NASCAR stages road course test at Charlotte Motor Speedway

@StandOnIt, your posted story reads to me like this will be one Chase, err, Playoff race that most everyone will be wishing for rain.

Disclaimer: I do not fall under that category.

a road course should have been in the whatever it is this year for a long time. I'm glad the Speedway Motorsports bunch took the bull by the horns and stepped up and made it happen. I hope it pays off for them
 
Fine by me. Martinsville puts on the slowest race and it's two of the best each season.

Thanks for posting that. It makes me look more forward to this race than ever. It'll be sweet to get them off of the 1.5ers original configuration.
Martinsville is two hairpins connected together (the Kansas roval has a nice hairpin like that). This is more like trundling down through the Sonoma esses.
 
Not as bad as I thought. They should get rid of that chicane on the backstretch, though.
I think keeping the backstretch chicane and eliminating the frontstretch chicane makes more sense. It still slows them down for the infield entry, they don't have to narrow down for the frontstretch chicane and can outbreak each other into the infield. If they had just the frontstretch chicane they'd be flying into a really awkward transition off the banking.
 
Works for me. Higher speed does not necessarily equate with better racing.


Normally I would agree with you, but slow road courses suck, and stock cars , due to the weight, tire size and brake limitations makes any road course slower. Speed and momentum is a big part of what makes Watkins Glen so great.
 
I think keeping the backstretch chicane and eliminating the frontstretch chicane makes more sense. It still slows them down for the infield entry, they don't have to narrow down for the frontstretch chicane and can outbreak each other into the infield. If they had just the frontstretch chicane they'd be flying into a really awkward transition off the banking.
Maybe the answer is in the story that was posted earlier with the Goodyear quotes about speed and the possibility of road tires on that banking? I don't know enough about road-course design to judge. I do know that next post season will be like any other. That, I am looking forward to.
 
Maybe the answer is in the story that was posted earlier with the Goodyear quotes about speed and the possibility of road tires on that banking? I don't know enough about road-course design to judge. I do know that next post season will be like any other. That, I am looking forward to.
So long as they have the backstretch chicane they'll be slower through the oval turns 3-4 banking.
 
So long as they have the backstretch chicane they'll be slower through the oval turns 3-4 banking.
I can only guess that by having the two set up the way they are, it'll cause them to have to let up earlier to head into that one coming out of the turn #4. Again, I don't know a thing about road course design. I'm guessing those that are behind these changes do. There must be a reason that they feel it necessary. I yield to their collective knowledge.
 
If we had maybe 2-4 rovals and 3-4 road courses that would be good. My biggest hope is that the countryside road courses aren't still neglected when the sanctioning agreements end.
I think when the sanctioning agreement ends, all hell is going to break loose and the schedule will look drastically different which I am looking forward to.
 
I think when the sanctioning agreement ends, all hell is going to break loose and the schedule will look drastically different which I am looking forward to.
I think new agreements will be in place before the current ones expire.

It's impossible to negotiate with broadcast partners if you haven't nailed down where you're going to race.
 
I think new agreements will be in place before the current ones expire.

It's impossible to negotiate with broadcast partners if you haven't nailed down where you're going to race.
ahhhh The TV deal is up for renegotiation before the sanctioning agreements? Question for you for the sake of it... do you see the schedule having new tracks on it when the sanctioning agreement is up?
 
^^ I think the current track deals were written last year for 5 year terms. The TV deals expire at the end of 2024.

I'd guess tweaks only to the schedule unless the 2 big players buy other properties.
 
Was debating on buying tickets but now I might have to make the 6 hour drive down south to see this in person.

It will be a sell out. No tickets available for this event until after the first of the year. Charlotte has to wait until renewal period is up and relocation requests from season ticket holders are filled. I am going for Grand National Tower section F. It is a shame the seat in the middle to the end of turn 2 toward the back stretch have been removed, would have been some of the best for the ROVAL.
 
Or we could wait, watch the first race and see what's what.

Simplified.
:XXROFL:

If we had maybe 2-4 rovals and 3-4 road courses that would be good. My biggest hope is that the countryside road courses aren't still neglected when the sanctioning agreements end.
I'll ask again: are the rural road courses interested in being on the Cup schedule?

It will be a sell out. No tickets available for this event until after the first of the year. Charlotte has to wait until renewal period is up and relocation requests from season ticket holders are filled. I am going for Grand National Tower section F. It is a shame the seat in the middle to the end of turn 2 toward the back stretch have been removed, would have been some of the best for the ROVAL.
The young lady trying to sell me tickets for this past race told me early December, but of course that can easily change.
 
I'll ask again: are the rural road courses interested in being on the Cup schedule?

Many of them can't afford getting their tracks up to the safety level and have the infrastructure would be my guess. Just because there is a track doesn't mean it has the capacity in the pits, airport close by, hotels for the crews etc. I believe privately owned Pocono has made some safety upgrades and again is another track in the fold, has the facilities and would have the pull to do so IMO.
 
It looks like CMS has spent time and a good bit of cash on this . The infield road course used to go from turn 8 through the wall with a slight left off camber turn . If you did not pass through the wall going right to left you would hit the banking so hard you very likely damaged your car. I see a number of passing spots on this new version . Out and out speed does not make for a good close race!
 
Many of them can't afford getting their tracks up to the safety level and have the infrastructure would be my guess. Just because there is a track doesn't mean it has the capacity in the pits, airport close by, hotels for the crews etc. I believe privately owned Pocono has made some safety upgrades and again is another track in the fold, has the facilities and would have the pull to do so IMO.
NASCAR has made it clear they don't regard road course safety like they do oval safety. Sonoma is all concrete and tire barriers. The Glen has guardrail all the way around just feet (in some instances, inches) away from the track.
 
Many of them can't afford getting their tracks up to the safety level and have the infrastructure would be my guess. Just because there is a track doesn't mean it has the capacity in the pits, airport close by, hotels for the crews etc. I believe privately owned Pocono has made some safety upgrades and again is another track in the fold, has the facilities and would have the pull to do so IMO.
Pocono has a Roval??? Didnt know that. I know Homestead has a racey Roval
 
NASCAR has made it clear they don't regard road course safety like they do oval safety. Sonoma is all concrete and tire barriers. The Glen has guardrail all the way around just feet (in some instances, inches) away from the track.
Your right about road courses having different ways of safety, many forms are used.

The track uses a combination of the SAFER (Steel and Foam Energy Reduction) barrier system and tire-pack barriers in front of the Armco steel guardrails.
At 90 degrees, the worst thing you can hit is SAFER, but it's only tube steel for 10 inches and then an 18-inch gap and then it's cement wall. That cement wall would've never have moved for Jimmie or Denny. Who knows what it could've been.
But by far, I think Brad just doesn't understand the engineering part of it, and the engineers will tell you that at 90 degrees, tire barrier and Armco is by far the safest."
 
Pic posted only to show part of Pocono's track within a track.....


Looks like the section that cuts between the Long Pond straight going up to the front straight. It come out near the oval's pit exit. That's the stretch I want them to use instead of going through oval turn 1.
 
Holy cow this looks slow.



II just got to see the video, as it would not play on my work computer. That is even more horrific than I imagined. 6-10 is just a hot mess. At the VERY least, I would have connected 7 to 10 and skipped 8 and 9 altogether. All of that concrete is going to mean a LOT of wrecked cars. My guess is 40% of the race will be run under caution, and passing opportunities are going to be SCARCE.
 
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