Stories of Epicentricity from the weekend at CMP?

#61

Jon, your right that was an “interesting” right side pass. I mean, looks to me like he had plenty of room to pass in the dirt on the left side instead.:woohoo: All jokes aside, she did not care at all, looks like there was plenty of room to make the pass safely and all is well.

On a different note- (no reflection on your statement)

I generally believe that the discussion of incidents should be reserved for the parties involved unless something constructive can come of it. Otherwise, speculation, accusation or other theatrics interfere with reality.

Unfortunately, several people had issue with turn 11, myself included. I wanted to find out exactly what happened so as to be conscience, and hopefully prevent it, in the future.
Here’s another perspective of that Bermuda Triangle.
http://vimeo.com/16636393

Bonehead?

#62

After a year away from racing, I was really looking forward to the Turkey Trot and IFU4 weekend. I was doing alright up to the point where my weekend was cut short. Slamming into Chuck on the first lap of the race was not part of my weekend plans :S

I got hard into the brakes going into T11, and my car just seem to keep going. I had already moved to the inside and didn’t have the option of going off on the outside without taking Patton out. So with no real options, I was just along for the ride until my front right made impact with Chucks front left… hobbled though the grass then turned the car off for fear off making things worse. Sitting in my car behind the flag station between 13 and 14 for the entire race was pure hell. Especially having to see Chuck’s car sitting on the outside of 14. I just got to sit there and feel like total sh!t.

The whole situation was bad… I had ruined my weekend and possibly another’s. Then the legendary camaraderie of this group showed me why the worst weekend with NASA Southeast is better than a good day anywhere else. When I got my car parked, all I wanted to do was find Chuck… I didn’t bother to more than glance at my damage as I headed off into the paddock. When I returned from talking to Chuck and filling out my first body contact form, it (my car) was up in the air, David had brought over some parts and everyone was giving me moral support and encouragement.

With help from Chris, Scott, David W, Al, Travis, Jim L and just about everybody that was paddocked in the general vicinity of my car, I was able to get the control arm and tie rod replaced just as everyone was heading out for the IFU. The car had some extra camber but it was back together and I thought I might just make it out there. I suited up, started to back the car up only to hear some hellish tire rub :frowning: turns out I’ve got a bent strut or knuckle or something… the racing for my weekend/year was over.

So my weekend sucked. But I still had a good time. It was great getting to catch up with everyone (old and new). Y’all have fun next month at Road Atlanta… be safe and have fun

peace-

#63

FYI,
When I had my big shunt a couple of years ago one of the first guys (out of many) to help me was Scott Mc. This is a good group…

Now for your comic relief, the view from mid-pack…
http://vimeo.com/16864106

#64

Scott -

The t-shirt and logo still kick ass. If you need a strut/knuckle, door and/or fender let me know. They are yours if you need them. If I am not home, just grab them from under the screen porch. :wink:

#65

Fred42 wrote:

[quote]FYI,
When I had my big shunt a couple of years ago one of the first guys (out of many) to help me was Scott Mc. This is a good group…

Now for your comic relief, the view from mid-pack…
http://vimeo.com/16864106[/quote]

Nice driving Fred! You almost had a very large white stripe on your car… How about Sunday’s video?

#66

Thanks!
re: video - working on it…

#67

Walsh:

It was still a fun pass attempt. The main problem with high speed dive bombs to the inside is you wind up with a tiny little radius for the turn and the car won’t make it with the extra speed. That appears to be what happened to you. Tracked all the way to the outside on turn setup, you probably would have had enough room to take that speed and at least make an honest effort to get to the apex, although, given your speed and brake point, I suspect you may still have gone wide.

All of that is my observation from a 20 second video and memory of a race from three weeks ago, so feel free to disagree at will.

Can’t wait to do it again soon.

-Scott

#68

As much as I hate to admit that I agree with McKay :frowning: - he is right.

I have been racing since before my son Brandon was born and I have yet to see a high speed dive bomb pass stick - it’s just the laws of physics.

#69

wildhorsesracing wrote:

I saw Mario Andretti do it in an F1 car at Long Beach 30 years ago (I seem to remember it was an Alfa F1 car at that). He braked so deep and pushed the opponent so far out they appered to almost come to complete stop.

Of course, that was Mario, not Walsh :stuck_out_tongue:

#70

I’m not going to pile on. My observation is that almost every significant metal-to-metal contact in our class happens during a 3 wide event. Rarely do all 3 drivers know they are all there. When racing amateurs, 3 wide is by definition a low percentage move.

If Jason had known Walsh was barreling down the inside, I don’t think he would have moved Palacio over (hope I got the players right, I am going from memory). He would have backed out, let those two slow each other to a crawl at the apex, then re-passed them into the next turn.

I think every single person on the grid has tried a move like that. Sometimes we get away with them, sometimes not.

