In a message dated 2/25/2006 1:23:43 P.M. Pacific Standard Time,
mattm@optonline.net writes:
Not bad Charlie, but not quite valid either. When BFG and Yok offered their
"sticky" products, the autocrossers didn't have to buy them, then.
Competitors DID like them. An increase in demand told the manufacturers to
make more (Econ 101), they did. Since that time, we now have other companies
offering us products. Even if you were to say that we pull R tires, whatever
that Falken, Bridgestone, or BFG has out there, it becomes the next "big
dog."
Come on, Matt, if you want to be competitive, you have to have the stickiest
thing allowed. That goes back to the Yokohama A-001R. In reality, it
probably goes back to the Phoenix Stahlflex or the Pirelli CN-36 Bola Rosa.
But
up until the last couple of years (a few years farther back if you ran
Hoosiers), you could actually drive to the event on your autocross tires. I
can't
believe the hypocrisy of the tire manufacturers, vendors and SCCA in allowing
Stock Category vehicles to be autocrossed on "DOT" tires, when the
manufacturer and the vendor do not recommend driving them on the street. How
long will
it be until someone sues all the deep pockets when they blow out a "DOT"
tire and get hurt on the street?
<< As the esteemed Mark Sirota mentioned, the wear ratings are somewhat
meaningless, since there is no real standardized production or testing
procedure that can guaranty uniformity across the manufacturers products and
the relationship to ratings molded into the sidewall. >>
And that's why we have an exclusion list (unused) in Stock and Street
Prepared Categories, and (actually used) in Street Touring.
<< So CHuck, go run your ST classes. Leave the flippin' R Tires alone (see,
I
can name call, too!). :^) >>
Oh, since I run in STS now (I only ran in Stock classes for 25 years), I've
lost the right to an opinion about Stock Classes? And Matt will stop
suggesting that ST goes away... Yeah, let me add a :-) so I can say I was
joking,
too...
CHD
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