The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Our Crappy Race → Alternate Title: California has the worst drivers
Jonny, you and Phil need to negotiate a per penalty fee for your judging duties. You would have been rich after this race.
Hmmm... we could kick back a percentage to the corner workers, as encouragement to be extra vigilant.
Jonny, the number of flags is probably a function of the number of flag stations more than anything else. A 3 mile course will yield more flags just because there are more corner workers watching and more yellow flags for drivers to miss. I will say that the flag workers where very good indeed at the Arse Freeze. I even saw them throw passing flags to slower cars. A rare treat in Lemons.
Now, check this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGEIv5pQhxk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSc9r9YvZ-M
Here are a couple of "incidents" that landed us in the penalty box writing "Front wheel drive is better" 100 times on our car. For sure some bad driving but on whose part? Who cares! Them's the breaks. Winning a Lemons race is a bit of luck and a bit of skill.
I welcome comments...
Jonny, you and Phil need to negotiate a per penalty fee for your judging duties. You would have been rich after this race.
Interestingly, I brought this up with Jay.
You can imagine his response...
Jonny, the number of flags is probably a function of the number of flag stations more than anything else. A 3 mile course will yield more flags just because there are more corner workers watching and more yellow flags for drivers to miss. I will say that the flag workers where very good indeed at the Arse Freeze. I even saw them throw passing flags to slower cars. A rare treat in Lemons.
Now, check this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XGEIv5pQhxk
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mSc9r9YvZ-M
Here are a couple of "incidents" that landed us in the penalty box writing "Front wheel drive is better" 100 times on our car. For sure some bad driving but on whose part? Who cares! Them's the breaks. Winning a Lemons race is a bit of luck and a bit of skill.
I welcome comments...
great videos.....love the helmet cam...might have to try that next time......
Nice work on the steering wheel in that second video!
571 penalties....156 cars....... so thats 3.66 per CAR....damm we did good with only 3......2 for passing under yellow and 1 for going 4 wheels off to avoid a wreck.... but at least it was fun writing various sentences on the car 100 times
Does the 521 include the 30-40 you guys allowed the 2nd place finishers to ignore, because they had great costumes? We finished 3rd, thus the bitterness about that.
Our car never spun, passed under yellow, or went off track, but it (me) was called in twice after being collected in other's incidents (judges agreed). No other blacks.
I agree the drivers sucked. I expected crappy cars, but not such crappy drivers. Perhaps California drivers have proven that they need more mandatory experience and/or schooling?
Yes, it includes the ONE black flag we let a six time veteran team slip through (even though we hauled them off the track to administer it).
Also -- it includes the four or five black flags I blew off for the team from Canada (one of their mother's died during the race, and there was simply no joy in punishing them).
Also, also -- where were your costumes?
dtfastbear wrote:No one is trying to come down on you, THATguy. We're all just trying to extend the Lemons weekend instead of letting the reality of work creep back into our lives... and BS'ing the forums is the best way.
Sounds like you understand what Lemons is about. You'll get more experience with the "details" as you do more events.
Cheers,
Dean
I had to leave Thunderhill right as Jay was announcing the award winners... rush to Sacramento airport, to catch my flight back to Long Beach airport, to fall asleep and make it to work today... i am TOAST right now.
oh and THATguy, where in HB are you? I am in HB (though our car is garaged in LA), and Team Bigfoot Hunters are based in HB as well...
You flew back! Lucky SOB. We had to tow our car back to Ridgecrest (where it stays) and then I had to drive back to HB from there. Took me about 12 hours to get home. I pulled into my apartment at 6:30am this morning took a 2.5 hour nap and came into work. If it wasn't for 5 hour energy and rockstar I would be asleep right now.
damn good weekend . . .
I live near Beach and Adams, where are you guys at?
Yes, it includes the ONE black flag we let a six time veteran team slip through (even though we hauled them off the track to administer it).
Also -- it includes the four or five black flags I blew off for the team from Canada (one of their mother's died during the race, and there was simply no joy in punishing them).
Also, also -- where were your costumes?
Lesson learned.
I can't quite tell, but this may be the Daihatsu's in car video of that same time:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h5HtbwhSTPg
This was in the first 30 minutes our car was on the track, too!
FatBraff wrote:dtfastbear wrote:No one is trying to come down on you, THATguy. We're all just trying to extend the Lemons weekend instead of letting the reality of work creep back into our lives... and BS'ing the forums is the best way.
Sounds like you understand what Lemons is about. You'll get more experience with the "details" as you do more events.
Cheers,
Dean
I had to leave Thunderhill right as Jay was announcing the award winners... rush to Sacramento airport, to catch my flight back to Long Beach airport, to fall asleep and make it to work today... i am TOAST right now.
oh and THATguy, where in HB are you? I am in HB (though our car is garaged in LA), and Team Bigfoot Hunters are based in HB as well...
You flew back! Lucky SOB. We had to tow our car back to Ridgecrest (where it stays) and then I had to drive back to HB from there. Took me about 12 hours to get home. I pulled into my apartment at 6:30am this morning took a 2.5 hour nap and came into work. If it wasn't for 5 hour energy and rockstar I would be asleep right now.
damn good weekend . . .
I live near Beach and Adams, where are you guys at?
Yes, 1hr drive to Sacramento - then 1hr+ flight to LB... I was in bed by 10 or so, after a beer and a few glasses of wine. The rest of my team (except one driver who lives only an hour away from THill) drove back with the car, tools, etc - today.
I also live near Beach and Adams... over on Nashville.
I thought flagging was pretty good considering the absolute blatant disregard for the rules everywhere. Everyone was blowing the blend line, everyone was passing me under yellow, and there was stupid contact all over the place. When you have people on a racetrack, in a race, driving crap cars that aren't worth anything, that aren't licensed race car drivers, things are going to happen. I was watching the chaos out there and thinking how you guys must have been absolutely overwhelmed.
