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Iceaxe
01-21-2010, 02:20 PM
NASCAR to allow bump-drafting again.... this is not sports, this is life!


CONCORD, N.C. -- Have at it, boys.

NASCAR is relaxing some of its rules this season, and encouraging drivers to show more aggression and emotion, in large part to answer a growing fan sentiment that the sport had gone stale.

"There's an age old saying that NASCAR, 'If you ain't rubbing, you ain't racing,' " NASCAR president Mike Helton said Thursday. "I think that's what the NASCAR fan, the NASCAR stakeholders all bought into, and all expect."

The first change will be evident when the season opens next month at Daytona International Speedway, where restrictions on bump-drafting will be lifted and horsepower will be increased by the use of the largest restrictor plate since 1989.

NASCAR had been slowly tightening its tolerance on bumping at Daytona and Talladega -- the two biggest and fastest tracks in the series, where the horsepower-sapping restrictor plates are used to control speeds -- and it graduated into an outright ban issued the morning of the October race at Talladega. The edict sucked the drama out of what's typically one of the most exciting races of the year, and was the final straw for many race fans who had grown tired of the watered-down racing.

No more.

"We will put it back in the hands of drivers, and we will say 'Boys, have at it and have a good time,' " said vice president of competition Robin Pemberton.

The yellow out-of-bounds line that circles the bottom of those two tracks will remain, and Pemberton said the majority of drivers did not want that removed.

Other changes coming this year will be an eventual switch from the rear wing to a spoiler, a design to the car that should both positively affect downforce and the aesthetic look that race fans prefer.

denaliguide
01-21-2010, 06:40 PM
i like martins idea about racing below the yellow line. "last lap coming out of turn 4 anything goes"

Iceaxe
01-21-2010, 07:41 PM
I always like Mario Andretti's response to running below the line at Indy....

"If they didn't want me to race down there they shouldn't have paved it"

:five:

Udink
01-21-2010, 07:50 PM
Other changes coming this year will be an eventual switch from the rear wing to a spoiler, a design to the car that should both positively affect downforce and the aesthetic look that race fans prefer.

The aesthetics of the rear spoiler is the only reason I haven't been watching NASCAR lately. Now I'll be able to watch again! :lol8:

Jaxx
01-22-2010, 09:45 AM
Please explain bump drafting. How is it different from regular bumping?

Iceaxe
01-22-2010, 10:22 AM
From your question I assume you understand the principles of standard drafting....

Bump drafting is a tactic used in NASCAR at Talladega and Daytona. The technique was initially popularized by the Archer Brothers in the SCCA Sportruck series during the late 1980s, where they used the technique to rule the sport. A bump draft begins as normal drafting, but the trailing car pulls up behind the lead car and bumps into the rear of it. This pushes the lead car ahead. A good solid bump will cause the lead car to jump 5 mph. The following car that did the bumping is than sucked back up to the lead car and both cars gain this temperary 5 mph advantage.... and of course when the trailing car is sucked back up he bumps again starting the entire process all over again.....

However.... If done roughly or in the wrong position (in a turn), this tactic will destabilize the lead car and usually results in a spectacular crash. Because of the danger of bump drafting NASCAR has attempted to limit the bracing on bumpers on cars, disallowed bump drafting in turns, introduced "no bump zones" on certain portions of speedways where this practice is prevalent, and penalized drivers who are too rough in bump drafting.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8r0TglSCg64