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My thoughts for the hill climb series next year... Been in a good debate with Racefreak over this tonight, and is something I think would work well. With the way everything is set up now, it enables a driver, if they want to, to sandbag to be in the running for the money. Thats not good. So here are my thoughts...
Right now there are 3 hills, A, B, and C. People race against said hill based on a qualifing time. Problem is, all three hills pay out. I understand the reasoning behind this, but this is also what causes problems and can create an unfair playing field. If driver A wants to win alittle money, they can sandbag so that they run on the b hill or c hill to improve their chances of winning, when they actually would belong in the A hill had they ran to their full potential. To fix this, we need to put in a seperation that will prevent this. My suggestion would be to have 3 classes, each explained below to place the buggies into a more equal playing field.
Class 1 - 1999cc or smaller engine buggies. This class would give the people who are just getting into buggies a place to run and be competitive. Someone with a stock 1600cc motor doesn't have to worry about competing with a 2500cc single seater buggy that is built to climb. They would use the qualifying hill as their competition hill.
Class 2 - 2000cc and up engine buggies. This class is for the more powerful buggies, that alot of us would fit into. Most of these buggies aren't purpose built just to climb. Motors in the same general area though. They would use the B hill as their competition hill.
Class 3 - Unlimited. Here is where all the single seaters would go, and 6 cyl, and V8 powered buggies would go. In this class most buggies are either purpose built to climb, or 250 hp or higher. 4 wheel drive buggies would go here also. Basically anything goes, nitrious, turbo chargers, etc. They would use the A hill as their competition hill.
Drivers that qualify for Class 1 or Class 2 can move up to the next higher class for more of a challenge if they desire. I.E. So if Joe Blow has a 1915cc and wants to run on the A hill against the Unlimited Class, they can. They cannot, however, move down a class. It just wouldn't be a fair competition.
As far as seperating everyone into classes would be simple as upon registration, filling out a information card specifying the type of buggy you are running, be it a single seater or two seater, engine type and size. Yes, I'm aware someone could fib on this. But most of us know what size motor this person has, and that person has. This limits the opportunity to cheat. It would have to be alittle of an honor system, but someone will know if this person really has a 2500cc that is running in Class 1 and shouldn't be. Even this can be eliminated, but would require buggies to be tech'd to measure the volume of the cylinder, which is easy as it only requires removing a spark plug. It could be done and not require much time.
Anyways, these are my thoughts of what would improve the hillclimbing series and equal the playing field to where at least people would be running against others that are roughly in the same ballpark of buggy without requiring additional time. Still 3 hills, still payout on all 3 hills, but more even buggies on the individual hills. Lets face it, someone with a stock 1600 that kicks out a whopping 60 horsepower running against someone with a 2500cc, or a 350 horsepower V8 motor isn't going to stand a chance..
And just for anyone that wants to know, yes I have ran in the competition. I have a two seater with a 2332cc vw engine in it, and could care less if I ever win a dime, I do it because I enjoy it. I just think it needs to be reworked alittle to establish a fairer playing field.
Last edited by streetstock174 on Sun Sep 11, 2011 2:53 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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