Is Scott Dixon that good?!?!?

[Wilf]

We'll I was a full two miles per hour off on my guess of pole speed so I was looking at the actual attempts trying to figure out how I could be so far off. What I found didn't help my analysis, but it did open my eyes. When Scot Dixon made his first attempt and took the provisional pole of 225.178 his lap times over the four laps varied by only forty nine ten thousands of a second (.0049).

That is incredible; I can't imagine making two, two and one half mile passes in a straight line from a flying start and holding the elapsed time to .005 of each other. Add in four corners and what Scott did impossible, but then he did it.

By the way, he beat the previous record of.006 which was held held by Bobby Rahall, no slouch himself. And I thought that was unbeatable when he did it in 1992.

Now the real question is, will it be entered as a new record since the qualifying attempt was withdrawn so he could make his second and ultimately successful pole run?

[!!WALDO!!]

We'll I was a full two miles per hour off on my guess of pole speed so I was looking at the actual attempts trying to figure out how I could be so far off. What I found didn't help my analysis, but it did open my eyes. When Scot Dixon made his first attempt and took the provisional pole of 225.178 his lap times over the four laps varied by only forty nine ten thousands of a second (.0049).

That is incredible; I can't imagine making two, two and one half mile passes in a straight line from a flying start and holding the elapsed time to .005 of each other. Add in four corners and what Scott did impossible, but then he did it.

By the way, he beat the previous record of.006 which was held held by Bobby Rahall, no slouch himself. And I thought that was unbeatable when he did it in 1992.

Now the real question is, will it be entered as a new record since the qualifying attempt was withdrawn so he could make his second and ultimately successful pole run?

So Rahal was better that the 1st, 2nd and 4th laps exactly the same and the 3rd lap a 100th faster?
George Snider did that in 1971.

Car balance today is a science and when it was done in 1971 it was poke and stab so in my book, Scott will need to go a long ways to beat old Ziggy.

Remember if this will make you feel better, Scot did win in CART.

(NO REFERENCE, IMPLIED OR REAL TO ANY POSTER, LIVING, DEAD, or NOT YET BORN.)

[Wilf]

So Rahal was better that the 1st, 2nd and 4th laps exactly the same and the 3rd lap a 100th faster?
George Snider did that in 1971.

Car balance today is a science and when it was done in 1971 it was poke and stab so in my book, Scott will need to go a long ways to beat old Ziggy.

Remember if this will make you feel better, Scot did win in CART.

(NO REFERENCE, IMPLIED OR REAL TO ANY POSTER, LIVING, DEAD, or NOT YET BORN.)


I'm wondering what the timing precision was in 1971, two, three or four digits after the decimal point? To get exact times to the hundreth, I'm thinking they only went two digits. Depending on rounding Scott's time would be similar: 39.97, 39.97, 39.97, 39.96, or one hundreth of a second faster on his final lap. It looks like it wasn't until 1983 or 1984 when they went to three digit precision for timing.

Your comment regarding a poke and a stab in Ziggy's day versus the precision of today is interesting. I remember measuring stagger in inches and being able to grow stagger by over inflating a tire and then bringing it back to the proper inflation for the race. Today, they have a choice of two tire circumferences and they are within a few thousands of an inch of each other. So much for scraping the rubber buildup off with a putty knife, sticking the end of the measuring tape into the tire and then spinning the tire to make sure you were consistent to the 1/4 inch.

[!!WALDO!!]

I'm wondering what the timing precision was in 1971, two, three or four digits after the decimal point? To get exact times to the hundreth, I'm thinking they only went two digits. Depending on rounding Scott's time would be similar: 39.97, 39.97, 39.97, 39.96, or one hundreth of a second faster on his final lap. It looks like it wasn't until 1983 or 1984 when they went to three digit precision for timing.

Your comment regarding a poke and a stab in Ziggy's day versus the precision of today is interesting. I remember measuring stagger in inches and being able to grow stagger by over inflating a tire and then bringing it back to the proper inflation for the race. Today, they have a choice of two tire circumferences and they are within a few thousands of an inch of each other. So much for scraping the rubber buildup off with a putty knife, sticking the end of the measuring tape into the tire and then spinning the tire to make sure you were consistent to the 1/4 inch.


They actually went to 4 decimal places but would release 2 decimal places, So yes it was different but if floored old Tom as George did something that had never been done before, three laps at the same speed.
Poke and stab was as good as it could get as drivers came from practice, qualifying and racing schedules on the circuit so no time and no dough for massive amounts of practice.

