Timid Drivers

[fox46]

This reminds me of a quote by P.J. O'Rouke -

"There's a lot of debate on this subject - about what kind of car handles best. Some say a a front-engined car, some say a rear-engined car. I say a rented car. Nothing handles better than a rented car. You can go faster, turn corners sharper, and put the transmission into reverse while going forward at a higher rate of speed in a rented car than in any other kind."

I find a driver who is less in-touch with the mechanics of the machine is usually much more aggressive than one who knows about the aluminum sprockets, the half link between axle #3 and #4, the 7075 aluminum output shafts and other points of weakness. At the same time, a driver who knows of these weaknesses and is aware that the robot will still drive with 8/10 drive wheels, 7075 aluminum is nearly as strong as steel and the fact that we have a pile of replacement parts that can be swapped in a few minutes will likely do even better than the "disconnected" driver. The "informed" driver will also have an idea of how to keep the machine running in "limp" mode and has a more intimate knowledge of the design's capabilities and limitations.

In the end though it cannot be deduced to one characteristic - different individuals are better at driving than others.