2016 Formula Drift: Low Tire Pressures

This past round, we saw Chelsea Denofa pulled off the start line for a technical violation. Chelsea explains it best:

His low tire pressure problem seemed to be compounded by the abrupt transition coming off the bank of Orlando Speed World. The asphalt does not smoothly transition into the infield like Irwindale Speedway or Evergreen Speedway. Rather the course seems to go immediately horizontal. This sudden grade change didn't affect some car setups. JTP seemed to be able to float over the rough in-field. 

Meanwhile, some cars looked like they were bucking from the rapid grade change. Dai Yoshihara and Charles Ng both pickup a front wheel as the outside rear wheel is loaded up coming off the bank.

The uneven surface meant that the outside tire sidewall would be heavily loaded as the cars transitioned to the in-field surface.

Alec Hohnadell came quite wide on this run and put in a lot of angle as he went into the in-field. You can see the Nexen Tire try to hang onto the bead of his Cosmis Wheels. The heavy sidewall load of drift is dramatically increased by the surface change.

Jeff Jones also faced this challenge twice during his Pro qualifying session. He debeaded his outside tire twice. 

But it wasn't just coming off the bank that was causing issues. In the center of the in-field there is a dynamic bump. As Jones compresses down, you can see his rear tire compress and deform heavily. Vaughn Gittin Jr shows a similar problem. Although sheilded from the smoke, the outline of the Nitto Tire can be seen deformed outward.

It seems like the lower tire pressures mixed with difficult track conditions lead to some creative problem solving. Chelsea is not the only one that faced this problem. However, as he puts it, he was publicly made an example. Formula Drift made an official statement regarding the incident 

Car #88 driven by Chelsea Denofa was disqualified from the Round of 32 due to a violation of the2016 Formula Drift Pro Technical Rules and Regulations US Version 2.0.  It was discovered that a chemical adhesive was used to bond the tire to the wheel.  Additional aids, such as chemical adhesives used to prevent the tire from debeading allows teams to run tire pressures lower than those that do not use additional aids, which is specifically in violation of Section 3.6.  Denofa will still receive qualifying points but will not receive any head-to-head competition points for this Round.

Section 3.6 

WHEELS Beadlocks, wheel screws and any additional form of attachment device between wheel and tire is prohibited.

As Wrecked Magazine points out, the round was littered with tire issues

1. Nate Hamilton vs Dan Burkett- Technical forfeit due to tire debead
2. Mike Whiddett vs Ken Gushi - Technical forfeit due to tire debead
3. Fredric Aasbo vs Kyle Mohan - Debead during second run, still won battle 
4. Justin Pawlak vs Chris Forsberg - Deflate after contact during first run, spun due to low tire pressure
5. Fredric Aasbo vs Tyler McQuarrie - Debead and reseated during the first run

The series has reached its technical maturity. Drivers are building to the limit of the rulebook and are starting to look for places to make creative interpretations. Chelsea found a vague interpretation in the wheel and tire rules. Last season, Conrad Grunewald had a creative interpretation for the mounting of his wing adjustment arm. As a fan of Formula 1, I find these "loopholes" interesting. It allows cars to be unique and creative. Tighter formulas like Indy and Nascar force creativity only in the livery. The cars are exactly the same and lack technical individuality. It's the same car with different colors.

We all want to see the sport grow. Clarity in the series would allow better fan engagement. 

UPDATE:

After speaking to Faruk Kugay, I've been introduced to a very fresh driver's perspective. He clarified the rules to me, and, like other fans, were not absolutely clear to me this season.

The debead rule has been changed for this year. Previous years, debeading and dropping body panels were considered a safety problem. If a driver were to debead a tire, the run would be scored a zero. A huge deficit in qualifying and in battles. However, this year debeading a tire would not be considered a zero. It would just be considered a significant points deduction.

Jeff Jones heroicly muscles his car round the final portion of the course. Although he had debeaded a tire, he was able to complete the run. Judges gave him the points deduction for debeading and scored him 70 points. It seems like drivers are allowed to complete the run and score points despite debeading tires.

In competition, the change in debead rules start to get hazy. As Faruk explains, drivers are allowed to complete the run after a debead, but not allowed to start a run on a debeaded or previously debeaded tire. Not allowing a run on a debeaded tire is perfectly logical. This is what stopped Aasbo from his second run against Jeff Jones in Top 32 Atlanta. This rule is coupled with the rule that a 5-minute competitition time out cannot be used to change tires. In Orlando, Mike Whiddett was not allowed to start his follow run against Ken Gushi because of a debeaded tire. 

The second part of the rule change is where it is interesting. If a tire has previously debeaded the driver is not allowed to start a run. There have been a few cases where drivers are able to do a standing burnout and force a debeaded tire back into place. If the start line or judges spot this, the driver would not be allowed to make a pass. Faruk points out that the rule change disincentivizes tire glue and makes spotting tire debeading a group effort moreso than previous years.

/// Words + Photos: Mike Tseng ///