a semi you are passing blow a tire
Steering away from debris
a loose trailer tire coming over the center retaining wall
You'd see it sooner and have more time to react
a tree branch falling in the road way
same thing - see it sooner.
If it's THAT close...left foot, right foot, ain't gonna make a lick of difference. You got a new sunroof either way.
if using a left foot braking only saves you a millisecond
I used the argument presented further up the thread...and the timeframe presented.
the reaction you note above requires one to first see and focus on a problem, interpret that a real problem exists, calculate the best/preferred course of action to mitigate the problem, and finally take the correct physical action. All those milliseconds add up, and those responses vary in time needed among the driving public.
Exactly my point - which is why, as
I learned on a track, on a motorcycle, running with MotoGP riders, that you look as far forward as you can. You learn to PREDICT. You learn to RECOGNIZE potential hazards. You move a lane further from that semi, or you step on the gas and spend less time next to it in the first place. You make reactions muscle memory -
automatic - and that cuts your reaction time DRASTICALLY.
Rely on your observation of the situation - it's called
situational awareness - for your safety. Not some "trick" to save time at the controls. There's a REASON that the "right" way to drive an automatic, is with your right foot only. Many reasons, actually...not least of which being, it eliminates (well, nearly - depends how big your feet are) the chance of pressing the wrong pedal, because you have to move your foot to the pedal you want in the first place. But, if you get used to two foot driving...you don't have the
muscle memory to make sure the foot you're pressing on, is on the right pedal in the first place. And in a panic stop situation...honestly tell me you don't plant BOTH feet through the firewall.
How often do people pull out in front of you, in traffic, and you have to jam on the brakes? Me? It NEVER happens. Even on my motorcycle, when me and my entire vehicle are eighteen inches wide and nearly invisible to other drivers.
Bullshit, you say. I can hear it from here.
But, it's not.
Because I pay attention, and I see it coming. I look at the wheels on cars at intersections - if those wheels are turning? I assume they're pulling out, and cover my horn, or start to slow down, or change lanes to avoid their potential path when they pull out. And if they aren't turning...I STILL assume they're pulling out. I may only cover the brake instead of using the brake; I may not change lanes...but I'm on alert and I'm ready and I've got my escape route figured out. Same thing for "unpredictables" - I mentally rehearse these things while I'm driving. I know what my reaction will be, depending on where the danger comes from and what my surroundings are (other traffic, guard rails, shoulders, trees, pedestrians, etc). Can you predict it all? Nope. That's why they're called
accidents. Best you can do, is prepare yourself for it.
And again, there's a reason the "right" way to drive - the way we're all TAUGHT to drive - is using only your right foot. And the TRUE reason most race drivers left-foot-brake? Isn't for better braking. It's for better ACCELERATION - they can pull out of turns faster if they don't have to move from the brake to the gas. Obviously it's different on dirt tracks, where you use the brake/gas balance to control chassis placement and sliding...much like balancing front and rear brakes on a motorcycle can help you control turn entry and exit by way of how they affect the chassis and suspension behavior. But, last time I checked....we aren't (or shouldn't be) driving so close to the limits on public roads, that we have to "set up" the chassis for a turn entry or exit.
We are taught to use our right foot only, for a reason. "Tricks" like using both feet...well...it reminds me of a line in a movie.
If the shortcut was so great, it would just be "the way".
