[titans#1]

a top ten is great. hopfully he can keep it up.

[Phils20]

This was just the thing for Bobby! I also hope they can keep it up! Next week will be another challenge for the team!

[LSC9901]

I was happy to see a top 10 for them. It's long overdue for Bobby and the team. Lets hope they are getting back on track.

[titans#1]

are they racing cot car next week?

[LSC9901]

Originally Posted by titans#1

are they racing cot car next week?

Kind of a long read but interesting


DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (Jan 23, 2006) – NASCAR announced today the Car of Tomorrow will begin competition in 2007. Teams will use the newly-designed race car for 16 events next season, beginning with the spring race at Bristol Motor Speedway – currently the fifth event on the NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series schedule.
A five-year project overseen by NASCAR Vice President for Research and Development Gary Nelson, the Car of Tomorrow offers important safety and performance upgrades. It also addresses cost reduction, providing teams with a more efficient car to produce and tune.
“The Car of Tomorrow represents one of the sport’s most significant innovations, and we feel everyone involved in NASCAR will experience the benefits,” said NASCAR President Mike Helton. “No subject is more important than safety, and while the Car of Tomorrow was built around safety considerations, the competition and cost improvements will prove vital as well.”
Aside from Bristol events, teams will use the Car of Tomorrow in 2007 events at Phoenix International Raceway, Martinsville Speedway, Richmond International Raceway, Dover International Speedway and New Hampshire International Speedway.
It also will see action at Darlington Raceway, the fall event at Talladega Superspeedway and road-course events at Infineon Raceway and Watkins Glen International.
With the exception of the 2.66-mile Talladega track and the two road courses, all tracks where the Car of Tomorrow will debut in 2007 are short tracks.
The 2008 Car of Tomorrow implementation schedule includes 26 events – adding both races at Daytona International Speedway, California Speedway, Pocono Raceway, Michigan International Speedway, the spring event at Talladega and Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
Teams will run the entire 2009 schedule with the Car of Tomorrow, adding both events at Atlanta Motor Speedway, Lowe’s Motor Speedway and Texas Motor Speedway, plus events at Chicagoland Speedway, Kansas Speedway, Las Vegas Motor Speedway and Homestead-Miami Speedway. The rollout schedule could be sooner.
“All of our engineering staff and each of the teams and manufacturers that contributed will now be able see the product of their hard work in competition,” Nelson said. “Many of the obvious safety and competition benefits have been a topic since the beginning of this project. We think one of the major benefits is yet to be realized as the car owners begin to build a more cost-efficient race car.”
The next round of Car of Tomorrow on-track testing will be scheduled following Speedweeks in Daytona, with officials from the NASCAR Research and Development Center in Concord, N.C., refining car components and performance baselines.
The Car of Tomorrow is a collaborative effort, with Nelson’s team leading the way. Manufacturers, teams and industry suppliers all contributed during the design phase, with NASCAR NEXTEL Cup Series teams and drivers offering important feedback during the latest round of on-track testing.
NASCAR’s prototype car, built by the Research and Development staff, is driven by Director of Cost Research Brett Bodine, a former NASCAR NEXTEL Cup competitor and team owner.
The Car of Tomorrow began as a design five years ago, progressing through simulation, laboratory and wind tunnel tests. Of primary significance are the safety innovations: the Car of Tomorrow is four inches wider and two inches taller than current NASCAR race cars. The driver compartment, or “roll cage,” has been shifted three inches to the rear. The driver’s seat has been shifted four inches to the right, allowing more protection from a driver’s side impact. More “crush-ability” is built into the car on both sides, ensuring even more protection.
The Car of Tomorrow exhaust system is another safety innovation. It runs through the body, diverting heat away from the driver and exiting on the right side.
Another important Car of Tomorrow feature is performance – how the car handles in traffic and reacts to downforce. The project represents the latest move by NASCAR to reduce current cars’ aerodynamic dependence, and several innovations have addressed it:
• The windshield is more upright, designed to increase the amount of drag, thereby slowing the cars.
• The more box-like front bumper, which is three inches higher and thicker, catches air rather than deflecting it, another way to slow the car.
• The air intake is below the front bumper, which eliminates the problem of overheating. Wind-blown trash can cover current car grilles, blocking air flow.
Several components – both those built into the Car of Tomorrow and those being tested – will make the car easier to drive in traffic. Some of those components also are bolt-on, bolt-off pieces that teams can use to tune their cars, making them cost-efficient as well. Those include:
• The “splitter,” a flat shelf below the front bumper that can be adjusted.
• A wing, like those commonly used in sports car series, also is a possibility. It fits on the car’s rear deck lid, in the same spot where the spoiler is bolted.
• The spoiler, a NASCAR staple, is a straight line on the Car of Tomorrow, rather than curved, as on current cars. A straight spoiler yields more stability in traffic.
“We designed this car to run for a long time, at road courses, short tracks, intermediate-sized tracks all the way to Daytona,” Nelson said. “You would be able to run the same foundation car, the frame, the cage, the body, all of the components that today are being swapped around as the cars are purpose-built for certain types of tracks. We're eliminating that with this car.”

[titans#1]

thats good that there not racing the cot at talladega bcuz they can bring out the car they finished 10th in last years fall race at talladega and in my opinion if the race had gone on for about 20 laps longer i think he could have gotten a top 5.

[PettyBlue]

20 more laps at Dega and no one might finish,look out the big one again.lol.

[titans#1]

hopefully labonte can get a good starting position so he wont have to be in the back or middle of the pack bcuz thats where all the big ones usually start.

[titans#1]

WOW!!!!!!!!!i cant beleive what i just saw labonte was second fastest in first practice.GO LABONTE

[titans#1]

labonte was 5th fastest in happy hour i think this is the reall deal this week.i actually have alot of confidence in chances of winning.he has the experience and so far it looks like he has the car as well with the second fastest car in practice and 5th fastest in happy hour.

[Phils20]

I have been checking it out as well! Working OT tomorrow, so I'll miss the qual run. It's hard to tell at these tracks, with the draft! We shall see.

[clutch]

Winning the Busch Race has to be a good omen!!

Congrats Bobby!, lets see if we can duplicate it tomorrow

[Jeffrey4318]

Figures that the first Busch race that I miss in over 2 years would be the one that Bobby wins. Watched the hilights on nascar.com. Pretty freaking awesome.

[clutch]

Originally Posted by Jeffrey4318

Figures that the first Busch race that I miss in over 2 years would be the one that Bobby wins. Watched the hilights on nascar.com. Pretty freaking awesome.

Hey Jeff, maybe you should miss them more ofter LOL

[titans#1]

i missed the race too.it sucks i missed his win but im very happy labonte won.GO LABONTE!!!!!!