Last week we discussed how to optimize a short coaching session. This week, I want to discuss something that’s a little more common, which is a full day’s coaching at the track. In both scenarios, preparation can result in much faster progress.
I was at Virginia International Raceway recently for a David Murry Track Day with my good friend Peter. The open-track format was ideal for this coaching opportunity, because we could work on and off the track at our own pace.
Peter came to our coaching day extremely prepared. He had a list of specific questions as well as data references he wanted to discuss. This allowed us to instantly start discussing valuable information, and within a short period of time we had created a very productive environment for both learning and setting goals.
In the span of that day, we spent more time off the track than on it. We would discuss specifics, then Peter would go on track to put our discussion into practice. By the end of the day, the car had been on track for plenty of time, but Peter had still spent most of the day out of the car.
However, all the time we had spent off-track really paid dividends the next day for Peter. Because he came into his coaching day prepared and had focused on specifics, Peter was better able to progress during his second day of driving. He spent a lot more time on track that second day, putting all of the things we had discussed into practice. In fact, he bested his fastest time ever by more than a full second!
If you come prepared, whether it’s to a coaching day or just a track day, it’s impressive how much you can get out of your time. A lot of drivers think that progress only happens on the track, but a lot of times, you get just as much from studying notes and video or data!