For most North Americans, driving manual is extremely intimidating. Europeans on the other hand, came out of the womb shifting their own gears but this doesn’t make them a Pro Driver.
Being able to drive manual on the street, and on the racetrack however, are two completely different things. On the track, one must downshift with the smoothness of an angel. One bad downshift could lock up the car’s drive-wheels and send you careening off the side of a racetrack in no time.
The trick is to downshift during the braking zone, while blipping the throttle in order to get the revs up for the next gear. How is this all this crazy footwork accomplished? I’ll let Pro Driver Randy Pobst take it from here: