An initial process done for competition tires through a heat cycle making tread compounds more consistent in strength and more resistant to losing their strength the next time they are used. Many tire companies can offer this service or you can do it on the track but it requires a 24 to 47 hour hours to let the tire cool and set to reform the molecular bonds.

A driving technique used on cars with a manual transmission. It involves downshifting while braking. In order to match engine speed with the transmission when downshifting you have to depress the throttle see Blip

A corner in which the radius of the turn gets larger at the end. As a general rule early apex as they can be negotiated at a higher speed.

A jog in the road, generally located on part of a straightaway. Generally take as fast as the car can go either flat out or minor throttle lift.

A point later than the midpoint of a corner in which you transition to acceleration to the track out point. General rule of thumb late apex can be applied effectively with decreasing radius turn.

The technique of braking with your left foot rather than utilizing your right. At the professional level, it is used by just about everyone where every tenth of a second on a lap counts as the transition from throttle to brake, brake to throttle is immediate compared to lifting off the throttle with your right foot to brake and back again.

Reduced application of the acceleration pedal. Used at the track either to balance your car into the turn when braking is not needed but just a small reduction in speed, or common track curtesy at HPDE or TA session to let faster cars pass you more quickly on the straight away.

The maximum forward, rearwards, or sideways force at the tires while accelerating, cornering, or baking.

Change in tire download that results from accelerating, turning, or braking of a car. This effects the contact patch and therefore grip.

Tire stops rotating when brakes applied to hard results in loss of steering control, flat spotted tires and decreased braking traction.

Slang term used for oversteer

Operating the engine at too low an RPM

A hydraulic cylinder which converts force on a brake or clutch pedal to hydraulic pressure, which actuates the brake or clutch system in the car.

The area of track between corner entry and the apex.

Changing brake pressure or throttle to keep tires near their traction limits

When the car is neither over or understeering at its limit and maintains traction on front and rear sets of tires.

Looking farther ahead on the track will make you a smoother and faster diver. At the corner exit (track-out), you should be looking towards the straightway and the next corner to start braking, at the start of braking you should be looking at the apex, When turning you should look to the corner exit. In short, look where you want to go not where you are at.

When the rear tires lose traction when cornering causing the rear end of the car to take a wider radius in the turn i.e. slide in the opposite direction of the turn. Refer to CPR. Oversteer can be caused by lifting off the throttle in a turn called lift off oversteer. A car using too much power out of a turn called power oversteer. Most passenger cars due to front engine and engineering have built in understeer for legal liability concerns. The 60’s Corvairs and early model Porsches with their rear engine weight behind the rear axle had considerable oversteer in their day and required experienced drivers to drive them safely.

To run the engine at a greater RPM than is desirable and may therefore damage the engine. This can happen in a manual car in downshifting from a higher gear to a way lower gear like from 5th down to 2nd rather than the intended 4th and cause significant engine damage. This misapplied shift is sarcastically referred to as the “money shift”.

Porsche Doppelkupplungsgetriebe transmission is regard as the best duel clutch transmission (DCT) in the automobile industry DCT’s are simply an automatic transmission that can outperform manual transmissions even by a professional race car driver. The driver can use the fully automatic mode or the semi-automatic mode with the use of paddle shitters. Many sports cars are equipped with DCT’s today, as manual transmissions are becoming rarer.

Adding steering lock when cornering usually done in second half of the corner due to early apex. Refer to Early-In Early-Out

Slang used for excessive understeer.

An instrument which measures the heat of your tires by sticking a probe on the outside, middle, and inside of each tire. More heat on part of a tire or on one tire in particular may indicate some suspension problem that may need correction to improve lap time. For the very serious track enthusiast as you have to pull in the pits in the middle of the session when the tires are hot and take immediate readings.

High performance street tires, but with the least tread pattern permissible and with very soft, sticky rubber. Various manufacturers have different levels of wear life but as a general rule the softer the tire the less life. All are however are DOT (Department of Transportation) approved for street use unlike Slicks.

Maximum usable RPM. Operation above value will produce less power and may cause engine damage. Some cars have rev limiters when accelerating to prevent going past the red line.

