Trouble in auto racing?

A couple of interesting articles (found via another mail list)

A commentary about the troubles in CART racing... https://www.speedtv.com/commentary/42589/

And this one is specific to Canada, talking about a proposed blanket ban of lead gas for automobile racing, which would kill some classes of drag racing up here... https://www.castrolraceway.com/

Looking specifically at the last news bulletin posted, one wonders if the future of car racing is in trouble in this eco-friendly world... Just thought I'd share some of this, for good or bad...

My personal opinion for what it's worth.
All lead should be removed from fuels. Start with the biggest users and work the way down to the lesser users. If it doesn't pass NHRA an IHRA tech, they should change their rules. People have to work together on this and not just "make the other guys do it".
The world can be eco friendly... and have racing, and have airplanes, and have good local economies.

If the rules change, there still will be racing, just different racing, whether it be golf carts, Prius-type cars, or LBC's. Even the toy train shows have train races. It is human nature. So what if the NHRA needs to change the rules to meet the law. If they need to build engines to run on Hydrogen, someone will still be trying to make them go faster.

Too right, Dave!! /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/thumbsup.gif

/bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/iagree.gif Besides hydrogen-powered racing sounds kinda neat!!! /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/jester.gif

And how come no-one has come up with some kinda bio-fuel extracted from Soya beans?? They make everything outta that stuff!! /bcforum/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/devilgrin.gif

Plenty of high powered racing is done on alcohol fuels. So it’s not much of a change to move exclusively to renewable, agriculturally derived ethanol. IRL already has.

Audi is already dominating endurance racing with their diesels. It wouldn’t be a big leap to use veggie oil.


PC.

The real threat to racing is that all the race tracks are being sold to real estate developers.

Pacific Raceways in Kent, WA was developed as a race course and the flat land on top of the hill was developed for houses. The point being that you could have your house next to the track. A few seemingly short years later, you guessed it, the new owners of the trackside homes started complaining about the noise. Go figure! Same thing happened in Eugene, OR and Salem, OR. Well, in truth, Eugene folks defaulted and the landowner, who owned the large garbage company in town and covered it with trash. If you know where to look it is south of Goshen, OR on I-5. It was designed by John Hugenholtz of Holland. He also did Suzaka and many other F1 venues before his untimely death in 1995 in a car accident.

I remember that about SIR,er Pacific Raceway.
Same thing happened in Portland,Oregon (PIR).
It's city owned & generates a lot of money,so the
city basiclly told them to "stuff it!".
Westwood's (BC,Canada) gone too.Sad.

- Doug

AngliaGT said:

I remember that about SIR,er Pacific Raceway.
Same thing happened in Portland,Oregon (PIR).
It's city owned & generates a lot of money,so the
city basiclly told them to "stuff it!".
Westwood's (BC,Canada) gone too.Sad.

- Doug

Click to expand...

Yeah, Pacific Raceway has been taken over by the original
family that owned it, they've done improvements to the track
and the public facilities, but they are limited to what time
they can start the racing proceedings. Generally it's about
9am to 10pm...

I truly loved Westwood. PIR in Portland has a rather fair noise program inasmuch as each day has a different level attached and exceptions are given for some race weekends. The Db thing was started many, many years ago and I know that we had to take Thursdays for our test day because it is higher that the rest of the week days. Too bad every near-town track can't get it together. Now that I think of it, I really miss testing the Titan FF's every week; four a day. And we were the west coast diat. for Lola. Some nice rides there. Saw my only T-200 Lola then. Anyone heard of it. Not a 2000 but a 200.