(NO REFERENCE, IMPLIED OR REAL TO ANY POSTER, LIVING, DEAD, or NOT YET BORN.)

[Alfa Fan]

Waldo, I know its a challenge but could you occasionaly post a message in something that at least vaguely resembles English?

[Vegasguy]

Waldo, I know its a challenge but could you occasionaly post a message in something that at least vaguely resembles English?

Thank god it's not just me.......... ;-)

[!!WALDO!!]

Sorry I was talking to the Republican Senatorial Committee wanting money at the same time as posting this. I apologize for not doing a better job of multi tasking.
They actually went to 4 decimal places but would release 2 decimal places, so yes it was different but it floored old Tom as George did something that had never been done before, three laps at the same speed.
Poke and stab was as good as it could get as drivers came from practice, qualifying and racing schedules on the circuit so no time and no dough for massive amounts of practice.
So a capital “s” and a “f” instead of a “t” made it unreadable. Imagine what I must deal with?
The real issue is about running consistent times not what you think about English. I notice you use that all the time rather than contributing. I guess just your style and the fact that is all you know.

(NO REFERENCE, IMPLIED OR REAL TO ANY POSTER, LIVING, DEAD, or NOT YET BORN.)

[underpowered]

When Scot Dixon made his first attempt and took the provisional pole of 225.178 his lap times over the four laps varied by only forty nine ten thousands of a second (.0049).

That is incredible; I can't imagine making two, two and one half mile passes in a straight line from a flying start and holding the elapsed time to .005 of each other. Add in four corners and what Scott did impossible, but then he did it.

Yes he is that good!......but then I may be too much of a fan to rely on my opinion :-)

I am enjoying his form this year.

I also enjoyed watching Chip get worked up!

[F1boat]

I think that Dixon currently is in very, very good form. I am surprised that he is beating Wheldon regularly, honestly.

[bblocker68]

Yes, he's that good. I heard everyone talking about the tires going away after lap 2. So, to be consistant and match the last 2 laps with the first 2 takes adjusting to the car and track.

Dixon rocks!

[SarahFan]

Remember if this will make you feel better, Scot did win in CART.

(NO REFERENCE, IMPLIED OR REAL TO ANY POSTER, LIVING, DEAD, or NOT YET BORN.)

exactly what is that supposed to mean?

[!!WALDO!!]

exactly what is that supposed to mean?

We are to talk about racing not your inability to understand something.

(NO REFERENCE, IMPLIED OR REAL TO ANY POSTER, LIVING, DEAD, or NOT YET BORN.)

[mlj]

Yes he is that good!......but then I may be too much of a fan to rely on my opinion :-)

I am enjoying his form this year.

I also enjoyed watching Chip get worked up!

I, too am a huge fan of Scott's and have been since first getting to know and watch him race for Stefan Johansson in 1999. He IS THAT good !!! I hope he wins the 500 this year.

[underpowered]

I am surprised that he is beating Wheldon regularly, honestly.

I'm not. I dont think Chip is surprised either....

[F1boat]

Why? Dan is not a bad driver either and he is a former IRL and Indy 500 champion.

[PTCrash3]

Good at what? Blending freckles?

Yawn...

[underpowered]

Why? Dan is not a bad driver either and he is a former IRL and Indy 500 champion.

Nothing against Dan. I just believe Scott is the more complete Driver.

When Dan was winning he had a better car and a better engine, he is finding it harder now that the cars are more even. Scott was winning races even when the Toyota engine was well down on HP.

Just my opinion.....

[F1boat]

I see. But I think that 2 years ago Dan was ahead of Scott in final standings, unlike last year. To me Indy will be very important for both is psychological point of view.

[underpowered]

I see. But I think that 2 years ago Dan was ahead of Scott in final standings, unlike last year. To me Indy will be very important for both is psychological point of view.

Your right, Dan came to Ganassi with a winning attitude (didnt he also bring his engineer?) and I think this helped Scott. Scott had always out performed his team mates and Dan changed that in his first year with Ganassi.

Personally I think Dan is a good Teammate for Scott as he has such a diffenent attitude. Scotts personality is more like Schumacher (quiet and business like) and Dan is more like Alonso (outspoken and entertaining).

I am just glad they get on better now.

Are you saying the one who wins Indy gets the psychological edge on the rest of the season?