When you lose concentration on driving the car. If you find your mind wondering to some other thought think of a simple word that will remind you to refocus your attention. Lack of concentration on the track even can have disastrous consequences.

Any visual point on the track signs, walls, posts, trees which the driver uses to trigger some action braking, turning, etc.

Driving with the clutch partially engaged

Angle of the road surface to the corner. Positive camber is angled towards the turn and helps the car’s cornering ability. Negative camber is banked away from the turn and reduces the car’s cornering ability. Needless to say negative camber can be very challenging task.

Movement of the car ride height from the vehicles centerline when turning. Reducing the center of gravity by lowering the car as well as other suspension changes can significantly reduce body roll.

Safety feature on many sports car convertibles like Miata and Porsche to prevent injury from car rollover protection. For hard top cars dedicated to heavy track use, roll bars can be installed along with racing seats and seat harnesses for extra safety. Due to race harnesses keeps you upright it is imperative to prevent the roof from even partially caving in if the car rolls over.

A constructed metal frame of tubing inside the entire cabin of the car as a reinforced safety feature required on all Cup Cars

Known as discs they are the surface in which brake pads are applied creating friction which slows the car. They come into many types standard, cross -drilled, and slotted. Depends on type of driving and preference of appearance. Without going into long winded debate about type of pad and rotor, if you do a lot of tracking slotted brakes with racing pads is the preferred choice of many.

Engine revolutions per minute

Since 1957, the Snell Memorial Foundation is non-profit organization dedicated to research, education, and testing and development of helmet safety standards. The certification of Snell rated helmets or SA rated helmets is once every 5 years. The most current standard rating is 2015. Most racing organizations will only accept Snell certified helmets 10 years after initial certification. Therefore no SA2010 rated helmets can be used on the track after 2020 and SA2015 after 2025.

Causing the wheels to skid rather than roll greatly reducing the vehicle speed and not being able to accelerate.

A sacrifice to the speed gods. Tires are reduced down to a few 32nds of an inch in tread depth to reduce the potential of overheating. Yes place like Tire Rack can provide this service but do you want to replace these tires every track weekend?

The RPM at which one shifts up or down a gear.

Any piece of asphalt approximately 60 yards in diameter. It is used to develop driver’s ability to handle cars cornering limits as they drive around the diameter.

Tires that have a treadless surface. This allows the greatest amount of rubber on the surface and therefore this creates the greatest grip. Not street legal.

The difference between the direction of the wheel rim is pointing and the direction the tire is pointing. The slip angle is this difference. Up to a certain degree the slip angle increases the grip and cornering ability of the car but at a certain point an increasing degree degrades the cornering ability.

Term used to instruct driving the theoretical racing line on a theoretical corner. Driving the racing line is slower than the geometric line initially due to later turn in. However the slower speed at turn in you make up by getting on the throttle earlier and having a faster exit speed. So the trade-off is you might initially lose 2MPH for 30 yards in the turn but gain 2MPH edge over 300 yard straightway. Easy to do the math who will reach the next corner first.

Loss of traction resulting in car no longer in control see Both Feet-In

The amount the steering wheel is turned. Add lock increase turning radius reduce steering lock decrease turning radius.

A long fast corner, usually taken at a very high speed.

In club racing, the overtaking car has the responsibility of not contacting the other car. If there is an infraction in which cars contact, the offending party is put on 13 month probation. Any contact with another car deemed to be his fault will be banned from further racing for 13 months.

Opened in 1927, The Nurburgring motorsports complex has also been nickname by Jackie Stewart Formula One World Champion as “The Green Hell”. Located in the town of Nurburg, Germany. Depending on the track configuration it is either 12.9 miles or 15.2 miles long with more than 1,000 feet of elevation changes with many technically challenging corners.. Besides hosting the German Formula One Prix and other professional races it is open to the public on Sundays. Called “Touistenfahrten” anyone with a driver’s license and a road legal car, motorcycle, truck, and bus can participate with passing on the right prohibited. Fastest lap time by a production car was the Lamborghini Huracan with a 6:52.01 on October 5, 2016

The car’s maximum ability is to brake in a straight line. Before corner entry you should apply maximum braking initially starting at about 25% initial brake pressure let the weight transfer load the tire than rapidly squeeze the remaining 75% within half a second or so.

