Curt

VORRA Class 7
#769

[In_the_works]

On the topic of hitting the brakes b4 a bump, just try it when you're going over a speed bump. Hit em hard, then let off about a foot before your front tires hit it, your susp. will be rebounding and the bump will be much smoother.

'96 F-150 4x4 ex cab
'02 Maico 250
'03 Sonoma
Look at me! I'm a member.

[elcaprerunner]

Okay, so what about driving in the dust?.... Say you are racing and you are starting to come up to a car ahead of you... What do you do while catching up? What do you do when driving close behind him waiting for the oppurtunity to pass? How can you tell the right oppurtunity to pass? How do you pass? How do read the terrain in heavy dust? Do you slow down? Do you try to move to side a little bit where it is less dusty so that way you don't have to slow down? How close do you get to the car in front of you before you actually see amber dust light?

DIRT'S FOR RACING, PRERUNNERS ARE FOR GETTING THERE!

H.O.R.E.
Hemet Off-Road Enthusiasts

[desertracer]

This one is a bit hard to give an exact answer to because all situations are different but I'll try. When driving in the dust there is a fine line between just cruzing/ holding back and going all out. Doing to much of one or the other could cause problems. The key to solve the big problem first is pre-running the course so you know of any major dangers. A gps can be a very valuable tool as well because you can drive literally blind. For those of not lucky enough to have a gps you must rely on good judgement. Usually you can see the dust trail of another car several miles before you actually reach them so you have a bit of time to prepair. Once we see a dust trail we start thinking ahead of when we might catch them and what the course is like at that point. As you draw closer and the dust begins to hamper you ability to see try to find any advantage you can such as taking a line up wind of the other car to reveal a clear path. If this doesn't work, you have to make the decision to make a run for it and suck up on them or wait until you know of a line to pass. If you decide to make a run you can't hold back, you just have to do it almost blind and just know that you could hit a huge ditch or rock, but hopefully you know about all the dangers from pre-running. Once you start gaining on them you should start to see the amber light and once you get within sight of this the dust almost clears because you are so close to the back of them. Once you have made it this far it becomes driver preference as to use the horn, alternate line to pass, or as a last resort nerf. On the first lap of a race when the dust is just bad all over it is pretty hard but you just have to run with it. Drive slower when you can't see as well and run like hell when you can. At the night race we had to come to almost a stop because we could not see a foot in front of the car, but the dust settles and you keep going. This is just my experience so far and I still have a lot to learn.

MDR Class 1
#112

[robert_encinas]

i remember the first race i was in , 1990 fireworks 250. i was co-drriver in a 5-1600 and the driver (jesse) would lightly hold his hands on the outside of the wheel and let the car track on its own.this made me nervous at first until i realised that he was in complete control of the car , and the fact that prerunning the course is very important if you want to go fast .manny esquerra also showed me years ago how to go fast in a truck, dont drive the road in the center,drive it to the side to protect your rear end housing from high centering and its smoother.on fast fire roads or sand washes that have lots of tracking marks from tires on other vehicles move the steering from left to right rapidly and evenly, this will allow your vehicle to track straight.

[1992f150]

Any tips for high speed stability, either turning or going straight when the rearend starts to drift?

Azusa: shame of the foothills

[drtdevil93]

STAY ON THE GAS. brakes can kill you just as easily as they can save you. when im starting to get a little out of control, i stay on the gas until the situation is righted, then smoothly begin decelerating. dont just let off or hit the brakes, doing this takes even more traction ability away from the tires.
its hard to give too much advice, cause most of this stuff is different for every vehicle. what works for an a-arm truck, might not work on an ibeam truck. the most important thing is to get a lot of seat time, and pay attention to what the vehicle does in situations.

erik

[Steve_HKmtrsprts]

Here is a situation from first hand experience. When climbing a sand hill that is pretty steep in a 2wd I-beam truck and you get stuck. Just get out and wait for someone to pull you back down. I-Beams dont like to go backwards in sand. It is a waste of time and energy trying to back down. Then when your back down at the bottom offer the guy or girl that pulled you out a beer.

<font color=red>"BIG TYMERS is a state of mind... If you gonna do something, do it big time."</font color=red>

[In_the_works]

What is the deal with Ibeams in reverse? I just put some bent beams on my 4x and when I go in reverse, the nose drops 2-3". Is there an explanation for that?

