Car Racing fans - Sunday May 29th

[Car-Guy]

Car racing fans should get their fill of some of the best racing this Sunday. (Times are CDT approximate start times, according to my Direct TV schedule)


F1 Cars - Monaco ~8am
Indy Cars - Indianapolis 500 ~11:30am
NASCAR - Coca-Cola 600 @ Charlotte ~5pm

 

[Midpack]

I never miss watching F1...

 

[Car-Guy]

^^^^ My favorite F1 race of the year (Monaco) followed by Indy cars @ Indy. The Coca-Cola 600 is one of the better NASCAR races too, or at least the longest.

 

[MBAustin]

Thanks for the reminder about Monaco - I don't follow F1 too closely these days but I love watching that one. Sunday is definitely the best racing day of the year. I'll get a lot of knitting done for sure!

 

[GTFan]

Yup, best day of the year for racing fans.

 

[Car-Guy]

Yup, best day of the year for racing fans.

I can understand folks not being interested in NASCAR for a lot of reasons (IMO they have destroyed the sport in the past 20 years) but the Indy 500 and F1 at Monaco are global and historical traditions... I guess if you don't like racing then you just don't like any racing.

Heck, I don't particularly care about horse racing, but I'll watch the Kentucky Derby, or baseball but I'll watch the All Star game and WS, etc. But I do draw the line at Golf. I'd rather watch a TV test pattern.

 

[frayne]

Thanks for the heads up car guy. Golf nut here and after hitting balls today will be watching test patterns.

 

[Car-Guy]

^^^^^
Enjoy your test pattern(s).


I'll bet a lot more folks on this forum would watch if they had EV's participating in the races. Of course refueling pit stops would be measured in "hours" instead of seconds... Or maybe they could do battery swaps.

 

[Popeye]

^^^^^
Enjoy your test pattern(s).


I'll bet a lot more folks on this forum would watch if they had EV's participating in the races. Of course refueling pit stops would be measured in "hours" instead of seconds... Or maybe they could do battery swaps.

Well, there’s always Formula E! No, I didn’t make that up.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Formula_E

I watched a few years ago and they actually swapped cars. They’d pull into a paddock with a second car charged and waiting. Then just hop over to the other car. Now they just race for a set time and the battery should last the whole race. It’s about 45 minutes I think.

 

[Bruceski44]

There is a formula e series featuring open wheel electric cars. When it first started, batteries didn't have the range, so they would swap entire cars! Now one car and it's batteries can go the distance but conservation is needed. There are some big name racers in the series. I tried to watch it but just can't get into it. Too much whining, including my own about lack of engine noise.

ETA: I didn't see the post from @Popeye when I wrote my own at about the same time.

 

[Car-Guy]

^^^^I have no doubt that will catch on at some point in the future...

As an FYI, the start of the Monaco F1 race has been delayed due to heavy rain. Even though they can race in the rain, I guess it was just too much. Hopefully it will start very soon.

 

[latexman]

My Dad gave me two tickets from a contractor to the Coca-Cola 600 once, back in the late '90's. Out of 100,000 people, the lady I sat beside turned out to be an old family friend I hadn't seen in 20 years. It was a great day.

 

[jazz4cash]

I lived in Indy for 15 years. I went back last week for a retiree luncheon and we could hear the cars at practice. My job was 1/4 mile from the speedway. Due to poor planning on my part I did not watch any practice runs.

 

[Car-Guy]

The INDY 500 was a pretty good race this year but my favorites didn't win. (Same with F1 in Monaco earlier in the day.)

I'm raced out for the day and not watching the Coca-Cola 600. Come to think of it, I'm getting tired of watching NASCAR in the base case. Too many kids that look so young that I'm surprised they have a drivers license. Anyway, there ain't nothing stock about stock cars anymore.

 

[pb4uski]

But, but, but...they look like Mustangs.

 

[Car-Guy]

But, but, but...they look like Mustangs.

About the only thing that a NASCAR Mustang has in common with a factory Mustang, is the emblem on the grill, and that's probably not from a stock Mustang either.

 

[RobbieB]

Yeah, they would all be dead racing factory cars built for that much speed.

 

[street]

Just talked to a friend and he is watching the race. I have never watched a car race other than I may have flipped through and watched for a few minutes. I believe car racing has the largest following of any professional sport.
Just never got onto that crowd.

