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Coach Rollbay, Athens (2025)

13/06/2025

"To succeed you just need to do so many reps that it would be unreasonable for you to fail."

Success on track doesn’t come from talent alone. It comes from obsession.
From doing one more lap when you’re tired.
From rewinding that onboard for the 40th time just to catch a micro-adjustment in steering.
From studying telemetry not to impress, but to understand.

In the sim, I spent years chasing tenths. Learning the language of grip, the rhythm of weight transfer, the art of commitment through blind corners, all before I ever smelled real rubber or felt the G-force on my chest.

When I hit the real track, I already knew the discipline. I had done so many reps, mentally and virtually, that adapting became instinctive. Left-foot braking, fast direction changes, trail braking into a medium-speed esses, all of it was prepared long before I ever laced up my race boots.

Reps build certainty.
Certainty brings confidence.
Confidence opens the door to speed.

Whether it’s midnight sim sessions, visualizing turn-ins in your sleep, or spending Sunday mornings diving into your own mistakes, the formula is the same:

Repeat with purpose until failure becomes unreasonable.

12/06/2025

MASTERING EVERY TYPE OF CORNER: The Key to Faster Lap Times

Every second on track is either lost or gained in the corners. Knowing how to approach each type can transform your driving. Here’s a breakdown of the most common types of corners and how to tackle them for optimal lap time:

Hairpin
Tight 180° turns that kill speed if done wrong.
✅ Brake hard & early
✅ Late apex for strong exit
✅ Smooth throttle on exit
🎯 Focus: Exit speed matters more than entry

Double Apex
One turn, two apexes. Control is everything.
✅ Brake in a straight line
✅ Flow through both apexes
✅ Throttle gently after second apex
🎯 Focus: Balance through the whole arc

Fast Corner (High-Speed)
Confidence and commitment required.
✅ Minimal or no brakes
✅ Early, clean turn-in
✅ Throttle modulation to balance the car
🎯 Focus: Trust your grip, stay calm

Chicane
Tight change of direction, easy to lose rhythm.
✅ Brake once before first turn
✅ Stay smooth and light on your feet
✅ Straighten the car quickly for early throttle
🎯 Focus: Make it one fluid motion

S-Section
Series of flowing corners, rhythm is key.
✅ Eyes on the final exit
✅ Maintain momentum
✅ Be light with your hands and feet
🎯 Focus: Connect corners, don't attack each one individually

Off-Camber
Corner leans away, grip is low.
✅ Brake earlier than usual
✅ Don’t overload the front
✅ Use all the track on exit
🎯 Focus: Stay composed, don’t force the car

Banked Corner
Track leans into the turn, more grip available.
✅ Use the banking for support
✅ Roll in with more speed
✅ Be aggressive with throttle earlier
🎯 Focus: Trust the camber, push harder

Constant Radius
Same shape throughout. Predictable, fast if clean.
✅ Late apex for best exit
✅ Steady throttle through the arc
✅ Minimize steering corrections
🎯 Focus: Perfect line = perfect time

Decreasing Radius
Turn tightens mid-way. Easy to overshoot.
✅ Brake early, trail brake in
✅ Adjust steering mid-turn
✅ Don’t rush the throttle
🎯 Focus: Be patient. Early throttle = wide exit

Increasing Radius
Corner opens up. Time to accelerate.
✅ Slight lift/brake at entry
✅ Early throttle as it opens
✅ Use full track width on exit
🎯 Focus: Momentum and throttle = Lap time

🔸 Eyes up. Look ahead, not where you are.
🔸 Be smooth. Inputs should feel like a dance.
🔸 Focus on entry discipline and exit ex*****on — that’s where the time is.

10/06/2025

📍Corner Entry: Where Lap Time Begins

In the world of lap times, corner entry isn't just the beginning of a turn, it's the beginning of everything. Your exit speed, your car balance mid-corner, and your ability to brake later all stem from how you approach the entry.

