One Lazy Sunday – Part 2

Drafting 101

Drafting??? Is there a misspelling here? Should the “a” be an “i”?? There is no error here typographical or otherwise, ladies and gents. According to Webster’s successor, Wiki said “Drafting or slipstreaming is a technique where two vehicles or objects align in a close group reducing the overall effect of drag.” This effectively reduces the power needed to push the drafting car through the air so you do not have to step hard on the gas pedal just to maintain speed. The lead vehicle’s slipstream will tend to pull the drafter along. I will leave it at that, considering the thorough explanation is a bit technical (aerodynamics is a one-semester major subject in my college course).

But wait, there is a catch! Drafting requires that the drafter maintain a very close distance from the lead vehicle, about less than 3 meters behind and closer gives better drafting pull, with the lead vehicle going at 60 kilometers per. This is NOT safe. A fair warning to newbie drivers: do not draft, or you will end up paying with your life and/or limbs. Expert drivers (not professionals, newbies can be professional drivers in 5 months but still lack the expert skills) can tell and wisely decide if they can draft, or if their car can draft safely.

A hint for easier and safer (safer??) drafting: choose a lead vehicle which is wide and tall but fast enough to produce a big draft, usually vans and buses. The larger they are the larger the area of the draft, so you do not have to follow so close. But (another warning!) buses tend to stop anytime anywhere with outrageous deceleration rate, so be careful, or you will end up being scraped off the behind of a bus. Better yet, do not risk it altogether, if you do not want to pay for additional gas, just stay home. Warning to all concerned: drafting is highly discouraged by this writer and is discussed here for purely academic purposes only.

Enough with the lecture and back to the story, on to Part 3….