Quote:
Originally Posted by pwd72s
Jack:
"Through a long 100-mph sweeper, the weight advantage my car enjoys means I can go through that corner faster than a GT3 or even the 918 -- even with all of their technological innovations (four-wheel steering, suspension sophistication, torque vectoring, whatever). Lateral acceleration is where 'plain old weight' is a huge factor. 'Power-to-weight' really only applies when you're talking about straight-line acceleration (or deceleration). Power and cornering speed are not directly related at all."
Bingo! Colin Chapman had it right all along.
But Jack, you have to admit, your skill on Willow is higher than most...higher than many who run a variety of tracks. A well deserved skill earned through many hours of practice.
In a way, you're like the guy in a local pool hall named as the area "shortstop"...the guy called when a road hustler comes through town, lightening wallets. Call in the shortstop, and likely as not, the road hustler finds his wallet lightened, especially if he agrees to play on the shortstop's favorite table. On that table, the shortstop knows where a rail may bank funny, where a slow speed object ball will take a funny roll, etc.
I doubt there's a driver out there who knows Willow and it's nuances as well as you.
To get back to the original topic. Hell, let's face it...fat tires look much cooler than skinny ones.  |
Quote:
Originally Posted by GH85Carrera
The real difference is 90% of the racers at the track could drive the 918 with good lap times and not crash. Only a few could do it with Jack's 911. The computers do amazing things for average drivers. Jack's car is 100% driver controlled.
No ABS, traction control, power steering or rear wheel steering and the other nannies.
I would love to have a ride in either car around Willow Springs.
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I appreciate the kind words. But here's what I think: if I switched cars with Randy Pobst, both the 918 and my 911, I think I'd be slower than him in the 918, and he would be quicker than me in my own 911. I don't think I believed this, deep down, until a few years ago. I do know this one track very well, and I do know the quirks of my particular car very well. But after spending time with Patrick Long and another factory test driver for the 911R thing in Germany, I think a pro-level driver has such a depth of knowledge and skill that -- good as I think I am -- it's just in a different category altogether. Those guys are able to learn a car and a track so effectively, it just blows away my long-honed specialization.
You can see how meaningful the weight difference is in this short clip, I think. It's a case of steady-state cornering without either driver doing anything exceptionally difficult. But glance between the two speeds displayed. Assuming both are calibrated correctly, the heavier 918 is just plain slower in the same situation as the lighter 911.
https://youtu.be/1_tlN4S5a4w