🔧 Technical Breakdown:

Brake Release Timing: Smooth, progressive brake release (trail braking) helps maintain front grip and rotate the car toward apex. Too early? You understeer. Too late? You overload the fronts.

Initial Steering Input: The way you turn in sets the arc. Rushed inputs create instability. Calm, precise steering lets the car load predictably.

Vision & Line Choice: Entry defines line. Late apexes give better exits, but sacrifice initial speed. Early apexes feel fast but kill exit velocity.

📊 Why It Matters: A clean corner entry lets you carry more minimum speed and apply throttle earlier. That means higher exit speed and more time gained down the next straight. A messy entry? You'll be slower everywhere, mid-corner and beyond.

💡Pro Tip: Study how your favorite drivers manipulate brake pressure and steering before the apex. That’s where the lap is built or broken.

08/06/2025

🛠 Car Setup vs Driving Style — What's Holding You Back? 🧠

You can spend hours tweaking camber, damping, or tire pressures… but if your inputs aren’t consistent, no setup will save you.

Likewise, even a great driver can’t extract the maximum from a car that’s not talking to them.

🔧 Setup gives the car the potential.
🧑‍✈️ Driving style unlocks that potential.

Too much rear grip? You might not rotate the car on corner entry.
Too little? You might compensate with early braking or hesitant throttle.
The result? The setup masks your habits or worse, reinforces them.

Here’s the truth:
If you're sliding in every turn, maybe it’s not the setup.
If you're understeering on turn-in, maybe it’s your release timing.
Start with your technique.
Then let the setup fine-tune your natural rhythm.

In my experience, I’ve learned more about setup after building repeatable habits. Once I could drive within half a tenth every lap, the car’s feedback started making sense.

📉 Data helps. 🎥 So does video. But the real magic is the loop between driver and machine.
Dial in yourself. Then dial in the car.

06/06/2025

Adapting Fast: New Car. New Track. Same Process.

Driving a new car on a new track is one of the most demanding things in performance driving. You don’t know the circuit’s flow yet, and you don’t fully understand how the car wants to be driven.

But the fastest drivers aren’t the ones who know everything, they’re the ones who adapt the quickest.

Here’s how I approach it:

🔹 Start with rhythm, not lap time
First laps are for information, not ego. Focus on vision, flow, and understanding grip. Look far ahead, be smooth, and don’t chase apexes too early.

🔹 Use braking zones to learn the car
Brake a bit early and trail off smoothly. Feel how the weight moves. Does the front grip? Does the rear want to rotate? Brakes tell you almost everything about balance.

🔹 Break the track into sections
Learn it in pieces. Understand how one corner leads into the next. Don’t try to nail a lap, try to master sequences.

🔹 Listen to what the car wants
Some cars want early rotation. Others prefer stability. Don’t force your style, adjust to what the chassis and tires are telling you.

My experience

First time at Serres with a BMW M2 Competition.
New track, new car. At first, I was overdriving, missed braking points, fought the rear, turned in too early. The car felt heavy and reactive.

But once I focused on rhythm instead of speed, it changed. I relaxed my hands, looked further ahead, and used trail braking to help rotate the car. Suddenly, I was flowing through Turns 6–7–8 with confidence, using the whole track and working with the rear instead of against it.

Adaptation didn’t happen in one moment, it happened lap by lap, corner by corner.

That’s what adaptation is.
Not just being fast, but learning fast.
Reading grip, trusting inputs, evolving every lap.

03/06/2025

Mental Reset: What You Do Between Sessions Matters

What separates the fast from the consistent, and the consistent from the elite, often happens outside the car.

The 10–15 minutes between sessions are critical. It’s not just recovery. It’s mental recalibration.

What Pros Do Between Sessions:

1. Disconnect Emotionally
Whether the session was perfect or messy, they reset their state. No overthinking, no hype, no frustration. Clear slate.

2. Visual Review, Not Just Replay

They mentally replay key corners, not the entire lap. Focused visualization builds corrections into the brain, before muscle memory locks in mistakes.

