[The Champ]

Originally Posted by ho428

When a car gets the tire toe'd out like that you cannot steer it the direction you want, been there, done that.
Any car was going right, she did crank the wheel to the left, the car still went right, there was no stopping it.

The correct thing is to let go before wall impact, she did. After that there was no steering left in it.

Danica's car did not have a toe out condition after the initial contact from the videos I've seen. She continues to go straight for quite some distance after the impact before the car goes to the wall.

In my experience, if her right front had been toed out that much - her car would have headed to the wall much sooner.

I agree that before hitting the wall - taking her hands off the wheel is the right thing to do. And after hitting the wall - I also agree there was no steering the car.

But after the initial contact - which wasn't all that hard -

Originally Posted by hurryinhoosier62

To the Chump, this is called EXPERIENCE. ho428 has actually DRIVEN a race car. You are a "leaner" at best. Leave to commenting on what a driver should or should not do to those with EXPERIENCE.

Thanks for the new nickname. I hope it makes you feel like a big man to start name calling...

I'll refrain from responding to your rant beyond that.

[63Banshee]

I thought she may have had a chance to make it to pit lane avoiding further damage by infield, other cars or wall. There was no attempt at all (eyes). Spatial and rules awareness issues?

[60man]

I'm not a Danacia fan nor basher....
But have any of you tried to steer a 3,500 lb race car running 200 MPH when you get hit and spun in a pack of cars ??!!! It has a mind of it's own...I haven't drove full size cars that fast but have raced Formula K's (High end Karts) at 155-160 at large oval tracks... They are open wheel so you don't want to get tangled up...BUT...it does happen. Most likely while drafting in a pack...Trying to control what happens after being hit/spun is not an easy feat...and requires a lot of luck and a little skill.>>> You do your best of hope it works...and other racers have some good luck too..
Just saying....if you haven't done it....don't be quick to down someone..

I'll shut up now...

[63Banshee]

Not hit hard, not spun, not running 200 at the time. Yes, I've driven them. Looking at the in car cam video, it looks like she didn't even consider other options other than what ended up happening.

[hurryinhoosier62]

Originally Posted by The Champ

Danica's car did not have a toe out condition after the initial contact from the videos I've seen. She continues to go straight for quite some distance after the impact before the car goes to the wall.

In my experience, if her right front had been toed out that much - her car would have headed to the wall much sooner.

I agree that before hitting the wall - taking her hands off the wheel is the right thing to do. And after hitting the wall - I also agree there was no steering the car.

But after the initial contact - which wasn't all that hard -



Thanks for the new nickname. I hope it makes you feel like a big man to start name calling...

I'll refrain from responding to your rant beyond that.

I've ALWAYS referred to you as the Chump. If you would park your "I'm an expert on everything" attitude, you MIGHT discover you're NO WHERE NEAR as EXPERIENCED as you THINK you are. ho428's EXPERIENCE as a road race driver speaks VOLUMES over the OPINIONS of a "leaner". See the difference.....OPINION verse EXPERIENCE?

[63Banshee]

Originally Posted by Racer81x

Looks like cheating Chad was at it again!
I tuned in for the first 30 minutes of qualifing coverage today and they said the 48 car had probablems passing tech this mourning before qualifing.

3 on the same team in the top 5 does make you wonder --

[Sirrotica]

Wanica is inexperienced in crash situations and as many times as she's ended up wrecked one would think she'd be an expert at handling wreck situations. The way she handles interviews after the race or wreck especially after being asked a direct question she talks a whole lot and says nothing.

I've listened to her feedback over the radio and still the same thing, she talks and says nothing that a crew chief could figure out how to make the car better or understand what the heck she's even talking about. Dropping out of high school probably has something to do with her inability to communicate well with others.

She's never going to be a factor in cup racing same as she never was a factor in open wheel cars. I still don't believe Stewart thinks she's coming along fine. As far as challenging the King to a race at a NASCAR track she's never going to get Petty to agree to it, and further it would prove nothing as Petty was going downhill on NASCAR tracks before he quit racing. At her age though he was a star, that's something that will never happen to her.

She doesn't understand the mechanics and physics of a race car and it's astounding that being around racing as long as she has been there is as little knowledge of the platform that she is using week after week. If you don't understand how something works and be able to relay the information to the crew chief, it's pretty difficult for him to adjust it.

At 32 YO she's been racing longer than Petty had when he was her age and has no where near the percentage of wins or records set that Petty had at 32. Petty is 77 YO this year so putting her up against a 32 YO when she's 77 I doubt she'd be able to win in a stock car either. Reflexes going away as you get older take your edge away it happens to everyone that races, no one is exempt.

As Petty said, she's a female and gets all the attention because of it, she surely doesn't get all the attention because of her driving abilities. I seriously doubt when she's 40 she'll still be competing in NASCAR, don't know what she'll be doing, but I doubt she'll be the darling of NASCAR in 8 years.

[hurryinhoosier62]

Brad,

I agree with you. She's a LOUSY race car driver. A driver's main responsibility, other than driving the car, is to able to tell the crew chief and mechanic what he/she needs to make the car handle better. If you don't possess enough mechanical knowledge to do that, you REALLY don't need to be in a race car. My old friend, Bud Brown, put it this way...."Let's see how she handles getting really torn up in a crash. Then, we'll see what kind of driver she really is." Bud was on Gordon Johncock's crew for many years. He knew a thing or two about drivers.

