"If you late apex every corner on an autocross course, you will be right 90% of the time and comfortably in control 100% of the time. Then you eventually learn when the exception to the rule is (when to an early apex.) Late is the baseline." - a famous muti National Championship winning autocrosser.
What is "Late Apexing?"
As you drive around a corner at an autocross or on a race track, there is some point at which you are nearest the inside edge of the turn. A perfectly even line around a corner will locate that apex in the exact center of the curve. A "Late Apex" means you are nearest to the inside edge at a point somewhat beyond the theoretical midpoint. An "Early Apex" has you nearest the inside edge at a point before the theoretical midpoint of the curve.
With a Late Apex, you can accelerate out of the corner earlier instead of having to wait until you get mostly around it to begin to feed in the gas. With a Late Apex you can start feeding in the gas before you actually reach the corner apex. That's critical to good lap times because the longer you are on the gas, the shorter your lap times are.
Late Apexing means you actually begin to turn later. The usual novice error is to turn too early (execute an "Early Apex"). This forces you to delay throttle application at the exit of the corner because you are turning more to keep from driving off the outside.
To do a Late Apex, you enter the corner in a little deeper, brake a little harder, wait to turn in, bend the car into the turn, get on the gas a little sooner, and accelerate out. Its important to give up a little speed going in to enable you to stand on it exiting. Remember, Slow in, Fast out!
And to do this, you have to be looking ahead - way ahead. If you're not looking out the side windows of your car at an autocross, you're not looking far enough ahead.
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John Coffey
johnc@betamotorsports.com
