from http://linux.gatewaybbs.com.au/~dta/habits.html
(GOOD) HABIT # two. Take left foot support on the footrest whenever
you brake or steer.
Left foot support when braking or steering helps you retain good
balance (posture), which produces less fatigue and greater control
in an emergency.
In normal driving your left foot should be firmly placed on the
foot rest.
-------------------------
from
http://www.sidorovprecisiondrivertraining.ca/default2.asp?active_page_id=115
Left
Foot Braking-yes or no?
Many motorists are in the habit of using the left foot on the brake
pedal, in the belief that this will confer a performance advantage.
Quite a few of these folks reveal what they are doing to alert
observers, because the brake lights are always on or flicker in
erratic patterns. This could cause premature brake wear.
I use left foot braking in certain racing cars under specific
circumstances, but right foot brake in my road car. For one thing,
I'm not trying to make the chassis perform tricks, at the limit of
adhesion, in my day-to-day driving. The other major point
is that in a racing or rally car the driver is strapped in with a
five- or six-point belt, so is pretty much locked into position.
This permits a bit of latitude with the feet, since no matter how
hard the car is braked the driver's backside will remain in
position. That is not the case with even the best road
cars.
Here is the problem. Okay, you've decided left foot braking is the
way to go. You are braking hard, whether for a tight corner or to
avoid an obstacle. This varies according to vehicle, but you will
begin to slide forward in the seat. First, it will make it
harder to control brake pressure accurately. Beyond that, you are
going to have to hang on to something for support, and that will be
the steering wheel. Left-foot brakers invariably push back from the
wheel in an emergency stop, since it's the only way to keep the
upper body in place.
The problem created is that it is now much more difficult to steer
with any precision. If the emergency manoeuvre, or even tight
corner, require accurate steering, your ability to do so will be
compromised.
Most production roadgoing vehicles these days have at least a
vestigious dead pedal, or foot rest, off to the left side.
That is where the foot should be parked, with the left leg muscles
tightened just enough to add support.
There are a few exceptions to the right-foot
braking rule, but this mainly involves low speed off-road stuff,
like rock crawling, or getting an automatic gearbox equipped car
rolling in low traction conditions. Barring that sort of thing, the
mantra we use in advanced driver training, barring physical
infirmities that might prevent this, is brace, not brake, with the
left foot. If you want to do otherwise, consider something like the
CG LOCK, a very clever device that permits you to lock the lap belt
in such a way as to have some of the effect of a racing
harness.
-------------------------
from http://everything2.com/index.pl?node_id=666341
Apply pressure with your left foot on the footrest (If you are
driving a manual there may not be a footrest - in this case it is
ok to push in the clutch pedal and brace on it for emergency
stops). This will prevent all of your weight from pushing down on
the brake pedal, meaning that you will have more control over the
braking pressure (and also provides a good argument against left
foot braking where bracing is impossible).
-------------------------
hmm i guess it's pretty much established in all defensive driving
materials that your left foot should be on the foot rest for
support in braking, cornering, and day-to-day driving and to use
only the right foot for accelerating/braking.
u will understand it if u try to corner at a high speed, pressing
the footrest relieves your right foot of pressure from the
centrifugal or centripetal force and allows you to regulate your
acceleration in a turn.. and brake pressure also..
correct me if i write anithing wrongly i'm tired -.-
