31 replies to this topic

[Flat Black 84]

In Grand Prix, the character Scott Stoddard mentions that his brother Roger made a habit of walking each circuit the morning of the race. The one time he neglected to do so was the race in which he was killed.

Like much of this film, this component seems to have been drawn from racing reality. And it was a reality on both sides of the Pond. Hence, Walt Faulkner walked the track at Vallejo, California before the qualification attempt in which he was killed. Indeed, according to his daughter, he pointed out the rut which later precipitated his accident.

My question is, how common was this practice? Was it often ritualistic and superstitious? Or was it more often a practical matter of familiarizing one's self with the track? And while we're about it, do drivers in this day and age still "walk the course"?

[ryan86]

It certainly seems to at least form part of the weekend in F1, with part of both Sky's and the BBC's (and before that ITV's) featuring the track walk, with the chosen driver that week. During these walks it's uncommon not to see another group walking the track so it's not just for TV purposes. No idea about lower series though.

Edited by ryan86, 12 July 2012 - 19:07.

[LittleChris]

I think a lot of people, regardless of formula, tend to run around the track at some point during the meeting these days - one company is sponsoring grand prix weekend running laps for a charity. This also used to happen at Monza each year during the 70's when I think James Hunt and Frank Williams used to do quite well.

Prior to that time, given the circuits tended to be much longer, they used to drive around the track in a road car getting out every now and then to check out any changes since the previous race.

I now have a mental picture of Fangio & Gonzalez adopting the ways of the modern driver and jogging round Pescara in the blazing sun

[RS2000]

Standard practice for hill climbing at all levels (and some sprints on short courses - as sprints tend to be longer, a "convoy run" is the norm).

[arttidesco]

I'm sure I have heard of at least one driver who did this at the Nurburgring Nordschleife without knowing exactly what he was letting himself in for.

I remember walking the course at Oulton Park early one morning with a friend of mine who was driving later in the day, couldn't believe the number of slugs crossing from one side to 'tother !

When I am spectating I usually walk round the outside of the track at least once and depending on the venue sometimes more during the course of a meeting.

Edited by arttidesco, 12 July 2012 - 20:29.

[Doug Nye]

With some drivers it's an unthinking ritual. Most top liners have driven hundreds of laps already on the simulator, and merely check the reality to see how different it might be, or what detail changes might have been made. If you see someone walking a circuit, pausing often, ducking down, perhaps squatting to gaze questingly into the middle distance, they are doing a proper job, checking the course at cockpit-level sight line height... Does it pay off? It just might. So the best won't leave their rivals to enjoy that potential advantage, unmatched.

DCN

[fuzzi]

I think I'm right in saying that walking the course at Hill Climbs and Sprints used to be mandatory as a Speed Licence doesn't (or didn't then) need a medical certificate. So to walk the course proved to the organisers that you were not going to fall over with the slightest exertion.

As a marshal you met a lot of nice interesting people that way.

[ExFlagMan]

I think I'm right in saying that walking the course at Hill Climbs and Sprints used to be mandatory as a Speed Licence doesn't (or didn't then) need a medical certificate. So to walk the course proved to the organisers that you were not going to fall over with the slightest exertion.

As a marshal you met a lot of nice interesting people that way.

Wot - when they fell over?
Must admit that when I started marshalling it was quite common to see a group of drivers walking round Oulton Park as we went out to post in the morning - surprising how many didn't realise just how long the track was or how steep Clay Hill was

[garyfrogeye]

Every sprint I've done (on airfields) I have walked first, even on tracks I know well (although some people use bikes). It's optional but I think why not, especially if it points out damp patches in the braking areas.
With Autosolos (mini sprints) I have to walk the course a couple of times to remember the route.
I one made a girlfriend walk the course at Monaco. She's en ex girlfriend now. Who could blame her.

[Stephen W]

Standard practice for hill climbing at all levels (and some sprints on short courses - as sprints tend to be longer, a "convoy run" is the norm).

Personally I think the concept of the "convoy run" is a complete waste of time and effort. If drivers cannot be bothered to walk the course I can't see how a run behind a slow car is any help what-so-ever. I had to take a convoy run on my first visit to Goodwood - I spent the whole time watching the rear of a Mini that stayed in second gear all the way round. I had walked the course the previous evening thankfully so the "convoy run", which was mandatory for newcomers, was a complete waste of my time and effort.

I think I'm right in saying that walking the course at Hill Climbs and Sprints used to be mandatory as a Speed Licence doesn't (or didn't then) need a medical certificate. So to walk the course proved to the organisers that you were not going to fall over with the slightest exertion.