#71

Man I hate to think of it as a dive bomb, as that to me, indicates an wild impossible attempt.

This was a pass that I had no issue with multiple times early in the day. I’m not for a min suggesting that the fault was not mine in its entirety, however I know that straight line braking would not have resulted in the same. It seems much like 10a at Road Atlanta where in almost every close race we are late braking with someone. McKay and I had a great race at the last one and ran almost every lap that way. CMP 11 is of course a tighter turn I realize but calculating your braking is the same no matter where.

This was simply not the time to have attempted the pass. To much going on there to early in the race.
Learned something here and hope to pass it along…

#72

I think everyone just needs to chill out on the starts. I’m not sure I blame our experience level entirely. Watch an F1 race… they hardly ever have a start that doesn’t eat a car or two. The difference is we don’t have crews of 15 fixing it after we bang it up. That fender comes out of Christina’s birthday present this weekend. :stuck_out_tongue:

#73

evanlevine3233 wrote:

F1 drivers have to make aggressive moves to keep their jobs.

We need to avoid aggressive moves so we can go to our jobs on Monday.

How about this for a working definition of a dive bomb: (a) any pass that requires the passee to take an evasive line through the turn that is more than 1 car width from the normal line and/or (b) results in contact before the apex.

That same pass works fine if 2 drivers are involved (and aware). It almost invariably fails when 3 wide.

Walsh took the blame and learned something. Kudos!

#74

Steve D wrote:

[quote]
I think every single person on the grid has tried a move like that. Sometimes we get away with them, sometimes not.[/quote]

I’m not sure I agree!! Maybe that is the difference between mid-pack and the pointy end of the grid? I’d never risk wrecking my car to make a low percentage pass!! It took every spare penny I had over three years to get the car to the grid. A good weekend for me is loading it back on the trailer Sunday afternoon. At the rear of the field we lift and give position.

FYI the CCR does have position and passing rules it’s a good idea to memorize them.

BTW: I’d race side by side with you Steve any day

#75

87isMan wrote:

I agree with Greg.

I can’t afford to fix dents and broken control arms. At the moment I can even afford to show up. I am saving my pennies to try to make a run next year with the ultimate goal of getting to nationals next year. Some of you will see me at Road Atlanta in Dec but working as a volunteer with Pantas crew, not racing.

Don

#76

Greg, goober moves happen throughout the pack…it is not just a front pack thing. Should we institute the “Rick Mariani” award for upcomming events?

There have been many discussions about contact going on behind the scenes and there is a “scoreboard.”

I would suggest that if you’ve been involved in an incedent this year that you default back to the good ole CCRs and consider what your status going forward would/should be.

Myself included.

And, this is likely not a good topic for a message board as the words printed and the context are often two differemt things. It certainly should not be a thread hijack of this one that talks about the good spirit of our hobby.

RP

#77

Patton wrote:

[quote]Greg, goober moves happen throughout the pack…it is not just a front pack thing. Should we institute the “Rick Mariani” award for upcomming events?
[/quote]
That’s a great idea. We’d need to do it with a sense of humor, and I don’t know if naming it after a particular person is the best idea. We could have an award that is presented at each Sat night awards ceremony based on who has the most contact points in the series. The current owner of the award brings it to each event and sometimes they end up keeping it because they are still the contaact points leader and sometimes they get to unload it on to someone else because folks got frisky. We encourage Jim to make a big joke about it and everyone would laugh but there’d be an undercurrent of seriousness that would make it work. We could call it the “ceremonial ass-hat” or something.

A rear brake disk would make a fine ceremonial ass-hat.

#78

That’s an excellent idea - I would suggest that we keep the award in the NASA hauler because sometimes an “ass-hat’s” antics might result in them taking a few events off to repair the damage. Ideally it would be a lifesize lightweight statue or cardboard cutout that we can pose the winner’s face into - we’ll have the ass-hat award hold a copy of the picture with the Driver’s name in their hand - kind like the statue of liberty - the statue of ass-hattery!

#79

I don’t know if there is enough room in the NASA hauler for all the asshat awards that were needed at CMP based on the videos I saw.

I don’t like the characterization of an “award” for the most aggregious driving. Maybe the person could be called in front of the crowd to receive his sticker that must be displayed on the rear window of his race car.

Perhaps we can make a version without the word (for those of us with small children). Sounds like another creative job for McMennannammannammy.

#80

Steve D wrote:

[quote]
I don’t like the characterization of an “award” for the most aggregious driving. Maybe the person could be called in front of the crowd to receive his sticker that must be displayed on the rear window of his race car.[/quote]
IMO it would have to be done with a sense of humor in order for the idea to work. The right blend of funny and not-so-funny has to be acheived, or instead of having a life of it’s own, it will turn into just an admin burden on NASA-SE. Calling this an “award” helps make it work. Think of the name in the context of Darwin Awards.