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NASCAR Facts and Trivia
NASCAR
stands for National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing.
Happy
Hour is the nickname for the last practice session prior to race
day.
43
cars
are entered in each race.
The cars are
equipped with
358
cubic inch engines that generate about
770 - 780
horsepower.
The car must
weigh at least
3,400
lbs. with all fluids and allowing for a
200
lb.
driver.
The temperature
can approach
140
degrees inside the car during the race.
A driver can
lose from
5
to
10
lbs.
during the course of a race.
The car has
‘roof flaps’
to
try and keep the car from rolling over if it gets turned around.
A single tire
weighs
75
lbs.
The gas can
holds
11
gallons of fuel and weighs about
80
lbs. when full.
The cars’ fuel
cell holds
22
gallons of fuel.
The Pit Crew
consists of
7
members: front tire changer, front tire carrier, rear tire
changer, rear tire carrier, jack man, gas man and the gas catch
can man.
Drafting
is
the practice of two or more cars, while racing, to run
nose-to-tail, almost touching. The lead car, by displacing the air
in front of it, creates a vacuum between its rear end and the nose
of the following car, actually pulling the second car along with
it. At this point, the second car can actually surge forward and
push the lead car allowing two cars to travel around the track
faster than one.
Restrictor Plate
is the term for the aluminum plate, with four holes drilled in it,
which is placed between the base of the carburetor and the
engine’s intake manifold. The plate is designed to reduce the flow
of air and fuel into the engine’s combustion chamber, thereby
decreasing horsepower and speed.
HANS
stands for Head And Neck Support. The Hutchins design is also
utilized by drivers. These two pieces of equipment are designed to
eliminate or reduce the amount of injury sustained by the head and
neck.
In 2001,
NASCAR
drew 6.5 million fans throughout
more than 70 events and more than 75 million television viewers,
making NASCAR the fastest growing sport on television.
During a race,
a driver’s pulse is at
85
percent of maximum, similar to marathon runner.
The front
grandstands at a speedway are constructed of 2 million pounds of
aluminum and 15,000 tons of steel. The aluminum used could produce
61
million soft drink cans.
A driver can
lose
from 5 – 10 pounds
through the course of a race. They will hydrate their systems in
the morning prior to the race and drink lots of fluids during the
race to help combat dehydration during the race.
A driver’s
helmet weighs around 3 lbs. However, on a banked turn, pulling
between
2.5Gs and 5Gs,
it can be five times as heavy.
The windshields
have
‘tear-off’
three layers of thin clear coat plastic transparent sheets in case
the windshield is smeared or dirty. . If a car’s windshield gets
smeared with track debris or other cars fluids, they can Pit and
pull off the outer layer.
A yellow
strip
across the rear of a racecar means
rookie
driver. |
