Jim replied:
>In a message dated 7/7/00 6:36:27 PM Eastern Daylight Time, sburkett@ooi.com
>writes:
>
><< > Very few of the NTs or divisionals I have attended had a drag style
> > start (straight line to the first technical part). Most Solo II
> > courses have a start followed by a rather sharp turn to discourage
> > clutch killing launches.
>
> Can someone explain this to me? I realize that most non-pro courses start
> out this way, but how does this discourage a drag launch?
>
> To my inexperienced mind, faster is faster. If you're *serious* about
> going as fast as you possibly can, shouldn't you always execute your best
> "pro style" launch?
> >>
>You are absolutely right!
On many if not most Solo 2 style courses, the start lights are after the
hard corner. So it doesn't matter how fast you start, but what speed
you are carrying wen you cross the start light. By introducing a sharp
bend before the lights you can reduce clutch wear because a smooth
start can careful turn-in can carry the same or more speed through
the start light than peeling out, braking hard and diving onto the
first corner. In this way we try to reduce some of the wear and tear
on the clutch. We still try to start quickly, but we don't need any
4000 rpm clutch drops to get going.
Tony
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