3. Anchor One Change

One thing. Not five. The best drivers don’t “try harder” next session, they focus on one ex*****onal change, based on data or feel.

4. Controlled Breathing

Even one minute of slow, deep breathing resets heart rate and brings sharpness. Calm body, calm mind, better inputs.

5. Let Go of the Stopwatch

Lap time isn’t the goal between sessions. Ex*****on is. Top drivers focus on what they can control, inputs, consistency, confidence, not chasing tenths blindly.

My Experience

In the sim and on track, I’ve seen the difference clearly.
If I just sit and scroll or think emotionally, I get slower.
But when I take a few minutes to breathe, mentally review, and decide one thing to focus on… I come back sharper, calmer, and more consistent.

Fast laps are built in the car, but the driver is rebuilt outside of it.

02/06/2025

The Day Everything Changed – My First Time at Serres Racing Circuit

Some moments in life stay in your mind forever. My first visit to Serres Racing Circuit was one of them. It wasn’t just another track day, it was a defining chapter. The first time I felt what it means to be truly connected to a car. The first time I realized that all the years of work, training, and dreaming were leading to this.

In December of 2021, I had the privilege of driving the F87 M2 Competition, a powerful rear-wheel drive machine that rewards precision and throttle control. I still remember the nerves, the adrenaline, the fire in my chest as I strapped in. But more than the car itself, what made this moment special was the person who made it possible: my friend Antonis, the owner of the M2. I’ll never be able to thank him enough for giving me this opportunity. Without him, I might still be wondering if I had what it takes.

That day, everything came together. The endless hours on Gran Turismo. The visualization. The mental reps. The self-belief. They weren’t just theory anymore. They came alive on the asphalt.

The car had just the right amount of improvements to handle the demanding environment of the racetrack, Pirelli Trofeo R tyres that offered serious grip, Öhlins Road & Track suspension that sharpened every response, and upgraded brake discs and pads that gave me the confidence to brake later and harder. Even the moderate rear wing made a real difference in balance through corners T3–4 and T13, helping the car stay planted when it mattered most.

When the session ended, the stopwatch stopped at 1:25.7. A very strong time for the car, and for a first outing. But more than the number, it was the feeling, of breakthrough, of realizing I could do this.

That day unlocked something inside me. It lit a fire that still burns. And it proved one thing above all:
You never know how far you can go until someone gives you the chance.
Thank you, Antonis. You helped me find my true potential.

That opportunity wasn’t just the start of my growth as a driver, it was the moment I knew that driving would always be a part of who I am.

29/05/2025

Braking Beyond the Basics: Les Combes Mastery at Spa

Most drivers think of braking as a simple process: brake hard, release, turn.
But at advanced levels, braking becomes a tool to manage weight, rotate the chassis, and set up the car’s balance before a complex sequence.

At Les Combes, this is critical.

Les Combes: A Case Study in Braking Technique

Les Combes begins with one of the heaviest braking zones at Spa from 250 km/h down to 100 km/h followed by two rapid direction changes across camber and curbs.

Success here isn’t about late braking. It’s about brake modulation, weight transfer, and control through transition.

1. Initial Braking: Commit Hard, Straight Line Only

You must hit peak brake pressure early and decisively, while the car is still straight. In the 992 GT3 RS, this initial deceleration phase uses massive aero load and carbon ceramic efficiency.

💡 Key tip: Don’t trail into the first apex. Get the heavy deceleration done before asking the car to turn.

2. Brake Release: Where Most Time Is Lost

The final 20–30% of the brake release determines balance. Releasing too quickly unloads the front axle too early, leading to understeer in the left-hander. Releasing too slowly keeps the front tires pinned, over-rotates the car, and creates instability over the curbs.

🎯 Target: Use a progressive taper on the release, soft hands, smooth pressure decay.

3. Direction Change: Use Weight Transfer, Not Force

Between the left and right turns, the car is unsettled. The right rear compresses hard as you change direction. Let the car breathe, don't force it. Use throttle only after the car lands and settles post-direction change.

