How hard is it to race Formula 1 in the rain?

Question

I could imagine that from the halmet with no wipers, it'd be h**l almost impossible to see...

is it all about the memory of the track and routine moves from that pt to drive the car?

Answer 1

Think of driving in the fog in a mist on ice.  Should about do it.

Answer 2

Aside from the visibility problems, there's the "actual" driving problems.

First of all they have to look for completely new braking points, they have no idea where they are all they know is they have to brake way before they do in the wet.

Then there's the racing line, I think in karts they just try to stay away from the rubber lines because rubber + water = slippery, but I think in F1 they dont necessarily do that because they have additional grip thanks to the downforce, but they still have to adapt their lines to their new braking and turn in points, etc etc.

Then there's also the dreaded aquaplanning, I don't think there's any feeling for a driver that is worse than to realise they have lost the car in the water and even though they brake and steer as much as they can, they are going to crash.

I think they usually start slow and then they try to find a little more confidence and go a little faster with every lap, but they never go 100 percent. Webber said "It had to be six tenths, sometimes five tenths. In those kind of races, you can never be 10-tenths. You always need to leave a margin."

I can't think of anything else but I think there are some actual open wheel drivers in this section that can give a more detailed answer.

Answer 3

Visibility is one problem. Apart from that, they have to find a new racing line. And they struggle to find grip, even with wet tyres on. Since the car has no roof, they get drenched. It's not going to be very comfortable.

Just imagine driving in a road car on a rainy day and multiply it by about 10.

Answer 4

it is not easy - not because there are no wipers - they hvae tear offs on their helmet that are effectively like wipers coz u throw away the same.

the issue is braking distance gets increased, grip gets reduced, causing skidding and the biggest issue is that F1 cars dont have mud flaps.. thus when you are close to some one before overtaking, you are in his spray andthat makes it impossible to see..

yes knowledge of the track and turns are more crucial as a lot of the time you are guessing the braking points etc..

Answer 5

They also run the risk of catching a cold!

Answer 6

Well, very hard of course! Driving a normal car on road when it rains is hard, what's more an F1 car with a much much much more high level of speed. That's beyond hard.

Answer 7

it is really difficult for most drivers, aside from no wipers on helmets, one more thing is fogging inside the helmet since outside temperature is lower than inside, which affects visibility. But for some its their advantage, there are drivers who are rain lover, that's why they are called "rainmaster".

Answer 8

you have to find a diffrent braking spot and throttle as well plus you can barely see anything  so you relly on your memory of the cicuit for at least 60 percent

Answer 9

The main problem for the drivers is not the rain itself but the fine mist spray caused by the tyres that trail the cars turning the visibility of the car behind to virtually nothing, picture driving in heavy fog at 200+ mph. Though memory of the circuit helps I would still think they rely on what they can actually see and that is why in the rain you don't see nose to tail action as often.