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Gordon pissed because female Indy 500 driver 100 lbs lighter!?!?

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Originally posted by: DrPizza
Originally posted by: OrganizedChaos
i suggest we sponser a 1500 pound sumo wrestler for nascar then claim that Gordon has a unfair advantage.

lmao, I was thinking the exact same thing! Alright Gordon, our driver is 1500 pounds. You have to put 1300 pounds of lead in the back.

Think AT would want to run a car?

😀

pretty expensive 😛
 
Originally posted by: spidey07
Well he does have a point.

gives her a significant advantage. Most of the IRL drivers I met were very small...tiny even.


I mentioned in the other thread that a few decades ago, it was considered an advantage to have more muscle mass (to withstand fatigue). Further, this guy is very plump -- if weight is so important why doesn't he work on deflating a little? I think he's just afraid of losing and/or a bitter misogynist.
 
physics point of view:

1mph faster? What do they mean? Do they mean 1mph maximum speed? Or 1mph average speed?

Lighter = better acceleration - HUGE advantage, particularly over 500 miles. Should make passing easier.

But, I suppose simplifying it to "1 mph faster" comes from realizing the majority of Nascar fans probably are unedumacated enough to understand F=ma

More importantly, how the fvck do you go 1 mph faster than someone if you are right behind their rear bumper. You only get to go 1 mph faster than them if you're *in front* of them. Skill is more important than a "1 mph" advantage.
 
Originally posted by: apoppin
Originally posted by: DrPizza
Originally posted by: OrganizedChaos
i suggest we sponser a 1500 pound sumo wrestler for nascar then claim that Gordon has a unfair advantage.

lmao, I was thinking the exact same thing! Alright Gordon, our driver is 1500 pounds. You have to put 1300 pounds of lead in the back.

Think AT would want to run a car?

😀

pretty expensive 😛

heck, we wanted to buy an aircraft carrier at one point... why not an Indy car?
 
Originally posted by: Viper GTS
1 MPH is a substantial difference when races are won by fractions of seconds over hundreds of miles.

They should adjust the rules to account for driver weight, other sports (including racing) do the same.

BTW for those saying a 200 lb guy needs to go on a diet you're just a skinny little bitch. 200 lbs is very reasonable for any decent sized guy (6'2+).

Viper GTS


Oh yeah? Look at this photo and tell me he is not bloated... ... For an average guy, no biggie. But for someone who claims weight is so important he is packing on a lot of flab (yes, that's extra flab, not muscle...)
 
Originally posted by: Viper GTS
1 MPH is a substantial difference when races are won by fractions of seconds over hundreds of miles.

They should adjust the rules to account for driver weight, other sports (including racing) do the same.

BTW for those saying a 200 lb guy needs to go on a diet you're just a skinny little bitch. 200 lbs is very reasonable for any decent sized guy (6'2+).

Viper GTS

How many of those drivers are actually 6'2 though? Just the ones I've looked through are 5'7 or so and right at about 145lbs.
 
I'm wondering how many of the geeks in this topic can even lift 100lbs, let alone comprehend what kind of advantage this might be!
 
Originally posted by: Ornery
I'm wondering how many of the geeks in this topic can even lift 100lbs, let alone comprehend what kind of advantage this might be!


Well, I am not against the idea of equalizing weight. But if it is such a huge deal to him I find it odd he never mentioned it about smaller males or tried to reduce his own body mass.
 
Man there is a lot of ass talking in here. I'm almost certain all of you have no clue what driving any race car is like, let alone what a difference 100 pounds can make. I can't stand Robby Gordon, but he has a point. He's just saying what the other drivers are thinking, but don't have the cajones to say. IRL is one of the few racing associations that doesn't weigh the cars WITH the driver. It just makes sense to weigh the cars with the driver.

I drive NASCAR modifieds, and believe me, 100 pounds makes a difference. In some divisions, including my own, 50 or 100 pounds is a weight penalty given by the rules for using a different engine or carb. For example in my division at certain tracks a 2 barrell carb is mandatory, but if you do want to run with a 4-barrell, which adds significant horsepower, you have to add 100 pounds to the car to even it out. Also, there are some divisions that give one weight, say 2800 pounds for a "crate engine" or 2900 pounds for a "tour legal" engine, which makes quite a bit more horsepower.

So, 100 pounds DOES make a difference. It's ridiculous that IRL doesn't weigh with the drivers like 90% of other racing associations.
 
