Next time you’re at the races, check it out....look at the construction of the car; ask some of the drivers. Doug Kalitta is a good guy to talk to and gets to the point. If you catch Tony Pedregon in a talkative mood he’ll go on and on; I like him. It is too bad that Gary Scelzi isn’t at the tracks as much anymore, he’s another great interview. They will all confirm the reality of the sport: the car’s throttle is set by the computer and the accelerator switch is the initiator.
I gather that you’re not even the mildest of the insiders, who get to enter the car’s pit and have sandwiches and drinks with the drivers, wives and crew, and see the cars stripped apart, and then go into the trailer and watch the crew chief set up the car’s next run on the computer. Those computer settings adjust the engine’s fuel flow, ignition advance, clutch sequence and the throttle. I have stood next to a crew chief and watched this; and I am misinformed?
Yes, the betterflies open and close, but it is an on/off hit by the driver that goes into the setup in the computer. The driver’s pedal has no increments.
Makes sense what you say. The driver’s foot is just there for reaction time.
Larry Dixon is also a good guy to talk too.
It’s too bad that The Snake and Dick Lahaie are gone. Those two would talk to you about anything..
Another good guy to talk to is Warren Johnson, just wait until the day is over, he is very nice and accomidating once his workday is over.
I’ll look some more then. Wasn’t what I remember, but I haven’t been in the pits since rear engine was a fairly new thing. Sort of drifted away from the sport until a few years ago.
Thanks!