Machine Love Track‑Talk Glossary
Whether you’re threading cones in an empty parking lot or hammer‑down in a forest stage, racers speak their own dialect. This quick‑hit glossary decodes that language—apexes, chicanes, joker laps and all—so you can picture the course in your head before you even buckle in.
A
- Apex *(clipping point, clip, hit the cone) – The innermost point of a corner where you aim the car before unwinding the wheel and accelerating out.
- Early apex – Turning in too soon; sacrifices exit speed.
- Late apex – Turning in a touch later to straighten the exit and carry more speed.
- Armco *(guardrail) – Steel crash barrier lining the edge of many permanent circuits.
- Approach – The segment just before a braking zone or cone element where you set up the car’s line.
B
- Banking – An intentionally raised outer edge of a corner that creates positive camber and extra grip.
- Berm – A built‑up dirt or gravel ridge found on rallycross tracks and stage roads, sometimes used to “rail” a turn.
- Braking marker *(100 board, 3‑2‑1 boards) – Countdown boards or cones that tell drivers how far they are from a corner’s braking point.
- Braking zone – The stretch where you scrub speed before turn‑in.
C
- Carousel – A long, constant‑radius, usually banked corner (think the Nürburgring’s famous Bergwerk Carousel).
- Chicane – A quick left–right or right–left sequence inserted to slow cars on a straight.
- Chicago box – Autocross element: four cones in a rectangle that drivers enter, wiggle through, and exit.
- Crest – Rally term for the brow of a hill where the road briefly goes light; may hide a corner, jump, or braking zone.
- Curb / Kerb *(rumble strip) – Painted, serrated concrete at a circuit’s edge; used to maximize track width.
- Cut *(clip the corner, shortcut) – Using every inch of inside pavement/dirt—sometimes two wheels off‑track—to shorten the corner.
D
- Dip – Sudden depression in the road that loads suspension and unsettles braking.
- Double‑apex – One bend with two distinct clipping points, often joined by a tiny straight.
E
- Esses – A flowing S‑shaped series of turns.
- Exit – The corner phase where steering unwinds and throttle opens fully.
F
- Flying finish – Rally term for the electronic timing beam at stage end; drivers stay flat‑out past it before braking for the stop control.
G
- Grid – Designated rows and columns where cars line up for a standing start.
- Gravel trap – Deep pea gravel bed beyond pavement designed to arrest out‑of‑control cars.
- Groove – The grippy, rubbered‑in racing line on a paved track or the clean “swept” line on a dirt stage.
H
- Hairpin – A very tight U‑turn, typically ≤ 180 degrees of steering arc.
- Handbrake turn *(Scandinavian flick, e‑brake turn) – Shorthand for rotating the car with the rear brakes in low‑speed rally hairpins.
J
- Joker lap – Rallycross‑only: one alternate route each driver must take once per race, usually longer to mix strategy.
- Jump – Man‑made table‑top or natural rise that can launch cars airborne.
K
- Kink – A gentle bend taken flat‑out on a straight.
L
- Liaison – Non‑competitive transit section on public roads between rally stages.
- Line *(racing line) – The theoretically fastest path through a series of corners.
M
- Marbles – Loose rubber balls that accumulate off‑line; like driving on ball bearings.
- Merge – Where the joker lap rejoins the main rallycross track; a hot spot for drama.
O
- Off‑camber – A corner that slopes away from the apex, sapping grip.
- Over crest – Pace‑note shorthand meaning a corner or braking zone arrives immediately after the hilltop.
P
- Paddock – The parking/working area where teams set up between sessions.
- Parc fermé – Secure impound where rally or race cars are sealed so they can’t be worked on.
- Pit entry / Pit exit / Pit lane – Segments that govern safe speed when diving in for service on a circuit.
- Pointer cone – Autocross cone laid on its side to show direction through a gate.
R
- Rally stage – The closed‑road, timed competition segment in stage rallying.
- Regroup – Scheduled wait in rallying to bring cars back on time and allow media/fans access.
- Rumble strip – Tall, aggressive curb designed to deter extreme corner‑cutting.
- Runoff – Paved or gravel safety real estate beyond corner exit.
S
- Sausage curb – Tall, rounded “hot‑dog” curb placed inside corners; hits bumpers hard if you shortcut.
- Service park – Rally paddock where full maintenance is allowed during fixed time windows.
- Slalom – Autocross row of evenly spaced cones driven left‑right‑left, testing rhythm and weight transfer.
- Split – Intermediate timing point in rally stages; teams track time gains/losses here.
- Square left/right – Rally pace‑note for a 90‑degree turn.
- Straight *(front straight, back straight) – Self‑explanatory high‑speed section; often named for the pit lane it parallels.
- Sweeper – A long, fast, constant‑radius bend.
T
- Table‑top – A flat‑topped dirt jump common to rallycross.
- Time control – Rally checkpoint where crews clock‑in; arrive early or late and you’re penalized.
- Turn‑in – The steering input that begins corner entry.
W
- Water splash / Ford – A shallow stream crossing a rally stage; soaks radiators and thrills spectators.
Odds & Ends
- “6 left over crest into 4 right tightens 3” – Example pace note: open sixth‑gear left, then fourth‑gear right that tightens to third‑gear mid‑corner.
- J‑turn, Scandinavian flick, Moon‑prepare – Advanced maneuvers some grassroots racers use; add these if your audience wants stunt‑driving lore.