[60man]

Originally Posted by 63Banshee

Not hit hard, not spun, not running 200 at the time. Yes, I've driven them. Looking at the in car cam video, it looks like she didn't even consider other options other than what ended up happening.

OK...not hit hard...not spun.....and not running 200 at the time??
NOt being a smart azz but what are you saying??...
How fast and what have you driven...?
Just saying..consider what.....sometimes there are NO options to be had..that's all I'm saying..

[The Champ]

Originally Posted by 60man

I'm not a Danacia fan nor basher....
But have any of you tried to steer a 3,500 lb race car running 200 MPH when you get hit and spun in a pack of cars ??!!!

I doubt anyone posting on this board has personally experienced those exact situations. I freely admit I haven't. Heck - the fastest I've ever driven is only 135.

I first started working on race cars in 1972 and have been a corner worker where I've been within 20 feet to see exactly what happens when wrecks happen. It was my job to assign fault and send the appropriate driver to the back. I'll even admit that there probably was a time or two when I sent the wrong driver to the back - based on the portion of the wreck that I actually saw vs what I didn't get to see.

I've spent a lot of time inside a race track photographing racing too. You don't get shots like this without standing right on the edge of the track:


This is an action shot of one of the cars that I helped build and pitted for:


These are the kind of shot you get from the grandstands:




When you are that close to the racing surface with no wall between you and the action - you need to have a good understanding of what happens when wrecks happen. Or else you could be part of the wreck.

Getting back to the Touring Princess:

Danica does not appear to get spun, but she did get hit. Her car continued to go straight ahead even after the impact for a period of time. She somehow managed to lose control of her car. Getting hit on the extreme right front end like she did, if anything, should have caused her car to spin towards the infield, not go uphill into the wall.

If she had been hit behind the right front wheel - that would cause her rear end to go to the left and have her pointing uphill to the wall, just like these photos from Charlotte (continuation of the same wreck as the last photo above):




Do I think Danica intentionally drove her car into the wall? Absolutely not.

[67_Krewzer]

Originally Posted by 60man

I'm not a Danacia fan nor basher....
But have any of you tried to steer a 3,500 lb race car running 200 MPH when you get hit and spun in a pack of cars ??!!! It has a mind of it's own...I haven't drove full size cars that fast but have raced Formula K's (High end Karts) at 155-160 at large oval tracks... They are open wheel so you don't want to get tangled up...BUT...it does happen. Most likely while drafting in a pack...Trying to control what happens after being hit/spun is not an easy feat...and requires a lot of luck and a little skill.>>> You do your best of hope it works...and other racers have some good luck too..
Just saying....if you haven't done it....don't be quick to down someone..

I'll shut up now...

I agree and this is just my opinion but that car was going to go wherever it wanted to go. Nothing she did with the wheel was having any effect. Watch the steering wheel when she lets go just prior to impact

[Sidponcho]

As much as I think she's a wannabe, for anyone to question what she could or could not do after being hit is rediculous!!

[68BeaumontSD]

After the comments Richard Petty had about Danica, did no one find it ironic that the # 43 car is the one that took her out of the race? While I agree that she will never be one of the top drivers, she does better than a lot of the other drivers out there. If she were as bad as many of you say she is she would finish last in every race or not even qualify. JMO.
James

[67GTONUT]

I will say...... She was driving a good race until she got taken out.....

If she can at least start finishing in the top half of the field starting next week..... maybe she has turned a corner..... But if she keeps on finishing in the bottom half.... then there is no hope....

[63Banshee]

Originally Posted by 60man

OK...not hit hard...not spun.....and not running 200 at the time??
NOt being a smart azz but what are you saying??...
How fast and what have you driven...?
Just saying..consider what.....sometimes there are NO options to be had..that's all I'm saying..

Was countering the idea of her being hit hard, spun and running 200 at the time of the ding. Not that it matters, but I've run race cars and street cars 160.

and all I'm saying is I doubt she ever even considered pit lane. "What the hell happened?" meant "I had no idea what to do."

[sdbob]

I got on the web and noticed what she has done in her career.Check it out-plus the money-show me the money!

[David Jones]

Here is her reason for being..........
http://www.macsmotorcitygarage.com/2...ggest-winners/

[Sidponcho]

Derr.....sex sells

[The Champ]

I found something that Danica has more of than any other NASCAR driver...

She has more twitter followers...

#10-Danica Patrick became NASCAR's first driver with over 1 million Twitter followers in the days leading up to Sunday's big race, ranking her among the top racing drivers and female athletes in the world.

Of course, Dale Jr. didn't even have a twitter account until Monday after the Daytona 500 - and he's already got over 250,000 followers.

I personally haven't found a good enough reason to set up a twitter account, but if I did I wouldn't need to follow the Touring Princess.

[Sidponcho]

Originally Posted by The Champ

I personally haven't found a good enough reason to set up a twitter account, but if I did I wouldn't need to follow the Touring Princess.

I get tweets from our local pizza joint with last-minute specials. That's about all twatter is good for in my book