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Old 01-03-2020, 10:01 AM   #1344
clyde
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Join Date: Oct 2003
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ZBB View Post
You’d think they would class a car based on some basic performance tests like 0-60, 0-100, and or slalom times? That way cars with common characteristics in those tests are in the same class?

Slalom times would have to be tested, so maybe just simple acceleration and possibly weight?
If you were going to do testing like that, how do you account for the different tires shocks, sway bars, and alignment settings allowed for in the rules? And often those parts aren't available when the cars get classed.

Conceptually, it's not impossible to have every car in every possible configuration, but then you only have so many hours in the day to do the testing and you'd need the weather to hold consistent the entire time and have time to control for the surface rubbering in with use. And when another new car needs to be classed, you would need to reconvene everything again.

In a practical sense, it doesn't work.

The committee that does classing looks at all the data they can find including published tests, fits it in with everything else going on in terms of current participation, anticipated future participation, their then-current philosophical approach to classing...and, ultimately, make a best guess. And then people get mad at them because their car isn't one of the favored.

Then, they pay attention to attendance level by car type, results, what they know of the context around those results, and read letters sent by membership through the year. When they think it might be best in totality for the club if a car is moved from one class to another, they issue a proposal, take comments, and make a decision about reclassing or maintaining the status quo.

No matter how they do it, they still have thousands of cars to slice into nine classes and have maybe up to two dozen major decisions about new cars/option packages to make each year with potential to have serious impacts on participation and competitive balance.

There's no way to win that.
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