Lap Times Car vs. Bike

[tshort]

Cars are faster than bikes.  More rubber. :P

[tigerblade]

Cars are faster than bikes.  More rubber. :P

I was going to make some comment like "That goes against conventional wisdom that the more rubber you put on the slower you go" but decided it was even below my already exceedingly low comedy standards.   8)

[TZDeSioux]

how about downforce which allows a car to corner harder and faster than a bike.

[Super_KC124]

Has anyone ever seen the in car view from a CART/INDY car at Road America? I don't think they even brake going into turn 1. :o :o :o

[Super Dave]

I was at the Ginasse (sorry, I can't spell Chip's name) Target shop late Friday night.  Was pretty cool.  Basically they make all their own stuff.  Lots of money.  But they really make lots of stuff all on their own.  You could see the logic in everything they made.

Anyway, remember how production based motorcycle racing is and how fast a bike really goes.

The Target IRL cars weigh in at about 1500#.  Got to learn some new names for metals that I had never heard of.  And I can't remember the HP figures, but I think 800 might be right.  So, my R6 would need about 200HP to be comperable in that way.  But then again, I add a good deal of weight too where a drive makes a difference, but not as much as I do on a bike.

Anyway, then there is the traction issue.  Tires = mechanical traction...the sheer size of the contact patch obviously is huge compared to the two business card size points of contact that a bike usually has.

Then aerodynamic traction = down force.  The new car was there.  It's really, really different from the 2003 car.

Actually, each car is really different.  We went to the area where they had all the tractors and trailers, and on the far wall...

Well, it was funny...

The old cars (2002, 2001) were all just kind of fork lifted to mounts on a wall.  Probably about 18 cars.  That's where they sit.  Might get sold some day, maybe not.  They don't use them for anything.  Rules change and development goes in other directions, so they aren't useful for parts or anything.  You just start from scratch with what you know.

We even got to go into Chip's office.  No major deal, it was simple.  The whole operation's main office is in Pittsburg.  Anyway, there was a little framed thing on the wall...Telegram from Western Union.  "Your driver has won the Indianapolis 500 Stop congratulations stop A J Foyt"  Cool...