So.... last night... was... interesting. Honestly, I will look at the review, but I really don't think there was bad racing or driving involved. I know we gave Dean a rash of crap, but I hope we all realize he had very little to nothing to do with what happened. We (and certainly that includes me) should probably make sure to make that clear in the future.
I am pretty sure most everyone ended up off the track at least once in those races (many times for some, I am wondering if 914 may be the only one not to!) and I think most of that is the result of an accumulation of factors:
- The track (BRAD!): It's a narrow track (you will note most all the Gran Tourismo tracks for example are very wide), with zero run off in most all places, and SUPER slick grass, at the edge of the track!!!
- The cars: I really love how all the car are so different, but it does create potential for issues, especially on a thin track. Also, the wildly different launches of all the cars can create big issues, especially in the first corner.
- The reverse grid: To some extent, especially with the launch differences, this can exacerbate issues. It's another thing I think is great (makes for some very good reviews), but can make incidents more likely.
- A big field: Certainly something we don't want to "fix" but it does create potential for larger incidents.
So. I will certainly go over the replay and see if I can pick out any learning opportunities, and try to adjust / learn if there are any. The track next week is also rather narrow with some very tight corners (BRAD!). We might want to consider maybe a rolling start, and maybe eliminating the reverse grid. I think Truxton is also a smaller track... we might want to consider swapping that out. Heck, maybe even next weeks. To prove a point, maybe swap out to some Gran Tourismo tracks!
I think the importing thing to remember here though is, and I think we can all agree on this, the primary issue here is clearly BRAD!
DO NOT LET BRAD PICK TRACKS AGAIN!!!!