v8 supercars

[Dozer]

I didn't get to watch any of this weekends events but I'm surprised to see that Aaren Russell won the V8 utes. A mid-level Dunlop series driver - first race in a ute, first time on the track, and still scooped the trophy. I wouldn't have thought the drivers of the utes would have been that much slower than the dunlop drivers, but perhaps I was wrong!

Competitive miles in a car that requires more skill will usually see you go alright in a lesser category (as you've just pointed out). That kind of thing just shows the input is pretty big in the V8 Supercars.

Good event, good racing, los of action. Great to see Tekno win on Saturday, they drove a solid gig.
I dread to see what will happen when (not if, when) a stadium truck barrels through the catch fence and lands in a crowd. They are a good show but the potential for those things to end up in your lap is huge. I think it's up to the organiser to put the jumps in places that doesn't see them elevating so high and far. The jump outside the pitlane in Surfers was a good hundred feet in the air!

 

[hach_bee]

I dread to see what will happen when (not if, when) a stadium truck barrels through the catch fence and lands in a crowd. They are a good show but the potential for those things to end up in your lap is huge. I think it's up to the organiser to put the jumps in places that doesn't see them elevating so high and far. The jump outside the pitlane in Surfers was a good hundred feet in the air!

There's very, VERY tight restrictions on where the jumps are allowed to be placed and various risk factors that determine locations. One of those trucks hitting the fence will do less damage than a v8 doing the same though. The illusion of risk is a high selling point though. On the SST's, check out the whiplash in the slow mo of Brabham's crash - OUCH! (skip to 0:59 to watch)

[video=youtube_share;4_kQtRFGXLw]https://youtu.be/4_kQtRFGXLw?t=59s[/video]

 

[thatsnotme]

The jump outside the pitlane in Surfers was a good hundred feet in the air!

100 feet?? Man, that's a good 30 metres vertical - there's no way they got that high! Lucky if they hit 30 feet.

Those trucks are nothing but a roll cage, engine and wheels - pretty much the same as any other race car. They also don't hit anything close to the speeds that the Supercars hit. The safety barriers on course would be more than capable of stopping those things.

 

[willsy01]

check out the whiplash in the slow mo of Brabham's crash - OUCH! (skip to 0:59 to watch)

[video=youtube_share;4_kQtRFGXLw]https://youtu.be/4_kQtRFGXLw?t=59s[/video]

Whoever designed those uprights and control arms is sitting in his/her chair right now feeling pretty happy with themselves.

 

[Dozer]

100 feet?? Man, that's a good 30 metres vertical - there's no way they got that high! Lucky if they hit 30 feet.

Those trucks are nothing but a roll cage, engine and wheels - pretty much the same as any other race car. They also don't hit anything close to the speeds that the Supercars hit. The safety barriers on course would be more than capable of stopping those things.

Length, one hundred feet in length is what I'm saying. Admittedly, the way I've worded it does sound like they are trying to jump over the pit boxes!
Hmmmmm, I've seen too many cars of all sorts plow into catch fences and keep on travelling to an extent. It's pretty naive to think it won't happen with these things, they are more likely to get out of control pretty quickly over the cars that use the circuits they've been intended for. Sticking them on the dirt at Sydney raceway is where they belong.

 

[pharmaboy]

Dozer being captain safety of the nanny state!!

I wouldn't have believed it unless I saw it with my own eyes.......

 

[Dozer]

Dozer being captain safety of the nanny state!!

I wouldn't have believed it unless I saw it with my own eyes.......

Nah, it ain't like that. I'm just sceptical after seeing sprint cars tearing fences down and barreling into people. The stadium trucks have a place, they just need to be managed to keep them from causing mischief.

 

[hach_bee]

Nah, it ain't like that. I'm just sceptical after seeing sprint cars tearing fences down and barreling into people. The stadium trucks have a place, they just need to be managed to keep them from causing mischief.

Sprint car circuits are in 95% of cases not holders of FIA/CAMS track licenses that these street circuits do. Very difference types of fencing! And much higher standards considering all the categories they need to be appropriate for.

Quick infographic on the jumps for those interested :eyebrows:

 

[Dozer]

I reckon Prodrive's decision to ditch Dave Reynolds is fucking lame. I hope his gig at Erebus brings solid points and wins as he's a guy who should be in the series in a good car above most of the other drop kicks. Cam Water's won't be winning races straight away but will put in some good steers. All I hope is that Reynolds beats Winterbottom this year and leaves his mark on the team.

 

[hach_bee]

Dozer, I love you dearly, but respectfully disagree. Reynolds is a douchebag who's just damn lucky Betty was out of options. He brings a solid fan base for sure, but the erebus cars aren't developed enough in their cycle to yield a championship just yet (and not likely for another couple of years) in my opinion. Plus, he's a creep.

Silly season chat wise, Penske will be killing it between Fabs and Pye next year, Scotty has shown some excellent form in the tail end of the season. His bathurst crash was such a big hit though, still makes me shiver hearing it! I'm sure Jdub put in a good word to get his good mate Davo in the next team down and they'll be boom sharing with Lowndsey next year. I'm still holding onto the glimmer of hope that CL could clinch this championship but it seems to be fading pretty fast.

 

[hach_bee]

NZ debrief: awesome performance by Pye and DJRTP the strategy really kept them where they needed to be! Unsure how McLauchlan fell back, his starts have been a little off this weekend...

The HRT saga of course continues, with PRA starting to emulate a little! Waters initial contact chain reaction-ed into Frosty's spin curiously, after Tim Edwards made a git of himself blowing up about not penalising 'whoever' turned him. Waters would have been on double PLP if it wasn't declared a 'racing incident' - rightfully so in my eyes!

I have to say, Whincup seems a little relieved to now be out of reach of the championship defence and enjoying himself a bit more. His comedian side came out a little in the presser on Saturday and was good to remind people he's human still!

Last of all- the most unexpected news of the season of Ambrose leaving, seems like the biggest anti climax of the season. It doesn;t really bother me, but would be curious to hear others' thoughts?

 

[Dozer]

Sooooooooo, can we get rid of stadium trucks on enclosed circuits now? For those wh don't know, Matt Mingay had the lower half of his face (jawbone, teeth etc) ripped off when his stadium truck hit a fence on it's side in Detroit.Yeah yeah, could have happened in any sort of car..............actually, no it couldn't. Circuit cars are built to withstand that sort of stuff.
Stadium trucks belong on courses with some ample run off, not enclosed street circuits. If this accident isn't bad enough then there'll be another that will be catastrophic.