Danica gives fair warning of payback
Current NASCAR
Doug Richert was a VERY impressive young man, and deserved all the good things that came his way!
Forum Activity for @will-cronkrite
Current NASCAR
Danica gives fair warning of payback
Current NASCAR
She should be able to start in what ever darn division she wants to! When you get aclimated to one particular set of circumstances, ie: car weight, motor horsepower, tire widths and compounds, the way you get better is to match your mental and motor skills to that vehicles characteristics. Once you master that set of skills, it may not be directly applicable to the next in the series.
This viewpoint alone has made me a fan of Kyle Bush. His ability to recognize what the car/truck that he is driving is needing in chassis work displays a tremendous ability to discern what different combinations require on short notice. These are all just relationships in physics, but they are more than subtle differences between the differnent styles of race cars.
Sr. essentially went from dirt to NASCAR and Danica has sure wrecked less than he did! Maybe some of you folks are too young, or are sitting to close to the TV to get a wide enough perspective on this issue.
Why do you suppose that Sam is remaining in Nationwide and not quickly named to the Cup car to replace the 'dinger' ?
Danica gives fair warning of payback
Current NASCAR
Whoa there David, lets go easy here for a minute. I am not in a great position to comment on Danicas talent or lack thereof, but I am in position to take issue with your comments about Janet Guthrie. She had first class equipment and great motors. At Talladega she could pass several cars going down the backstretch, only to be passed in the corners. Interim drivers were substituted and instructed to run quarter laps so that we could get an actual reading of the cars ability to corner and still not make it look like they were outdriving our wheel woman and make her look bad. If she did not like the way the car was working, or she got treated poorly on the race track, etc. she was known to rev the motor just before pitting and over-reving to destroy the motor. After the suspicion was made we hid a tell-tale tack under the dash. Forget that part of your argument!
I offer no opinion on money or fans likes and dislikes, but consider for a moment what she has to overcome due to her size, alone. All the steering mechanisms are the same for all cars and all the steering wheels are the same size. To apply the leverage to rotate the steering wheel requires the same force, but she has shorter arms, so her input leverage has to greater. The same is true for pedal force on the brakes. Any change in pedal leverage dimensions and she has to push either a longer distance or apply more force. Her height requires another issue. Being shorter obviously requires a raise in the position of the seat bottom, Depending on how high you raise the seat in conjunction to how the seat is positioned forward or backward determines your ability straight out ahead of you (advantageous for drafting) OR your ability to look up and to the left out the top of A-pillar on the left side which determines how far up the track you can see on high bank tracks that affords you more time to respond and avert involvement in an accident. On a high banked track, the cars that are ahead of you are NOT right in front of the car, but rather up and to the left according to the degree of banking) She surely has not had time to analyze or maybe even recognize these issues.
If you think any of this is BS, look at ANY picture of Sr sitting in his car and note the position of his helmet. A position that the young lady has not tended to use as of this time (not many others have either, by the way).
Additionally you may be aware that the ability of the cars to corner at faster speeds has escalated in the years since Janet G. The tires are roughly the same width, but the compounds have been and continue to be altered. The cars ability to corner at speed is the result of being able to identify two areas. The size of the contact area and coefficient of friction ( tire compound and durometer reading) The resulting calculation can only be applied as a vector analysis of cornering adhesion and acceleration/deceleration adhesion.) At these higher speeds the driver has to be very adept at determining the vector analysis solely by the seat-of- the-pants feel and you could assume that this takes some time. (I am confident that she is quite aware of this procedure, but her last environment had significantly different speeds, tire compounds and tire widths). At whatever rate she is able to discern this vector analysis, she is having to make the adjustments with the afore mentioned shorter legs and arms.
It is my humble opinion that if she is only keeping up with those cars that are around her, she is working harder to achieve it because of her size limitations. This is not rocket science, just the ability to recognize the things that are required to compete and do that which is required to accomplish that.
With no regard for liking her or not, she deserves some degree of respect for her ability to get sponsorship, keep sponsorship, perseverance, determination, and physical prowess.
There is NO way to compare her to Janet Guthrie.
What was your handle?
General
My 'handle' for the entire duration has been 'Magic Man', given to me by a set of twins in Atlanta, around 1972
Latest Trick
Current NASCAR
The biggest part of this discussion is about has been in use for a LONG time. The inspectors are just getting smarter.
Hey, Will Cronkrite... Who's the Guy with Janet Guthrie & Ralph Moody at Dover in September 1976?
Stock Car Racing History
It doesn't seem right does it Dave. In my brain, it was last week, but that lying guy in the mirror each morning shows me it was that long ago.
It was nice of you to post that video.
I don't remember thing happening just as that photographer said. My prominant memory of Janet at that race was the motor blew up.Ralph and I determined thatshe was unhappy over how the car was running for some reason,I think we were having issues with the connecting link on the sway bar,and pushed in the clutchwhen shepeeled off turn four, and 'lunched' the motor.
I thought that she was quite a spoiled person, often offering her opinion as to what was wrong with the race car, regardless of what Ralph Moody thought, then providing a small tantrum, often making us wait to get the car back out on the track.
As 'smooth' and professional as she sounded in that video, she could be quite 'uncouth' during the race. At a race in Ontario, Cal. she was so vulgar on the radios about some of the other drivers,that James Garner, who was listening in our pits, took off his headset and just rolled his eyes at us and sat down on some tires.
Hey, Will Cronkrite... Who's the Guy with Janet Guthrie & Ralph Moody at Dover in September 1976?
Stock Car Racing History
Hey, Dave,
It does look a little like me, but I believe it is my much younger and better looking thin brother, LOL
A 45 second pit stop? Definately not me.
Gene Grainger was a very nice man. He was always nice to me and wrote correct coverage.
A special message to REX WHITE
Stock Car Racing History
Hey, Ray
I worked with Ralph Moody for a few years and he always spoke very highly of you. Hope you continue to do well.
Spartanburg Downtown Racers Disply
Stock Car Racing History
Patty, It is my mis-fortune to not have, as yet ,made the acquaintance of those fellows, and may have been right next to one of them and not recognized them.