[sperry]

First of all, on a scale of 1 to 10, 1 being your generic arcade racer, 10 being real life, Toca is about a 4 on the realism scale. GT4 is also about a 4. GTR, GT-Legends, rFactor, are about 7's. I wouldn't take anything from the "fringe" aspects of a racing simulator as a way to practice or try out new driving techniques.

Second, in real life, with modern tire and suspension technology, you will *never* be faster on tarmac e-brake sliding the car that you would be driving with grip. Even those fancy rally drivers that like to e-brake turn 1st gear hairpins are probably not going any faster than they would by just driving the corner with a proper apex. Sliding would only be faster in a corner that would require a 3 point turn otherwise.

Finally... if you're just getting into racing, concentrate on the basics. There's no need to complicate things by trying to drift or e-brake turn, etc. There's already so much to do just picking your line, picking your gear, shifting, braking, steering, looking ahead, being smooth, etc. I've been racing for 4 or 5 years and I've still got more to do than I can concentrate on with just basic techniques alone.