This entire converstation is about engines. Where does car prep enter into this???
I did not have a first, second, third, fourth or fifth place car (or driver:( ). I did have a bundle of fun and learned a lot at Nationals.
Lessons learned:
1. Some cars turn in MUCH better than mine does.
2. Some cars go through the middle of the corner better than mine does (and not always the same car:ohmy: ).
3. Speed off the corner is way more important that speed into the corner.
4. Cool shirt water under the tires does not contribute to great corner speed:woohoo: .
5. Spending time during testing to "scrub in tires and brakes" vs working on car setup to fit a track may be a poor decision on pre-event priorities.
What does all of this mean to me? Equal cost, equal racing will never be possible because some will have better equipment (not just engines but torsion bars, shocks, etc.) and will have more testing time to work on set up. In So. Cal. Charlie has won every race he entered this year. Why??? He had no secrets this past year. He allowed a number of different guys to dirve his car this year and every one of them said that his car cornered better than their car did. Some said he "might" have more power but the most important thing was that his car handled better (and is he a better driver?). I know that he could follow me into a corner, turn under me, get on the gas sooner and drive past me. He even shared all of his alignment information and other set up information as well as what parts were on his car.
None of us has "equal tires", "equal alignment settings", equal sway bars", equal weight wheels", "equal A-arms", "equal frontal area", "equal testing", etc. etc. There are differences in model year cars and between 924 and 944 and between 944's. So what! We have always known and accepted that. I was not as good a driver as David, Tyler, Charlie, Scott or Darren this year at Nationals. I was not as good a driver for lots of reasons not just on the track. I made mistakes before I ever left for Miller and I made mistakes while I was there. I hope I learned. Those mistakes were more important, by a big margin, than their engines.
All this talk about engines is a distraction, in my opinion. Joe P. ran poorly for several years in Arizona. He rebuilt his engine and lead most of last years Championship race at Nationals. Did he "cheat" by rebuilding his engine, of course not. Will a fresh rebuild produce more power that one with more time, of course it will (or should). Is that ANY reason to prohibit a fresh engine to be raced? I think not.
We have a set of spec rules that are very specific about our engines. We can not do more. We do not need to do more. There will always be differences in cars, drivers, etc. Enjoy our racing. It is better than a day at the office.
Big Dog
