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Original Message
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| Nascar |
| By dj - 12/23/2000 10:42:28 AM; IP 206.58.181.124 |
Ford had clearly dominated NASCAR racing in the 60's. By '69 ,the top speeds at the super speedways had reached 200 mph. Neither Firestone nor Goodyear made a tire that would hold up to sustianed speeds of 200mph. All the drivers were scared of the possibility of a tire failure at those kinds of speeds, and through the formation of a drivers union, led by the King Richard Petty, had managed to influence Bill France to address the speed issue. By '70, NASCAR introduced the restrictor plate. In the rule book the big block motors had to run these restrictor plates, however, the small block motors did not. Further more they could save almost 700 lbs. off their race weight by running a smaller motor. By '72, Bud Moore had pioneered the introduction of the small block motor in NASCAR racing. Yes, the small block motors had a tough time competing against the big block motor even their restricted form. The small blocks lost out due to a whole host of engine failures. It was a rough road for the small blocks in those days. The big blocks made more torque even with a restrictor plate. The small blocks were allowed to run unrestricted until '87 when Bill Elliott turned in a top qualifying speed of 210.364 mph at Daytona. In '88 NASCAR re-introduced the restrictor plate to the teams for use on the super speedways. And now this year, the last race at New Hampshire was run with a restrictor plate. I hope this sheds some light on the subject of big block vs small block in the NASCAR competition........dj
p.s. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!!!!!! |
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