507 replies to this topic

[Brian Ghidinelli]

Thanks for the write up Brian. Make sure you add "full camera battery" to your check list...better yet hard wire!

It was hardwired, specifically because I hate dealing with batteries! Earlier this season it stopped taking a charge from the cigarette lighter adapter. I pulled it apart and something inside the camera broke... power reaches the pins on the back of the USB connection but it doesn't flow beyond that into the camera.

[Todd Green]

Why was the monkey putting his hand out the window after elivan made that awesome pass under braking toward the beginning of the video?

Maybe he's been watching too much GT Academy? Edit: Hmm, forums don't seem to support Youtube's #t code. Skip to 34:10 and watch it through 35:08 or so to see Kendall and Sullivan's reactions.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6MOmSTrWlhQ#t=34m10s

[bizarro]

All This am Great. Much heroes do bad get jail-time. Few get reward. All good for me - am laffy at #2 Hero youtuby work.

[Rob Burgoon]

Danny jumped the restart?

"The safety car will maintain the established pace, extinguish the lights,
and exit the course prior to a restart. Drivers must maintain the safety
car’s pace and not improve their positions or begin racing until the green
flag has been displayed to restart the race."

[Charlie Hayes]

I think he just made a lot of noise, I doubt he gained any mph up that mountain on the restart.

[Ron Alan]

Danny jumped the restart?

"The safety car will maintain the established pace, extinguish the lights,
and exit the course prior to a restart. Drivers must maintain the safety
car’s pace and not improve their positions or begin racing until the green
flag has been displayed to restart the race."

Never seen anyone keep the pace car pace...hit the last corner and take off. Not saying it's correct, just saying not practiced or penalized...at least in SFR. I think the SSM track record at THill was set this year on a re-start

[Nsparks]

"The safety car will maintain the established pace, extinguish the lights,
and exit the course prior to a restart. Drivers must maintain the safety
car’s pace and not improve their positions or begin racing until the green
flag has been displayed to restart the race."

I did that once, ask me how it turned out.

[Danny Steyn]

Rob
not sure if you have raced Road America. All the starts and the restarts start WAY before the green flies - just saying.

Take a look at the start of the race in my in car video and note where we all go flat - we cannot even see the tower from there

Then take a look at the speedcastTV video, and listen to the commentator call the green flag and see where we are on the straight - we had been flat for a long long time.

Road America is just a track that if you dont do it, you will get creamed.

On the restart, note AC gesturing me to go even before the pace car had pulled over. But I did not want to get on it and come off it to avoid overtaking the pace car.

I think I nailed it, but then of course its open to interpretation. If I had gone any earlier I would have had to slow for the pace car. If I had gone 40MPH up to the point that I could see the green I would have been 20th in T1 and Chip and others would have come from 10th - 20th and would have been first in T1.

You have to go - trust me. Never been in a single SM race at RA where the start didnt happen on the hill, or the restart didnt happen just after the pace car pulled over.

Not to the letter of the GCR, but its the way to do it.

One thing to beware of is that they do not take the FCY flags down until the Green is called, so anyone taking a run and passing up the hill before it goes green is in for a pass-under-yellow! You will see no-one gets out of line until the green flies. Just my

I guess its an RA thing (and that goes for the other RA, hey Nate!!!! - man I felt sorry for you on that start. Pole to 12th before T3!!!! )

[Blake Thompson]

I've had starts waved off at RA. And they should be, especially at runoffs levels. It's horse shit and dangerous. (remember the vintage clustereff a few years ago?)

[Danny Steyn]

You are right Blake, but unless its enforced you will be screwed.

In the 2010 June Sprints - my first time at the track, I got hosed on the start and the restart. Was not prepared for it and on the restart I lost about 70 car lengths - All my fault - should have seen it coming.

[Rob Burgoon]

To be fair, Jim jumped the race start too.

It's a pet peeve of mine. Why do we have a clearly spelled out start procedure on the books just to blatantly blow it off? Should it be changed? Leader starts the race instead of the the starter?

