Does anyone else find themselves turning in their best laps while "zoned out"?

  • Thread starter Thread starter JawsV8
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JawsV8

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JawsV8
When I'm grinding for money or experience, it often gets boring, and my mind will start to wander. I'll start thinking about the many things going on in my life, and then suddenly glance at my lap times to see I was just KILLING it without even paying much attention. Just letting the car flow with the track. I've accounted for my very best laps this way. This in turn pumps me up, so then the next lap I'll pay close attention, try my hardest--and turn in a slower lap. Kind of disturbing!

I guess it's true, racing is truly a "zen" thing!
 
Same for me. I was in that kind of state when I made my first fast lap on the Nordschleife without crashing.
 
I feel you dude, I will just kind of snap out of it and look at my times and be like, wow that was like 3 amazing laps, then i'll think about it and try to do it and my pace falls off.

Overthinking the attack on the apex and stuff, sliding off tires into the grass here and there, pushing too hard...

I wish I could force myself to zone out every lap :D
 
My best lap times have always come about an hour before I decided I need to go to bed. I learned all the way back when GT2 came out that when I was almost conked out was the best time to do licence tests.
 
I'm with JawsV8 on this - I can lap consistently fast on GT/F1/V8 Superstars when thinking about life, the universe and everything. As soon as I start concentrating, I end up going wide, going off and overthinking my performance.
 
I wouldn't exactly say being zoned out but more about getting oneself relaxed and in a rhythm while driving. I tend to be at my best when I'm driving that way but there is a point in which I go too far and I get sloppy since start to get sleepy.
 
I find that I get better lap times without distractions (i.e. wife and daughter), and after a bit of practice on any given track. Once I zone out, I usually continue running consisent lap times just on muscle memory alone. It's gotten to the point now that I've started playing with the track creator just to cleanse my pallet (as it were). Once I know the coarse and I zone in, lap times drop between 4-6 secs.

When I zone out, I get sloppy.
 
The fastest...no. The fastest are still done while concentrating hard. But my zoned out-laps are surprisingly consistent. When you "wake up" and found you have driven 2 or 3 laps without any memory, but all a couple of tenths apart, that's frightening.
 
Brain only slows your reaction times :)

I feel like floating without thinking while I'm doing that :)

Maybe its something similar as Senna stated (Going outside your body )
 
Zoned out I am more consistently good, But I have to focus for great laps. It is all about being calm; if you push hard you'll make a mistake but, if you just fall into a grove you'll be consistent.
 
snowgt
The fastest...no. The fastest are still done while concentrating hard. But my zoned out-laps are surprisingly consistent. When you "wake up" and found you have driven 2 or 3 laps without any memory, but all a couple of tenths apart, that's frightening.
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👍
 
Same. I managed to lap 4 times around the Nordschleife CLEANLY like that once. I was amazed when I snapped out of it =P
 
This is a condition whereby your conscious thought is not interfering with your impulsive reactions.

Your sub-conscious is very quick. It reacts and makes decisions faster than you can think them. Like how you react if a tiger jumps out at you from behind a bush.

Sometimes you can reach a state whereby you're not really concentrating on what you're doing, and your sub-conscious is making decisions without any input from you slower analytical thinking.

This effect is noticeable in other games too. Particularly in fighting games, sometimes it's almost like you're not even watching the screen. I mean you're looking at it with your eyes but you're not really concentrating on it. Then suddenly you realise you've won the last 2 rounds perfect and you can't even really remember what you did.

From what I've seen some people are better at letting their instinctual sub-conscious lead in their reactions.

After Stirling Moss had his big accident he was never again on the pace, and eventually retired from racing. His reason: that after the crash, he was having to think about what he was doing, where’ as before it had been instinctual. That made him too slow to be competitive at the level he was used to.
 
This happens for me sometimes, the other day I was on the phone with my gf and just cruising the ring in my 458, paying more attention to the phone, and I looked up after a while to see I had beaten my previous best time by over 6 seconds :odd:
 
I've noticed when I'm racing, I've got three modes:
Normal, concentrated racing. I'm able to put in very fast laps, but they are inconsistent. This is mainly due to me experimenting with different styles on the fly.

