Steering with the pedals; why is this a foreign concept to most folks?

Because people today mostly learned to drive on on FWD or AWD cars, with pretty good suspension and pretty good steering racks.

I can convey the gist of throttle steer to most students by telling them to think about an entrance ramp, which is a constant radius turn. If they use too much throttle, the car starts to feel like it will fly off the outside of the corner. The student can usually take it from there.

Seems to me like car control is a psychomotor and vision thing. Some people pick it up fast, some don't. It took me a really long time, with really good instruction.

Also, I think the rear/mid motor P-car guys find trail braking to be a bit of a knife edge? I don't really drive those or instruct them.

JBasham said:

Because people today mostly learned to drive on on FWD or AWD cars, with pretty good suspension and pretty good steering racks.

I can convey the gist of throttle steer to most students by telling them to think about an entrance ramp, which is a constant radius turn. If they use too much throttle, the car starts to feel like it will fly off the outside of the corner. The student can usually take it from there.

Seems to me like car control is a psychomotor and vision thing. Some people pick it up fast, some don't. It took me a really long time, with really good instruction.

Also, I think the rear/mid motor P-car guys find trail braking to be a bit of a knife edge? I don't really drive those or instruct them.

I feel sorry for those who don’t live where ice covers the lakes and roads on a ruetine basis.  

If they did one afternoon on a frozen lake would teach them what lots of hours of instruction might not. 

@pinchvalve no worries dude, my parents grew up up in Queens NY so we speak our mind. Your version riled up maybe our version of friendly banter at the dinner table.

Most of my instruction is done at PCA track days. I trail the brakes in Porsches; the modern ones are very user friendly. As a generic rule the older the Porsche the earlier you pick up the throttle. I've even used trail braking in the two 356s I've driven on track, you don't need to do this deep into the corner but the laws of physics apply on turn in.

As for FWD I've driven some that are very edgy cars. Left foot braking counters a lot of the inherent issues with them.

I have to say I've been pleasantly surprised but the number of replies to this post. Always great to hear viewpoints from different levels of instructors and students.

frenchyd said:

JBasham said:

Because people today mostly learned to drive on on FWD or AWD cars, with pretty good suspension and pretty good steering racks.

I can convey the gist of throttle steer to most students by telling them to think about an entrance ramp, which is a constant radius turn. If they use too much throttle, the car starts to feel like it will fly off the outside of the corner. The student can usually take it from there.

Seems to me like car control is a psychomotor and vision thing. Some people pick it up fast, some don't. It took me a really long time, with really good instruction.

Also, I think the rear/mid motor P-car guys find trail braking to be a bit of a knife edge? I don't really drive those or instruct them.

I feel sorry for those who don’t live where ice covers the lakes and roads on a ruetine basis.  

If they did one afternoon on a frozen lake would teach them what lots of hours of instruction might not. 

I guess it couldn't hurt.  I grew up that way and it didn't help me much here in middle age, but then again I'm a medicore wheelman on the track.  Whatever, graduates of our program are ready to do fast figure 8s around two of your icefishing shacks and then constant circles at 60-degree oversteer around the third.