(energetic music)
- Hey guys and welcome back to our YouTube channel.
Today we're gonna be discussing
how best to deal with pressure.
Whether you're at the front of the field,
or even the mid-pack, there's gonna be karts around you
that want your position on the track.
So they're gonna be into the side of you,
into the back of you, or trying to play games with you.
So we're gonna try and teach you guys some key lessons
that you can best prepare for your next upcoming race.
Let's get stuck into it.
So the first lesson I wanna help you guys out with is,
don't get caught up with other people's noise.
So what I mean by that is,
if you're lining up on the grid or in a lap to a race,
and you're getting that old mate behind you,
bang, bang, bang into your bumper,
they're just trying to play games with you.
They're trying to get stuck into your head,
trying to put you under pressure
so that when you get into a race,
you either let them by, which that's what they want
or the next time you go into a race and you're behind them,
then you start to retaliate
and now all of a sudden they've got you in their head
which you don't want to do.
So if you do feel a kart, bang, bang, bang to your bumper,
try not to get caught in the emotion.
Yes, they are annoying.
They're trying to put you off your game.
But as soon as you start looking around, they start to know,
you know what, I'm getting stuck into Dave's head
which is something you don't wanna show any weaknesses of.
So just try and take it all in your stride,
just try and basically,
bang, bang, okay.
If they keep doing it, keep doing it.
Maybe you wanna brake check 'em a little bit.
Just let 'em know, hang on mate.
Stop doing what you're doing,
but try and get caught up in what they're doing to you.
They're only trying to put you off
and they're trying to almost use as a scare tactic
so that you're gonna try
and let them pass a lot easier as well.
Hold your ground.
Be confident in your ability, and the way I try
and look at it is
if someone's trying to put in the pressure before a race,
I'm trying to get in front of other karts that I can
before they can actually get to me.
So I know if there's a spot
in front of me that opens up, bang,
I gotta take it because if I don't take it
then that old mate behind me who was tapping me
he's gonna try and take my position as well.
So use it to your advantage and try and think,
if I can get my way past these two or three karts
in front of me before they can
I'm never gonna see that driver in a particular race.
Now, the second pressure point that you might be receiving
is from actually in the pits.
So it could be from your parents,
it could be from your mechanic, or could it be from some of
your mates who are trying to almost, you know
"you've gotta be winning this race,
or you've gotta be passing that competitor,"
and it can get you quite down.
I know plenty of times I've copped it from
my dad or my cousin, James, like
"Come on mate, come on, Dave, you can pull your finger out.
You're not passing this guy at the end of the straight
or you're just playing follow the leader."
And you start to doubt yourself.
You start to get really down, like far out.
You know, I know I can do better.
Now, one of the things now when I'm coaching,
I can see the kids are down.
Most of the time they know their mistakes.
So they come off the pits, they come into the pit lane.
They may have known they didn't pass in the last lap
or they left the door open, a kart went past them.
And so they're disappointed already in themselves.
So there's no point in me then hammering that person
that kid going, "Mate, what are you doing?
You effed up this, and you're stuffed up there,
and you left the door open here."
And all of a sudden the weight
on this kid's shoulders just going, just bang
and pushing this kid down.
Confidence is dipping down
the next time they go out and race.
They're nervous to make mistakes straight away
because they're gonna cop it
from their parents, or myself, or whoever it is,
their friends, wherever it may be.
So you don't need any of that extra pressure on you.
So the way you wanna try
and get around that is by writing some notes down.
So if you, if you know yourself.
I made mistakes on the first lap,
I should have just defended turn two
because now let two or three karts pass.
So you write down yourself.
So next time you go and race, the chances are
you're gonna minimize a lot
of those mistakes that you may have just made.
Now, all of a sudden, your mechanic,
your parent, your friends, aren't saying,
"oh, Dave you just let that door open at turn two."
They're gonna say, "That was a good job.
I remember last race you left the door open."
And then you're not making those mistakes.
So straight away, they're building a confidence back up.
They go, "Mate. That was a good job."
Not like, "oh, you did that wrong again."
So just that small change of you writing
some notes down and you improving on yourself
and those little mistakes that you may have previously made.
All the sudden now, it's all flipped.
There's confidence rather than weight on your shoulders.
And you can drive a lot more freely
and that's gonna help you out on the track.
And our last point, when it comes to dealing
with pressure is, if you are the front go kart
and you're starting to have to look behind a lot.
Now, if I'm the chasing driver, I can see straight away
that the driver in front of me is starting to get nervous.
They're under pressure.
They're trying as hard as they can
but they don't have any more speed to give.
So if you start to give a couple of love taps
out of the corner, or you're starting to just peak your nose
onto the straight, even if you can't quite pass
then they're starting to over defend.
'Cause they're like far out, I've got no more pace to give.
And this driver behind me is really
trying to get their nose in or trying to overtake me.
So you start trying to force them into mistakes,
whether that means you're trying to make them over defend
or by constantly looking over their shoulder.
There's a lot more opportunities
for them to make mistakes that you can then pounce on.
If you're the lead driver,
what we're trying to say is don't look behind too much
because straight away you're giving that drive behind you
that sense of you're struggling
or you don't have anymore to give.
So if you can feel a couple of love taps,
rather than...you know they're there.
So there's no point in looking over your shoulder
because there is someone tapping you from behind.
They're literally on your bumper.
So by looking over your shoulder,
that's a weakness sign.
So what we're trying to say is,
if you feel a couple love taps
just taking your stride, yes, they're there.
Try and keep hitting your markers.
Now also try and use your senses around you.
Even if you don't feel a couple of love taps,
you can sometimes start to hear
or as you're turning, you can start to
just see in your peripheral vision the car behind you.
So there's no need to look behind.
And that's why if you start focusing
on what's happening behind you
the chances are you're not gonna be pushing that limit
and hitting your marks constantly
because you are more worried
on what's happening behind you rather
than what you can control, which is your particular driving.
So try and focus on what you can,
which is hitting your marks, hitting your apexes,
getting off throttle nice and early where you can.
Brake as late as you can using every square inch
of the track wherever possible,
rather than bang or love tap, look behind.
Bang or love, tap, looking behind this way.
You know they're there, don't show them any signs
and try and focus on your own ability.
So that's it guys on how to best deal with pressure.
Now it's not easy.
I've been on both sides of it.
I've been trying to put other drivers under pressure.
And I also caught a lot
of pressure from 25 years of driving.
And now the further up the field that you get,
it's the mindset and the mental edge that can get you always
towards a point rather than getting there.
Once your racing gets too hard, bang.
I'm back into fifth or sixth.
Try and creep back up there, bang something else happens
and I'm falling back down to 10th.
It's having that strong mindset
and that mental ability to take everything
on board and learn from your mistakes.
That's what we're saying.
Write some notes down.
If you do make mistakes, try and learn
from 'em and use it almost as a positive.
And don't get caught up in other people's noises and games.
If they're tapping in the bumper
or they're constantly trying to put pressure on you,
don't focus on what they're doing too much.
Focus on your own ability, believe in yourself,
and if you have put in the practice in the hard yards
the chances are you can do it, and you gotta
believe in yourself that you can.
So hopefully you guys have enjoyed this episode.
If you've got any comments down below on how
you best deal with pressure in your situation
then drop it down below.
So we're gonna try and answer and help respond to you guys.
Remember click subscribe.
If you've enjoyed this episode and you don't
want to miss any future episodes
I'm your host, 18 time Australian Champion David Sera.
I look forward to chatting you guys next time.
Cheers.