 

[Bruceski44]

Don't get hung up on the names. They've never been stock- they've included safety mods, performance mods and were lightened pretty much from day 1. Indy cars race at other places besides Indy. IMSA includes prototypes which are mass produced. Funny cars aren't funny. And exactly what is Formula 1 supposed to signify? Is Formula 409 better or worse?

Racing is about the competition. There are series which involve identical and identically prepped cars, but that takes the team out of the equation. When the team can communicate and execute a winning race it's a thing of beauty. In practice and qualifying for F1 this week, two drivers in two different cars, designed and built by two different teams recorded the exact same lap times, to a thousandth of a second. Twice in one race weekend. When perfect competition exists and the sanctioning body doesn't wreck it with inane rulings or bad policy, the viewer is rewarded with an enjoyable spectacle where preparation and skill can almost overcome chance and fate. And that's where the thrill and heartbreak enter to make it fully engaging.

NASCAR honors this country and presents an enjoyabe experience. They've made some bad moves over the last 20 years or so, but recent changes look like they may restore the thrill. Cars have evolved a lot recently, embracing technology and improving competition. Blatantly manipulative tactics (like phantom cautions) have been reduced to improve its reputation. I stopped watching for a while, but I'm coming back to it, especially for the big races and new races on new road circuits or dirt.

I don't care what you watch, but to not watch NASCAR because the cars aren't stock is a pretty lame excuse. How entertaining would it be to watch stock mustangs and camaros compete with camrys? And how safe would one of those cars be in a 180 mph upside-down crash? Let's be real.

 

[Koolau]

I pretty much quit watching the Indy 500 when all the old big names retired (A. J. Foyt, Bobby Unser, Johnny Rutherford, Al Unser, Mario Andretti, Gordon Johncock, etc.) Don't recognize the names anymore. Speeds are so fast that cars are a blur at the track. Just not the same as when I was young but YMMV.

 

[Car-Guy]

Yeah, they would all be dead racing factory cars built for that much speed.

Absolutely, and I'm all for the added safety features... (Both with the cars and tracks) It's calling them stock cars that crack's me up...

Maybe it's way past time to change the name from (NASCAR) National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing to something more fitting. Back in the day when this all started, the point was modifying your stock car to compete. At some point that was completely lost. I think it was when they got away from the 500 rule but it was an evolution in any case, so when they crossed the line is a matter of opinion. And we know about opinions.

Debating this with racing fans is like debating politics or religion for most folks.

 

[Koolau]

Absolutely, and I'm all for the added safety features... (Both with the cars and tracks) It's calling them stock cars that crack's me up...

Maybe it's way past time to change the name from (NASCAR) National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing to something more fitting. Back in the day when this all started, the point was modifying your stock car to compete. At some point that was completely lost.

Debating this with racing fans is like debating politics or religion for most folks.

I don't think many of us really ever thought those were "stock" in the true sense of the word. Even back when the good 'ol boys who ran shine during the week and raced on Sunday, those weren't truly stock - though much closer to it than the hand built cars of today's NASCAR. YMMV

 

[Car-Guy]

I don't think many of us really ever thought those were "stock" in the true sense of the word. Even back when the good 'ol boys who ran shine during the week and raced on Sunday, those weren't truly stock - though much closer to it than the hand built cars of today's NASCAR. YMMV

Bold by me above, Correct/agree. Heck when you swap tires on your car, it's no longer stock.

 

[f35phixer]

Left hand turn only racing is BORING......

I'll watch F1 and Rally racing.

 

[Koolau]

Left hand turn only racing is BORING......

I'll watch F1 and Rally racing.

Yeah, I know. Stand on it and turn left.

I was watching some highlights of the Indy 500 last night and they showed a lot of in-the-car footage. My wife mentioned that it was boring. I suggested that it wouldn't be boring to someone IN the car, experiencing G-forces that would fatigue any normal person after a few laps. Riding a foot from the wall through the corners must be a real rush as well. Then they showed a spin out with clouds of blue tire smoke and pieces of carbon fiber flying in all directions. Certainly not boring to the guys in the cars.

I guess it's what I grew up with and I still can hear the announcer saying "The Greatest Spectacle In Racing." Too bad I've pretty much lost my interest in motor sports in general as I used to follow many types in years past. YMMV