"Meyer, Brian J" wrote:
>
> I have a couple of questions about large courses.
>
> For larger sites that have enough space for multiple cars on course (3 or
> so), how much time do you typically let go by before sending the next car
> out? Is 20 seconds enough of an interval? It seems to me that using a 30
> second interval allows plenty of time for corner workers to reset cones and
> get clear, and it allows enough time for a spun car to recover and continue
> without red-flagging the cars behind it. If we could sqeeze the interval
> down to 20 seconds, then we could run the cars at a much higher rate and
> finish the day earlier. However, is 20 seconds unsafe? What interval is used
> for national events?
Well, there have been a few decent answers so far, so I won't add much.
However, the one factor that -must- be paid attention to is the course
and how that effects safety. On some courses (not many though), a 20
second overlap is an eternity, and is plenty of time to keep the cars
far enough apart and give course workers room to work. On others, even
30 seconds is too tight.
It really does depend alot on course design. If you have a course that
has alot of crossovers and loops, like the BMW course Justin mentioned,
then even 30 seconds may not be enough. Attention need to be paid to
where the cars on course are relative to each other. If at the starting
area they are -way- far apart with 30 second, but somewhere half way
down the course they're at speed and actually passing within 50ft of
each other, then the overlap isn't right and it needs to be changed.
Crossovers, loops, and narrow "down-and-back" course designs are
examples of where you need to pay closer attention to where the cars
will be relative to each other over the entire course. These are not
necessarily bad designs, they can even be whole lot of fun, but they do
require a little more attention. One some courses you may only be able
to run one car at a time. Hopefully that can be changed before you
actually start, but these are things the course designer and SSS need to
work out together. Watch that overlap, and adjust it according to the
course demands. Try to avoid any overlap situation where you're relying
on the cars to maintain a certain speed, or relying on them to start at
exactly the right time. This is a bad idea, as it's very nearly
impossible to assure.
On average, 25-30 seconds is good, but it is not set in stone. Each and
every course demands the same attention. If you're very short on course
workers, spread out the overlap to give the workers time to shag the
cones. Lots of factors...
Ok, so I went on a bit longer than I thought, so sue me. :-)
-Josh2
--
Joshua Hadler '74 914 2.0 CSP/Bi - Hooligan Racing #29 - CONIVOR
'87 Quantum Syncro - aka stealth quattro
jhadler@rmi.net
http://rainbow.rmi.net/~jhadler/
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