The technique of rotating the car into a turn by applying the throttle.

A must have on any track day. Over or underinflated tires can dramatically effect your handling on the track. Racing gauges have a bleeder valve to reduce overinflated tires. Tracks have a compressor on premises to inflate tires or acquire a portable compressor rather than drive to the location on the track. Remember optimal tire pressure is when the car is hot not when it is cold. Measure tire pressure immediately after the track session. Optimal tire pressure depends on your car and tire maker.

Reference to the horizontal position of tires front and back on a car. Similar to your feet if they are pointed inwards it is called toe in pointed out called toe out. Along with camber on the tires adjustments from manufacturer specs may produce better results on the track.

The engines ability to produce twisting force. Horsepower is the rate at which it can do the work. Torque and horsepower play an integral role in automotive performance with horsepower is a function of torque and engine speed.

Over tightening your wheel lug nuts can damage the rotors. A torque wrench will only tighten the wheel nuts to recommended manufacturers specs. All you have to do is adjust the bottom knob to the appropriate foot pounds and tighten until you hear it click. Make sure your wheel lugs are tight losing a wheel on a track will certainly ruin your day.

Also referred to as “corner exit” is the point at which the turn is completed and you have your foot at 100% on the throttle. If you, nailed the apex at the right speed, the track out point should be the extreme edge of the road. The faster your car is at that point the faster you will be down the entire straightway picking up valuable time compared to car who missed the mark.

The art of releasing the brake pressure at corner entry until all brake pressure is eliminated before reaching apex and applying throttle. Refer to Friction Circle. The better you trail brake the faster you will be through Mid-Corner picking up a .1 second or so over 10 corners and you improved a full second in lap time.

An abbreviation for Trailing Throttle Oversteer, As a car is approaching its cornering limit if the throttle is lifted or trailed the weight transfer on the back to the front might cause the car to lose enough grip to oversteer. Applying brakes then makes the matters worse and will probably result in a spin.

Colloquially referred to as “turbo”, is a turbine-driven forced induction device that increases an internal combustion engine's efficiency and power output by forcing extra air into the combustion chamber. Automobile manufacturers are increasing utilizing turbo technology in their production cars to increase fuel efficiency and power. The drawback from a naturally aspirating engine is the slower response acceleration known as turbo lag. This is the time required to change power output in response to a throttle change.

Also known as Corner Entry. It is the point in which you turn into the corner and the process in which you transition from threshold braking to trail braking.

For most cars when the cornering limit is reached it is understeer also called Plow or Push the front tires have reached its limit of traction and will go at a wider arc. Normal instinct is to let off the gas or slightly touch the brakes. This weight transfer adds traction and therefore the tighter turn can be made. This this the opposite of oversteer where the rear wheels lose traction.

The weight not supported by the suspension of the car. This consists of wheels, tires, brake assemblies, and other assemblies not supported by the springs. Reduced unsprung weight is the key to improved handling. For the track, 18 inch tires are generally regarded as the optimal tire size even though bigger tires will have a larger contact patch they will be heavier.

Changing from a lower gear to a higher gear as engine speed approaches its limit in that gear

The transfer of weight of a car during braking cornering and accelerating. Under breaking weight transfer is the front, accelerating weight transfer is to the rear and when cornering weight is transferred to the opposite direction of the turn. Weight transfer increases contact patch of the tires with the added weight but losses to the opposite tires that loses weight. The added/lost traction of all tires is not zero sum but a net loss therefore any braking, acceleration, or cornering you lose some traction one degree or another.

Traction of tires do not have sufficient grip to handle the speed of the revolving rear wheels.

The angle between the centerline of a car and the direction the car is traveling. Think of going down a straight road and a strong wind is blowing you in a cross direction. Your car is pointed straight but the wind is moving your car in the direction of the wind.

Starting with the Datsun 240Z back in the early 70’s, the Nissan Z model is a favorite on the track. Not to be confused with its big bad brother the GTR affectionately referred to as “Godzilla”.