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May 8th, 2018 at 11:57:49 AM permalink
Fleastiff
Member since: Oct 27, 2012
Threads: 62
Posts: 7831
Quote: ams288
Looks like "San Francisco values" are making their way to flyover country...
Wonder who got the silk screening contract?
May 8th, 2018 at 12:04:04 PM permalink
petroglyph
Member since: Aug 3, 2014
Threads: 25
Posts: 6227
When whiskey runners took a time off from their regular jobs, Nascar was exciting. Now I don't watch any of it, it's monotonous. I like the old figure 8 demolition derby's, that's as close to circle racing as I would watch.

I much prefer Lemans, or the Baja type races, where heart matters as much as budget.

The reason for Indy or Nascar is developing technology for street cars, better motors, breaks and crash protection. A race of cars off the showroom floor would be more exciting. Watching some vettes compete with hemi Challengers and Mach 1 mustangs. That would be way better, imo.
The last official act of any government is to loot the treasury. GW
May 8th, 2018 at 12:11:26 PM permalink
AZDuffman
Member since: Oct 24, 2012
Threads: 135
Posts: 18136
Quote: petroglyph

The reason for Indy or Nascar is developing technology for street cars, better motors, breaks and crash protection. A race of cars off the showroom floor would be more exciting. Watching some vettes compete with hemi Challengers and Mach 1 mustangs. That would be way better, imo.


That once was the reason. "Racing improves the breed." Since the mid-1970s, not so much. I do remember watching Indy cars throw off all kinds of pieces, announcers saying how much safer it was. 20 years after, that is what any car wreck looks like.

But look at NASCAR. Not so long ago, they still had leaded fuel. We talked about carbs. A NSACAR vehicle is years out of date. I can imagine the call to Japan when Toyota got into it. "Boss, we need to get a case of carbs to run in this thing. What? No, I never touch the stuff.........."

Indy is the other end. Stuff so fancy you cannot imagine it on a Fusion. Racing improves the breed, just nobody but racers buying the breed.
The President is a fink.
May 8th, 2018 at 2:08:40 PM permalink
rxwine
Member since: Oct 24, 2012
Threads: 188
Posts: 18629
Quote: petroglyph
I like the old figure 8 demolition derby's, that's as close to circle racing as I would watch.
.


Simpsons just had a episode, where an employee at the local racetrack is trying to explain to a group of kids how demolition derby works.

"You know those Car movies, kids?"

"Yes"

"Well, today all your favorite characters are going to commit suicide."

"Ooohhh!!!"
You believe in an invisible god, and dismiss people who say they are trans? Really?
May 8th, 2018 at 6:27:00 PM permalink
Face
Member since: Oct 24, 2012
Threads: 61
Posts: 3941
Quote: AZDuffman
Never heard this take on carbs before. I think I heard that carbs were still better at moving loads of air than fuelies.


I was mostly out when they switched. Alls I remember was them saying it was better fuel mileage (EVERY race league is aiming to get "greener"), more hp (duh), and that's about it. And having EFI isn't bad in itself, cus faster AND more efficient is almost always good. But yeah, that overrich backfire was a big part of the immersion. I wanted to hear the commentary, hear the crew, hear what they were doing. And once they did it, I want to watch it work.

When I watch now, I'm always looking at the timekeeping scroll. It's hard to tell, visually, if someone's gaining or losing, cruising or wheelin'. You need more info than just a picture when talking tenths of seconds. And now, the only way is to wait until the telemetry pops up and do some math to see, oh yeah, Harvick's falling off a bit, Kenseth is catching up. It takes you out of the race, the immersion is gone.

Back in the day, or at your local shorty, all that info is found right IN the action. If something happens and you wonder how that car / driver is reacting, it's right there where you're looking. You can see flame up well before the corner, and flame out well into 4. You know the dude's scared, or the car's broke. Alternatively, you can see it not light up 'til deep into 3 and flame right out before 4 and know that guy is in full tilt driving the wheels off the sumbitch. It draws you in, it communicates a reason to get excited or look for another battle. You can see when a guy burps it cause he got in too hot, you can know he almost lost it even when you can't perceive the change in yaw of the car itself. It puts you in the race.