Zoned out. My laps here are right about a half second to not slower than concentrated, but I am very consistent. When I'm worried about messing up, I think about other things.

Trance mode. This only happens on long races, I simply stop thinking. As a result, I post the fastest laps and most consistent laps, but it's kind of boring for me, so usually after a few minutes of this, I goof off and start drifting.
 
There is something to what you mention.

It relates to the term sometimes used in racing, that "you have to go slower to go faster".

This is usually associated with actually being smoother and less aggressive at times and will result in better lap times.
 
BarronGeddon
This is a condition whereby your conscious thought is not interfering with your impulsive reactions.

Your sub-conscious is very quick. It reacts and makes decisions faster than you can think them. Like how you react if a tiger jumps out at you from behind a bush.

Sometimes you can reach a state whereby you're not really concentrating on what you're doing, and your sub-conscious is making decisions without any input from you slower analytical thinking.

This effect is noticeable in other games too. Particularly in fighting games, sometimes it's almost like you're not even watching the screen. I mean you're looking at it with your eyes but you're not really concentrating on it. Then suddenly you realise you've won the last 2 rounds perfect and you can't even really remember what you did.

From what I've seen some people are better at letting their instinctual sub-conscious lead in their reactions.

After Stirling Moss had his big accident he was never again on the pace, and eventually retired from racing. His reason: that after the crash, he was having to think about what he was doing, where’ as before it had been instinctual. That made him too slow to be competitive at the level he was used to.
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Great stuff here. It's a fine line between concentration but yet not over-analyzing.
 
dtn23
This happens for me sometimes, the other day I was on the phone with my gf and just cruising the ring in my 458, paying more attention to the phone, and I looked up after a while to see I had beaten my previous best time by over 6 seconds :odd:
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let's be honest here... you weren't paying more attention to the phone call...
 
"Zoned out" but "zened in", I think. Especially true at Nordschleife where I'm getting better results online when I play it cool and take a bit of distance instead of pushing and trying to overtake at any cost. It's better to wait for the opponents to make a mistake.
 
eran0004
"Zoned out" but "zened in", I think. Especially true at Nordschleife where I'm getting better results online when I play it cool and take a bit of distance instead of pushing and trying to overtake at any cost. It's better to wait for the opponents to make a mistake.
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And they make alllllll kinds of mistakes on that track. Just running a consistent, smooth lap, you can finish first because most people will overdrive it. imo
 
Its related to the fact that good racing is never about stomping the brake, gas or wheel. All smooth motions. I know I also have logged best lap times when 1/2 zoned out too.
 
I saw the 24 hours of Nurburgring doc. with Kaz or something else, can't remember exactly. He even said he started zoning out after so-so laps and he felt like he was one with the car and everything was just flowing.

This was before GT5 was released. He said he wanted to be able to translate this feeling into a game, because he never experienced it in a game. Goal accomplished? for others, at least?
 
I find I get my fastests laps when racing somebody online, I become so focused on getting around the other driver that my lap times come dramatically down, although it may be because I'm able to get draft :P
 
I always watch a movie on the computer. Makes time go by faster, and I do seem to pull my best laps times while I am paying more attention to the show.
 
Genuinely interesting thread, here. I reckon it's happened to me a few times, but not enough for me to notice it.

In my uni holidays coming up soon, I'm hopefully gonna do the 24 hours of Nurburgring in one sitting. I'll be sure to focus on zoning out. [If such a thing is possible.]
 
Surprisingly, yes.

I think it's all down to just being relaxed when racing. If I can't keep a focused and clear head, it's going to be a disaster.
 
Nice topic.

I do get more fast AND consistent times when "zoned". But I always get my fastest laps when I'm consciously pushing it. Once I consciously push in a lengthy race though, I usually always overanalyze the lap and am more prone to mistakes. :(
 

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