I guess this isn't a question on which series has the purest form of racing, but perhaps which style exemplifies the purest form of racing. I have noticed that in older NASCAR races, you would see longer periods of green flag and sometimes the leader winning by laps. Now a days, you see every finish with 20 cars on the lead lap. Which is a purer form of racing (in all motorsport, NASCAR was just an example)? Do we constitute 'good racing' as door to door, fender to fender, for entertainment purposes or is there something deeper that fans want to connect with and draws people to go watch an event.
There's no right answer... F1 is a combination of driver and car (read race budget). Spec series are more about the driver skill level as they use cars that are pretty close by rule. This is just two examples that illustrate the point. The best is whatever floats your boat the most, and is very subjective. Personally, I like the races that have multiple classes on the track at once. Seems to me that they require more "driving" than some of the others. matt
Tough question. I have many answers. I think of go-carts as one of the purest forms because of the simplicity but the actual racing is sometimes not exciting because it is often a follow the leader situation. I like Formula-1 because of the technology but again the racing is frequently a follow the leader situation. I tend to enjoy watching Koni ST type racing because of the variety of cars, but still made equal by rules, and the large amount of lead changes. Of course I root for the Minis. As Matt stated, multiple classes on the same track is also fun to watch because it creates a lot of passing. I tend not to watch spec racing with all the same make of cars because I like to see different cars, however it can be good/pure racing.
I've always been a fan of the FIA GT series. I like seeing what the manufacturers are bringing to the table.
I'd agree with the go-kart analogy, tough to argue that's not the purest form of racing when guys like Micheal Schumacher have said as much in the past. Not as keen as formula 1, because many times the race is determined before the flag is dropped, during qualifying...They probably are the mose skilled drivers in the sport though, but it's really hard to win the race if you don't have a good qualifying position. And the technology in the cars, and the ability to support it with RandD is just as important as the driver--to be successful in F1, you need deep pockets. It really depends on how you define "pure". Equally prepped cars, it's all on the driver, so by my personal subjective opinion, spec racing is the 'purest'--all things equal, or close to equal, except the driver. Nascar? Lot's of fun to watch, it's a guilty pleasure, but not pure--"competition yellows", the new double file restarts and what not are an artificial way to keep the cars close together, nothing pure about it. Does what it was intended to do though, and that's to keep it interesting and entertaining, at the expense of allowing the best driver/car combo from pulling away.
I like endurance racing, whether it's an ALMS race, the Paris-Dakar Rally or the Baja 1000. Then it's truly a test of not just the fastest car, but the best support crew, the most reliable, and driver endurance as well as skill. Way back when getting a car to run 100mph was a feat and getting one to run 250miles was a feat, these days 250 miles at 190mph isn't much of a challenge so you've got to run faster, longer. The only other racing I'd think of as "pure", but for an entirely different reason, is anything at the grassroots level where it's real people racing the car they really have to drive to work on Monday in. F1, Nascar, drag racing, lawn mower racing, etc. they all have their strong points and entertainment value, but if I can't drive the car to the store or take a nap during the race and not miss much, then it just lacks the appeal.
Dirt Track Saturday Night. Anything for any budget, and talent. World of Outlaws (or whatever they are called now) is one awesome event to witness in person. Not so much on TV.
Love the sport car racing.........Koni, SCCA, Grand Am, WTCC, BTCC. Many different makes, drivetrains, and budgets. This is racing for me.
"Purest" racing - Bonneville. It's just you and your car against the salt and your class record. Made the 130 MPH club at the World of Speed meet last year in my MCS, and going for the 150 MPH club next year. Usfra home page
Formula 1 from the 60's and early 70's before all the fancy electronics and crazy aerodynamics came into the sport. Those guys were real men. So I guess I'm a fan of real drivers and real risk.
Pure form of racing = getting from point A to point B in a minimal amount of time possible (or covering the most distance in allotted time). The rest is just flavors. The only form of "racing" that amuses me is drifting. Can hardly be called racing once you need to have judges for style points. That's like comparing speed skaters to ice dancers.
Always liked the figure skating analogy for drifting. :lol: Sure it's fun and looks cool, but i just can't take it seriously as a competition. And the whole scene can be a little silly too. Karting to me is #1. Really helps that most of us can do it without fronting $texas for jsut a couple sessions at the local outdoor or indoor track. It's a great way to see who can really drive, and who are just posers. As for all the real upper level racing series out there, so much of it comes down to money and although it can happen, it's rare that a driver can overcome being in an underdog car. It does happen, like Fisichella in Brazil, in the rain, in that dog Jordan F1 car a couple years back. I love the technology in F1 and the drivers are all beasts. But again a lot of itis being in the right car and politics. WRC is the same way, great technology, ballsy drivers, but try to win if your not in a Citroen. ALMS, Le Mans, FIA GT, etc are great just for the sheer sexiness of the cars and the excuse to watch racing for several hours. :lol: I always like watching sports car series like Koni challenge, Speed WC, BTCC, WTCC, just because the racing is so intense and the cars resemble real cars. Spec series are great, but there is a sizable difference between front runner Spec Miatas and the lapped cars. I suppose things like the VW TDI Jetta cup where the cars are exactly the same are different. Time attack stateside is interesting because yes, a lot of it is budget and some small shops just can't compete, BUT a lot of it comes down to car set up. So the people that know what they're doing can hang with the big dogs that have a lot of cash (and small brains). No matter what, racing is still one of the coolest things in the world to me. I need to go karting soon. - Andrew
I just have one beef with carting. It is a lot of fun, but at my 200+ lbs I always end getting beat by some 14 year old half my weight. I think it's that HP to weight thing.
We had a big karting trip with some car guys, most with track experience, to NJMP this summer. My old boss is probably 245-ish, I'm 155-ish. He's an instructor with some club racing experience. First session was him, then me, then everyone else at least a second back. As the day went on and people learned the track, the times got closer together and some of them eventually came out ahead, but it said a lot about his ability to drive and learn a track so fast. For some tracks it's a lot tougher for him. But yes, I've been trounced by kids a couple of times. - andrew
Ideally, I would say between the Trans-Am 60's days, Can-Am 60/70s days, and F1 early 80s or IMSA late 80's days. Nowadays, the GA GT, all KONI, SPEED World Challenge, ALMS GT and all SPEC type racing.
Congratulations, have only been out to one meet as a spectator/helper, but for everyone else this is one of those things you have to be there and see.
Ok, Bonneville looks like like plenty of fun and I am sure I would have a great time if I could attend, but for my MINI I prefer a form of motorsports that requires a steering wheel. I am definitely going to have to get back to the local karting track.
I think "Pure" needs to be defined here... Otherwise it's just a matter of opinion. F1 has so much technology I personally don't consider them great drivers... just good drivers in great cars. With all that downforce they generate it's hard not to drive them good. NASCAR? No electronics in the car and still using Push rod technology and 4 barrell carbs...pretty simple when you look at from the surface, however look at all the R&D spent to make 1hp. I have to agree with others that are pointing to the local short tracks.... to me Pure would be the guys that build and drive their owns cars with every penny they can scrap together. It's all in the desire to race and win. That's how I look at football and baseball. Can't stand pro, but college is so awesome to watch because those kids are playing with their hearts and not their wallets! Just my humble opinion.
Don't know if it's the purest but it's pretty damned good! [ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=brNtbaMadX4"]YouTube - Exciting GT2 finish at Laguna Seca[/ame] Matt