Matt,
I would like to respond to your query...I have been competing at the salt
for almost fifty years. Driving on the salt, or at high speed anywhere I
suspect is, to say the least, different.
I ran roadsters for a number of years and since 1980 have been competing in
the Competition Coupe Class. The roadster experience is much different than
driving the coupe. Aerodynamics play a big part in how a car handles. The
roadster was really a handful, since it is much like trying to push a brick
through water. It moves around a lot and wind has a great effect on the
control. In the coupe, I have found that it is much more controllable.
We found out the hard way that weight balance is all important at higher
speeds. Basically, if the car's wheels are hooked up everything goes well,
even with an unbalanced vehicle. However, if the rear breaks traction, the
car can become uncontrollable, particularly if the rear is heavy. The
"conventional wisdom" is have the center of gravity ahead of the center of
pressure with about a 50/50 weight ditribution.
At any rate, driving on the salt is much like driving on ice. Radical
corrections will get you in trouble. I drive with a light touch, just kind
of let the car go where it wants, making corrections very slowly, and if
that doesn't correct the problem lift the throttle a bit. This has usually
brought things back under control for me. There have been times when I
didn't make the corrections in time. These have been learning experiences.
I hope that some day you will have the opportunity to have this experience
for yourself.
Tom, Redding CA - #216 D/FCC
|