As a marshal you met a lot of nice interesting people that way.

I don't think it is mandatory any more but it is often recommended. Funnily enough a lot of people seem to stroll up the hill at Loton Park and Harewood during the lunch break so long as it isn't raining!

[Allan Lupton]

One difference between walking the course and the convoy run is that of sightlines. A three-foot difference in eye height makes a great difference to what you can and can't see.
The convoy is a substitute for another practice run, not for walking the course - that is still recommended but I've never heard of it being mandatory.

[Cirrus]

A group of us usually walk the course wherever we go. Mallory Dan is coming to Spa next weekend - I hope he's got some decent footwear.

[garyfrogeye]

The Paris-Dakar Rally might be a challenge!

[arttidesco]

I hope he's got some decent footwear.

Or a golf cart

[f1steveuk]

As a driver, I always walked the track. When working in TV, covering both races and rallies, I always walked the track/stage, and for similar reasons.

New tarmac could lose oils for 12 to 18 months after being laid. Patches of new tarmac may have been laid with ridges in the join, where puddles could form. The grass on the outside of kerbing could have eroded, leaving deeper gulleys (particularly good at ruining the axle sprocket on a kart that one!) etc etc All these things could be difficult to see from a cockpit, so a walk, followed by a slowish first lap out was a must. Likewise for telly, good for choosing camera angles/placement, safety for operators, and guessing where there may be a bit of "action" during the event. Walking the course? Essential!!

[LittleChris]

Mallory Dan is coming to Spa next weekend - I hope he's got some decent footwear.

Definitely wouldn't want a training shoe throwing a tread on the exit of Burnenville

[Peter Leversedge]

I alway think walking the track is a good idea if practical
Dirt track racing one needs to take a good look at the track to decide how to set your car up. Is it going to be heavy and stay that way or is going to come around and then go away.?. Is this going to happen early or late? Are we going to end up with a dry slick surface? At what stage are we going to have to make changes to the car set up? etc. etc..........
At my home track I found if you watched some of the cars during wheel packing if they threw dirt off the tyres into the air you were going to get a dry slick surface most likely early and if the surface under the tyre sunk slightly then sprung back you were going to get a good heavy track that may last the meeting or slick off late..........

[petestenning]

Indeed when i was sprinting my Ginetta G15 i would always walk the course, in particular airfield ones marked with cones.

As my car was narrow i could see if i could take a chicane flat where others would brake or lift as their cars were wider.

Undulations could be seen from ground level especially if in a braking area.

[RonPohl]

I alway think walking the track is a good idea if practical
Dirt track racing one needs to take a good look at the track to decide how to set your car up. Is it going to be heavy and stay that way or is going to come around and then go away.?. Is this going to happen early or late? Are we going to end up with a dry slick surface? At what stage are we going to have to make changes to the car set up? etc. etc..........
At my home track I found if you watched some of the cars during wheel packing if they threw dirt off the tyres into the air you were going to get a dry slick surface most likely early and if the surface under the tyre sunk slightly then sprung back you were going to get a good heavy track that may last the meeting or slick off late..........

Yes, at the midget and sprint car dirt track races I have attended, the drivers are all out on the track studying the surface. Touching the dirt seems an important part of trying to get an idea of how wet it is. Of course, the track continuesly changes as it drys out during the program. I think one can learn a lot about car set up racing on dirt.

[Graham Clayton]

I alway think walking the track is a good idea if practical
Dirt track racing one needs to take a good look at the track to decide how to set your car up. Is it going to be heavy and stay that way or is going to come around and then go away.?. Is this going to happen early or late? Are we going to end up with a dry slick surface? At what stage are we going to have to make changes to the car set up? etc. etc..........

Peter,

With speedway bikes all of the riders closely examine the grid behind the starting tapes, working out the exact spot to place the bike in order to get the best grip at the start.

As an aside, I remember when I walked the Adelaide Grand Prix circuit back in 1991 I was surprised to see that the temporary grandstands that were constructed along Dequetteville Terrace were actually placed on the adjacent Princes Highway.

[HeskethBoy]

Most drivers (and several of their engineers) walk each circuit - sometimes in both directions.
At a recent "street circuit" event for V8 Supercars in Townsville - several drivers came in after their walk and were able to note that a comcrete wall had moved by not more than a few inches from the previous year - requiring a slight change to driving line for the weekend.
It's always a good practice.

[eccolo]

At many U.S. tracks, "for insurance reasons" it is difficult to impossible for drivers in vintage events to get permission to walk the track. Seems as though every part of our lives is affected by the generosity of jurors.

