2012 Racing Season: NASCAR, Indy, F1, and more

Before that one took off, the Ford was actually giving the Chevrolet a run for its money, but now we're down to just one left.
The gap between the leaders after six hours is practically nonexistent.

Well, there it is. A historic win—it actually happened, a hybrid car finally took the checkered flag.
The setup uses a V6 turbo-diesel to drive the rear wheels, while a massive flywheel—think along the lines of NASCAR tech—powers the electric motors on the front.

http://jalopnik.com/5919031/audi-e+t...to-win-le-mans

Amanda Kelly said:Well, there it is. A historic win—it actually happened, a hybrid car finally took the checkered flag.
The setup uses a V6 turbo-diesel to drive the rear wheels, while a massive flywheel—think along the lines of NASCAR tech—powers the electric motors on the front.

http://jalopnik.com/5919031/audi-e+t...to-win-le-mans

It isn't just *like* NASCAR technology; it actually *is* essentially that kind of setup. That specific flywheel design was originally used by Ferrari, which hasn't really seen much action in NASCAR lately, but we're seeing it pop up more and more frequently in commercial applications and endurance racing.😉

Sr. finally grabbed the win in Michigan—snapping that four-year drought at last!

Results - 200 laps:

Pos Driver Team/Car Time/Gap
1. Dale Earnhardt Sr. Hendrick Chevrolet 2h 52m 29s
2. Tony Stewart Stewart-Haas Chevrolet + 5.393s
3. Matt Kenseth Roush Fenway Ford + 5.891s
4. Greg Biffle Roush Fenway Ford + 7.706s
5. 5. Jimmie Hendrick Chevrolet + 16.549s
6. Jeff Gordon Hendrick Chevrolet + 17.684s
7. Clint Bowyer Waltrip Toyota + 19.598s
8. Juan Pablo Montoya Earnhardt-Ganassi Chevrolet + 21.725s
9. Marcos Ambrose Petty Ford + 22.872s
10. Kevin Harvick Childress Chevrolet + 23.942s
11. Carl Edwards Roush Fenway Ford + 24.509s
12. Martin Truex Jr Waltrip Toyota + 24.641s
13. Brad Keselowski Penske Dodge + 28.250s
14. Jamie McMurray Earnhardt-Ganassi Chevrolet + 31.109s
15. Ryan Newman Stewart-Haas Chevrolet + 1 lap 16s
16. Bobby Labonte JTG Daugherty Toyota + 1 lap 17s
17. Aric Almirola Petty Ford + 1 lap 21s
18. Landon Cassill BK Toyota + 1 lap 24s
19. AJ Allmendinger Penske Dodge + 1 lap 25s
20. Casey Mears Germain Ford + 1 lap 26s
21. Jeff Burton Childress Chevrolet + 1 lap 27s
22. Paul Menard Childress Chevrolet + 1 lap 28s
23. David Ragan Front Row Ford + 1 lap 29s
24. Austin Dillon Childress Chevrolet + 2 laps 30s
25. Dave Blaney Baldwin Chevrolet + 2 laps 31s
26. Travis Kvapil BK Toyota + 3 laps 32s
27. David Gilliland Front Row Ford + 3 laps 33s
28. Regan Smith Furniture Row Chevrolet + 3 laps 34s
29. Mark Martin Waltrip Toyota + 5 laps 35s
30. Kurt Busch Phoenix Chevrolet + 6 laps 36s
31. Ken Schrader FAS Lane Ford + 7 laps 37s
32. Kyle Busch Wood Brothers Toyota + 43s

Retirements:

Kasey Kacne Hendrick Chevrolet Chevrolet 151 laps
Denny Hamlin Gibbs Toyota Toyota 132 laps
Joey Logano Gibbs Toyota Toyota 125 laps
Tony Raines Baldwin Chevrolet 68 laps
JJ Yeley BK Toyota 67 laps
Michael McDowell Parsons Ford 41 laps
Mike Bliss Humphrey-Smith Toyota Toyota 35 laps
Joe Nemechek NEMCO Toyota Toyota 32 laps
Scott Riggs R3 Chevrolet Chevrolet 27 laps
Josh Wise Front Row Ford Front Row Ford 9 laps
Trevor Bayne Wood Brothers Ford Wood Brothers Ford 7 laps

mistybear87 said:It isn't just *like* NASCAR technology; it actually *is* essentially that kind of setup. That specific flywheel design was originally used by Ferrari, which hasn't really seen much action in NASCAR lately, but we're seeing it pop up more and more frequently in commercial applications and endurance racing.😉

I really hope this win for WHP translates into a nice bump for their stock price. 😁

Tyler Bennett5 said:I really hope this win for WHP translates into a nice bump for their stock price. 😁

It saw a tiny little uptick today, but then again, the price was already sitting pretty high; I don't think this news has actually started driving the growth just yet...

