Took the Liz out for a drive yesterday. I went up to the local racetrack. No, not to race the Elise. I was there to rent a kart. It was my first time in a real kart, and I can tell you that those little things grip like crazy. By the time I was done I was sore from how violently I had been slammed from side to side as I slide through the corners. I will recover and it was fun.
As I headed back to the car I noticed five guys standing around it. My first thought was I hope everything is OK. Then I remembered that the Elise always draws a crowd. They asked several question and we chatted for awhile. Then it was time for me to head out.
As I started on my way I started to realize why so may have commented that the Liz handles like a shifter kart. When I was racing the kart I initially did not trust its level of grip. I found myself stepping on the brake too hard before a really sharp corner. This had consequences however, as the Kart I was racing in only had rear brakes. This meant that it would kick out the rear and spin out instead of going around the corner. This dog learned the new trick eventually, and I started to trust the kart to have enough grip to pull me around the corner. Guess what? It worked like a charm. Granted even karts have their limits, which I found out several times. The most important thing I learned was the difference of when it was near the limit and when it was pushed past the limit. I learned what the kart was trying to tell me.
Now back in the Elise I understood better where the limit were. I could feel things that I had previously not taken note of. To the turnpike I headed. The sharp 20 mph onramp would normally have seen me slow to a daring, but sane 40 mph. I didn’t slow down. I could feel something. I had started to understand the lesson that she was teaching me. 64 mph into the corner, then I realized it was decreasing in radius. Instinct is to lift, or apply brake… Just then a vision of my tail swinging free flashed though my mind. I remembered the lesson of the kart… To trust it... To trust the Liz. As I sped through the corner I could feel she had far more grip than I could have imagined. Then as the corner sharpened a voice in my head said, "just turn the wheel and have faith... "
Sitting at home sipping my tea I thought to myself, “It was nothing for the Elise, I’m sure she could have managed much more.”
The kart allowed me to safely explore what the feedback meant. Once you can interpret the signals you really start to understand the car in a whole new way. It’s kinda like finding money in those old trousers you never wear anymore. It’s a good feeling.
As I headed back to the car I noticed five guys standing around it. My first thought was I hope everything is OK. Then I remembered that the Elise always draws a crowd. They asked several question and we chatted for awhile. Then it was time for me to head out.
As I started on my way I started to realize why so may have commented that the Liz handles like a shifter kart. When I was racing the kart I initially did not trust its level of grip. I found myself stepping on the brake too hard before a really sharp corner. This had consequences however, as the Kart I was racing in only had rear brakes. This meant that it would kick out the rear and spin out instead of going around the corner. This dog learned the new trick eventually, and I started to trust the kart to have enough grip to pull me around the corner. Guess what? It worked like a charm. Granted even karts have their limits, which I found out several times. The most important thing I learned was the difference of when it was near the limit and when it was pushed past the limit. I learned what the kart was trying to tell me.
Now back in the Elise I understood better where the limit were. I could feel things that I had previously not taken note of. To the turnpike I headed. The sharp 20 mph onramp would normally have seen me slow to a daring, but sane 40 mph. I didn’t slow down. I could feel something. I had started to understand the lesson that she was teaching me. 64 mph into the corner, then I realized it was decreasing in radius. Instinct is to lift, or apply brake… Just then a vision of my tail swinging free flashed though my mind. I remembered the lesson of the kart… To trust it... To trust the Liz. As I sped through the corner I could feel she had far more grip than I could have imagined. Then as the corner sharpened a voice in my head said, "just turn the wheel and have faith... "
Sitting at home sipping my tea I thought to myself, “It was nothing for the Elise, I’m sure she could have managed much more.”
The kart allowed me to safely explore what the feedback meant. Once you can interpret the signals you really start to understand the car in a whole new way. It’s kinda like finding money in those old trousers you never wear anymore. It’s a good feeling.
