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Driver's ed: a stick-and-ball fan's guide to NASCAR
Sporting News, The, Sept 27, 2004 by Matt Crossman
Do drivers know how fast they are going?
Not really. They have an idea, of course, but the cars don't have speedometers, and at such high speeds, the drivers can't look down much anyway. They pay more attention to lap times and use those times as a baseline to search for the fastest loop around the track.
Precise speed matters only when drivers are on pit road, the sole place on the track with a speed limit. The limit varies from track to track, usually from 35 to 45 mph. Drivers watch their tachometers, which monitor RPMs, to get an idea of how fast they are going. If a driver breaks the speed limit, he gets penalized, often by being forced to drive through pit road again.
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Other things Nextel Cup cars don't have that regular cars do: lights, turn signals, windshield wipers, empty pop cans under the seat, heaters, air conditioners, defrosters, air bags, passenger seats, CD players and ashtrays, though at least one driver, no longer on the circuit, used to smoke during caution laps. Reports an automotive journalist who once got a ride around Michigan International Speedway with this driver: "As we were doing, oh, maybe 145 down the backstretch, he lights up, steering with his knees. He had one of those beanbag ashtrays on the transmission tunnel. Way-cool guy."
COPYRIGHT 2004 Sporting News Publishing Co.
COPYRIGHT 2004 Gale Group
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Most Popular Articles in Sports
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