planetf1.com

Various drivers are showing concerns about the bumps of the track.


GOOD.

Let them complain.

A bumpy track is good for f1 and it means it will be difficult to set up the cars. Which will produce unpredictably.

Not every track needs to be like a billiards board and no bumps at all.

100%

Have these bumps appeared overnight then, other cars race on the circuit why don't they kick up a fuss then?

The eventual winner will not be complaining about the bumps...

Story is that the road surface has settled a bit (in spots) each year since the initial paving. Some high spots have been shaved as discovered, but I'm told they have shaved all they can. Track may be due for a repaving. I hope the ownership can afford it.

Option or Prime wrote:Have these bumps appeared overnight then, other cars race on the circuit why don't they kick up a fuss then?

I think it's reasonable to expect that F1 cars have probably the smallest suspension travel out of all the cars that race around COTA, certainly recently. That's not the drivers fault.

That said, I have no problem with it!!!!!

DFWdude wrote:The eventual winner will not be complaining about the bumps...

Story is that the road surface has settled a bit (in spots) each year since the initial paving. Some high spots have been shaved as discovered, but I'm told they have shaved all they can. Track may be due for a repaving. I hope the ownership can afford it.

It's meant to have sunk or risen up to 1.5 meters at some points since its inception, which is pretty crazy if you think about it. Apparently it's been built on land that has clay underneath it, so water retention massively effects the lay of the land..... IIRC they had problems last year with the track surface breaking up all over the place. They can shave the track all they want to be honest, this is a problem that isn't going to go away.

Virtually no suspension travel and 200mph speeds is not just a challenge, it's potentially spinal injury. Would be interesting to see the vertical G loads drivers encounter compared to the lateral G loads that would require medical attention.

TedStriker wrote:Virtually no suspension travel and 200mph speeds is not just a challenge, it's potentially spinal injury. Would be interesting to see the vertical G loads drivers encounter compared to the lateral G loads that would require medical attention.

Yeah this is ridiculous, it's not just a few bumps. They are an issue not a challenge and strange that people here are applauding it? Why not just remove the tarmac, good that'll be a nice challenge.

FormulaFun wrote:

TedStriker wrote:Virtually no suspension travel and 200mph speeds is not just a challenge, it's potentially spinal injury. Would be interesting to see the vertical G loads drivers encounter compared to the lateral G loads that would require medical attention.

Yeah this is ridiculous, it's not just a few bumps. They are an issue not a challenge and strange that people here are applauding it? Why not just remove the tarmac, good that'll be a nice challenge.

Tracks being as flat as snooker tables is only a very recent phenomenon. If there are bumps then drive round them. Drivers for decades have managed this.

mikeyg123 wrote:

FormulaFun wrote:

TedStriker wrote:Virtually no suspension travel and 200mph speeds is not just a challenge, it's potentially spinal injury. Would be interesting to see the vertical G loads drivers encounter compared to the lateral G loads that would require medical attention.

Yeah this is ridiculous, it's not just a few bumps. They are an issue not a challenge and strange that people here are applauding it? Why not just remove the tarmac, good that'll be a nice challenge.

Tracks being as flat as snooker tables is only a very recent phenomenon. If there are bumps then drive round them. Drivers for decades have managed this.

Sigh.... There's bumps that add character and bumps that are dangerous, COTA is clearly edging into the latter. You can't "avoid them" because they are all over the track, it's like adding a speed bump onto the track. I don't know what driving experience you have of single seaters, but even if you have been in a sports car these kinds of bumps are no joke - in a single seater your spine takes the load

FormulaFun wrote:

mikeyg123 wrote:

FormulaFun wrote:

TedStriker wrote:Virtually no suspension travel and 200mph speeds is not just a challenge, it's potentially spinal injury. Would be interesting to see the vertical G loads drivers encounter compared to the lateral G loads that would require medical attention.

Yeah this is ridiculous, it's not just a few bumps. They are an issue not a challenge and strange that people here are applauding it? Why not just remove the tarmac, good that'll be a nice challenge.

Tracks being as flat as snooker tables is only a very recent phenomenon. If there are bumps then drive round them. Drivers for decades have managed this.

Sigh.... There's bumps that add character and bumps that are dangerous, COTA is clearly edging into the latter.

Why the attitude? I wasn't giving you any.

mikeyg123 wrote:

FormulaFun wrote:

mikeyg123 wrote:

FormulaFun wrote:

TedStriker wrote:Virtually no suspension travel and 200mph speeds is not just a challenge, it's potentially spinal injury. Would be interesting to see the vertical G loads drivers encounter compared to the lateral G loads that would require medical attention.

