A Few Questions...not Flippant.

[LabradoRacer 2]

1) Why do racers wet the ear-pieces with saliva before inserting them?

2) Does the helmet contribute to aerodynamics? Or is it just a metal blob to be put on the noggin?

3) When the race is down to the last 10/15 laps, is it allowed for those racers ,who have no chance of finishing in points,to withdraw from the race & preserve the engine for the next race?

4) How is it humanly possible for racers to see the signboards that are displayed from the pitwall?

[monza gorilla 1]

The helmet does contribute to the aerodynamics, albeit in a small way.

Martin Brundle reckons that the pit boards are actually quite easy to see. That's all they had before radio, remember.

As to the other two questions, I haven't a clue.

[pumpdoc 2]

1. It helps them stick to the ear before they put on the sock

[Kay 0]

3. I believe that loophole was closed when Honda (?) retired their cars from outside of the points.

[Stub-o-matic 0]

3. I believe that loophole was closed when Honda (?) retired their cars from outside of the points.

Wasn't that a loophole that allowed them to change the engine without penalty?

[rumblestrip 0]

3) When the race is down to the last 10/15 laps, is it allowed for those racers ,who have no chance of finishing in points,to withdraw from the race & preserve the engine for the next race?

Your finishing position still counts, even if you're out of the points. If you finish 12th every race, you're listed higher up than someone who finishes 15th every race.

[Yoda McFly 1]

1) Why do racers wet the ear-pieces with saliva before inserting them?

2) Does the helmet contribute to aerodynamics? Or is it just a metal blob to be put on the noggin?

3) When the race is down to the last 10/15 laps, is it allowed for those racers ,who have no chance of finishing in points,to withdraw from the race & preserve the engine for the next race?

4) How is it humanly possible for racers to see the signboards that are displayed from the pitwall?

I think these have all been covered above, but it wouldn't be TF1 without posting just for the sake of posting ...

1) Makes 'em easier to insert, and helps 'em stay.

2) Very much so. Helmets actually come in different varieties for open-c#ckpit cars, karts, tin-tops, etc, and the shape of the drivers helmet must be considered in the wind tunnel in F1. Oh, yeah. They're not metal any longer. All the F1 drivers helmets are made with composite/carbon fibre shells. Those of us on a budget may still use fiberglass.

3) Definitely not allowed. Honda tried this a few years ago, the rule was tightened up, and the rest is history. Plus, no racer worthy of the name is going to pull in when there's still a chance that the top 15 cars may all get involved in a massive pileup... See NASCAR on any weekend for practical applications of this theory.

4) Practice. It's actually not that bad, once you've done it a few hundred thousand times.

[The_Fast_Days 0]

Actually, #4 raises another important question. How good is the visibility at 200mph? And I mean clarity, not range.

In a supercar it's (probably, I've never been in one ) pretty good because the car is heavy enough and "soft" to near enough kill the vibration from a, say 5L V10 doing 8500rpm. With "soft", think chassis, suspention and seats, add them all up and there's a whole lotta give.

In an F1 car that can weigh as little as 600kg, thats made of super stiff materials and sprung incredibly hard it must be a bitch to see anything at all. Not to mention the V8 *right* behind you doing 18500rpm. Is it like in F1 '05 where the more you rev the less you see?

I know, I mentioned a video game. It was all going so well

[Silas Talbot 0]

In a supercar it's (probably, I've never been in one ) pretty good because the car is heavy enough and "soft" to near enough kill the vibration from a, say 5L V10 doing 8500rpm. With "soft", think chassis, suspention and seats, add them all up and there's a whole lotta give.

The aero downforce on the cars might help with the vibrations...

Another reason cars wouldn't want to pull in early is that they get paid by sponsors to be on track, running, with their logos... Although most of the time you would get more airtime pulling out of a race than by running the last 15 laps in 16th.

[LabradoRacer 2]

Another question : I hope it doesn't seem stupid.

WRC cars often drift into & out of a turn. F1 cars don't . What explains? Which method is superior to tackle turns?

[Wez 0]

Another question : I hope it doesn't seem stupid.

WRC cars often drift into & out of a turn. F1 cars don't . What explains? Which method is superior to tackle turns?

On a proper racing surface racing lines are most definitely quicker, whereas on gravel ect the car looses a lot of traction and would often understeer through the corner and into the barrier when using the traditional line hence the drift instead.

Slightly straying off the question, Sometimes in the rain you will see Formula 1 drivers taking "go-kart" lines which is not the traditional line though corners, the reason being is that the racing line is often covered in oil from the race/s before and rain generally bring this to the surface making the "line" slippery.

