Zen and the art of changing gear.
Discussion
Martin A said:
If the revs are going up to 5000rpm, it seems that the idea is to make fairly brisk progress. If that's the case then why would you want the rate of acceleration to slow unnecessarily, it will obviously do so as soon as the clutch is depressed.
It would feel even smoother, except maybe with a dual mass flywheel that irons out failings in technique anyway, if the clutch were depressed at 4500rpm, while easing off the gas as the clutch passes through the biting point, with much the same final result.
I understand your point, but we're in danger of getting in to the "what EXACTLY is advanced driving?" debate and I suspect no-one wants this thread to go in that direction because, well, each to his own.It would feel even smoother, except maybe with a dual mass flywheel that irons out failings in technique anyway, if the clutch were depressed at 4500rpm, while easing off the gas as the clutch passes through the biting point, with much the same final result.
My technique produces very smooth - seamless at times - gearchanges and as we all know, smoothness is in no way incompatible with progress. Don't forget though - we're talking about smooth, advanced road driving here. We're not setting a lap time and we're not on a response run or pursuit - we're looking to make safe, unobtrusive progress and the "unobtrusive" bit counts just as much for your passengers as it does for other road users, so sacrificing a few tenths for a smoother change is perfectly acceptable.
And don't be distracted by the revs described in my example. They were just for demonstration purposes with an imaginary car and didn't relate to real life as every different car will have different gear ratios and different optimum rev ranges.
On the subject of advanced driving in general, I'm considering putting my writing cap back on soon and the question "what is advanced driving" was one of the subjects I was considering drafting a few paragraphs on. I've a few more ideas, but I'm also open to suggestions if anyone has any?
R_U_LOCAL said:
On the subject of advanced driving in general, I'm considering putting my writing cap back on soon and the question "what is advanced driving" was one of the subjects I was considering drafting a few paragraphs on. I've a few more ideas, but I'm also open to suggestions if anyone has any?
That's a can of worms judging by the debates on here. I'm not sure there's one answer as it depends on what you're trying to achieve. If you/we can agree a definition of what we mean ( ie smooth unobtrusive but quick progress not noticed by other road users and your passengers, not being antisocial or inconsiderate, not being illegal(?), sympathetic to the vehicle) then we can debate the merits, but some have different interpretations to justify their own actions. My initial 2p..R_U_LOCAL said:
If blipping the throttle works for you then carry on blipping!
Don't forget this is road driving and my recommended method doesn't just involve raising (rather than blipping) the throttle, but also includes a slower, smoother shift action and a slower, smoother clutch operation.
Oh lord. The sound of the blip. So intoxicating.Don't forget this is road driving and my recommended method doesn't just involve raising (rather than blipping) the throttle, but also includes a slower, smoother shift action and a slower, smoother clutch operation.
FWIW, I've been working on changing my technique recently to incorporate a sustained change where I am not looking to lose speed -- for example where cruising into a limit (down) change or catching an aware target. I still blip where I am losing speed for example at entry to a hazard or if there's another good reason (approaching unaware road user, humpback bridge, a long enclosed tunnel etc)
My reasoning being that a blip in a slowing vehicle is like landing on a downslope -- everything is moving in the right direction so you get a smoother interface (gear/clutch). Where you are looking to hold speed, you want to land on the level so the slower sustain is a cleaner match. IMEFWIWIMHOETC
I had an interestng experience this week.
A thread I'd started in the Advanced Driving forum was deleted by an unknown moderator. I'd started the thread to discuss some videos I was planning to post on a well-known video hosting website, and the intention was to update the thread each time I posted a new video.
Alas, it seems I broke one of the PH posting rules. Which rule? Well, unfortnately, I've no idea - the email I received from an anonymous moderator said that my post had been removed because it "breaches the rules and regulations of the site".
It's a bit like being stopped by a police officer because you're "breaking the law Sir. Don't do it again".
Anyway, at the risk of breaching further rules and regulations of the site, if you were to search a popular video hosting site, it's possible that you may find an interesting new video about changing gear.
A thread I'd started in the Advanced Driving forum was deleted by an unknown moderator. I'd started the thread to discuss some videos I was planning to post on a well-known video hosting website, and the intention was to update the thread each time I posted a new video.
Alas, it seems I broke one of the PH posting rules. Which rule? Well, unfortnately, I've no idea - the email I received from an anonymous moderator said that my post had been removed because it "breaches the rules and regulations of the site".
It's a bit like being stopped by a police officer because you're "breaking the law Sir. Don't do it again".
Anyway, at the risk of breaching further rules and regulations of the site, if you were to search a popular video hosting site, it's possible that you may find an interesting new video about changing gear.
I was looking in vain for that thread a couple of days ago and discovered that it vanished without trace into cyberspace. Seems to me very poor form that the moderator concerned didn't have the courtesy to explain specifically what rule you are alleged to have breached by posting that vid.*
Quite how deleting it helps to promote the concept of improving people's driving skills escapes me. Another example of how this board is becoming dumbed down and out of touch.
A quick Google and, as Andrew Neil would say, the Twittershpere is your friend.
* ETA - listening to the first vid again I think it's because you referred in the commentary to your published book
So you have been found guilty of advertising a product for commercial gain.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WJXHY2OXGE
Quite how deleting it helps to promote the concept of improving people's driving skills escapes me. Another example of how this board is becoming dumbed down and out of touch.
A quick Google and, as Andrew Neil would say, the Twittershpere is your friend.
* ETA - listening to the first vid again I think it's because you referred in the commentary to your published book
So you have been found guilty of advertising a product for commercial gain.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7WJXHY2OXGE
it seems a bit sad to me to remove a thread when it breaches the rules in such a minor and excusable fashion. PH is what it is because the contributors put in a lot of effort, often responding on such threads with long, interesting but time consuming responses. I'd hate to loose the expertise of such people because they were excessively moderated due to infringing some rule or other (when that rule is clearly there to stop deliberate and un-solicited advertisment etc)
if people like R-U make 37p on the back of a, tiny, amount of free advertising, good on them, it'll nowhere near cover the effort and time they have spent on this site..........
(and by the same token, if some posters spam the f88k out of a thread with no useful input, but constantly banging their drum (financial or egotistical) then they SHOULD get removed!)
if people like R-U make 37p on the back of a, tiny, amount of free advertising, good on them, it'll nowhere near cover the effort and time they have spent on this site..........
(and by the same token, if some posters spam the f88k out of a thread with no useful input, but constantly banging their drum (financial or egotistical) then they SHOULD get removed!)
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