Just to help you understand my experience, I hold an advanced car, motorbike and commercial qualification from the Institute of Advanced Motorists, which is pretty unusual and rare. I want to introduce a few concepts over the coming weeks/months that will help you guys stay safe on the roads and save on car insurance claims.
I believe in sharing knowledge, especially if it can save lives, so here goes.
The first concept is the Limit or Vanishing Point. This is a really simple concept when looking at it on paper but takes time for you to 'get it' when driving. In simple terms, it's the furthest point in the road you can see unobstructed and you are able to stop in safely.
That's it Dave?!?.... I am not being patronising and this REALLY is a huge thing to get your head around as it allows you slow down quicker, this makes your drive smoother, which in turn (bizarrely) speeds you up.
Slow is smooth, smooth is fast!
Confused? Stick with me.... It really is worth getting your head around. If you think about when you are driving along, what do you use to give you a visual cue as to when you should brake or can accelerate? Without realising it you use the limit point.... But not as efficiently as you can as it gives you a visual clue way before the average driver realises it.
If you look at the image above, the limit point is the point whereby the left and right sides of the road meet. You can see the road up until that point, therefore if a person was lying in the road, you could see them and hopefully stop in time. That is the easy part and something a 3 year old could tell you, right?
Let's get a little more advanced and look at the relationship between the limit point , speed and corner severity.
Next time you are in the car have a look at what happens to the limit point when you are driving along. The eagle-eyed of you will notice that it 'moves' depending on both your speed and the severity of the bend. Now this is that part that is difficult to understand and actually see, but it is the absolute key to cornering smoothly, swiftly and safely.
There are a few key points to get your head around.
The first is what happens when you are driving at the correct speed for the corner you are on. The limit point will remain at a CONSTANT DISTANCE and will look the same i.e. it isn't coming towards you or running away from you therefore the angles between the left and right of the road remain the same. There is a warning, with a constant limit point it 'may' indicate a severe bend i.e. 90 degrees or greater as you will never get to see more of the road until you are right on top of the bend looking around it.
So what happens when you are too fast for the corner? The limit point will appear to move TOWARDS you; this is directly proportional to just how fast you are for the corner. If you are 50mph too fast expect it to rush TOWARDS you, if you are 5mph too fast it will gently move TOWARDS you.
If you are too slow for the corner then the opposite is true. The limit point starts to move AWAY from you; this time it's directly proportional to just how slow you are for the corner. If you are 50mph too slow expect it to rush AWAY you, if you are 5mph too slow it will gently move AWAY from you.
One point to note, the limit point isn't just relevant for corners. The top of a hill or a humpback bridge may also restrict your view of the road, thus creating a limit point which must be treated as if it were a corner.
So what? I hear you say! Well, this is the absolute key to keeping you safe and making the most amount of progress possible without dying in a car wreck. If you are reading this and you were a Formula 1 driver in a past life, then you will have just had your 'A-ha' moment! If you can 'see' the limit point moving, you can brake early PRIOR to entering a corner at the right speed, in the right position and in the correct gear. You can then accelerate smoothly to chase the limit point at the earliest possible moment, most people will still be braking ON the bend and lose valuable seconds, which hampers their progress and slows them down.
On my motorbike I used to head on the occasional ride-out with friends; I was on my 600cc touring bike, most of my friends were on powerful sports bikes up to 1300cc. Almost always I was quicker on twisty back roads with tons of bends as I could read the road ahead. I braked and was slower into the corner, but this meant I was more stable, better positioned and on the throttle about a second or 2 quicker coming out of the corner! This used to **** off some of the seasoned bikers on their expensive sports bikes :-) The key is slow in, fast out!
This is SUCH a powerful concept and one that's a bit abstract, but that absolutely works and will improve your driving no end. It will also improve fuel economy, smoothness of ride, safety and of course help you get to your destination sooner!
The following link might help to visualise it, dont worry about it being on the wrong (right) side of the road as it works regardless of what side you drive on.
The next concept for another post is The System of Car Control which builds on the Limit Point.
I hope this is worthwhile
Dave
Last edited by SurvivorChap; Today at 10:58 PM.. Reason: fat fingers....
Drive to survive!
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