Yeah this is ridiculous, it's not just a few bumps. They are an issue not a challenge and strange that people here are applauding it? Why not just remove the tarmac, good that'll be a nice challenge.

Tracks being as flat as snooker tables is only a very recent phenomenon. If there are bumps then drive round them. Drivers for decades have managed this.

Sigh.... There's bumps that add character and bumps that are dangerous, COTA is clearly edging into the latter.

Why the attitude? I wasn't giving you any.

I wasn't giving you attitude, apologies if that's how it came across. Your post was just very reductionist of the situation which is quite frustrating, you are an intelligent guy and I know you know the difference between a characteristic bumpy track and bumps big enough that it's causing physical pain, we know the drivers like difficult tracks and character so they wouldn't complain for the fun of it

mikeyg123 wrote:

FormulaFun wrote:

TedStriker wrote:Virtually no suspension travel and 200mph speeds is not just a challenge, it's potentially spinal injury. Would be interesting to see the vertical G loads drivers encounter compared to the lateral G loads that would require medical attention.

Yeah this is ridiculous, it's not just a few bumps. They are an issue not a challenge and strange that people here are applauding it? Why not just remove the tarmac, good that'll be a nice challenge.

Tracks being as flat as snooker tables is only a very recent phenomenon. If there are bumps then drive round them. Drivers for decades have managed this.

Come on, you know it's not that simple. Drive round them!

wire2004 wrote:Various drivers are showing concerns about the bumps of the track.


GOOD.

Let them complain.

A bumpy track is good for f1 and it means it will be difficult to set up the cars. Which will produce unpredictably.

Not every track needs to be like a billiards board and no bumps at all.

Although I do agree, it also adds a certain element... which at times is good and bad. The luck of the dice. How many more cars could have suffered suspension failures? We've often complained at fake racing and things like DRS adding an element taken away from the drivers ability.. and here we are praising bumps because the track is poorly made/maintained.

mikeyg123 wrote:

FormulaFun wrote:

TedStriker wrote:Virtually no suspension travel and 200mph speeds is not just a challenge, it's potentially spinal injury. Would be interesting to see the vertical G loads drivers encounter compared to the lateral G loads that would require medical attention.

Yeah this is ridiculous, it's not just a few bumps. They are an issue not a challenge and strange that people here are applauding it? Why not just remove the tarmac, good that'll be a nice challenge.

Tracks being as flat as snooker tables is only a very recent phenomenon. If there are bumps then drive round them. Drivers for decades have managed this.

The Bumps at COTA are different to ones on most other tracks around the world. Apparently the soil beneath the circuit is compacting or eroding and they KNOW it's going to get worse so they will be repaving it this off-season. That track was built in record time and if I'm not mistaken during a drought year so no rainfall to further compact the aggregates and dirt so over time when water does make its way through, it erodes as it compacts.

If they don't repave it the asphalt will begin to crumble and you can't race on that stuff. COTA is such that it's a phenomenon since it's a Tilke designed track, but it features so many excellent sections where guys can race and have opportunities to pass one another, which is why it's likened to Silverstone. It's an excellent track that offers PLENTY of quality racing so there's no need for excessive bumps. IDK how many of you have driven on a track with stiff suspension or even no suspension like karts, but it doesn't feel good.

What they need to get rid of are the sausage kerbs because they end drivers' days. They have to simply TELL the drivers they cannot exceed track limits purposely simply "because it allows them to go faster"… Duuuuh! Drivers need to behave as though the lines are physical walls and hold tighter lines even if it means they have to lift. The lines on the track aren't there to serve as mere suggestions, but rather to delineate track limits that should be adhered to. The don't have ANY issues staying within track limits at Monaco so they very well can do it with ease. If the FIA & race Control put their foot down, drivers whom refuse to respect the lines would be issued either drive-through or stop & go penalties. We'd see drivers respect the lines effective immediately.

Option or Prime wrote:Have these bumps appeared overnight then, other cars race on the circuit why don't they kick up a fuss then?

They have, since the second year after the track opened. All major series that have raced there all complain about what is basically a new track with horrible bumps and dips. But now the track has gone from "uncomfortable" to "dangerous".

In 1999 Gonzalo Rodriguez overshot the top of the Corckscrew at Laguna Sega, went on to strike the barriers, his car flipped, and he perished. The entrance to COTA is similar, with a very fast straight preceding it, and if you overshoot that corner, bad things will happen. And those nasty ripples and bumps are perfect for creating tire lockup under maximum braking.

Personally, I prefer a dose of mayhem and uncertainty into any race. But the uneven track surface at COTA is now dangerous.