Wet Lines - How to Go From Disastrous to Good, then to Untouchable

Terrible, decent and elite wet lines spelled out with videos

Welcome to a subscriber only edition of Terence Dove on Racing Drivers.

This week I’ll show you, step-by-step, what goes wrong with wet lines, how to get round fast on wet lines, then ways to experiment and find yourself quicker than anyone else. And by ‘show you’, I mean with video so there can’t be any doubts, rather than an audio!

Here’s what you’ll learn about wet lines:

1. Why using the wrong line makes the wet seem way harder than it is.

2. How to get a solid, always works, wet line that you can depend on and be quick.

3. How to find the little extras that can put you down the road, whilst everyone else sticks to the same old plan.

What Goes Wrong on the Regular Racing Line in the Wet, and How it Screws You up

I bet you already know very well that the normal racing line is covered in rubber, and also in the dry that rubber is a major source of grip, and speed.

You probably know too, that when the track is wet, that rubber line becomes the complete opposite. It becomes a no go area especially in the braking zones where the tyres literally paint rubber onto the track.

But, has that information really embedded itself into your driving instincts? That’s where it needs to be, so that getting off the rubber line in the wet becomes second nature.

You have to know it like you know that breathing air is a good idea!

Here’s why:

When you head out onto a wet track, your kart becomes absolutely bloody useless. And as soon as you sense that, your brain goes into red-alert mode, and ideas like special lines go out the window.

Then, you’ll find yourself braking on the rubber because it’s the line you are used to; find there is zero grip and immediately conclude that you have already gone past the limit and you need to slow down.

You have just learned an entirely false limit, and will be at least 2 or 3 seconds off the pace.

I’ve laid it out in the video below, perhaps you’ll relate to the sheer terror of driving a normal line from habit in the wet.

The Wet Line Spelled Out - You can be Quick and Solid on this Line

The standard wet line is all about getting off the rubber that is laid down during normal conditions, and finding the more porous and grainy parts of the track that haven’t been coated with rubber.

Heavy Braking Corners

This almost always means going to the inside line for heavy braking corners like hairpins, then at the end of the braking zone sweeping out wide to avoid the rubbery racing line through the corner.

Then the exit is all about getting away and avoiding wheel-spinning away all your traction. Here is a video taking you through the line slowly: