Miata Mailing List: October 1999, Message #71

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> Many (many) years ago, certain safety experts promoted the concept of
> left foot braking.  Test showed that people could stop faster.  The
> problem, however, was that 
> it's kind of like ABS.  Experts that are anticipating there reaction 
> can out brake ABS.  But in the real world, we are not driving at 
> 10/10ths all the time.  That's why in the real world most cars can 
> stop shorter with ABS instead of skidding to a stop.

What do you mean by "sikidding"? Locking the brakes (and tires)?
If so, then its not a matter of driving at 10/10ths or being a
race driver, its pure physics that a car can stop quicker at
a rate where the tires are just at the brink of lockup.

If you are trained in threshold braking and you have practiced it
many times, then you don't need to be anticipating a braking point.
It will be more of a reaction that, if you need to stop the car
right now for any reason, emergency or not, then you will do
threshold braking without even thinking about the whole process.

The whole problem is that so called "advanced driving techniques"
such as threshold braking are not being teached to all drivers.

Seems like, at least in the US, it is considered that if you can
make a turn signal and can parallel park the beast, you are good
enough to drive and the car and goverment will take car of the rest.



> Left foot braking is along the same lines.  F1 drivers (and even 
> utocrossers) drive at 10/10ths while racing, and they can use left 
> foot braking because they are planning ahead of time to use it.  In 
> real world measurements however, left foot braking takes LONGER than 
> right foot braking.  Basically, in left foot braking, your brain has 
> to process more steps: left right foot from gas, put left foot on 
> brake, push brake to stop.  Right footers, think move foot to brake 
> and push.  The whole process takes longer (unless you are planning 
> to do it in advance).  You may stop okay at the stop light, but you 
> just might hit the kid that jumps out from behind the parked car.


I disagree. Its just a matter of practice and training.
If you are used to left foot brake, there should be no
reason for it to be slower. Your brain process should be:
"I need to brake NOW. Left foot on the brake."
You can start slowing down even before you lift your right
foot from the gas.


> Most safety experts stopped recommending left foot braking a long 
> time ago (but I recently saw an AAA article recommending it).


Its easy to see why they would have stopped recommending it.
Its something that needs to be teached, learned and practiced,
but no one teaches it so no one learns it. Can't expect people
to then practice it.


-- 
Ony Anglade
Ft. Worth, TX
qoa000@email.mot.com