Monday, September 22, 2008

Using Mychron 4 Data to Win Kart Races

Arnaud Kozlinski was on pole for the final at the 2008 World Karting Championship, followed closely on the grid by karting guru Davide Fore. What did these guys have in common?

They were both running Mychron 4 data logging systems with the Aim GPS module attatched. You can easily spot the guys using the AiM GPS system because the antenna is stuck at the top of the nassau panel and sticks out like a sore thumb!

Now, at the end of the race it was Tony Kart who were triumphant after Kozlinski retired from the front, and Tony Kart have invested big into Data Acquisition themselves.... choosing the rather pricey Pi system.

Anyway, my point is that you can use the same Mychron 4 GPS system as the CRG and Maranello teams use at the World championships, because it is a relatively inexpensive system and more importantly very simple. You can literally plug the GPS module straight into the back of your MyChron 4 and it will immediately produce high quality speed traces, g forces and beautiul track maps with your racing lines.

With that information you can look at any point on the track and see your exact speed. This means you can compare your fastest lap with other laps and see exactly why it was faster. And even better, you can dig out instances when you 'accidently' took a corner extra fast and figure out why. Then you can go out and recreate that method and find time.

I have now helped drivers perform miracles at Mychron 4 coaching days doing just that. With the GPS module I can ask a driver to do a 15 lap session, and home in on an occasion when he found a tenth or two in one corner (even if the lap turned out to be junk). I can then figure out why that corner was so qick by looking at the speed of the kart and the line he took, and ask him to do it again, combined with the methods he used to make a quick lap already. That's how you find yourself getting very close to lap records.

I can safely say that if you arent running a system like Mychron 4 with GPS then you are throwing away faster lap times. I can't survive in the kart coaching business without it now and I recommend you buy one. I got my system direct from the importers here AiM MyChron4 GPS