Burn Rubber, Baby, Burn Rubber

September 20, 2010 6:30 PM

Gymkhana THREE, Part 2; Ultimate Playground; l'Autodrome, France

"Shot just south of Paris, France in Linas at l'Autodrome de Linas --Montlhéry, this 1.58 mile oval track, built in 1924, features banks as steep as 51 degrees, which is more than double the standard incline of most NASCAR ovals. Chosen by Ken for this specific reason, the ramp-like banking proved to be a unique and exciting challenge. The driving physics for the stunts performed were totally unknown until Ken attempted the maneuvers during filming."

Previously on MeFi

posted by bwg (26 comments total)

the dude on the uni-thing is most brave
posted by clavdivs at 6:35 PM on September 20, 2010

frikkin motor grace
posted by clavdivs at 6:37 PM on September 20, 2010

I briefly read that as "Gymkata", and was kind of shocked that they'd made two, much less waited 25 years to make a third.
posted by mhoye at 6:37 PM on September 20, 2010 [4 favorites]

Gymkhana

I'm confused. Where are the horses?
posted by dersins at 6:37 PM on September 20, 2010

I'm confused. Where are the horses?

Under the hood.
posted by The World Famous at 6:39 PM on September 20, 2010 [5 favorites]

I was just coming here to say "Where are the fat little ponies and the precarious little girls in jodhpurs?" but apparently I'm not the only confused one.
posted by maudlin at 6:40 PM on September 20, 2010

Poor revlimiter.
posted by Duke999R at 6:44 PM on September 20, 2010 [1 favorite]

Obama can't gymkhaha @ 2:30

Yet another broken promise from Barack Obama. Does he think we've already forgotten his acceptance speech in Denver:

And for the sake of our economy, our security, and the future of our planet, I will set a clear goal as President: to go to an abandoned French airport and drift like a crazy motherfucker, Tokyo-style, just like in that movie. And then, I will do sweet-ass donuts until the tires explode and sparks and shit shoot out from my rims.

posted by mhum at 6:51 PM on September 20, 2010 [8 favorites]

It was a tossup between posting this video or this one from Ashlu Box Canyon, which is damned cool in its own right.
posted by bwg at 6:52 PM on September 20, 2010

Dammit, I meant autodrome, not airport
posted by mhum at 6:57 PM on September 20, 2010

It has to be the shoes.
posted by pianomover at 7:42 PM on September 20, 2010 [1 favorite]

> The driving physics for the stunts performed were totally unknown until Ken attempted the maneuvers during filming
Get that man a Nobel prize. Or, y'know, not.
posted by scruss at 7:52 PM on September 20, 2010

If I got access to that thing, the first thing I would try is a 360 on the banking.
posted by Jimmy Havok at 9:22 PM on September 20, 2010

That motor sounded like a two-stroke to me. Maybe it was just the crazy revs. Anybody know?
posted by Jimmy Havok at 9:24 PM on September 20, 2010

The driving physics for the stunts performed were totally unknown until Ken attempted the maneuvers during filming

That made me laugh too. Cos, you know, driving on banking has only been around for around 90 years or so, so it was obviously PUSHING THE KNOWLEDGE ENVELOPE.

Much as I like the Ken Block videos, I do wish they wouldn't play the 'no-one else could do this and it's so cutting edge' bull. The staging and planning is a lot more impressive than the driving.
posted by Brockles at 9:29 PM on September 20, 2010

I had been led to believe autocross was just competitive braking and gymkhana was just competitive parallel parking. I may have been mistaken.
posted by klarck at 9:36 PM on September 20, 2010 [1 favorite]

Yes, that's impressive, to be sure.

But I saw an interview with Block on Wind Tunnel just this past Sunday, and he said that he would have to try a given trick a bunch of times before they'd roll the cameras. When I heard that, all I could think of was, "Wow, that makes someone like Sebastien Loeb even more impressive. He has to do stuff like without any rehearsals and no do-overs." Any WRC driver, for that matter.
posted by Relay at 9:43 PM on September 20, 2010

Don't forget this example of breath-taking driving (with a hell of a lot better sounding engine) (previously).
posted by Mei's lost sandal at 10:32 PM on September 20, 2010

They could do a cool bond film if they superimposed bond over the top of Ken firing one handed out a window right when he takes an impressive corner that gives him the advantage over his pursuer.
posted by Submiqent at 10:57 PM on September 20, 2010

That motor sounded like a two-stroke to me. Maybe it was just the crazy revs. Anybody know?

It's part of the turbo's anti-lag system. I don't quite get the reason it works, but by inducing backfires ("manifold combustion") the system keeps the turbo spinning at low engine RPM.
posted by clorox at 3:35 AM on September 21, 2010

Don't forget this example of breath-taking driving (with a hell of a lot better sounding engine) (previously).

It's a shame that the video you link to has a mildly unrelated sound track to the video, though. That's pretty clearly not the true soundtrack of the car (despite claims of MIT analysis in the previously link - that doesn't wash with me in the slightest) does not match the dynamics of the driving. The first massively obvious booboo is when the guy turns into to the Arc De Triomphe circle without even lifting off (despite the fact he visually has, and would have had to) slowed significantly to make the turn. If he'd turned in at the speed (and dynamic stability) that the audio track portrayed, he'd have understeered wide very badly indeed, scrubbed speed, and the front of the car would have (if he didn't actually go off) snapped back onto line as the grip level of the front tyres gripped again.

Gorgeous though the sound track it, it sure as hell doesn't match what the car did. The car goes fast, that's for sure, in some cases impressively so. Just not as fast as the director wants you to believe.

It's part of the turbo's anti-lag system. I don't quite get the reason it works, but by inducing backfires ("manifold combustion") the system keeps the turbo spinning at low engine RPM.

You need continuous exhaust gas movement through the turbo to keep it spinning. On the over-run, if the throttle is shut, then then there is very little air flow and the turbo will spool down. This means that when he reopens the throttle it is going slower than optimum and so can't produce as much boost as it could. Keeping it spinning as high as possible prevents the turbo lag as it catches back up with the correct spinning speed.
posted by Brockles at 7:14 AM on September 21, 2010 [1 favorite]

It was a Mercedes Benz iirc - dubbed over with the engine noise of a Ferrari. At least that's what I remember from the last time we discussed C'etait un Rendezvouz.
posted by longbaugh at 11:30 AM on September 21, 2010

where are the scooters?

(sadly none of the videos are to any of the awesome scooter gymkhanas that feature having to bite a hanging hot dog, or fill a condom with whipped cream, or having a blow-up doll as a passenger.)
posted by vespabelle at 11:57 AM on September 21, 2010

Much cooler cars on what appears to be the same track. Skip to about 2:20 if you'd rather watch the cars in motion without seeing the awesome prep work first.

I wonder if Ford had a hand in seeing that Block drove its new racing car in the same setting that so perfectly framed its old one.
posted by The World Famous at 1:50 PM on September 21, 2010

inducing backfires ("manifold combustion") the system keeps the turbo spinning at low engine RPM.

Sweet idea! All you have to do is delay the spark on one cylinder until the exhaust valve is open.

My father-in-law had one of the earliest production turbos, a Nissan Pulsar, and while it had some real juice for a 1500cc once it spooled up, it did take a couple of seconds to get there.
posted by Jimmy Havok at 5:42 PM on September 21, 2010

a. This is somehow made more awesome by the fact that he's driving a sawed-off little superdeformed runt of a car.

b. Why has nobody yet made a video game focused around this kind of driving? Tony Hawk with cars.
posted by egypturnash at 7:20 PM on September 21, 2010