This is bad advise and bad technique. You are accelerating towards the car in front until your "commit" point when you either move out or you hit them. However all this time you are increasingly limiting your view, your options, other cars view of yourself etc. If when you do move out, in the meantime, a car has exited an unseen junction you are now well and truely screwed.

Start from a safe distance back that makes the car you are overtaking smaller in your vision, thus not obstructing the view ahead. Wait for a suitable bit of road when you can clearly see it is clear to pass (because you aren't up the guy in front's ass). Now indicate (if not already), MIRRORS, shoulder check and move out into the oncoming lane giving you a much better view way down the the road ahead on the off side. Also blocks a double pass on you.

Should anything feel off or spook you you can now simply move back in. (You can keep a wheel in your old lane if you worried about the guy behind filling your spot).

Now accelerate, always conscious of a bail out plan. Depending on circumstances it is usually always better to abort, even after what seems to be the point of no return and tuck back in. A botched aborted overtake is always better than wearing a semi in your face. There will be a point when it will take less time in the danger zone to complete the overtake than to abort it.

Don't be afraid of the wrong side of the road. I'm not sure about US law, but there is no law here saying we have to drive on the left. It says we must allow oncoming vehicles to pass on our right. There is a distinct difference. The line in the centre of our roads gives you a hazard rating for crossing it. More white line means more risk. Widely spaced dashes means low risk. Solid white line on your side means DO NOT cross, it's illegal.

Play on the wrong side of the road to desensitise yourself out of the fear. It just like any other bit of road, except it has potentially oncoming vehicles, but you can always move back.

Most of the roads around my neck of the woods are small, single lane country roads. Twisty, full of crests, dips, blind bends, junctions, farm lanes and are lined with hedges and trees. You learn the art of picking your overtakes well.

EDIT: The other reason your plan sucks is... what do you do if when you have accelerated towards the overtakee and when it comes that time to move out or hit them, you spot a biker or a faster car overtaking you?

LOL. Cota does not strike me as a place that plays to the Twin's strengths. Every reasonably long straight ends in a tightish corner. I was trying to get any idea of what cars passed you, but they went by so fast I couldn't make out all of the makes/models. :iono:

Let's just say the slowest car in my group was a stock and stripped Mini Cooper S on Hoosiers.

But momentum car. ;)

Excellent points. Well said.

Pretty much textbook. :iono:

Except for "your plan sucks." -5 for flinging poo.

I agree completely with your last sentence. Yet, I see no reason to wait until I am in the oncoming lane to make use of my right foot. If you don't know what's in the oncoming lane of traffic, you are not sufficiently situationally aware. There is nothing in what I said that compels you to wait until the last instant before moving over into the other lane. The goal here is minimize drama, not increase it. If one finds oneself aborting a pass, that qualifies as drama. Not good. Better planning is the answer.

I'm not in any position to debate English traffic laws, but I'm pretty sure in the states I've lived in the left (for us) lane of a two lane is for passing only. If you're not passing, you should not be there. I'm sure if I'm mistaken someone will correct me.

Here, we don't have many single lane roads. A solid line (yellow in most places) you don't cross. At other times (dashed lines) you may cross the center line to pass, but at your own risk.

I'm sorry, but the idea of playing in the oncoming lane to "desensitize" my self to the "fear" of being there, strikes me as lunacy. One ought to know what is over there and if they and other drivers play their parts they will, hopefully, never meet. If you find playing there invigorating or desensitizing OK - just please do that on the other side of the pond from me.

Edit: aren't we the clever one. As noted, if you don't know someone is setting up to overtake you or what is in the oncoming lane, you're not pay enough attention. In the end, if you don't like the approach, by all means do not adopt it. As I said before, the goal here is to minimize the potential for problems. You think this doesn't do that and I should spend time "playing in the oncoming lane" to "desensitize" myself to being there. Hmmm. I rest my case.

I am getting tired of combative and pompous posts probably. There has been too many lately.

I think I did see them.

I have heard this several times even from other twin owners...It seems some people don't actually enjoy driving and getting this car was probably not the right decision. This explains someone saying nonsense things like "it's too slow I can't pass easily or it needs an SC or Turbo kit.".... Don't mind them, nod, smile, point to the nearest mustang dealership and enjoy your drive home.

From the video, it looked like your car was the slowest car in your group...


:scared0016:

Aah but I was not the slowest driver.

Two BMWs with twice my HP drove slower than me, I'm guessing they were newbies to COTA or just playing it outrageously safe.

What state (of tune) is your car in? From what I could gather, it's stock mas o menos.

This thing must be move it to random thought thread, at least with that have enough material until the weekend