iam a newcomer to F1, so can someone explain 2 me what a hairpin/chicane is?

[perminder]

i know this may sound like iam really dumb!! but iam confused!!!!

[Sodemo]

I hope your joking

[perminder]

errrrrr...... iam not please help me

the only thing i understand is hairpins are 180 degrees or somthin :confused:

[Red]

U-this is a hairpin
S-this is a chicane. Placed in a middle of a long straight, it's sole purpose is to slow down the cars (and annoy some of the spectators )

[steve_r]

It's no longer April 1st.

[Hugh Jarce]

It's actually an 'airpin' chichane - I believe.

So-called because the configuration of the bend causes so much lateral G-force that pressure of 'air pins' you to the side of the monocoque.

That's what James Allen told me!

[gfm]

Perminder - a hairpin corner is normally one of 180 degrees, usually very slow 2nd gear stuff, normally associated with going up steep mountains where the road has to zig-zag up and across, connected by tight hairpin corners. Ask mum what a hairpin is.
And a chicane is an old word (they were once made out of whattle cane fencing simply placed across the road like a staggered gateway) where a road has tight and slow sharp changes of direction, all designed to slow cars down on race circuits say, just before the pits entrance, or simply to slow them down and prevent huge top speeds. They come in various forms and mostly are hated because they invariaby upset the rythmn, the pattern of flow around the circuit.

[Red]

Ok, I was not serious. .... Take a look at this. There is a corner called "Grand Hotel hairpin" and at the exit of the tunnel is the "Nouvelle chicane"

[gfm]

Having given out all the above ********, hairpins and chicanes are the scene of some terrible race driving displays and also the place to see why good racers are good racers, and how they make time up. Lots of lunatic overtaking and other rash stuff make them good spectator sites.

[Lee Janotta]

Although a sequence of hairpins on a mountainside becme switchbacks.

The S-shape really doesn't properly describe a chicane... Too much cutting back. It's an area where a driver must drop a lot of speed, turn sharply to the side, then immediatly turn back the way he was originally going. The idea is usually just to slow down the cars in the name of "safety". Ignoring, of course, that come tremendous wrecks have come at chicanes.

There are also double chicanes, such as at Monza, and triple chicanes, at LeMans.

[Sodemo]

Surely circuit hairpins get their name because they are shaped like... well.... hairpins...?!

[903cc]

According to the Maquarie Dictionary, (you do own a dictionary I hope. If not http://www.macquariedictionary.com.au)

Hairpin: a slender U-shaped piece of wire, shell, etc., used by women to fasten up the hair or hold a headdress

Chicane: an artificial bend or series of bends, inserted in a straight stretch of road.

[Schummy]

In Playstation's Gran Turismo in hairpins and chicanes computer cars were a lot of fun, throwing themselves as nuts for frak overtakings

[J.McClane]

So now that is cleared up...................whats a track?

[twig]

...or the reply to post button.....aye perminder?

[J.McClane]

What does the 1 in F1 stand for?

[Bononi]

I am surprised that this thread had so many replies...

[R]

It won't have any more... *click*