This thread has some really good beginner advice. I personally am still running 1:38:88 on default setup. There's a lot of things here I need to try that will potentially get my laptimes lower. One thing I learned yesterday was "trailbraking." It's gained me almost 2 seconds on my laptime, but is this something you'd recommend for beginners considering this sort of thing forces me to brake hard and late into turns? (Though, it's allowed me to get on the gas earlier out of the turns, so it CAN'T be bad.)
Also, I'd like to "illustrate" how my normal BL lap goes (considering I'm not at home to upload my laps):
into T1, I seem to brake hard at about the 100m marker (but smooth I hope) while downshifting to 2nd. By the time I'm at the apex of that turn, I hit it to 50% - 80% throttle, and by the time I touch the left side curb, I'm at 100% throttle, and shifting to 3rd through the first part of the chicane making slight wheel adjustments to get through it.
At the end of the straight I start braking hard and downshift to 3rd (but hopefully smooth again) at about 200 - 150m marker. I do the trailbraking thing into the turn, and by the time I get to the apex, I'm 100% throttle. I swing out to the grass part of the curb, then lift off the throttle going into T4 I guess it is.
I'm at 100% throttle halfway through this turn so that I swing out near the wall at the second split time. I shift it into 4th right at the split time.
Coming to the pit turn, I brake hard again at the 50m marker, downshift back to 3rd. And 100% throttle onto the grassy part of the curb by the pit entrance.
I shift up to 4th coming into the left turn before the uphill climb, then back to 3rd again when I get there. This seems to be a difficult turn for me. I lift off the throttle, and kind of feather it until I get through the left turn and floor it to the right turn and straight. It feels like I'm going too slow uphill in 3rd. Maybe I'm not applying throttle early enough, something I'll try when I get home.
Where can I make improvements from this? (Or would it have just been easier to upload a lap)