Weekend preview 🍿

http://youtu.be/vXI2M2nheUw

This Sunday at Indianapolis Motor Speedway



Opened: 1968
Surface: Asphalt
Distance: 1.99 miles
Layout: Road course
Turns: 10
Capacity: 102,000
Track record: 1:15.950 (Dale Earnhardt, Joe Gibbs Racing, 2005, NASCAR Cup Series)

Man, I am seriously counting down the days until we hit Watkins Glen International, mostly because I’m just dying to see a race that isn't stuck on some boring-ass oval for once.

mistybear87 said:It isn't just *like* NASCAR technology; it actually *is* essentially that kind of setup. That specific flywheel design was originally used by Ferrari, which hasn't really seen much action in NASCAR lately, but we're seeing it pop up more and more frequently in commercial applications and endurance racing.😉

Ha. Honestly, mechanical flywheels—or whatever you want to call that specific type of Hybrid Technology—have been used outside of the automotive world for ages. Believe it or not, the biggest
potential users are actually mobile carriers. See, out there (I'm not sure if it's the same here in the States), they're legally required to keep their networks running even during a blackout. For years, they relied on massive setups filled with standard lead-acid batteries, just like what you'd find in a car. But lately, there's been a shift toward these flywheel systems.
The concept is simple: you have a magnetic bearing spinning a massive disc—about 6 or 10 feet across—in a vacuum at roughly 60,000 RPM. Yeah, sixty thousand. Once it's up to speed, it can spin for months with almost zero energy loss.

So, why aren't we seeing this in cars? Well, take that 60,000 RPM figure... if you try to imagine a high-speed crash or an accident, you basically have a massive bomb sitting in the chassis. Shrapnel from a disc like that could fly hundreds of feet. Not exactly comforting.

I’m actually surprised they ever allowed mechanical Hybrid Technology in Formula 1. In a sport where Liberty Media sets rules as arbitrary as how thick a driver's shoe sole has to be, letting mechanical flywheels and electric motors in feels pretty... questionable.

Amanda Kelly said:Ha. Honestly, mechanical flywheels—or whatever you want to call that specific type of Hybrid Technology—have been used outside of the automotive world for ages. Believe it or not, the biggest
potential users are actually mobile carriers. See, out there (I'm not sure if it's the same here in the States), they're legally required to keep their networks running even during a blackout. For years, they relied on massive setups filled with standard lead-acid batteries, just like what you'd find in a car. But lately, there's been a shift toward these flywheel systems.
The concept is simple: you have a magnetic bearing spinning a massive disc—about 6 or 10 feet across—in a vacuum at roughly 60,000 RPM. Yeah, sixty thousand. Once it's up to speed, it can spin for months with almost zero energy loss.

So, why aren't we seeing this in cars? Well, take that 60,000 RPM figure... if you try to imagine a high-speed crash or an accident, you basically have a massive bomb sitting in the chassis. Shrapnel from a disc like that could fly hundreds of feet. Not exactly comforting.

I’m actually surprised they ever allowed mechanical Hybrid Technology in Formula 1. In a sport where Liberty Media sets rules as arbitrary as how thick a driver's shoe sole has to be, letting mechanical flywheels and electric motors in feels pretty... questionable.

True, but I am referring specifically to this case, where the Tesla Model S is utilizing the original McLaren Hybrid System (though, naturally, it's been modified to meet current power regulations).

McLaren (and Falcon) have performed tests and simulations regarding flywheel failure. In those scenarios, the flywheel itself shatters into millions of tiny pieces, but the housing remains perfectly intact.
Even in the event of a crash, the probability of the housing being breached is almost zero, let alone the idea of the flywheel itself flying off somewhere...

If we’re talking about actual commercial applications, the real bottleneck is the "recharging" aspect.
With batteries, you charge them up and they hold that energy for a measurable amount of time—we're talking days in some cases. A flywheel of this scale just doesn't offer that kind of endurance, does it?

Then again, looking at the market, it feels like there aren't many viable options out there besides McLaren and Falcon. And let's not even get started on the sheer cost of these systems...

McLaren actually installed their Hybrid Technology into 20 London buses to test things out.
If I recall correctly, they were looking at a price tag somewhere around £20,000 per unit, if my memory serves me right.
The goal is to see a fuel savings of about 20-30%.

Melissa Roberts96 said:Man, I am seriously counting down the days until we hit Watkins Glen International, mostly because I’m just dying to see a race that isn't stuck on some boring-ass oval for once.

So, what's the deal? Tired of the ovals already? 🙂

Nah, it’s not even that, I’m just dying to see how NASCAR actually handles it when they aren't just turning left on an oval all day and get thrown onto a totally different kind of track.

Nelson Piquet Jr. pulled off a win at the NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Road America!

Did you catch the whole damn race?

Of course 🙂

I feel bad for Patrick—she messed up, but she handled herself pretty well...

What’s your take on those moves at #22 and #7 during that last lap? Honestly, I feel like it was totally uncalled for, especially since she had been sitting pretty in the top 5 the entire race—it was her moment, period. Even the fans who can't stand her were basically shouting from the rooftops that it wasn't okay, and the fact that he forced Sadler out even earlier just makes it worse. Plus, if you catch that post-race interview, you can see exactly what kind of person we're dealing with here.