[Jim Thurman]

I'm pleased to see some referred to dirt tracks. Yes, "walking the track" is very important and still quite common to see drivers walking and looking over a dirt track.

One of the most touching things I've ever seen at a race track involved "walking the track." A top California short track stock car racer suffered from cancer that led to amputation of one of his legs. He returned to race, quite competitively, with hand controls. I was at one of his first races back and watched him - on crutches - walk portions of the track.

[Jim Thurman]

In Grand Prix, the character Scott Stoddard mentions that his brother Roger made a habit of walking each circuit the morning of the race. The one time he neglected to do so was the race in which he was killed.

Like much of this film, this component seems to have been drawn from racing reality. And it was a reality on both sides of the Pond. Hence, Walt Faulkner walked the track at Vallejo, California before the qualification attempt in which he was killed. Indeed, according to his daughter, he pointed out the rut which later precipitated his accident.

My question is, how common was this practice? Was it often ritualistic and superstitious? Or was it more often a practical matter of familiarizing one's self with the track? And while we're about it, do drivers in this day and age still "walk the course"?

It's also featured in "To Please A Lady" where the Clark Gable character walks the track the night before.

Interesting about Faulkner. Newspaper accounts in Vallejo, including one that was remarkably good, expressed concern over his driving through the night from Gardena following a late ending USAC midget race at Gardena Stadium. No freeways between Los Angeles and the Bay Area in those days, so it would have been a drive of several hours. I've seen items that indicated he checked over his Ford and then grabbed a short nap before going out to qualify. Then again, this was a newspaper account, albeit one by a writer who seemed to check his facts and interviewed people, including J.C. Agajanian. It was also unusual in that it didn't condemn racing. It simply expressed great sadness that a nationally known race driver had died in their city.

[Stephen W]

Of course it is mandatory that drivers walk the course for Auto Solos.

[Obster]

And remember, when you walk the track as a driver of a formula or sports racer, you have to stop and squat down on your haunches to get the proper perspective.
The view from standing up tall is very different from the view you will get behind the wheel of a formula car.

[D-Type]

And remember, when you walk the track as a driver of a formula or sports racer, you have to stop and squat down on your haunches to get the proper perspective.
The view from standing up tall is very different from the view you will get behind the wheel of a formula car.

See post #6!

[Doug Nye]

I just wonder - in an idle moment - whether any driver ever had the attention span (and the time and the energy) to walk the Targa Florio course(s)?

DCN

[D-Type]

I just wonder - in an idle moment - whether any driver ever had the attention span (and the time and the energy) to walk the Targa Florio course(s)?

DCN

Elizabeth Junek probably made a more thorough preparation for the race than anyone else. So it is just conceivable that she may have done so - albeit in stages. And even then I very much doubt it.


Edit: rephrased to make it clearer what I'm trying to say

Edited by D-Type, 25 July 2012 - 21:07.

[RS2000]

And remember, when you walk the track as a driver of a formula or sports racer, you have to stop and squat down on your haunches to get the proper perspective.
The view from standing up tall is very different from the view you will get behind the wheel of a formula car.

Or a saloon car....

[Nanni Dietrich]

Several years ago I was in Barcelona for my first time.
One Sunday morning, while my wife and friends were taking a walk along the Ramblas, I went alone by cable-car to the Montjuich hill "to find the Montjuich Park circuit".
I found the Font del Gat hairpin (exciting!), the Rosaleda downhill (great!), the main straight where the Olympic Stadium was later built, but... then I made a wrong turn and walked long-long-long time up the hill, instead of down the town. And at the time I was totally convinced to walk along the circuit!

I realized how stupid I was only at home, watching the map.

Edited by Nanni Dietrich, 26 July 2012 - 10:58.

[DogEarred]

Several years ago I was in Barcelona for my first time.
One Sunday morning, while my wife and friends were taking a walk along the Ramblas, I went alone by cable-car to the Montjuich hill "to find the Montjuich Park circuit".
I found the Font del Gat hairpin (exciting!), the Rosaleda downhill (great!), the main straight where the Olympic Stadium was later built, but... then I made a wrong turn and walked long-long-long time up the hill, instead of down the town. And at the time I was totally convinced to walk along the circuit!

I realized how stupid I was only at home, watching the map.

Easily done. I did the same cable car thing one time. There's not much there to make the race circuit recognisable & I had only seen a few magazine pictures anyway.

So that's 2 stupid TNFers now.....

Edited by DogEarred, 26 July 2012 - 12:36.