Which require the most skill, auto or motorcycle racing?

[Hayabusa Rider]

I'd have made a poll for this, but I am a poll virgin, and let's just say the directions were a tad confusing. Anyway-
Whatcha think?

 

[Boonesmi]

motorcycle

 

[Mr.IncrediblyBored]

Depends entirely on the type of racing. Rally racing is as difficult bike riding, seemingly moreso.

 

[JC]

Definitely motorcycle racing. Requires the whole body.

 

[DesignDawg]

I'm starting to doubt very seriously that -someone here- actually has a motorcycle.... WHy bring attention to it so often?

Ricky
DesignDawg

 

[CocaCola5]

Comparing the pinnacle of each, the 500cc GP with Formula One, I have to say its about even, the 500 is more physical probably but is shorter in distance, a F1 car is easier to simply operate but much harder than the 500s to extract the maximum out of it, also F1 require more strict tactics because positions are harder to win than the 500s. Overall, I would say bikes is harder than F1 as to just competing, but F1 is harder than bikes when it comes to being at the top consistently.

 

[Sluggo]

When they crash, motorcycle racing is much harder.

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

LOL... I figure that with all the car posts, no one has a car?

 

[yakko]

<< Definitely motorcycle racing. Requires the whole body. >>

Rally racing requires the whole body as well. Probably more than motorcycle racing.

Saying which one is harder would be based on which type of racing in each.

 

[j0lly]

Depends on the event.

Riders have died of exhaustion in the Paris-Dakkar Rally.

 

[trmiv]

<< Depends on the event.

Riders have died of exhaustion in the Paris-Dakkar Rally. >>



Does that mean it takes more skill?


The original question is was which one requires more skill. I've only competitively raced a car, so I can't say what is it like to race a motorcycle (although I do own and ride a bike on the street). I don't think anyone can answer that completely unless they have actually tried both, but I believe the answer would be, both take a lot of skill. There are a lot of things unique to each that make both tough.

 

[Tominator]

I've raced both. Car racing is easy by comparison!

I'm only speaking as an individual vs. the track and not a team trying to win as a stepping stone to the next level of competition.

 

[trmiv]

<< I've raced both. Car racing is easy by comparison!

I'm only speaking as an individual vs. the track and not a team trying to win as a stepping stone to the next level of competition. >>



What type of auto racing did you do?

 

[mmesker]

I've never done either of 'em, but I'd imagine motorcycle racing is tougher because you have the whole "falling off and dying" part, as well as going really really fast.

 

[trmiv]

<< I've never done either of 'em, but I'd imagine motorcycle racing is tougher because you have the whole "falling off and dying" part >>



Not only does that have nothing to do with the skill question, it is also a risk in both sports. In auto racing you have the whole "hitting a wall and dying" part or the particularly nasty "burning to death in the car" part.



<< as well as going really really fast. >>



They both go really really fast.

 

[Tominator]

<< What type of auto racing did you do? >>



'Hobby cars' mostly although I've raced in competition on an informal basis at 'Street ' events where you drove to the track what you raced. Never professionally on asphalt.

I LOVE the dirt however and feel if I'd had enough support things might have been different....

I settled on motorcycles, but weigh too much. At 175lb I was way too heavy for road racing then, so I settled on the drag strip. Started qith a '68 383 Plymouth Roadrunner and ended up racing and building bikes. I've got a few trophies and even a track record or two....long time ago.

 

[silverpig]

Call me crazy, but from what I've seen on TV, motorcycle crashes (in races on well built tracks that is), seem to result in much less injury than car crashes. From what I've typically seen, a motorcycle crash consists of the bike flipping over and over, and the rider just skidding along the track until he hits some grass, then sliding across that for a while, then hitting some hay bales. Usually, they get up right away, and try to get back on their bike, but find that the bike is unracable.

 

[CocaCola5]

<< I've never done either of 'em, but I'd imagine motorcycle racing is tougher because you have the whole "falling off and dying" part, as well as going really really fast. >>




I am not so sure about this, cars have much higher corner speed than bikes which thus greater impact speeds than bikes. A car's chassis protects but it can also be used against the driver in some crashes. Driver can be trapped, suffer multiple roll-overs in a car where on a bike they often could bail out with minor bruises.

 

[Tominator]

silverpig

That hits home....while testing a Hnda 750 'Superbike' for a friend I had the front tire deflate at an estimated [tach only] 179mph at the braking point of turn one on a track that was then an old airport and is now a first class facility. Wentzville Missouri. the bike went one way and I slid about 300 feet or so and landed in the hay bails. Ruined a pair of leather gloves and had to resole my boots. The new leather patches on my ass were a bonus!

The bike took 8th place in the feature the next day...another rider btw.

 

[NFS4]

NASCAR is the hardest BY FAR!! Left, Left, Left!!