The Firecracker 400
The next Winston cup race is the Firecracker 400 at The Daytona International Speedway. If you are like me, a newbie to NASCAR racing, this post is for you. If you are an old hat at racing, read it and let me know of anything I don't get quite right.
This is a night race and is on Saturday night (7pm broadcast) rather than the usual Sunday afternoon. The broadcasting switches from FOX to NBC.
Daytona is a tri-oval, 2.5 mile super speedway with 31 degree banks. See map below.
To NASCAR, a super speedway is any track, including road courses more than 1 mile long. Interesting to note, drivers don't think of it quite the same. To drivers, there are short tracks (less than a mile) intermediate tracks, (1 to 2 miles) and super speedways (2 + miles). The important thing is this; the longer the track, the greater the distance between turns, and the faster drivers can go. At least as far as ovals are concerned.
The angle of bank in the turns is important, too. The steeper the banking of the turns, the less drivers need to slow down to negotiate the turn. In fact, the turns at Daytona are steep enough that drivers need not slow down at all. In theory, they could achieve incredible speeds at this track. All of this speed, however, can be rather excessively dangerous, so much so, that NASCAR declares this a "Restrictor Plate" race. So, just what is a restrictor plate:
RESTRICTOR PLATE
An aluminum plate that is placed between the base of the carburetor and the engine's intake manifold with four holes drilled in it. The plate is designed to reduce the flow of air and fuel into the engine's combustion chamber, thereby decreasing horsepower and speed. (thanks NASCAR.com)
What does it mean? All of the cars in this race will be slower and very evenly matched, the effective horsepower of each car has been reduced to the same level. This certainly achieves the goal of making accidents less lethal. However, it also introduces a phenomenon known as the "big one."
Because the cars are so evenly matched, they tend to stay bunched up in a pack. If an accident occurs, one driver can take a out quite a few others with him - thus the name the "big one."
And there in lays the controversy of restrictor plate racing. Drivers generally don't like it, they want to race as fast as they can. Oddly, though, drivers think fans like it, because, they think fans like to see wrecks, and some do. NASCAR recently had an on-line poll in which fans were pretty split over the issue (58% were against restrictor plates.) But should on-line polls be influencing track officials?
Here is another side. I think the TV media is at least partially to blame for restrictor plates. It is TV commentators that become outraged at excessive speed and it's danger, and it is also TV sportscasters that need the wrecks for the highlight clips on the evening news. I not saying there is a conspiracy to create more, but less fatal, wrecks. But there is an incentive to keep the status quo. It's just, as a newbie to NASCAR, you and I might want know about this often talked about controversy in NASCAR racing.
By the way, I am not a fan of restrictor plates, there, I said it. But, racing is what racing is... that is the saying you need to learn in NASCAR.
By the way, restrictor plates only happen at Daytona and Talladega. Good fact to know.
Discussion Topic
Here is a topic for discussion with your new NASCAR buddies. Since this is a restrictor plate race, the cars are evenly matched and will most likely see a "big one." Let's say, you qualify somewhere in the middle. Would you chance swapping an engine just to go to the back of the field? That gives you more time to react and get out of the way of the big one when and if it happens. But you better be a strong driver if you want to make it up. i think it will be interesting to see if this happens at Daytona. By the way, i don't take any driver would say they switched an engine just to go to the back.
Just so you know (and qualifying will need to be a topic for another day) in Winston Cup racing, if you swap out an engine after you qualify, you have to start the race at the back of the field.
So, now you have learned a little about the Daytona race. Thanks to Crow for sharing is knowledge about NASCAR and racing.
3:54:34 PM 
|
