When racing on rally, certain corner types like hairpins or close corners, and especially on gravel and snow it is essential to use pull on the handbrake to ensure you get through it as fast as possible and avoid losing time, but there is a whole deeper science behind it.
Imagine you are going through a fast section of the track, and there is a hairpin right at the end, you will have to manage the engine’s RMP, the car’s weight, the steering input and much more, while considering a few aspects like surface type, weather conditions and such.
You want to approach the corner at a higher speed, and brake confidently while on a straight line to shift the weight transfer to the front wheels, when it is time to enter the turn, that’s when you let go of the brake pedal, shift 1 or 2 gears down depending on the conditions, and pull the handbrake while steering confidently so the rear wheels lock up.
At this point, you feel that the weight of the car will transfer rapidly from the front wheels to the rear outer wheel, you must also maintain a decent level of RPMs to avoid stalling at the exit.
When you have the car pointing in the direction you want to follow, you may let go of the handbrake and focus on throttle input to ensure that your tires get the grip back as soon as possible.
On drifting, it works slightly different since the goal is to have your rear wheels constantly spinning, the handbrake is usually useful for smooth transitions in direction, to help shifting the weight of the car from one side to the other without losing control nor momentum.
A few things to consider in both scenarios are:
High power engine cars – these tend to require much smoother operations since they can be quite sensitive.
Surface type – whether you are you gravel, snow or asphalt, these can have a massive impact on your technique, especially on timing.
Weather conditions – if it is snowing or raining, the surface will be much slippery than in dry conditions, so you must adjust your technique for lesser braking inputs to avoid understeer, as much as you need to be careful with the throttle because of oversteering excessively, resulting in spinning.
Overall, it all comes down to experience, so grab yourself a ClubSport Handbrake V2, and hit those corners as much as possible!
