TESTIMONIAL FROM CARL FREDRIK HERSOUGĀ
I've always felt like I had a somewhat weak mentality when it comes to sim racing, so I was very happy and ready for the opportunity to be coached by Benedicte. At the same time, I have lived a few years and know myself. I've been competing my whole life, and I already know a lot about what doesn't work for me. To give a couple of trivial examples: superstitions, where you have to wear the same underwear or perform some rituals before racing, don't resonate with me. Nor do repeating mantras like "I'm the best" or "I'm going to win." I feel like I have enough insight to know when I might be the best, or at least close to it, and if I'm not, then saying I am doesn't help.
I explained all this to Benedicte, and she took on the challenge right away. She has many more tricks up her sleeve and is able to find what works for each individual.
One of the first things she succeeded in was making me realize that even though I thought I was putting in the effort needed to perform my best, I actually wasn't. It wasn't even about the amount of training, but about optimizing what you do. So I changed my plans to a setup that is more perfectly tailored to my conditions and plays to my strengths. I experienced firsthand that this not only had an effect on my driving technique but also gave me greater peace of mind in my work, knowing that I had the right conditions to work through setbacks along the way.
Next, Benedicte tackled my challenges with nervousness. I also got some preparatory tricks here. Even though I may never fully "get rid of" the nerves, I still felt a greater belief that I would deliver and not embarrass myself on race day. I don't think I've ever felt so confident in a qualification before - I just drove as usual, and counted on one or two laps being good enough. And sure enough, both the first and last attempts were good enough for pole position. A curiosity: Usually, I like to have all the information available and maybe calculate the risk based on others' times. However, before the last attempt this time, it felt more right to turn off the black box and just "do my thing, and then the result will be what it will be." Then I could enjoy two moments: 1. Improving my own time. 2. Checking afterwards that it held for pole position.
I can also mention the race start. I had gone through many scenarios beforehand, and what actually happened I already had "under control." So I could actually relax out of the first turn and feel that I had the peace of mind to find my rhythm. Such a brief moment of peace I can't remember having in a close race before. So progress on two different fronts when it comes to nerves, that wasn't bad for a first attempt!