Originally posted by: poopaskoopa
Although I can see lighter cars being faster, but is that 1mph claim even accurate?

no, if you read up, I point out that lighter = better acceleration.

a claim of 1mph is perhaps an over-simplification of the advantage. Since car racing fans simply wouldn't be satisfied with "it makes the car faster" meaning the car accelerates faster, they give them the 1mph figure to appease them. The people in charge realize the vast majority of their fans are too unedumacated 🙂 to understand F=ma

incidentally, someone implied earlier that increased weight meant more control. At the simplest level - friction vs. centripetal forces on a car going around a turn, the mass doesn't matter. If you double the mass of the car, you need twice as much friction to hold the car from sliding out of control. However, if you double the mass of the car, you've doubled the friction... it balances out. However, traction vs. friction makes the problem much more complicated.
 
It is an obviously unfair advantage, and one that virtually every other racing body in the world addresses through a system of weight equalization that takes into account the driver's own weight. That IRL does not do this is an oversight so glaring as to raise whole new questions, like the possibility of corruption.
 
I dunno, i'm not a big fan of racing, but i'm pretty sure if one driver is 100lbs lighter and there is no specification, driving around with a lighter driver seems like an advantage to me.

Would i pout about it? probally not : but it is something to consider imo


ps : didn't gordon race Schumacher sometime last december? how'd that go? 😛
 
Wow, its the most absurd whinning of all time.

1) Most drivers aren't over 200 lbs. More like 170-180 range.
2) Its men that have the advantage. They are stronger and can control the car better.
3) Its the first time ever in any sport that a male is complaining that a female has an advantge.
4) He needs to STFU.
 
Originally posted by: oogabooga
I dunno, i'm not a big fan of racing, but i'm pretty sure if one driver is 100lbs lighter and there is no specification, driving around with a lighter driver seems like an advantage to me.

Would i pout about it? probally not : but it is something to consider imo


ps : didn't gordon race Schumacher sometime last december? how'd that go? 😛

Different Gordon. That was Jeff Gordon. And they didn't race, they traded cars for a practice session.
 
Of course, lighter have an advantage but its really a moot point so he meeds to STFU.

The point is if lighter drivers make that much of a difference, then the owners need to start looking for 5'2, 115 lbs men to drive their car.
Thats why so see horse owners find the smallest guys to race their horses.

So instead of whinning how she has an advantage, the owners can do something about it.

Someone already mentioned a good analogy....its like a 5'2 guy complaining that a 7'0 has an advantage in basketball.
Maybe a 5'2 shouldn't pick basketball as his sport. Same as maybe a 6'2, 220 lbs guy shouldn't pick race car driving as his sport if it means he's at a disadvantage.
 
Of course, lighter have an advantage but its really a moot point so he meeds to STFU.

The point is if lighter drivers make that much of a difference, then the owners need to start looking for 5'2, 115 lbs men to drive their car.
Thats why so see horse owners find the smallest guys to race their horses.

So instead of whinning how she has an advantage, the owners can do something about it.

Someone already mentioned a good analogy....its like a 5'2 guy complaining that a 7'0 has an advantage in basketball.
Maybe a 5'2 shouldn't pick basketball as his sport. Same as maybe a 6'2, 220 lbs guy shouldn't pick race car driving as his sport if it means he's at a disadvantage.

The point is, if two equally skilled drivers in equal cars raced, the one who weighed 100 pounds less would have a significant advantage over a 500 mile race. Weight also affects fuel consumption, which is a big factor in race strategy (Danika had to ease up at the end to conserve fuel, Wheldon ran out of fuel on his victory lap).

The comparison to basketball is poor, because in that case you can't equalize the two opponents. In auto racing you can very easily equalize everyone, so why not do it? 😕

I think there's a lot of people here who are just defending her because she's hot. :roll:
 
Of course, lighter have an advantage but its really a moot point so he meeds to STFU.

The point is if lighter drivers make that much of a difference, then the owners need to start looking for 5'2, 115 lbs men to drive their car.
Thats why so see horse owners find the smallest guys to race their horses.

So instead of whinning how she has an advantage, the owners can do something about it.

Someone already mentioned a good analogy....its like a 5'2 guy complaining that a 7'0 has an advantage in basketball.
Maybe a 5'2 shouldn't pick basketball as his sport. Same as maybe a 6'2, 220 lbs guy shouldn't pick race car driving as his sport if it means he's at a disadvantage.

No, it means the IRL should weigh the cars with the driver like almost every other racing association in the world. It makes no sense to weigh the cars without the driver given the varied weight of different people.
 
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