10 Words On Racing

10 things you need to understand to be successful at auto racing:

10) Speed - obviously, since the object of a race is to be the fastest car to the finish line.

9) Acceleration - related to speed, and sometimes acceleration is more important than speed, and sometimes not.

8) Brakes - sometimes how fast you can stop is a crucial factor. Plus, short-track racing involves the brakes being used much more than super-speedways, and therefore the brakes get super hot, and how tough your brakes are against heat can be a factor in just finishing the race at all.

7) Tires - similar to brakes, since better tires help brake better. Plus, since racing involves pushing the car to it's limits to go fast, this means the better tires grip the road, the better you can go into turns without slowing down as much.

6) Fuel Efficiency - Ok, I know that's 2 words, so think of any one word that means fuel efficiency. Sometimes races come down to who doesn't have to stop for fuel as often, or who has just enough fuel to finish the race without having to lose time taking a pit stop for fuel.

5) Traction - related to tires, but this also includes the car's suspension system. Do your front and real wheels grip the track about equal, or does one or the other slip out of control at the turns? Do the tires grip the road when there's a bump in the surface? Things like that are important.

4) Aerodynamics - this includes how well air flows around the car, as well as how air flow changes when you are following another car closely vs. being in clean air with no one ahead of you. Sometimes if a car gets banged up the body panels do not allow air to flow around them as easily, and this makes the car have to push harder against the air.

3) Teamwork - auto racing is a pure team sport, absolutely. It's not just the driver, it's the pit crew, the Crew Chief and it's the mechanics in the garage, and even the company that manufactured the car.

2) Endurance - in a long race, the car must last all the way to the last lap, so if something breaks - buh-bye.

1) and the most importnat word: LUCK! Yes, even Jimmie Johnson needs a little luck sometimes.

Danica Patrick Racing In NASCAR???

Here's an interesting news flash - "Stewart Says Danica Has Sights Set On NASCAR" - could it be truth or hype???


http://www.nascar.com/2009/news/headlines/cup/09/05/tstewart.dpatrick.future/index.html


Tony Stewart from NASCAR Racing said he thinks Danika Patrick will eventually race in NASCAR. Now that, THAT would be cool.

Interesting reading. I always thought Danica's dream was to be the first woman to win the Indy 500, which I think means she'd have to be a full-time IRL racer, but I could be wrong.

Here's a picture of Danica, along with teammate Tony Kanaan. I got this from the Indycar website. The caption says Tony is giving some pointers to Danica. HA!! Yeah, right. This year, it's probably Danica saying to him "DOOOOOD!! Stop hitting the wall!!" How's that for pointers?

Hot Chics & Hot Racecar Drivers

Today I'd like to dedicate a post to a couple of hot chicks who also happen to be hot racecar drivers.

Danika Patrick, of the Indycar Racing League, A/K/A the IRL. You may have seen her on one of the Super Bowl commercials last month. She's on the Andretti Green team. She used to be with the Rahal/Letterman team, which is part owned by David Letterman.

Here's Milka Duno, also of the IRL. She's not as good a racer as Danika IMHO but she's good enough to be in the league, and that's something.

RRRRRAAAOOOWWWW

But don't be fooled by their hot looks. They can race with the guys, and Danika even won an IRL race last year (and she cried on Victory Lane - should have seen that coming). Danika wants to be the first woman to win the Indy 500. I wish her good luck, but she'd better win it soon, or else Milka will steal it from her.

Plus there's another female in the leage, Sarah Fischer, who even owns the racing team itself.

For more info, go to http://www.indycar.com/ which is the official IRL website.

Formula1 Racing - Goodbye Honda

So Honda is quitting Formula1 racing.

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/motor/formula1/2008-12-05-honda_N.htm

This really sucks. Not that I love Honda or anything, but does this mean other car makers are in the same situation? Probably.

Honda makes the engines in the Indycar racing league also. I wonder if this means they are next on the chopping block.

F1 is saying they may start the season with only 18 cars.

$300 million bucks to compete - wow. I guess auto racing just has huge costs. Makes sense when you think about all the cars, parts, skilled techs & mechanics, all the tools you need, etc. Then travel expenses on top of that to visit racetracks around the world. And to add insult to injury, you finish second-last place out of what, 10 teams? Constructors they call them.

That's too bad.