What caused this spin?

[Mike Andrews]

Larry Herman wrote:

My assessment is more in line with Tony. I feel that the driver apexed too early, which runs you through a larger mid-corner bump and probably didn't unwind the wheel as they picked up the accelerator. The track has a few undulations after that which can also cause the back to step out if you are trying to "hold the wheel". It would have been nice to see their hands.

One thing that I can say for certain is that the driver was way over their head. That was a silly place to spin, no where near trackout, and they did not react at all to the slide. Once the car started coming around, there was no change in the yaw at all. It looked like once they finally realized that they were spinning, they just locked up the brakes. IMHO, for a black group driver that should have been a little bobble, and on their merry way, not a spin into the tires.

I stayed at a Holiday Inn Express... so I know the answer :dude:



Based on what I could see of the video I think the point in Larry's reply is the most significant contributor to the spin. He may have been early, and wide and the sun may have been in his eyes but each of those (well, the first two anyway) by themselves are correctable. if you aren't unwinding the wheel as you crest the ridge in the track your car will come around when you are pushing it's limit.