Meanwhile in NASCAR

57stratdawg

Heisman
Dec 1, 2004
148,358
24,133
113
Because it's more exciting..?

Do you want Indy car racing where a car might win by 5 seconds? No. Restrictor plate racing is the most exciting form of racing there is, and I don't even watch that much NASCAR.
 

xxxWalkTheDawg

Redshirt
Oct 21, 2005
4,262
0
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What leaves me dumbfounded is that they say its the only way to slow them down to a safe speed.

Now I'm a fairly knowledgeable gear head as I like to build a hot rod to keep around for a while till I want something else and I tell em how to slow them down and on the cheap. Here is what you could do on the "restrictor plate" tracks.

1. Take those 20 - 30 thousand dollar cylinder heads off the engines and run ones that are available directly from the aftermarket by one manufacturer for all makes. These could be bought for 4-5k assembled with parts ready for those engines.

2. Mandate 87 octane pump gas at restrictor plate tracks. This would force engine builders to lower the compression ratios of the engines and back off engine timing and would result in less horsepower.

3. Open those grill openings back up. In fact open more than ever. More drag = less speed.

4. Reduce the size of the throttle body size of the engine. Has the partial desired results of a restrictor plate without the effects of it.

Boom. There you have it. Daytona and Talladega like it was in the 70's
 

kired

All-Conference
Aug 22, 2008
6,986
2,277
113
Have you been too one? It's the most boring 3-4 hours of your life followed by about 10 minutes of excitement.

Went to dega about 5 years in a row and finally decided I'd had enough. I'd rather go to about any other race than go back there. I'll never forget the Busch race one year when about 75% of the field wrecked early in the race and they had less than 10 cars on the lead lap for basically the entire race.
 

msuJD164

Redshirt
Dec 1, 2008
1,043
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I love Dega

Go every year in the spring. Id be pissed if they changed it. The speed and thunder is what makes it. Unless you go to Dega, you dont know Dega
 

RocketDawg

All-Conference
Oct 21, 2011
18,917
2,028
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Not much of a NASCAR fan, but ...

isn't the objective in racing to go as fast as you can, and faster than all the rest? Or is it to see who is the best driver with identical cars?
 

WrapItDog

Senior
Aug 23, 2012
4,297
706
113
I have attended races pre restrictor and post. Pre restrictor was good racing but small packs of cars and sometimes only a few cars on the lead lap with a sling shot pass on the last lap to win.

Early restrictor (the best) with stock car bodies and a few more cars in the pack racing for the win. Cars had the horsepower to pass with out bump drafting and it took some strategy and and being in the right place at the right time to win.

Now. With the new cars every one is so equal in HP and airo you may as well have two 20 car 25 lap heat races with a final race of 25 cars for the feature may the best lucky man win.
 

Big Sheep81

Freshman
Feb 24, 2008
2,133
55
48
It was crazy-stupid...

In Jr's interview after the race you could tell he was shook up and pissed. Can't say I blame him. He and shrub #2 had raced their asses off to get back on the lead lap and then got wrecked. You could see that coming after the late cautions.

He was right about one thing; that was a lot of $$$ tore up at the end. If that is what NASCAR and the fans want, then they should figure the cost of 25 tore up race cars into the ticket prices.......
 

TUSK.sixpack

Redshirt
Mar 3, 2008
2,548
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TUSK asks the 6pack: Which was the more costly wreck???

A)


OR

B)
 

57stratdawg

Heisman
Dec 1, 2004
148,358
24,133
113
Yeah, I've been to Dega two or three times. If that's your stance, getting rid of restrictor plates is only going to make it worse. Because you'll have a car leading the field by a quarter of a mile.

If the final lap has 3 lead changes, 10 cars with a shot at winning, and the 75% of the field finish within 1 second of the leader, that's as exciting as auto racing is going to get.
 

xxxWalkTheDawg

Redshirt
Oct 21, 2005
4,262
0
0
For all but two tracks, yes. But if you took the reigns off the cars at Talladega they would be running 220+ mph. You can't run that speed like Indy car due to the huge disadvantage in aerodynamics and downforce in NASCAR. At that speed you would be getting wrecked cars and parts in the stands along with more driver deaths.
 

Big Sheep81

Freshman
Feb 24, 2008
2,133
55
48
Dale Sr, had the answer back before he died. He said to dirty up the

aero on the cars and take the restrictor plates off. The trucks are the best racing at Daytona and Talledaga. The aero on them is horrible and you need engine and throttle response to race. You would think NASCAR would take that approach with the cars.
 

FlabLoser

Redshirt
Aug 20, 2006
10,709
0
0
For all but two tracks, yes. But if you took the reigns off the cars at Talladega they would be running 220+ mph. You can't run that speed like Indy car due to the huge disadvantage in aerodynamics and downforce in NASCAR. At that speed you would be getting wrecked cars and parts in the stands along with more driver deaths.

My only Dega race was the one where Bobby Allison got airborne and mowed down some fence in front of the grandstands.

http://espn.go.com/racing/nascar/cup/story/_/id/7874497/nascar-talladega-87-changed-sport-forever

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DUnvd7-hZRE

He started getting airborne right in front of me. Then got into the fence about a 100 yards later. Then all smoke. Then the smoke clears and a lot of fence is gone. Pretty scary.

There has to be some kind of medium. Yesterday was 50 cars running 4 wide in unison. Train wreck waiting to happen. Surely there is something between that and a single car winning by a quarter mile.