Jim Clark was the greatest F1 driver of his era – perhaps the greatest of all time.
It’s true that the Lotus series in the mid to late sixties was ahead of its time (although it suffered reliability problems) – but Clark also had that extra something that we have seen in the past decade from Senna and Schumacher.
I was privileged to see Clark in action around the U.K in the sixties, not only in Grand Prix races, but also in sports and saloon cars. In those days drivers thought nothing of entering the “warm up” races on the same weekend or even day of a GP. Clark would often be seen throwing a Ford Cortina or Galaxy around Brands Hatch before the big race of the day. Even greater than the thrill of watching him in Formula One was the sight of his extraordinary technique with these saloon cars unfettered by wings, slick tires or specialised suspension. He applied a similar technique to the Lotus.
Clark was (like Schumacher is now) visibly faster than any other driver and his approach was patently different. Nearly all the other drivers approached a bend in roughly the same way: Outside approach, hard on brakes, brakes off, turn to apex, power on and slide back out to the exit.
Jim Clark developed a different style which paid off: He would brake much much later than everyone else, at the same time turning gently towards the apex. He would still be braking at the apex, then on came the power and he would execute an exquisite power slide out the exit. His initial cornering speed would be slightly slower than normal, since he had less road to work with, but the late braking and his much higher approach speed and unsurpassed control throughout the corner compensated this.
I would stand at the trackside watching him for hours during practice, observing him trying to find the best possible line on each corner. Sometimes he would do what looked the impossible : he would brake so late that you thought he couldn’t make it, but he always did. His natural flair and individuality stood out a mile – yet he was a shy and modest man. His tragic death at Hockenheim, and the death of many others of the same era in Motor Racing, is a reminder of how desperately vulnerable cars and drivers were before the advent of sand traps, circuit safety and safer car construction.
Clark’s technique is quite possible to try in Grand Prix Legends, and may give you an advantage especially in cars where you can get away with braking hard whilst slightly turning in. Personally I find the Lotus in GPL very twitchy – I wonder whether the real Lotus was that difficult to handle. Try this technique first with a more docile car like the BRM!
-- Robert Young
r.young@lineone.net
The above is an excellent description of a technique known as "trail braking", which is taught by the Skip Barber Racing School, among others. It's a common technique now, but apparently Clark was one of the first to use it.
See my Driving page and the Discussion section of Steve Smith's Advanced Setup Guide for more information about driving these cars.
-- Alison