Virginia International Raceway

“As you enter a corner, before you even get to the turn-in point, you should be looking at and through the apex. You have to know where you are going before you can know how much to turn the steering wheel at the turn-in point.”

Speed Secrets — Ross Bentley

Oak Tree corner at VIR is a fast, blind right over a crest. Bentley's vision principle is safety-critical here: your eyes must be committed to the apex before the car crests the hill. If you wait until you can physically see the apex, it is already too late to set the correct steering angle. Walk the track first to memorize the reference points.

“A car going uphill has better traction than one going downhill. Your goal is to do as much braking, turning, and accelerating as possible on the uphill sections, and as little as possible on the downhill portions.”

Speed Secrets — Ross Bentley

VIR's significant elevation changes are a strategic tool. The Climbing Esses gain elevation, giving you more traction for aggressive inputs. Conversely, the descent into the Horseshoe reduces available grip — brake earlier and lighter on the downhill approach. Use the uphill sections to push harder and the downhill sections to manage risk.

“There are two basic ways of using the brake pedal in brake-turning. The first is to constantly relax the pedal pressure as the car approaches the throttle application point. The second is by relaxing the brake pedal effort to a certain level and holding it there.”

Going Faster! — Carl Lopez (Skip Barber)

The heavy braking zones into the Climbing Esses and Horseshoe at VIR demand precise trail-braking technique. Lopez describes two approaches: graduated release works best for the single heavy-braking corners, while constant-level hold works better for the connected Esses where you are decelerating through multiple direction changes without a straight-line braking zone.