The Language of Nascar
by John Phelps
Ever wonder what a stock car driver means when he says his car is loose?
What is he talking about when he says he’s tradin’ paint? And what’s this Happy
Hour thing all about? Here, in plain English, is a list of some of the more common
Nascar terms and phrases and their meanings.
Tight and Loose: When a car is tight, it tends to want
to go straight when the driver wants it to turn. If you see a driver drifting
up toward the wall in the turns, chances are his car is tight. A loose
car is just the opposite; the back end tends to slide in the other direction
when the driver is in a turn. A loose car may also drift toward the wall
in a turn: backwards.
Tradin’ Paint: One of the things that sets stock car racing apart
from almost all other forms of motorsports is the side by side, fender
to fender action. Frequently, especially on the shorter tracks, cars will
make contact with each other. This is called Tradin’ Paint.
Doughnut: A direct result of Tradin’ Paint, a doughnut
is the large black circle left on the door panel or fender of a car after
it comes in contact with the tire of another car.
Happy Hour: The last scheduled practice session before
the race is a one hour session commonly known as Happy Hour. It is the
last chance that teams have to try out different combinations before the
race. Teams will often make several trips to the garage during Happy Hour
in order to try out different shock combinations, tire pressures etc.
 Stickers
and Scuffs: Stickers and scuffs both refer to tires. Stickers are
brand new tires; they still have the factory stickers on them. Scuffs are tires
that have a few laps on them.
Downforce: Downforce is the force of air pushing down on
the car. This produces the traction that allows the drivers to go through
the corners at well over 100 miles an hour.
Spoiler: The spoiler is a vertical fin along the
rear edge of the car that catches the air and creates downforce.
Track Bar: A part of the cars suspension that affects
the side to side sway of the car. This can be adjusted to change the car’s
ability to shift weight from side to side in the turns.
Drafting: Drafting refers to the aerodynamic advantage
seen when two or more cars travel in the same row. This reduces air drag
on the front car, because the air, which would normally drop off behind
it, is bounced over the trailing car. The trailing cars benefit in the
same way, plus trailing cars aren’t trying to cut through the wind. Cars
in a draft are normally travelling close to 200 miles an hour with only
a few inches between their bumpers.
Drafting Partner: Although each driver is out
to win, they will often team up by agreeing to draft with each other.
This helps the cars move toward the front. Drafting agreements normally fall
apart when there are only a few laps left in the race.
Stagger: All but two of the races in the Winston
Cup season are run on ovals. On an oval, cars travel counter-clockwise and all
the turns are to the left. So the teams concentrate on making it easier for
the driver to make left turns. One of the ways they do this is to use slightly
larger tires on the right side of the car. This is called stagger.
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