I couldn't think of the proper place to post a Grumpy Old Man Rant, so I decided Coffee & Doughnuts was the best place since nothing will be accomplished through this post, other than venting, which may be an accomplishment in itself. ;)
It's been pouring rain in the swamp for days. Beset with cabin fever I picked up the newest copy of Racer magazine. I was paging through it as usual dazzled by the photography. Over the course of reading articles I noticed a common phrase; Balance of Performance Equalization (aka BOP). Then the proverbial light came on. BOP is why I have lost interest in most of motor racing today.
BOP didn't exist 50 years ago when Ford decided to best Ferrari at LeMans. BOP didn't exist when CanAm was racing monster cars. BOP didn't exist when rear engine Lotii were allowed to race at Indy, and turbines could compete with Offys. In the "good ol' days" there was a basic formula for a class and engineers and shadetree mechanics could compete to see who could build a better mousetrap. If manufacturer A made a 3 liter motor with 20 more hp than manufacturer B, so be it.
Now, race series spend large amounts of effort trying to make different manufacturers cars "equal" in the same class. A few examples: The Ford GT that was raced the last few years had to run a lesser engine than the street version to meet the BOP. Porsche GT3 cars had to run varying restrictors. Ferraris, Audis, Corvettes, all get some sort of restriction applied. NASTYCAR has created a car with no identity other than this week's decal package. The crazy Dodge Daytonas could never have been created in a world of BOP. Recently, Lambo had to give up it's dominance at the Rolex 24 because it broke out of it's assigned BOP.
It's a new game. A few years ago I crewed on a Porsche team at the 24. Orders came down secretly from a location in Germany to all teams to never do a full lap at max speed during the Roar. Because of Data Acquisition the teams could "create" a best lap without ever actually doing one by running different segments at 100% on different laps. That way United Sports Car would not realize their full potential, and Porsche wouldn't get slapped with a smaller restrictor for the 24. So the spectators that paid to watch the Roar were cheated in my opinion.
I sit as the least qualified member of SCCA's FSRAC. Every month we spend countless man hours trying to create BOPs in every class. And, trust me, its a lot worse in the prod classes, or SM.
BOP has created the growth of spec racing, because its just easier for racing bodies to spec out a complete car and enforce it than to write a formula. In a formula world there is always the fear one manufacturer will build a better mousetrap and dominate a whole season. (e.g. Merc in F1 2015, 917 Porsches in CanAm, 962s in IMSA, and Gurney's Toyota GTP car)
Interestingly, in my worthless humble opinion, I think BOP has ruined racing for spectators. I think NASCAR fans liked it better when they could identify with a make. I even think sportscar fans didn't mind a dominate car if they believed it was because of great engineering. I think BOP has watered down the experience in order to be nicely PC.
OK, this grumpy old man has said his peace. I feel better now. :)
It's been pouring rain in the swamp for days. Beset with cabin fever I picked up the newest copy of Racer magazine. I was paging through it as usual dazzled by the photography. Over the course of reading articles I noticed a common phrase; Balance of Performance Equalization (aka BOP). Then the proverbial light came on. BOP is why I have lost interest in most of motor racing today.
BOP didn't exist 50 years ago when Ford decided to best Ferrari at LeMans. BOP didn't exist when CanAm was racing monster cars. BOP didn't exist when rear engine Lotii were allowed to race at Indy, and turbines could compete with Offys. In the "good ol' days" there was a basic formula for a class and engineers and shadetree mechanics could compete to see who could build a better mousetrap. If manufacturer A made a 3 liter motor with 20 more hp than manufacturer B, so be it.
Now, race series spend large amounts of effort trying to make different manufacturers cars "equal" in the same class. A few examples: The Ford GT that was raced the last few years had to run a lesser engine than the street version to meet the BOP. Porsche GT3 cars had to run varying restrictors. Ferraris, Audis, Corvettes, all get some sort of restriction applied. NASTYCAR has created a car with no identity other than this week's decal package. The crazy Dodge Daytonas could never have been created in a world of BOP. Recently, Lambo had to give up it's dominance at the Rolex 24 because it broke out of it's assigned BOP.
It's a new game. A few years ago I crewed on a Porsche team at the 24. Orders came down secretly from a location in Germany to all teams to never do a full lap at max speed during the Roar. Because of Data Acquisition the teams could "create" a best lap without ever actually doing one by running different segments at 100% on different laps. That way United Sports Car would not realize their full potential, and Porsche wouldn't get slapped with a smaller restrictor for the 24. So the spectators that paid to watch the Roar were cheated in my opinion.
I sit as the least qualified member of SCCA's FSRAC. Every month we spend countless man hours trying to create BOPs in every class. And, trust me, its a lot worse in the prod classes, or SM.
BOP has created the growth of spec racing, because its just easier for racing bodies to spec out a complete car and enforce it than to write a formula. In a formula world there is always the fear one manufacturer will build a better mousetrap and dominate a whole season. (e.g. Merc in F1 2015, 917 Porsches in CanAm, 962s in IMSA, and Gurney's Toyota GTP car)
Interestingly, in my worthless humble opinion, I think BOP has ruined racing for spectators. I think NASCAR fans liked it better when they could identify with a make. I even think sportscar fans didn't mind a dominate car if they believed it was because of great engineering. I think BOP has watered down the experience in order to be nicely PC.
OK, this grumpy old man has said his peace. I feel better now. :)
Balance of Performance Equalization
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