Nascar and oversteer...

An excerpt from a local report...


Frye said it appeared the back end of Nadeau's car began to come around as he entered the first turn and tried to compensate by mashing the gas pedal to the floor, common practice for drivers trying not to crash.

"It looked like that helped accelerate it going backwards," he said.

....
So he didn't think to get out of it when that 750 hp broke the rear tires loose?

I don't thnk tires spinning forward help increase the speed of a car going backwards but then I've never had 750 hp to play with either. (That's a good thing)
ed

Jack & Ed,

The "Ol Car" attempted to spin the car completely around when he "Mashed the Gas" except he ran out of track.

This technique is common in stock car racing and if in a some case's you can get away with it.

It appeared he Nadeau attempted to take a "Late Apex" and with the track not having a second groove, the car wouldn't come around.

The lack of camera angle's didn't help in viewing "what went wrong".

My Late Model was very easy to induce oversteer with the typicaly set up and banking out of the corner.

Jack Blake

Hey, as they say on the tube, "Just one of them Racing Deals" I've heard that more times than I can count!

I used to be able to spin my wife's MGB 360'. Not on a track at those speeds though. I made sure I had plenty of mistake room. I guess I figured a skill like that would come in handy sometime in my life but I can't think of how anymore.
ed

I read it that he broke traction, which of course would have let the rear end come on out/around (sever oversteer). Sometimes you set a car up early in a turn, letting the rear hang out(oversteer)a litte early, and then when you put the throttle down, you power forward, creating a little push (understeer), but the car is already set up on a new angle and you can actually push through the corner a little faster on a new grove, having driven in faster.

Sometimes a novice will brake or decelerate when the rear starts to come out a little. That deceleration just slingshots the rearend out, making it come on around, and sure enough, you are doing 180s or 360s down on the infield...



(Message Edited 5/6/2003 3:54:11 PM)