🛞 Insight: In the RS, timing your throttle after curb compression avoids destabilizing the rear.

Exit Prep: Position for Flow, Not Just Speed

The final part of Les Combes feeds into a long downhill run. If you're still correcting the car here, you’ll kill your exit. Prioritize stability and position over raw minimum speed. Ιt’s about precision load transfer, chassis setup, and rhythm through complex transitions.

31/03/2025

"Built for Speed: Why Fitness Fuels Fast Laps"

Fitness plays a massive role in track driving, especially when you're pushing hard around the track. Here's why it's crucial:

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1. Physical Endurance

Sustained G-forces: Braking, cornering, and acceleration generate serious Gs. Your neck, core, and upper body need to handle that without fatiguing.

Heart rate spikes: During a session, your heart rate can easily hit 150–180 bpm. Without cardio fitness, focus drops fast.

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2. Mental Clarity & Reaction Time

A strong cardiovascular base means your brain stays oxygenated under stress.

Less physical fatigue = clearer thinking, sharper reflexes, and better decisions under pressure.

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3. Brake & Steering Control

Strong legs help with brake modulation, especially in a car with no ABS.

Core strength aids in precise steering and keeping steady in the seat.

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4. Heat Tolerance

Cockpits get hot. Good fitness helps regulate body temperature and reduce the toll of dehydration or heat exhaustion.

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5. Injury Prevention

A fit body is more resilient, less likely to tweak a muscle from high-load movements or impacts.

29/03/2025

"Mind Over Lap Times: Mastering the Mental Game of Time Attack"

In Time Attack racing, mindset can be the decisive factor that separates winners from the rest. Driving at the limit isn't just about technical skill; it's about cultivating a mental state that empowers peak performance, consistency, and resilience under pressure.

A strong, focused mindset enables drivers to handle stress, maintain clarity at high speeds, and remain adaptable to changing track conditions. Believing in your capability to constantly improve and beat personal bests—no matter the circumstances—creates a psychological advantage that's hard to replicate.

Drivers with a growth mindset view each lap, whether perfect or flawed, as valuable feedback. Mistakes become insights rather than setbacks, allowing rapid improvement and optimization. This positive approach helps maintain motivation, particularly when facing challenging conditions or competitive pressure.

Mental preparation for Time Attack includes visualization, goal-setting, and developing routines to manage stress and anxiety effectively. Visualizing successful laps conditions your brain to recognize success as achievable, enhancing confidence and performance on track.

Ultimately, the power of mindset in Time Attack driving is transformative. It turns pressure into motivation, challenges into opportunities, and uncertainty into a catalyst for peak performance.

Remember: Your mindset doesn't just influence your driving—it defines it. Master your mind, and you'll master your lap times.

28/03/2025

Mental Preparation – The Mental Edge

The Hidden Factor in Track Driving

As an amateur track driver, you might believe your lap times depend solely on horsepower, tire choices, or suspension setups. However, a critical yet often overlooked aspect is your mental state.

Beyond Visualization

Effective mental preparation extends far beyond visualizing the perfect lap. It involves conditioning your mind to manage nerves, maintain composure, and perform consistently at your best—even under intense pressure. True confidence doesn't emerge spontaneously; it is cultivated through focused practice, precise visualization, and disciplined emotional control.

Transforming Your Track Performance

Developing your mental edge transforms you from a capable amateur into a standout driver on track days. Remember, the foundation for your fastest laps is laid first in your mind.

Stay sharp, stay focused, and harness your mental preparation to unlock your full potential.

27/03/2025

From Virtual to Reality: My Ongoing Journey as a Track Driver

I’ve been obsessed with driving for as long as I can remember. In fact, my earliest “track experiences” happened on a PlayStation—flying around circuits in Gran Turismo since I was just seven years old. What began as a digital hobby evolved into a lifelong passion for finding every possible tenth, hundredth, or even thousandth of a second on a real-world race track.

