Single seater V road cars

[Tiptop]

I was having a discussion with a few people the other day over a few jars about single seaters and road cars.

I have a few mates who like to think they are racers on the road...but I've said driving a single seater (fford) is completely different from driving a road car at speed.

I suggested they take their road car on the track and see if they notice any difference when driving at speed...

Does anyone else have this problem ? my mates seem to think it's easy to race a single seater at speed as they drive down the motorway at 70mph (plus ahem!)

[Adam43]

Driving on a motorway and driving on a track are totally different.

A 40mph corner is a lot more difficult than any achievable speed on the motorway. There is a great quote about that in Full Throttle (Tim Birkin's book), I'll try and find it.

[darcym]

tiptop, your mates are kidding themselves.

A road car - even a sports road car is meant for the road. eg casual bends, straight lines, nothing more.

You race at combe, look at the Ferraris going around camp corner and into tower, their speed through camp is nothing like that of a formula ford, they brake about ooooh 100 meters earlier into tower and certainly do not carry the same speed through. This is because they are essentially a road car, setup to race. If you look at the lap times, the Formula fords are a bit quicker, if the Ferrari (just for example) didn't kick out 360BHP and get up to top speed (faster than a FF1600) quicker the difference would be a lot more obvious.

Your mates are probably boy races with ford escorts with massive wings, a load glowing stereo, a big exaust and a mouth that runs quicker than their car.

[RMR]

probably have neons underneath, a k&n air filter and watch fast and the furious too.

your best bet is not to bite as there on a windup, or jealous you race.

[StephenRae]

Every Formula 1 fan,deep down knows he could do it if given the chance. There isn't a single football fan who believes he could replace even the worst striker in the premiership (except maybe Hesky).
I remember once offering free tickets for Oulton Park to someone who bought Autosport and seemed knowledgeable, he turned them down saying that "Formula 1 was his sport"

[DAVID PATERSON]

I also know some young ********s who have hotted up street cars, they speed on public roads and love to talk themselves up as drivers, but not one has ever set foot on a race track.

Why is it so? Is it fear, laziness, rebelliousness...? They say they don't need to go to a track day, because racing on the road is just the same! We know that is far from the truth, but how do you change a closed mind?

[Bob Pearson]

Listening to the rubbish from street racers is part of the price we have to pay for racing. After many years of practice I have developed the ability to nod wisely at the right points without hearing a word.

[Red Dog]

There's really only one way to find out, eh? (And a track day is not it.)

Now I race (last 3 years) I tend to drive much less agressively on the road. I get complaints from my family that I am being far too polite!

Most of the really quick racers I know have very dull ordinary road cars. Is it because they spend all their money on the racer, or is it because they don't have so much to prove....?

[Peter Mallett]

Lesson one. A Formula Ford has the directional properties of a javelin if you don't use the brake and balance it properly.

Totally different to driving on the road.

[kickstart]

Racing is strictly for the track and if you do so on the road you will eventually get what you deserve, without hopefully injuring someone else.
On this subject about 100 years ago (well it seems like that) I worked at Cadwell Park as an instructor. I remember a group of Police Grade 1 (?) pursuit drivers coming to the race school for the day. Given that they actually had to chase and catch boy racers without crashing you would imagine they would be pretty usefull, but the honest answer was that all bar one or two they had no real ability to balance a car and insisted on feeding the steering wheel when turning.
Being able to perform in any sport takes practise and even the most average club racer would wipe the floor with a boy racer.

[gfm]

Dear Tintop

Along with the guys above, I too enjoy the challenge of clarifying the difference between road and race driving to the uninitiated. Also like one or two notables, it’s something I‘ve been doing for some years and still do. Blokes are of course pretty ‘deaf’ to trying to recognise the difference, because, well as well as being super-endowed hung like stallions, we can all race drive can’t we…

So, the primary difference is that to race drive successfully, the deal involves TOTAL COMMITMENT to flat out stuff, be it acceleration, cornering, braking or whatever, for at least 10 laps x 8 corners per lap/10 minutes MINIMUM without one tiny let up whatsoever.
This naturally involves CAR CONTROL at speeds from anything 40 and 120 mph on absolutely the edge of adhesion for both braking and cornering, using every inch of the circuit, every ounce of power …
Using a piece of machinery at the very least totally adjustable in terms of suspension settings, gearing, brake balance, to individual characteristics of each and every circuit you race on …
With 20 other focussed aggressive individuals with pretty heavy investments to protect, wanting the exact piece of tarmac you’re occupying …
Which altogether, adds up to one of the most controlled and violent activities man can put himself through. It's EXTREME ...

If your drinking buddies are still listening at this point, well they’d be ahead of the game, as most blokes’ interest level won’t pass about 6 seconds, which is the perfect answer as to why one roundabout taken enthusiastically is their limit and they won’t actually cut it …

And yes, it’s totally ludicrous to dream of doing this on the highway.

[StephenRae]

You've got my sympathies Kickstart, we used to run a day for a bunch of 'advanced' police drivers. Apart from the obligatory shuffling of the steering wheel they had the scary habit of coming off the brakes and then pausing before turning in. This I was told was to 'settle the car'
It unnerved me, but they were above criticism and painfully slow.