* Sorry edited... Its understeer NOT oversteer through the corner

[LabradoRacer 2]

On a proper racing surface racing lines are most definitely quicker, whereas on gravel ect the car looses a lot of traction and would often understeer through the corner and into the barrier when using the traditional line hence the drift instead.

Slightly straying off the question, Sometimes in the rain you will see Formula 1 drivers taking "go-kart" lines which is not the traditional line though corners, the reason being is that the racing line is often covered in oil from the race/s before and rain generally bring this to the surface making the "line" slippery.

* Sorry edited... Its understeer NOT oversteer through the corner

Wow,mate,you know a lot! Thanks for clarifying.

[Wez 0]

Wow,mate,you know a lot! Thanks for clarifying.

Glad to be of assistance mate

[LabradoRacer 2]

What is the purpose of the red & white strips(are they called rumblestrips?) ? And why are they slightly raised instead of being flat?

[monza gorilla 1]

They're there to catch the unwary and rip off their front wing and damage the undertray and make the driver look a pillock. And pitch them into the wall of champions. And to mark the edge of the circuit.

[The_Fast_Days 0]

They're there to catch the unwary and rip off their front wing and damage the undertray and make the driver look a pillock.

Wasn't that one of the reasons the FIA raised the minimum lowest point on the front wing? (Read that again, it does make sense.) Or have I got the wrong end of the stick?

[monza gorilla 1]

It was a measure introduced by the FIA to reduce reliance on downforce and promote overtaking. Oh, how we laughed.

[dribbler 6]

What is the purpose of the red & white strips(are they called rumblestrips?) ? And why are they slightly raised instead of being flat?

When driving over them, they appear pink, which is nice for the drivers. They are raised to stop them falling asleep.

[Autumnpuma 0]

Another question : I hope it doesn't seem stupid.

WRC cars often drift into & out of a turn. F1 cars don't . What explains? Which method is superior to tackle turns?

Wez answered this pretty well, but I'll go a bit further on the F1 side of it. Back before downforce, the cars had such power and speed going into a corner, and not enough front-end grip from the tyres that they had to slow down quite a bit on entry to take the turn. If they didn't slow down, they'd turn their steering wheel and the car would continue going straight...off the track and into a barrier...or tree...or fan.

The faster drivers learned to enter the corner faster by turning-in early, positioning the car's front-end for the exit well before the apex. This drifted, or slid, the car through the turn and ended up with the car's nose pointed the right way on exit. The result was a faster entry and a faster exit. Nowadays, the cars generate such front-end downforce that it's unnecessary to drift.

It's a ldead art, and I mourn for it.

[Eric 0]

Wez answered this pretty well, but I'll go a bit further on the F1 side of it. Back before downforce, the cars had such power and speed going into a corner, and not enough front-end grip from the tyres that they had to slow down quite a bit on entry to take the turn. If they didn't slow down, they'd turn their steering wheel and the car would continue going straight...off the track and into a barrier...or tree...or fan.

The faster drivers learned to enter the corner faster by turning-in early, positioning the car's front-end for the exit well before the apex. This drifted, or slid, the car through the turn and ended up with the car's nose pointed the right way on exit. The result was a faster entry and a faster exit. Nowadays, the cars generate such front-end downforce that it's unnecessary to drift.

It's a ldead art, and I mourn for it.

Once again, agreed. I wasn't alive in those days, but the little footage of it I have seen and from pictures and what my father has told me, I would love to see it back. And according to a recent issue of F1 Racing, the 2011 regs will have the cars develop more forward motion of some sort through the corners, even under breaking and in hairpins and stuff that will power them out of the corners, which will even further defeat the purpose of that method.

[pumpdoc 2]

Wez answered this pretty well, but I'll go a bit further on the F1 side of it. Back before downforce, the cars had such power and speed going into a corner, and not enough front-end grip from the tyres that they had to slow down quite a bit on entry to take the turn. If they didn't slow down, they'd turn their steering wheel and the car would continue going straight...off the track and into a barrier...or tree...or fan.

The faster drivers learned to enter the corner faster by turning-in early, positioning the car's front-end for the exit well before the apex. This drifted, or slid, the car through the turn and ended up with the car's nose pointed the right way on exit. The result was a faster entry and a faster exit. Nowadays, the cars generate such front-end downforce that it's unnecessary to drift.

It's a ldead art, and I mourn for it.

It was/is called 4-wheel drifting and it's a lost art.

[Yoda McFly 1]

It was/is called 4-wheel drifting and it's a lost art.

Yeah.

"Drifting" as it's practiced now is not what we're talking about, for those that might be confused.