'96 F-150 4x4 ex cab
'02 Maico 250
'03 Sonoma
Look at me! I'm a member.

[WFODAN]

Caster and Camber.............


As for the driving in dust thing ......... Usually i just put my head down to the left and look out the side window and watch the rutt . Of course you have to know the terrain ( prerun ) to do this . I rely on my co driver to watch for any visability ahead while I'm doing this . I like to charge threw the dust to get it over with asap .

Dan Vance

[pciscott]

Tips for driving fast

#1 stay calm, when you tense up or get uptight you tend to make more mistakes.

#2 Slow hands on the wheel, most people tend to oversteer the trucks. When you see someone go around a turn and they fish it back and forth across the track, this is a result of too much steering. If you have good horsepower you steer more with the throttle than the actual steering wheel. Remember less is more when it comes to steering.

#3 The slow hand also apply to your feet, unless you are trying to jamb the brakes to set up the car smooth gas and brakes will save your drivetrain and keep more power on the ground.

#4 Patience in the dust, more people take themselves out of the race because they can not see where they are going. If you prerun you will remember where the strait places with less rocks are to throttle into the dust light, at this point a light bump or good horn will aid you in the pass.

#5 know where the weight of your car is. You can load your car to help smooth out the track, example: if there is a rain rut on the right if you turn into the rut at the last minute you can weight the outside tire and float over the hole. This is a timing issue, but when you get good at it you can float the car over a small rock without killing your tires.

#6 Get out there and drive! I used to never prerun and barely make it to the race, then because of lack of testing I would have problems during the race. I started getting more seat time and my driving improved.

#7 Never say die! I do whatever it takes to make it to the finish line this gives you invaluable seat time and experience. Some say we cant win so lets pack it in, in my opinion this will hurt you in the long run. Race hours on your vehicle let you learn what your car needs for prep and what could go wrong at the next race.

#8 The more time you spend on the prep, the better you will do in the race. Half the cars have problems that would have been avoided with a better prep job.

#9 Critique your race efforts and learn from your mistakes and keep a hours log on all the parts in your vehicle. I have seen many people have the same problems race after race because they do not Learn from there mistakes.

#10 You have to finish to win, I hear many guys pop off that they had the fastest lap, but if they do not take home the trophy what does this really matter. Anyone can go fast, but few can go fast and make there cars last the whole race.

#11 Commit to a line even if it is the wrong way. Many people realize they are taking the wrong line and at the last second they through the car towards the right line and end upside down. If you do go the wrong way take your time to get back on the course and be careful. I was riding with a guy one time who said right or left, I said left when he was already pointing towards the right and he turned right through a tree to make the left. 2 miles later we were changing a flat.

I could go on, but my wife has dinner ready. Hope some of these tips help you guys out. In my opinion offroad racing can be summed up in three catagories: Experience, Luck, and Natural ability in this order. So if you can't get the hang of it buy a good luck charm and keep on racking up the miles and you will be kicking ass in no time. Sorry for the spelling, I am getting scolded because it is family time. Later, Scott

God Bless America

Scott Steinberger Trophy Truck #7

[JasonHutter]

Hey Scott, wish I had been able to read your post 4 or 5 years ago when I started racing. Have had to learn most of that the hard way! But, I think I am on the right track these days. No pun intended!

Jason

[havahockey]

I definatly agree experiance is a big factor. By NO means am I an experianced driver offroad, but in the short time i have been driving my truck i've learn a lot about my driving style, how to control my truck, and what my truck can't handle. The only way to know that is to get out and drive!

Race-Dezert Anonymous - Step #1:
"Hello, my name is Jason. And I'm a Race-Dezertaholic."

[fishd00d]

Do you guys open your eyes when you are driving?? I have found The Piece just kinda knows what to do on its own.....

Go Big Or Go Home
United Jumping Truck Society

[fox_mccloud2000]

Damn! At least I know what to do now. Hopefully I'll get my Toyota to the track this year. Pray that I do and pray hard! If not I'll tag along with the Fireguys, while I'm on break from college, and have some fun.

-matt-

"Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing, doubting..."
-Edgar Allen Poe-