Rally car co-drivers

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Speicher

Vice Admiral
Moderator
I was watching one of the WRC competitions from Finland last night. One of the drivers managed to slightly redesign his car on contact with some rocks, but he continued. A few miles later it was discovered that the co-driver had cracked some ribs in the collision, and so the team were unable to continue. :tongue:

If the route notes have already been prepared - why could the driver not have another co-driver. How difficult can it be?

I agree that have to be able to read, while travelling very fast, and not get nauseous. You do not have to shout because the driver has headphones. You have to not mind if the driver takes an alternative route through, for instance, the trees, and frequently travel in a direction, not necessarily the one in which the wheels are pointing. You must not criticise the driver's parking skills, when, as happened last night, the driver parks the car in a lake, or under a tree.

It does not matter if you swear because editor of the film will put bleeps over your voice, and no-one can lip-read because the microphone is attached to the helmet.

I expect that if you do make a mistake, you need to be able to undo your seat belt and run faster than the driver. But apart from that, I would like to have a go at it. Are there any current vacancies do you think?
 

alecstilleyedye

nothing in moderation
Moderator
who do you think you are speicher, nicky grist? :tongue:
 

Young Un

New Member
Location
Worcestershire
i rally navigate for my dad in our escort mexico and its more difficult than you think.

have you ever seen a co-drivers pace note book, i have and they actually sared me. i being a navigator and the local motor clubs 2007 best novice would like to think one day in the future i will be able to read pace notes but for me now i know that they would be too difficult and thats with almost 2 yrs worth of navigation for my dad.
 

Maz

Guru
co-drivers? that is so last century.
Why don't they stick a tomtom on the screen?
 

Rhythm Thief

Legendary Member
Location
Ross on Wye
Apparently Pat Moss's navigator couldn't tell her left from her right. After regularly ending up upside down in a ditch they agreed that instead of "Left" and "Right", she'd shout "Your way" or "My way".:wacko:
(For those who don't know, Pat Moss is Stirling Moss's sister, and a pretty impressive driver in her own right.)
 

CopperBrompton

Bicycle: a means of transport between cake-stops
Location
London
The story I love was of one driver who was a good 10 seconds quicker than anyone else in thick fog, and was interviewed afterwards and asked the secret. He said he couldn't see a thing, but when his navigator said "Fast 45 left", he kept his foot planted and turned left 45 degrees.

Ben
 

Night Train

Maker of Things
There has to be a lot of trust between driver and navigator. The navigator has to be able to read the directions sufficiently ahead of time and keep track of where the car is on the course even without looking. Sometimes the instructions include the gear selection and the stance of the car for the quickest line. The navigator has to feel all the bends, bumps, humps and fords to keep track. Also I think the navigator has control of the horn, wipers and washers so the driver can concentrate on the driving. I think the navigator has the harder job of the two.

I once navigated for a reverse, blindfold section on a Land Rover trial. Because my mate and I trusted each other and rehearsed the navigation instructions before hand we were able to do the whole section at full throttle.
 

ComedyPilot

Secret Lemonade Drinker
Still my favourite bit of rally co-driving, Terry Harriman and Ari Vatanen in the 1983 Manx Rally.


View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PwvIRuCLbyg
 
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