And for the record, we copped to all our penalties...except the one we totally didn't deserve 
(that was meant as a joke, please don't tar-and-feather me)
I think we need to bring back tarring and feathering
... that aren't licensed race car drivers
Q. What's the difference between a licensed driver and a street hoon?
A. The licensed driver passed 4 cars under yellow and denied it while the street hoon only passed one.
Disney wrote:Wow.... California drivers are TERRIBLE!!!! lol
you would think Californians would know how to negotiate traffic
Imagine riding a motorcycle throught that to get to work.
bob-e wrote:Disney wrote:Wow.... California drivers are TERRIBLE!!!! lol
you would think Californians would know how to negotiate traffic
Imagine riding a motorcycle throught that to get to work.
Yeah, I do that four or five days a week, including the Bay Bridge S-Curve of Death™ , which is fun when there's no traffic...
Between the zombie cell phone commuters, the yahoos in pickup trucks that move over on me as I lane split, the commercial drivers (that almost always leave me room), and the general f*d upedness of Bay Area freeways, it's always a good time!
When you have people on a racetrack, in a race, driving crap cars that aren't worth anything, that aren't licensed race car drivers, things are going to happen.
Funny, I've seen licensed race drivers screw up plenty in races.
Spins, wheels off, contact and missed flags. They tend to accomplish all that with only 30 cars on track for 20 minutes.
They set a great example for the new guys.
I also live near Beach and Adams... over on Nashville.
we are neighbors, I live off of Alabama
bob-e wrote:Disney wrote:Wow.... California drivers are TERRIBLE!!!! lol
you would think Californians would know how to negotiate traffic
Imagine riding a motorcycle throught that to get to work.
That's how I get to work most days. It sure beats sitting in that traffic!
FatBraff wrote:I also live near Beach and Adams... over on Nashville.
we are neighbors, I live off of Alabama
Sounds like a Bro-mance might starting up in HB....
The Racing 101 covered the flags in depth. It also covered how to pass and how to be passed. How to pass in a straight and how to pass in a turn was explained. We also covered the track, turn by turn. There were a LOT of drivers that had never been on the track before and many others that were new to Thunderhill. There is only so much you can go over in 1.5 hours. The veterans need to understand that the new drivers are probable two turns behind there car.
I would stongly recomment that newer drivers attend that meeting. One; because I am the presenter. Two; because there is too much going on Saturday morning to get instruction and Three, all the students are getting the same message.
During a normal drive to work, you might use 15% brainpower to drive. On the track, you are using 100%. People who have not been driving on the track get out of practice using all their concentration on driving. When I asked one of my students if he had any driving experience, he replied “hell yes, I drove here to the track didn’t I?”
Mr. Fart - I'd be happy to put together a little video for you of examples of what NOT to do to share with your pupils at Infineon. Talking about giving room and SHOWING people what happens when you don't are different, and I'll bet the latter helps a lot.
While I'm *really* looking forward to that event, that track is going to make the inexperienced drivers' heads explode with all the blind turns and elevation changes. Wait, now I'm REALLY looking forward to it! Especially in the rain...
Cheers,
Dean
I definitely had some confusion about the flags here. I did the opening stint for out team and I saw Yellows, Whites, and Yellow and Red Flags.
Yellow and Red: Debris. Watch out but racing and passing are still on.
Yellows: Don't pass the guy in front. Watch for the incident and slow down if it's on track.
White: There is a recovery vehicle on track in front of you. Watch out but racing is still on until you get....
White and yellow flags together: Slow down some, don't pass because a recovery vehicle is on track in front of you, probably stationary.
The problem I saw quite a few times was white flag on it's own followed by a stationary recovery vehicle around the next corner. obviously we shouldn't be racing past the recovery vehicle, but there hasn't been a yellow.
So I guess a clarification is in order. What are you expecting from the drivers for a solitary white?
The Racing 101 covered the flags in depth. It also covered how to pass and how to be passed. How to pass in a straight and how to pass in a turn was explained. We also covered the track, turn by turn. There were a LOT of drivers that had never been on the track before and many others that were new to Thunderhill. There is only so much you can go over in 1.5 hours. The veterans need to understand that the new drivers are probable two turns behind there car.
I would stongly recomment that newer drivers attend that meeting. One; because I am the presenter. Two; because there is too much going on Saturday morning to get instruction and Three, all the students are getting the same message.
During a normal drive to work, you might use 15% brainpower to drive. On the track, you are using 100%. People who have not been driving on the track get out of practice using all their concentration on driving. When I asked one of my students if he had any driving experience, he replied “hell yes, I drove here to the track didn’t I?”
I'd like to add that new drivers give us far less trouble than the entitled dudes with their blood type sewn on their suits and SCCA licenses in their pockets.
Dean,
I've run at Sears for 10 years. It will be a LOT of fun and you are right about who dicy it will be. We will be working to improve the classroom stuff so you input will be appercated. We are also thinking about a Racing 201 for more advanced drivers. Please - it's Jim.
Dean,
I've run at Sears for 10 years. It will be a LOT of fun and you are right about who dicy it will be. We will be working to improve the classroom stuff so you input will be appercated. We are also thinking about a Racing 201 for more advanced drivers. Please - it's Jim.
Mr. Old Fart,
Speaking as a Judge, there is one thing I would appreciate you guys stressing to the new kids -- Yellow flags mean "do not pass." Yellow flags DO NOT mean slam on your brakes as hard as you can.
This will eliminate 40% of the black flags.
The 24 Hours of Lemons Forums → Our Crappy Race → Alternate Title: California has the worst drivers