It pisses me off because when the leader gasses it early, or worse, gasses it and then comes off the gas, the midpackers often end up at risk of smashing into each other accordion fashion. If pace car speed is held until the starter starts, then everyone gets a fair start.

[Terry Hanushek]

I've had starts waved off at RA. And they should be, especially at runoffs levels. It's horse shit and dangerous. (remember the vintage clustereff a few years ago?)

Remember last year's T1 start?

That said, Danny makes a good point about the uphill start at RA - there is a much greater penalty if a car is lagging to the start and others are not

Terry

[Danny Steyn]

To be fair, Jim jumped the race start too.

It's a pet peeve of mine. Why do we have a clearly spelled out start procedure on the books just to blatantly blow it off? Should it be changed? Leader starts the race instead of the the starter?

It pisses me off because when the leader gasses it early, or worse, gasses it and then comes off the gas, the midpackers often end up at risk of smashing into each other accordion fashion. If pace car speed is held until the starter starts, then everyone gets a fair start.

Rob - you are absolutely correct and I wish the SCCA would handle starts correctly. But tell me, when last did you ever here about someone being penalized for hanging back at the start. I have 40 or 50 videos with race starts and racers are intentionally hanging back to get a run, and I have never heard of one driver being called to the tower. Now if you pass before the green thats another story entirely.

But unless the SCCA penalizes those guys, the guys at the front will try to get away with an early "jump". If they dont, those hanging back will have a run and the momentum at the start to cream the front row.

Go back to the Road Atlanta National thread and see poor Nate Sparks' video. Yes he was slow to get on the gas, but he did the start by the book and went from pole to 12th by T3.

This is the reality of the starts we have in SCCA - cannot speak for NASA as I have not run there for 2 years.

I too would prefer a black and white approach to starts, but right now its shades of gray, and sometimes the gray is pretty dark! Doesnt make it right.

[davew]

Several years ago at a National race, at Blackhawk, I got a stop and go for moving too far left.

I was in the right lane, following a big tank of a VolksWagon, and I moved left to get a view of the green. After 1 lap I was given a black flag. I came into the pit lane witha Steward waving his arm up and down like a railroad crossing. I assumed it was a stop and go, he waived me off about 4 car lengths from him. I hit the gas and took off a full straight behind the pack.

At the end of the race, they held me for an explanation. Decisions of a start judge is non protestable. But I did it and was penalized properly.

2 weeks later, same track, I was on the left side for the start. Car in front of me moved towards center. Should I move with him, staying behind the car in front? Or, stay in my position? I stayed in my original position on the left edge of the track. After the race I talked to the Stewards. They almost black flagged the VW and commented that I did it correctly.

Danny is right, at Road America, the front row calls their own green. You better try to keep up! And yes, that is against the GCR.

Dave

[Ron Alan]

Danny's comment on hanging back is huge and a huge problem in my book. As Rob made mention of the accordion affect, in general it is never the leader who causes this by slowing down, it's the 2nd, 3rd ,4th, 10th car in line that speeds up to jump then has to hit the brakes.

Real simple...Max distance of 1/2 car length between cars from last turn until green. After a few black flag pass throughs the offenders will get the message. I realize it's subjective enforcement but at least if the rule is there guys will think twice

[Glenn]

After a few black flag pass throughs the offenders will get the message. I realize it's subjective enforcement but at least if the rule is there guys will think twice

They do it all the time.......at Drivers school After that....not so much!

[James York]

A few starts at RA and some other places and you learn the game real quick.

When I am on pole, I am rolling on the power as the pace car goes off track. I am not going to get passed by row 2 in turn 1.

When I am behind the leader, I go when he goes, green flag or not.

[Tom Sager]

At Road America and in our cars, the starter cannot tell if or when we hit the gas. Too steep a hill, too little power. Frankly you have to add a lot of throttle just to keep the car from decelerating.

[HoneyBadger - BrianW]

When I am on pole, I am rolling on the power as the pace car goes off track. I am not going to get passed by row 2 in turn 1.

The real issue that I see is the gapping that occurs from around P6 and back. Those guys get such a run that they could easily be at or close to the front by the first corner.

[KentCarter]

Radar gun... only way to enforce.