Now, we just look at a list of numbers. That one change had, IMO, a HUGE side effect, and I don't think they realize it.

Quote: Fleastiff
Its those old Demolition Derby "races". The crowd wants creased bumpers not creased trousers.
Now I'm all for track safety and protecting spectators as much as is reasonably possible, but ultra safe 'races' are usually just mass choreography.


I don't quite agree.

For sure there was damage done during the Car of Tomorrow switchover. They were too box-y, too tall. The wing was ill conceived and flipped a lot of cars (besides being ugly and out of place). The retro fitting of the tracks with SAFER barriers had a huge impact, and I remember not few cars smashing them to bits due to the now 3' shorter corner exit. And let's not forget how the cars exploded into a shower of foam anytime one got peeled. But each and every one of the issues have been addressed, and the overall safety, not just deaths but damage as well, has shot to the moon.

F1 is ridiculous deals, imbalanced to the extreme teams, and a bit "choreographed". But I do think NASCAR intends and attempts to keep the cars close and the racing tight. I don't think safety (overindulgence or ignorance) is their issue.

Quote: petroglyph
When whiskey runners took a time off from their regular jobs, Nascar was exciting. Now I don't watch any of it, it's monotonous. I like the old figure 8 demolition derby's, that's as close to circle racing as I would watch.

I much prefer Lemans, or the Baja type races, where heart matters as much as budget.


I love LeMans and Nurburgring, too. But you need to take 2 days off to consume it and there's only 2 races all year lol.

I think they should yin and yang it. There needs to be inclusion of iconic tracks, for sure, so Daytona, Indy, Charlotte, Darlington, these would all need stay. But 69 the rest. Take half of the rest and go back to your roots, revive the old times, and get some Rockingham and North Wilkesboro types in there. The other half reach out to the kids and, duh, the easily accessible and ever burgeoning international market. V8 Supercars are a thing, ye daft fools. Guarantee the EUR / AUS market would tune in for NASCAR at CdGV, Road Atlanta, COTA, or any number of top rate road courses we have here.

Or take my Master Idea of going back to Cutlass, Carlo, Regal and Thunderbird. Both would work.
Be bold and risk defeat, or be cautious and encourage it.
May 8th, 2018 at 8:50:44 PM permalink
beachbumbabs
Member since: Sep 3, 2013
Threads: 6
Posts: 1600
I was very involved in NASCAR for about 10-12 years. Married into a NASCAR family and in the same year moved to Daytona. Worked my first 500 after only 5 weeks training, so was walking the runways, wanding the planes onto taxiways. That gets personal fast, some pilot thinks he's Dale.

Too many stories to tell about stuff ancillary to the track, the drivers, the teams, the NASCAR Air Force. Was working the tower the night Dale died, saw him go into the wall in turn 4. Had worked him in that morning, too, cleared him to land. I'm confident and comforted he died a happy and fulfilled man. Or else i couldn't sleep.

Ever see that sort of famous picture of him that morning (viral posthumously, like a premonition of heaven), sillouetted in the bright morning light by the doorway of the hangar? I had talked to him a few minutes before.

Saw a couple cars bounce clear out of the track, too. One killed the driver, the other just messed him up some.

Went to visit Fireball Roberts grave several times, he's buried about a mile off turn 3. I liked it better before restrictor plates. Think they did too.

But restrictors, then HANS devices, then SAFER barriers, spoiler flaps, etc. Made it into "meh". Never wanted anyone to die, but there was something about a guy who would go to the edge...missing now. Too corporate, too forced. And the cars, so powerful.

Roush was something. He was queen bee for a while there, liked to fly his P51 Mustang in. He had a couple of jets, too, but they weren't as fun or showy to fly. Used to tease him about his hat, kind of in code so I didn't get popped for it. He liked to kid around.

Jeff Gordon didn't fly his own plane at first, but I think he got his license. He liked to work the radios. It was pretty funny how they all would head north to Charlotte or Atlanta, and Jeff would fly south to Boca, and they all gave him crap on taxi (people get their clearances on the same frequency). There was a joke going around back then, before he was publicly seeing women and they were all hating the kid from Indiana who was ruining their sport. Something like, What do you call 42 Good Old Boys chasing one (guy who didn't like women)?

