OK, my only comment is that a fellow racer and friend built one of those
newfangled "rear engined" dragsters. This meant that only the driver was moved
to in front of the engine, the drivetrain stayed the same. He only made a few
passes in it and sold it. Said it scared the hell out of him, he"couldn't tell
which way it was going". I never drove one of those newfangled front driver
types so I can't give any personal data. I can say that from the back I could
see and feel everything that was going on even though parts of the engine were
directly in front of me- I just watched the side/s of the track, 'got
especially tricky at night with the flames from the headers. And Pork-Pie, the
frame was a real flexible 200"wb, this helped keep the front wheels on the
ground some of the time and helped with weight transfer--help me here Joe. It
also helped when you pulled the chute, the frame would flex and make the pan
hit the track to help slow you down. :>)
Just a few observations from an old dragster driver
ps; the pan had a 1/2" skid plate on it
John Backus
----- Original Message -----
From: Tom Neimeyer
Sent: Thursday, December 27, 2001 11:11 PM
To: john backus; landspeedracer; land-speed
Subject: Re: Wheelbase & Driver Relationships
Let's expound on this a little. Where should the driver be in relation to
the wheelbase? I have been told as far back as possible. It allows him/her
to see the cars direction as it moves away from straight down the track.
This then allows time to redirect (steer). Let the thread begin.
Tom
> John, I can only relate to drag racing, you guys are the LSR Guru's. A
long
> wheelbase dragster is definitely more stable and easier to keep straight
than
> a short wheelbase car- example, Top Fuel vs Fuel Altered or Funny Car. I
think
> because most all the lakesters and streamliners that are fast are usually
a
> very long wheelbase that is the way to go. But this is only my opinion and
you
> know what that is worth.
>
> John B.- the other one
>
>
> Don't remember if this has been asked before or not so I hope I'm not
beating
> a dead horse.
> What is the effect of wheelbase on vehicle speed. Another words are long
> wheelbase cars inherently more stable than short ones? What are the
> advantages
> or disadvantages?
>
> John Beckett
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