[usgrandprix]

If I had a team I'd start it with Scott Dixon without batting an eye. He's the type of driver who almost always finishes exactly where he and the car should--no more and no less.

Wheldon doesn't, but sometimes he finishes better than his car should. That's why I think Wheldon will win Indy this year. Indy seems to favor the daring a bit more. But then, I'm stupified that Kanaan hasn't won it.

[underpowered]

Indy seems to favor the daring a bit more. But then, I'm stupified that Kanaan hasn't won it.

Granted I have only watched a few Indy races, but the ones I have seen, have been the opposite. To me it always looked like Indy punishes the daring. Its a long race and a driver needs to keep his cool till the end.

[F1boat]

Are you saying the one who wins Indy gets the psychological edge on the rest of the season?

I think so. To Wheldon especially it will be crucial. He loves the race and if he wins, it will make him very confident. But if he is beaten by Dixon, I think that he won't be very motivated and Dixon will own him.

[usgrandprix]

Granted I have only watched a few Indy races, but the ones I have seen, have been the opposite. To me it always looked like Indy punishes the daring. Its a long race and a driver needs to keep his cool till the end.

For a recent example see Sam's last lap two years ago. Not the lap of someone thinking about settling for second place championship points. Dixon's seems the type of driver who thinks mor reward than risk. And I don't get the impression he's as enamored with Indy as some others.

I agree you have to be cool for the majority of the race. That will get you a top ten. And Sam has crashed out being over aggressive in the past. Still, you have to be prepared to let it ride at the end.

We'll see. It should be interesting.

[bravefish]

Scott is in great form this year alright. The whole TCGR team has got their act together - 1 and 2 on the grid says it all. Penske look like they are a distant 3rd and 4th at this stage. But everyone knows how tough it is to win Indy.

[underpowered]

We'll see. It should be interesting.

I was watching a great graphic on ESPN that overlayed Scott's lap with Dan's. It showed how many changes Dan makes in a lap compared to Scott. Scott was smooth and consistent while Dan was weaving up and down the track. Now I know why Scott is faster than Dan in the same setup. Scott also took the shorter distance around the track. It was very impressive to watch.

[usgrandprix]

I was watching a great graphic on ESPN that overlayed Scott's lap with Dan's. It showed how many changes Dan makes in a lap compared to Scott. Scott was smooth and consistent while Dan was weaving up and down the track. Now I know why Scott is faster than Dan in the same setup. Scott also took the shorter distance around the track. It was very impressive to watch.

That was cool. I saw that too. I was actually quite impressed with ABC/ESPN there. Seemed to be catering to some of the hard core race fans with that sort of analysis.

Dixon sure did straighten out the track on his run, no doubt. If he gets out in front from the start he might check out for a while. He'll have to manuver eventually in the race, though.

It's always intresting to see the lines drivers take to get around the track.

I wonder if Wheldon will travel anything like a full mile further over the course of the whole race.

[underpowered]

I guess its settled then.......he is that good!

[harvick#1]

amazing win, he very well deserved the win, no one could touch him, Dan was only able to hold him off when he wasnt trying

[45 Below]

Fantastic result. I was really nervous about him having the favourite tag but he showed just how cool, calm and collected he is.

I am listening to Radio Sport here about an hour post-race and, not surprisingly, they can't get Scott so they are interviewing his manager, his mother ... I'm just waiting for them to talk to his dog next!

[usgrandprix]

Smooth and steady race for Iceman. Great deserving champion and may be on his way to a second championship. I'm looking forward to seeing how this season plays out.

Congratulations to Scott and the team. :up: A well deserved win. NZ fans had to get up very early to watch the race live but it was well worth it.

[xtlm]

yes

[F1boat]

Now Scott has a championship to lose IMO. He proved that he is the man to beat!

[ShiftingGears]

...Well he was born in Australia... :p :

Does this mean we can claim him as one of our own?

[underpowered]

...Well he was born in Australia... :p :

Does this mean we can claim him as one of our own?

Depends......Is Mario Andretti an Italian champion? I think a few Americans would disagree :-)

[Alexamateo]

Depends......Is Mario Andretti an Italian champion? I think a few Americans would disagree :-)

Does that mean Yugoslavia can claim him too? Technically, the town where Mario was born is now in Yugoslavia! :eek: :D :)

[bowler]

yugoslavia doesn't exist anymore. Slovenia?