Talk:Supercheap Auto Bathurst 1000/@comment-5051924-20161010200900/@comment-27893266-20161012163212

Average speed is calculated the actual way --- distance traveled divided by the time taken.

So if you take a trajectory that allows you travel a bigger distance (for instance, taking the outer way on the corners) whilst keeping a hgher instantaneous speed, you'll finish your lap with a bigger average speed.

In the other way, if you try to use the normal ways to lower your lap time --- trying to get the tangent of the inner line on the corners --- you'll also lower the traveled distance, and may eventually low down your average speed.

In neither cases, the reference track length is not used to calculate the average speed