Jim,
Good explanation.
Howard
----- Original Message -----
From: "Jim Dincau" <jdincau@qnet.com>
To: "land speed list" <land-speed@autox.team.net>
Sent: Wednesday, April 18, 2001 6:43 AM
Subject: Big long rant about traction controll
> It all depends on where you want to draw the line. Some people
consider
> drivers a nuisance who just tell you what you want to hear, thats the
only
> reason I drive my funny car (Billy Williams, 1987). On the other end of
the
> spectrum are the drivers say that the technocrats will only be happy
when
> they can run the car from the hospitality suite and do away with all these
> pesky human variables. Most of us are somewhere in between. In circuit
> racing, allowing traction control eliminates one of many driver inputs, it
> does not create traction when none is available just as electronic gear
> boxes do not select the right gear only the next one. The driver still has
> to know when to turn, when to brake and when to give it the gas and as
> speeds go up and lap times go down making these decisions increasingly
take
> up all the pilots CPU capacity. Controlling wheel spin in land speed
racing
> however, eliminates one of the MAJOR driver inputs, watching a 300 MPH
pass
> on a dirt road or a spin at 230 on wet salt will bring that home to any of
> us. Dont get me wrong, I am a technocrat, I like building them as much as
I
> like racing them perhaps even more. I used computers to get my job done
> since 1967 and they dont intimidate me. There is a difference however
> between being a machinist and operating a CNC machine, choosing the right
> speed, feed, coolant flow and sharpening the tool bit yourself gives a lot
> of satisfaction and takes a lot of skill that isnt there for the
operator.
> If you want to be a driver perhaps you wont want traction control, if you
> want your driver to be an operator perhaps you will.
> Where does all this ranting leave me? I think that being the acme of
> our sport streamliners should be allowed to run what they brung but not
the
> rest of the classes. Electronic vehicle management will however make
> enforcement of any rule prohibiting it unenforceable. When we eventually
get
> down to dyno racing for maximum numbers all the soul will finally be
> squeezed out of what was a really neat deal.
> I sure did admire the skill that allowed Jerry to go 240 MPH in a
112
> car with the numbers on the side visible from the starting line.
>
>
> Hoka hey honez
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