Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve been fortunate to spend some time away from the snow (though not away from the cold) in Sebring, Florida. Despite the cold weather across the East Coast, the sunny skies at Sebring International Raceway allowed us to have some great winter testing as I worked with a couple different clients.
The first client was specifically focused on further developing a car, while the second test was more about driver development. It was interesting when I reflected back on these two tests and how they were different from each other in the test plan and goals, as well as the way they differed in how we could best use the time we were at the track.
For instance, when developing a car, obviously our focus is less on optimizing the driver at that point. Rather, we’re trying to extract the most performance out of the car itself. The specifics we look at when reviewing data is different: instead of overlaying a driver’s data to their previous performance, we’re looking at more mechanical data, like shock travel, for example.
I also try to take into consideration when to make particular changes. Making a lengthier adjustment, like a spring change, wouldn’t be the best use of time in the middle of the day if we were trying to get the most of our track time. We’d save that for downtime, such as at the end of the day or during lunch. In short, when developing the car, it’s important to be efficient with time management.
It was fun getting to work with Team Salad again!
After the two days of testing with the first client, it was really rewarding because we made great strides with the car’s performance and lap times, all while continuing to help the driver develop and adapt to the new setup changes.
Meanwhile, at the second test, we knew the car was in a great setup window to begin with, so we could purely focus on the driver. This was key because they hadn’t been to Sebring in a couple of years and hadn’t driven since the summer of last season. Our goal set, then, was quite different: we wanted to refamiliarize the driver with Sebring and all the circuit’s nuances, but we also had defined goals for optimizing driving like vision, brake pressure trace, and overall comfort in the car.
It was a really rewarding couple of tests, and I enjoyed my time with my clients as well as all the time at the track. I’m excited to be with both of them again very soon as their race seasons begin in just a few weeks!