First Steps on a Real Track

My first real-life track day wasn’t behind the wheel of a high-horsepower machine. Instead, it was in a K12 Micra Cup Car at the Megara circuit, a lower-power, low-budget race car that taught me a lot about handling dynamics and cornering precision. Without the safety net of raw horsepower, I had to focus on proper technique: carrying momentum through the corners, nailing braking points, and getting the most out of the car’s modest power.

I returned to Megara twice more in my own tuned Peugeot 106 Rallye. Despite being another relatively small and light car, it was big on fun and agility. Those early laps in the Micra Cup Car and my 106 Rallye laid the groundwork for everything that followed—helping me appreciate how, even in less powerful cars, driver skill can be the deciding factor on track.

The Leap from Sim to Real

For many aspiring drivers, the jump from sim racing to real-world circuits can be daunting. But for me, it felt surprisingly natural. All those hours spent in Gran Turismo honed my instincts, taught me the racing line, and gave me confidence in braking zones and cornering techniques—long before I ever strapped into a real car. When I finally took on the legendary Nürburgring in an M2 Competition three years ago, I managed a 7:25 BTG in just four laps. That first experience in the “Green Hell” only fueled my passion further, and I’ve never looked back.

A Lifelong Passion

I think about driving 24/7—visualizing the ideal line through a corner, imagining the sound of the tires at their limit, mentally rehearsing shift points. This mental approach is as critical to my performance as the physical act of driving. Every lap is an opportunity to refine my technique and find that last fraction of a second. Over time, I’ve realized that steady improvement comes from continuous mental preparation, rigorous attention to detail, and an unrelenting drive to be better.

Track Adventures and Cars Driven

Megara Circuit

Nissan K12 Micra Cup Car (first-ever track session September 2017)

Peugeot 106 Rallye (2019, 2021)

Nürburgring

M2 Competition

Serres Circuit

M2 Competition (December 2021)

991.2 GT3 (May 2023)

FK8 Type R & 991.1 GT3 RS (September 2023)

E92 M3, F87 M2 & 991.1 GT3 RS (December 2023)

E92 M3, M2 & GT3 RS (March 2024)

Spa-Francorchamps (August 2024)

718 GT4 RS & 992 GT3 RS

Each car and each track day brings its own unique lessons. I love discovering how different models behave on the limit—the precise steering of a Porsche GT3 RS compared to the raw torque delivery of a BMW M2, or how a front-wheel-drive hatchback like the FK8 Type R tackles corners compared to a rear-wheel-drive M3.

Training the Mindset

Most of my preparation happens off the track. Even when I’m not behind the wheel, I’m fully immersed in the mental side of driving:

Visualization: I mentally picture each turn and braking zone, aiming to feel the g-forces and hear the tires.

Consistency: My goal is to deliver high-level performance right from the get-go. By mentally rehearsing laps, I can “hit the ground running” every time I head out.

Adaptation: No two laps are identical. Even small changes in track temperature, tire wear, or fuel levels can alter a car’s behavior. I stay ready to adapt and refine on the fly.

Refining Every Lap

Track driving is a constant cycle of improvement. For me, the “perfect lap” is always a work in progress, because each day on track reveals something new—be it a subtle line adjustment or a fresh insight into how the car responds to throttle inputs.

1. Analyze: Reviewing onboard footage or data logs after a session helps identify areas to refine.

2. Focus: Decide on one or two elements to improve in the next session (e.g., a certain corner’s turn-in point).

3. Execute: Put those adjustments into action, then re-assess and refine further.

Looking Ahead

I’m already counting down to my next track session. Every time I go out, I aim to push my limits just a little further and learn something new—about myself, about the cars I drive, and about the art of racing. That’s the beauty of track driving: the evolution never stops, and neither does the passion.

If you share the same obsession for shaving off those last milliseconds—or if you’re simply curious about the transition from sim to real-life racing—I hope my journey resonates with you. Drive safe, stay inspired, and keep chasing that perfect lap!

Coach Rollbay

13/06/2025

12/06/2025

10/06/2025

08/06/2025

06/06/2025

03/06/2025

02/06/2025

29/05/2025

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