Ferrari must safe a optimistic end result on the Las Vegas GP if it desires to keep up its momentum within the Constructors’ Championship battle, with three races remaining within the 2024 season. Eric Van der Veen, a 37-year-old Dutchman, is likely one of the engineers within the Racing Division who works on the simulator, supporting the periods drivers undertake in preparation for GPs.
The Breda-born technician, along with explaining the challenges of a singular city circuit like Las Vegas, guides us by what occurs on the Maranello simulator after the 2 drivers full free follow periods with the SF-24. This exercise is normally thought of high secret by groups, however Van der Veen offers us a glimpse into the work of the take a look at drivers—work that is still obscure however invaluable.
Eric explains the challenges of the monitor on the Strip:
“Las Vegas is a type of tracks that will appear straightforward when wanting on the format, but it surely’s really very tough. There are solely 5 sequences of corners, however all are low-speed with heavy braking zones, and a few are blind. The heavy braking zones should be tackled completely, even when touring at speeds exceeding 340 km/h, which requires excessive downforce to offer the driving force the boldness to brake, navigate the corners, and speed up once more to sort out the lengthy straights, the place low drag and minimal aerodynamic load are wanted.”
The lengthy straights trigger each brake and tire temperatures to drop…
“The heavy braking zones on the finish of the straights current new challenges as a result of the driving force should handle the drop in brake and tire temperatures. Moreover, racing on a road circuit means the margin for error is minimal. Lastly, Las Vegas is within the desert, and the race takes place at night time, when temperatures can drop beneath 10°C, making it troublesome to rapidly deliver the tires into the right temperature window throughout qualifying and equally difficult to maintain them there through the race. As talked about, the tires cool additional on the lengthy straights, making a uniquely difficult situation for groups and drivers.”
Final 12 months, you had little or no knowledge to make use of on the simulator, which was the one device accessible to assist the drivers and the crew put together for this new circuit. Now that you’ve got actual knowledge from the monitor, what function does the simulator play?
“Evaluating what we knew final 12 months with what we all know this 12 months, the scenario is totally completely different. Whereas final 12 months’s monitor mannequin was based mostly on drawings, this 12 months we’ve got an entire illustration of the monitor and its asphalt. With all the information from 2023, we are able to now predict way more precisely what to anticipate this 12 months. Which means that engineers and drivers—each Carlos and Charles, in addition to the drivers supporting us on the simulator—have been in a position to higher put together for the weekend, each to familiarize themselves with the monitor and to configure the automotive.”
Did each principal drivers work on the simulator?
“As typical, Charles and Carlos labored on the simulator, specializing in driving type and setups to reach well-prepared for Las Vegas, in addition to being able to deal with doubtlessly surprising circumstances. That is exactly when the simulator turns into a particularly highly effective device, and preparation periods are invaluable for enabling drivers to optimize their driving type for a particular monitor.”
What sort of help are you able to present to the crew on the monitor throughout Friday’s free follow periods?
“The simulator driver’s program throughout free follow focuses on optimizing particular person corners, as there are so few sequences the place the drivers could make a distinction. It’s essential that the drivers on monitor have a automotive that enables them to push to the restrict with out exceeding it, because the corners are tight and blind. Due to this fact, on the simulator, we primarily work on steadiness and cornering driving type, generally exceeding the restrict and hitting the partitions—fortunately, within the simulator, the injury isn’t actual (there’s solely a jolt to let the driving force know they’ve hit one thing!). Usually, throughout periods supporting the crew on monitor, we replicate the circumstances, setups, and driving type from follow laps precisely.”
After replicating the actions from free follow, do you search for options to enhance efficiency?
“On this manner, we are able to determine the automotive’s strengths and weaknesses, search to enhance efficiency, and supply this suggestions to the crew on monitor, which might then work on the setups accordingly. We additionally use these periods to anticipate what to anticipate if climate circumstances change through the weekend—for instance, variations in temperature, wind route, and depth from each day and even throughout a single session. By simulating these climate circumstances, we are able to inform the drivers what to anticipate, permitting them to extract most efficiency from the automotive earlier than even hitting the monitor.”
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