“Learning to drive a rally car is like climbing a ladder. Every step represents one of the infinite range of variables a rally driver can encounter and is a piece of invaluable knowledge.” Bill Gwynne

The first professional rally driving school in the world

Bill Gwynne founded Bill Gwynne Rallyschool International, the world’s first professional rally driving school. He taught more rally drivers than any other rally driving coach and is the only professional rally driving coach with a student, Japanese driver Toshi Arai, to become a World Rally Champion.

The Rally Ladder

He uses the metaphor of climbing a ladder to explain the process of learning rally driving techniques. Each step represents one of the infinite range of variables a rally driver has to learn.
Every rally driver climbs a ladder of experience and they don't stop climbing the ladder until they stop rallying. Top drivers never stop learning, they are always looking for the next step to give them an incremental advantage, the gaps between each step getting smaller the longer they compete.

Invaluable knowledge

Every step is a piece of invaluable knowledge and the range of variable elements a rally driver needs to acquire knowledge of is considerable. This means the number of steps on the ladder is infinite, combining driving techniques, co-driver, pace notes, rally car, tyres, driving surface, weather, mechanical knowledge, mechanical sympathy and speed.

Complete each step fully

The key to acquiring as much knowledge of as many of these variables as possible is to complete each step fully, before moving on to the next step. This is particularly important on the initial steps.

Don’t miss a step

It is possible for a driver to jump from step one to step five and still be fast, but at some stage in their career they will need steps two, three and four. Without them there will be a hole in the ladder and they will fall through the hole. ©Bill Gwynne Rallyschool International Ltd

The ideal place to learn

A rally driving course is the ideal place to begin the climb and complete those particularly important initial steps. The benefits to developing the knowledge of rally driving’s core techniques in rear wheel drive, front wheel drive and four wheel drive cars is significant, irrespective of the car you are going to compete in. Every little piece of learning adds to the total sum of your skill development, there for you to use as required in competition.