Hi Gary,
>And yes, in 2006 Nardin was 10th - but he was 2.2 seconds back not 4.
Yes, you are correct. I mistyped. Sorry.:-(
However, once again if I haven't said it before I'll say it now, we and
every other autosports organization classifies cars not drivers. Nardin is
a
excellent driver, so are/were people like Ames, Babb, O'Donnell, Flier,
Johnson, Thomas, Voboril, yourself, and the many others that have been
past
and present multiple national champions. If we classified drivers, these
folks, as well as some of the other F Mod people on this list, would end
up
in A Mod because their skill set arguementally makes them dominant.
Keep in mind that looking at the performance or abilities of one driver
can't become the basis/focus of classifying the car. The focus would be
much
to narrow. And BTW, there are two sides to that coin. The MAC didn't alter
the 440s because you and Chuck did so well in them, did we Gary? We looked
at the engine's potential, not the noted abilities of the drivers. Looking
back over the existence of the class, only a handful, a very small
sprinkling of Vee drivers compared to us 2 cycle folks, have ever made it
on
stage to receive an award. This is not parity.
Something needs to be done and we would like to be positive, rather then
negative in our approach. And by that I mean, we do not believe that we
should be adding weight or restricting the 500s utilizing other means. We
would much prefer improving the capabilities of the slower car. Quite
frankly, these proposed additions should have been spaced over the 24
years
of Solo Vee existence and not done in one motion. But it wasn't and that
doesn't mean it should never happen. Perhaps that is what makes it so
overwhelming to folks. I don't know.
All of this reference to Nardin is clouding the issue. I think we are
losing
focus here. The attention should be placed on what the proposal does or
doesn't do for the population of Solo Vees, not on Nardin's or any other
one
driver's abilities. We need to be attentive to the facts, not emotion
filled
rhetoric of 145 HP super vees. As Chuck asked, check with VW engine
builders
but make sure you give them all the information :-).
Can we ever make any two diverse type cars equal, probably not. But that
is
not the purpose of this exercise. It is to make the general populace of
Vee
drivers competitive with the 500s. The MAC feels that if "you" would
really
think about what has been offered, put everything into it's proper
perspective, do some research with VW engine builders if necessary, you
might come to a different conclusion then what I am seeing in this thread.
>The new surface at HPT is the main reason he and the other Vee's were
farther down in the results from past years at Nationals.
Well, not really, but it certainly was the straw that broke the camels
back
;-). The F500/Solo Vee inequity has been festering for years now, it just
took the 2006 national to light the match.
"We" flourish in our growth, yet "we" are afraid of change. You guys may
look at Nardin, but we are looking at the class.
Art
-----Original Message-----
From: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
[mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] On Behalf Of GaryK
Sent: Sunday, February 25, 2007 10:20 PM
To: [email protected]
Subject: RE: [F500] Re: FM autocrosser alert
Yeah, and I was 28th in 2005! :-(
Rain!!!! Don't forget the rain that feel after the first drivers got
their
first runs in. The rain at the 2005 Nationals shook up the results. If
you
were the first of a two driver car or an only entrant in your car you had
a
good shot at a good run, because you then needed rain tires and those runs
were slower. Nardin coned that run and in the rain got within approx.
3.5 seconds of Libecco's first run. On the second day here are the 3
fastest times:
Libecco - 54.777
Nardin - 54.917
Kramar - 54.954
And yes, in 2006 Nardin was 10th - but he was 2.2 seconds back not 4.
He also won in 2000 and has been a threat to win every year. The new
surface at HPT is the main reason he and the other Vee's were farther down
in the results from past years at Nationals. And why they are asking for
these changes now. Nardin won the Peru tour last year (again?) over many
top entrants.
If you throw out Nardin from the equation, then the rule changes seem to
be
needed and should help them (if they do them). Nardin is a very good
driver
and he's proved that over the years in his Vee and when he ran in AM. He
has been the benchmark for the Vee's to shoot for. And who I know will be
there pushing me and has beaten me.
Gary Kramar
'89 FM F500
