Bathurst 12 hrs going on right now

aussiesmg wrote: Did you ever go to the track Keith?

Never made it, alas. Although I think it would be easy to convince Janel to go to this race.

2015?

In case anyone doubted it, Shane Van Gisbergen is insane:

http://blog.axisofoversteer.com/2014/02/shane-van-gisbergen-is-one-crazy-mothai.html

Racing needs more drivers like this (not too many though). The ones you have to let off the chain from time to time!

Great race for overall lead

MB/ MB/ Ferrari

1 hour forty to go

this oughta be good

Oh look another 911 with a RR failure. Has it been an hour already? Poor little fat-bottom cars :)

Can the McLaren do it

i don't know, he's still pretty far back. Do the guys in front of him need to pit between now and the end?

whoa maybe a yellow? That would help the mclaren

This is getting good, everyone will be packed and then sprint to the end.

For once, my timing was perfect.
Caught the last twenty minutes, great finish!

4 cars were about 3 seconds apart as they crossed the finish, amazing race.

Yeah that was a great ending, my heart was pounding!

Great finish, woot

thanks again for the linky

Watched 10 hours or so of it yesterday. Best race and race coverage I've seen in along time. Streaming the entire race was brilliant.

I agree with the comments about American racing. Tudor, take note. This was a great event. Huge variety in cars, all extremely competitive. Each has strengths and weaknesses you can see in a single lap. SLR had the straight line speed over the Audi and McL. The McLaren was driven by a crazed man. Audi was good under braking and coming down the hill. Ferrari felt like it came from nowhere when Mika Salo got in. They weren't even mentioned in the first 6 or so hours.

I want to watch more racing like this. Also, the incredible track didn't hurt the event either. Huge elevation change, very tight.

And, thanks Fink! My productivity was ruined yesterday, but it was worth it. Can we stream V8 super/touring cars?

Actually, yes. Every V8 Supercars race, warmup and practice is streamed. It's a subscription plan, about $18 for the year including access to replays. Well worth it. You can also sign up for replays of all the 2013 races for $10 right now.

https://www.v8supercars.com.au/v8superview

I don't get the Tudor comments at all. EXACTLY the same situation, but no complaints, only praise?

NASCAR = satan. People won't be happy until American road racing goes back to whoever was running it so successfully before they took over.

Because the rules are not BS, they are enforced fairly and evenly, the rule package is stable allowing more privateer and smaller teams to enter and be competitive. The racing was close without having to be manufactured through rules and "debris flags"

I'm not against NASCAR, really. I just wish they'd pay attention to the racing instead of trying to make it a product to be marketed. The reason the ALMS and Grand-Am racing series had gotten this far is that people actually love the racing and want to watch it, despite their attempts to screw it up it seems.

I just see failure after failure by everybody NOT named NASCAR. Can-Am, Trans-Am, IMSA (twice), CART, IRL... They let the costs get out of hand, where only one or two teams win, and everybody goes elsewhere out of boredom.

I'd much rather see a race where five or six cars have a shot at the end, than a race where one car runs away. It's what killed IMSA GTP.

And IMSA/WSCR ran all the privateers off. There used to be a series called Firestone Firehawk. But it turned into something much more expensive, as the powers that be at IMSA decided that all the guys with money were the ones to cater to. $3,000 suspensions, $1,000 tires, and $4,000 brake packages killed showroom stock racing that was easily accesible to regional level racers.

SCCA nearly did the same thing to their pro showroom stock series. They turned it into World Challenge, and nearly killed off the Touring Car class because you had to have a $125k Mazda 6 or Acura Integra to win. They've cut the costs some, but it's still quite expensive. There is B-Spec, but you still have to have a very expensive set of Pirelli slicks to play. And they MIGHT just be so sticky, your car will turn over on it's roof if you're not careful.

It's always been the rich elite that have ruined road racing, not NASCAR.

racerfink wrote: It's always been the rich elite that have ruined road racing, not NASCAR.

I don't think using the Bathurst 12hr is a good tool to use as a example to berate the 1%. You did notice what kinds of cars populated the grid, right?

And invoking Nascar as a shining example of cost-containment?

No, just, berkeleying NO.

The Bathurst organizers use rules based heavily on FIA GT-class specs and also allow for some interesting "hybrids". What they don't use are yellow flags to artificially influence the racing. That, and the racers themselves, are what made the event fun to watch.

That was awesome! Congrats Lowndesy.

I saw A Macca, a few 458's, a few Mercs, and a few Audi's. Hardly grassroots.

And what do you think that yellow flag for a car WELL off the racing line was for?

Here's the entry list for Bathurst

http://www.bathurst12hour.com.au/competitor-info/entry-list

The Fiats were in their own three car class, as were the heavily modified Focus team