NASCAR Winston Cup. (bah-dump)

They all had vanity call signs for their tail numbers, too. N24JG was the 24 Jeff Gordon jet, for example, until he won the Daytona 500, then he was allowed by tradition to change his call sign to N500JG. Pretty much all of them did that. N5TL was Terry LaBonte, N88DJ was Dale Jarrett, etc. Until they won a 500.

You know how they do all those in-car video feeds? Maybe, like so many things, used to, at least. They all had the cameras in the cars, the cameras had a weak transmitter in the roof, and the signal went straight up. A helicopter with a hundred receivers in the back and (barely) room for 2 went up to 3500 ft directly above the track and just HOVERED for hours, gathering all those signals and acting like the tallest broadcast tower in the world, beaming all of them to the satellite, and from there to the broadcast director.

Guy named Buddy Guy (of course that was his name, it's NASCAR, but I still have his business card somewhere) did this full time for years, just followed the circuit. I flew it with him all of one afternoon, over the top of the Busch race, and then happy hour for the next day. Nicest person ever.

It was a really weird place to watch the race. You were directly over the track, but the entire helicopter was glass, so you just watched them turn left between your feet, all strapped in, the whole helicopter shockingly still (he was a VERY good pilot) but buzzing with all the electronics and signal sending. Unforgettable.

Guy named Smokey Yunick still had his garage back then. He was an old-timer who knew every way to cheat there was. And told all the best stories about the beginning. He lived well into his 90s, was always starting some controversy or curmudgeon comment about how things used to be. We went over there several times on any excuse just to listen to him bs. He knew them all.

Mark Martin was local, flew in and out a lot, came to visit a lot. Good guy. He wrecked in a Firecracker 400 (think it was Pepsi 400 by then, but after the lights went in) and gave us his left rear quarter panel from that race, autographed. We hung it in the TRACON.

I went to that damned race, too. Dullest thing ever. No lead changes, no wrecks, no cautions to speak of until 3 from the end, and they piled it up on the backstretch, so we couldn't even see what happened. I sure do like the roar when they go by, though. We were directly under the spotters at pit road exit, going into turn 1.
.

They all have special paint schemes for the night races, paint that's weird colors and some trims reflective, so the cars are recognizable even with night video. That quarter panel would just glow as much as any radar scope in the darkness of the room.

OK Face, enough NASCAR/pilot porn. Hope you can sleep now. Hadn't thought about any of this for at least 10 years. More where those came from if you found it interesting, though, like the night they turned the lights on.

Edited to correct Smokeys last name (stupid spellcheck) and add a short video of him. There are longer ones that are really fun but start here.



Never doubt a small group of concerned citizens can change the world; it's the only thing ever has
May 9th, 2018 at 2:38:53 PM permalink
Wizard
Administrator
Member since: Oct 23, 2012
Threads: 239
Posts: 6095
Quote: Pacomartin
Mike 'The Situation' Sorrentino: [to Donald] I've seen pictures of your house. Everything in your house is gold. Who the fuck decorated your house, Flava-Flav's dentist?


That's my favorite!

Knowledge is Good -- Emil Faber
May 9th, 2018 at 3:50:19 PM permalink
FrGamble
Member since: Oct 24, 2012
Threads: 67
Posts: 7596
What do you all think of the costumes at the Met-gala?
“It is with the smallest brushes that the artist paints the most exquisitely beautiful pictures.” (
May 9th, 2018 at 4:10:31 PM permalink
Fleastiff
Member since: Oct 27, 2012
Threads: 62
Posts: 7831
Quote: FrGamble
What do you all think of the costumes at the Met-gala?
I've not seen any photos nor heard of the Metropolitan Police holding such an event. I thought they would be too busy framing people on trumped up charges.
May 9th, 2018 at 4:10:33 PM permalink
Fleastiff
Member since: Oct 27, 2012
Threads: 62
Posts: 7831
Most such gowns are worn once only and cost a fortune but the women would just die if they had to wear something off the rack.