Jackie Stewart said that braking is the last thing a driver learns to do well, but that doesn’t mean we can’t start doing it decently now. There are some basic concepts to cover, and a little bit of technique to study, but the initiate should be able to digest every bit of it with a couple hours of practice.

We must make our inputs smoothly. This is a tenet of racing taught by every single racing school and track day outfit across the world. However, if not fully explained, it might mislead drivers in the braking department somewhat. True, the brake pedal is released smoothly, but the initial application of the brake should be done as forcefully and deliberately as the grip available will allow.

Threshold Braking

As the car is moving quickly, it has more weight to transfer to the front axle than it has at a slower speed. Therefore, the initial phase of the braking zone—we can divide it into three phases—is where the brunt of the braking takes place. Transferring this weight to the front presses the front tires into the pavement, thereby giving the front axle lots of grip. As the speed bleeds off, our overall level of grip diminishes somewhat and we need to release the pedal accordingly.

We try to keep the car straight, build up to peak braking pressure almost immediately and maintain this pressure for a period of time. As we get nearer to the turn-in point, we will begin to release the brake pressure slightly until we’re able to fully release the brake pedal and either coast or begin to reapply the throttle. This is threshold braking in a nutshell.

To be clear, this doesn’t mean we necessarily stab the brake as hard as possible, but instead of building up the pressure linearly, we try to reach peak pressure very early in the braking zone. The softer the suspension and the lower the grip level, the more gradually we need to build this pressure up, but even in a stock Volvo, the ramp builds relatively rapidly, then tapers off.

Overcoming Fear

Pushing the brakes to the point of lockup worries some drivers, and rightly so. However, it is something which can be overcome. What we need is a sense of how much grip is available for braking, and what we must do if we apply more braking pressure than the tires can handle.

If we have ABS, we can use it as a tool to show us where the limit is. Find a longer straightaway, ensure nobody’s behind, and then apply the brakes as forcefully as we dare. Eventually, we’ll feel the ABS intervene. The more sensitive drivers will notice how the ABS intervention point will change depending on how warm the tires are. If they’re cold, it is fairly easy to trigger the ABS, or, for those of us without ABS, lock tires.

We tend to recall force application and resistance levels quite well, which means that a few stabs at the middle pedal, assuming we’ve got our analytical minds working, will give a good idea of how hard we can brake—and we can replicate this corner after corner. If we’ve got the mental reserves to observe how well our car slows, we can begin to approximate just how long we need before our car slows to a reasonable speed.

If we overdo it, we must cadence brake. This is true whether we have basic ABS or not. Cadence braking is the process by which we relieve the braking system of some pressure to allow the tires to roll again.

While reducing the braking pressure mid-lockup seems counterintuitive to the beginner who’s terrified their car isn’t slowing as fast as it usually does, it’s not as scary once it’s been practiced a bit. Once we sense the fronts have locked, relieve the pedal of some pressure until the tires begin to roll again, then press it again. Some pump the brake, while others roll their toes inside their driving shoes. Either technique works.

There are two things to remember during a lockup:

We must unlock the tires quickly. Not everybody has the presence of mind to accept that their tires are locked, but the sooner we can react to that telltale shriek or a noticeable slide during braking, the sooner we can address the problem.
Once the tires are rolling freely again, we must reapply enough pedal pressure to slow the car, but not so much to re-lock them.

The first attempts might result in embarrassment and a flat spot or two, but those are small potatoes compared to head-on with the wall.

Of course, it helps to have some wiggle room when getting acquainted with this counterintuitive technique, so finding a safe spot with plenty of runoff is important.

To figure out where to actually brake, we should start by braking on the verge of lockup or at the point of ABS activation. If we brake hard at certain point and we’re still over-slowing the corner, we have a lot of space left.

The next lap, we should move the braking point several feet deeper and brake hard again. Using that same brake pressure, we push the point nearer to the corner until we're almost missing our turn-in point. Then, we smoothen the brake release and balance the car toward the apex. Now we know the real braking point.

Saving a Spin

We must also recognize the time to embrace full lockup. There are occasions when, due to low-grip conditions, an unbalanced platform, and/or poor vision, improper braking will cause a spin. In these instances, we must remember to try and use all the braking power at our disposal to slow the car. “In a spin, two feet in,” the old adage goes.

Though the previous section explained how to avoid excessive lockup to continue going quickly, once we’ve gotten into an irrecoverable spin, our objective changes—we aim to avoid hitting anything stationary. To do this, we need to lock our brakes to bring ourselves to a halt as quickly as possible; the time for cadence braking is long past us.

Unfortunately for ABS-equipped cars, the ability to fully lock the wheels under deceleration is, at best, limited.

The Right Dose

Cadence braking is not always appropriate. Certain corners do not require much deceleration, and will often punish it. A fast kink usually does not need this sort of abrupt application because the emphasis at higher speeds is on maintaining a “flat” platform. Braking too hard will shift the weight forward, thereby unloading the rear and promoting some instability. Instead, we “rub” the brake in preparation for these faster corners if any braking is necessary.

A shorter, softer application of the brake is what’s needed—and a spike of pressure must be avoided. As we turn into the corner, we will typically return to the throttle to help stabilize the rear. Whereas lockup is the issue we typically concern ourselves with in slower corners, destabilizing the rear is what we must avoid when nudging a car gently into faster corners that do not require us to bleed off much speed.

Generally speaking, the faster the corner/the more obtuse its angle, the less a major deceleration moment is beneficial. In other words, the speed change required is usually minimal in these types of corners. Therefore, the braking moment must be relatively short and gentle so as not to overslow the car and to avoid loading the nose too heavily. Prolonged unloading of the rear at higher speeds is likely to destabilize the car, as it is more pitch sensitive at higher speeds.

Loading the Nose to Facilitate Rotation

There are times when loading the nose for a long period of time and encouraging a little rotation at the rear is beneficial—usually when entering a slow, tightening corner where some mid-corner yaw will help straighten the car sooner. Because the corner is relatively slow, this slide will not incur serious penalties if it gets out of hand; slides are more easily caught at slower speeds.

Unfortunately, delving deeper into this will have to wait. This falls into the realm of trail-braking: an advanced technique which deserves an article of its own. Hold your horses—we’ll get there soon enough. Until then, get out there and find some time by stepping on the anchors a little more assertively.

Braking Basics Explained: How to Find Time on the Anchors

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