How's Your Heel-Toe?

Tyler H wrote: Left foot brake is a skill set that I still need to hone.

Why would you want to learn bad habits?

Because bad habits are good when used properly. You can't drive a shifter kart without left foot braking.

When I was a kid Malibu Grand Prix was in its glory around Southern California and the only fast way around the track was left foot braking. The signs all said not to but when the employees and mechanics took laps they all left foot braked. Some amount of left foot braking works with some slush boxes in some situations and if it's good enough for Walter Rohrl I rekon it has its place.

Shaun wrote: if it's good enough for Walter Rohrl I rekon it has its place.

Mind you, he was driving a car with turbo lag measured with a calendar and primitive engine controls. 2.1l, 6.6:1 compression, and a K27 turbo (think medium sized Diesel truck, very large and very heavy wheels and huge bearing shaft) with a huge hotside for thermal stress reasons. If you didn't keep the throttle open all the time as a kind of manual antilag, you might not get full boost until the next gearchange. Or two. Not really exaggerating. And the chassis dynamics were best described as "horrid".

Wath how many times Jean Ragnotti used his left foot on the brake. You can count it with all the fingers on your left foot.

It can be a useful crutch but it is still a crutch - if you need it, it's proof that you have problems elsewhere.

My favorite LFB quote is from an old, old rally driver. Paraphrased, "If one of my competitors is getting close to me in speed, I tell him about left foot braking. Then I don't have to worry about him for the rest of the season"

Sure! The place left foot braking has is small. Smaller than stabbing (and frying) the clutch to make a spike of power? For me yes. Oddly it occurred to me as I read your post that 'the hive' at Google thinks anything other than dining, texting, or taking selfies and such while moving somewhere in an automobile would be using a crutch! In reply to Knurled:

On the other hand! The Colin McRea vid down the "left footed braking is fast" article a bit is hilariously left footed:

my left foot.

@knurled neither LFB (rally style) nor using left to brake are bad habits. They are an advantage, the only issue is learning the technique. If you getting the last enth out of a car you're going to have the brake and throttle over lapping.

I can heal and toe double clutch in everything from my old pick up truck to formula cars. I can say that the technique is brought on by the abomination that is the H pattern road car gearbox . Drive a shifter kart or motorcycle engined car where you can go up and down through the box without the clutch and you soon view standard automotive box as an anachronism.

My actual foot placement varies depending on the car but for the most part I use the ball of my foot on the brake and the side on the brake. I've seen some in car of guys using there toes on the gas.......I think it simply is whatever works for you.

Easy to learn find a big lot drive along in 3rd brake lightly blip the throttle downshift to 2nd, make a u-turn, shift up to 3rd the blip the throttle go down to 2nd, make a u-turn..........repeat till you have the technique down. If you are not sure of much to blip the throttle simply drive along in 3rd at a speed slow enough to just blip the throttle and shift into 2nd. Once you have a feel for the RPM add the the braking component of the exercise.

Tom

Knurled wrote:

Tyler H wrote: Left foot brake is a skill set that I still need to hone.

Why would you want to learn bad habits?

Because I have menagerie of bad habits....I have a real knack for it. When I try to pick up a new bad habit and it's difficult, it pisses me off.