Here's the way I approach Nartionals-style "turn at the start" starts.
Pretend for a second that the entry to the start is preceeded by a long
straight - that it's a "normal" corner.
What would your entry and exit speeds be, if that were the case?
Now, consider that at the actual event, you're going to have your car
sitting on the entry point with a speed of zero.
How hard must you launch to wind up at the exit point of that turn with the
same exit speed as the thought experiment?
For most cars and most turns (no, not all, there are car and course
dependancies) that answer becomes "as hard as I can" because you'll be hard
pressed to get the car up to that maximum theoretical exit speed in that
distance from a standing start.
Is it tough? Yes. Is there potential for conage? Yes. But the payoff for
getting it right is a substancial increase in speed as you trip the start
lights. It's "free time", and depending on what the course looks like
downrange of the start, it can pay off enormous amounts.
...just like the dragrace start...
By putting in a "start hook" - unless it is obscenely pinched - a course
designer has not absolved a competitor of the necessity for a dragrace
start. The time payoff is still there. What he _has_ accomplished is to
raise the level of difficulty of the manoever to the point were only the
skilled (or the practiced) feel comfortable in attempting it.
But the time advantage for a full launch is still there.
DG
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