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The Monster Mile! Dover Downs is one of the toughest tracks on the circuit. This unfogiving, one mile oval is know for tearing up cars. Keep it out of the wall and you will have a good day. Put it into the wall and you will be off the pace for most of the day. Keys to surviving Dover Downs. Set Up: Horsepower v. Handling. Horsepower takes a back seat to handling at Dover. The right front tire is your enemy here. Push the car too hard and you will burn the rubber right off of the rim. Try a softer shock setting to ease the pressure on the right front. Gearing: Change the fourth gear ratio one step shorter, until you have the car reaching maximum RPM at the end of the straightaway. This will give you maximum speed. Caution: You'll have to adjust your breaking point to compensate for the faster entry into the corner. Pit Strategy: Tire wear usually will not allow you to go a full fuel run before pitting. Let the right front tire determine when you pit. Consider pitting during just about every caution, depending on your track position. The Groove: Good news:Dover is a true oval with symmetrical turns, so the line through the corners are identical. Bad News: It is also a one groove race track. Turn into the corner from the middle of the race track, and then drive the car down to the bottom groove. You have to use quite a bit of brakes getting into the corner. Remember, easy does it-Don't slam on the brakes; apply the brakes gently to bring your speed down to 145 mph. As your corner speed drops to below 140, roll back into the throttle, feathering the gas to keep the car on the edge of control. You need to be full throttle just past the apex of the turn. Passing: Dover resembles a very fast short track, with lots of emphasis onholding the low groove through the corners. That makes for tough passing, so be patient as you try to work your way through the field. Passing here is usually done one car at a time, or in the pits. It's hard to pull off a pass on these short straightaways. Even if you get a good run off the corner and pull alongside the lead car, you'll usually have to finish the pass in the next turn.
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