The Unstoppable Force of Will in Racing: A Tale of Defying Logic
My favourite karting story of when total faith, and being wrong - is actually more right than anyone can believe
This week, I'm sharing a story that illustrates what I reckon is the most potent weapon anyone can wield in racing - a relentless force of will, an utterly irrational faith that refuses to quit. It's that Hollywood-esque "impossible dream" stuff, but this actually happened, and it still blows my mind.
This tale showcases the kind of characters who simply can't lose - they've got an X-factor that might be innate, but I reckon you can nurture it if you know what you're looking for. If you're mad enough to be involved in something as bonkers as motor racing, you've likely got a spark of it already. Tapping into this mindset is the real key that drives everything in racing - what you get out of it and what you make of it.
The Alex Hawkridge Challenge: Making the Impossible Corner Flat Out
Our story revolves around Alex Hawkridge, the bloke who started Toleman F1 (latest incarnation Alpine) and brought Senna into F1. He's a proper character. About 20 years back, he brought me in to coach his nephew, then he got me into iZone, a simulator training facility at Silverstone where I became the karting guy.
We were working with Jack Partridge, already the quickest kid on the simulator. One day, Hawkridge watched Paul Granger, the simulator's designer, testing it out. Alex came to Jack and me, insisting Paul had taken the final pit turn flat out. We were skeptical - that corner needed a little lift to rotate the kart properly. It wasn't flat we were certain.
But Hawkridge was adamant:
"Paul was taking it flat, and he's quicker than you through there. Figure it out and get it flat, or what are we even doing here?"
Breaking Down a Corner: Micro-Adjustments and Macro Gains
So, feeling like we were on a bit of a hiding to nothing, we set about tackling this impossible task. We measured Jack's current lift - to about 70% throttle before the apex. Our plan was to gradually reduce that lift, bit by bit, session after session.
We'd go out, try to lift less while still making the corner, then review the data. At first, we'd manage to lift to 75% instead of 70%, but it wasn't quicker - usually because the kart was understeering from being pushed too hard.
So we'd adjust - move the apex later, combine less lift with a later turn-in. We'd hammer away at this for 10-minute runs, over and over, until Jack could nail both the late apex and the reduced lift.
But being able to do it wasn't enough - it had to actually be quicker. So we'd refine further:
Turn in more carefully to avoid unsettling the kart.
Keep at it until we got a stable run through the corner with the kart perfectly balanced.
Only then would the lap time start to drop.
Here’s the process, in steps:
Take the corner lifting a bit less for a run.
Lifting less causes understeer, so aim for a later apex with later turn in and get more rotation into the kart.
Find that the kart slides at the rear instead.
Refine the steering input used for the late turn in, find more stability.
Keep practicing this until you can make it through without any instability.
Eventually stable kart and less lifting actually finds time.
Try lifting less and start over!
Simulator Grind: Two Days of Forensic Corner Analysis
We spent two and a half days on this project. That's an eternity in simulator time - half an hour can cook your brain, and we were at it for days. We weren't just doing laps; we were forensically analysing every little thing Jack did. Every run was reviewed, every steering input scrutinised.
Hawkridge would pop in every hour or so, growing more frustrated each time.
"Why haven't you cracked it yet? This is stupid. You're miles off."
Evolving Driver Skill: Increasing Your Mental 'Frame Rate' on Track
But something incredible was happening. As we hammered away at this corner, Jack's driving was evolving. His feel for the kart, his ability to make tiny adjustments, was improving dramatically. It was like his internal "frame rate" was increasing - he was processing more feedback from the kart, making finer and finer adjustments.
Finding Half a Second: When Sheer Belief Beats Simulator Physics
Keep reading with a 7-day free trial
Subscribe to On Racing Drivers by Terence Dove to keep reading this post and get 7 days of free access to the full post archives.