PROCEDURE

Part 1:   The first part of this project will explore your use of basic statistical measures and web based searches.
Your presentation can be as creative as your group wants to make it.  You should be able to answer the following questions.

• There are different types of racetracks, different categories that NASCAR has divided tracks into based on its shape, speeds, length, etc.  Which type of track is Dover Downs?

• There are two Winston Cup Races held each year at Dover Downs, both are sponsored by MBNA. 
• What is the Fall race called?
• What is the Spring race called?
• What differences can your group see between the Spring race and the Fall race?
• Who was the winner of the Fall '01 Winston Cup race at Dover Downs?
• How long did the race take?
• What was the average speed of the winner?

• Look at the past 10 Winston Cup races at Dover Downs, what is the mean time to complete the race? 
• Is there any inaccuracy with reporting this value as a true average race time to participants of the upcoming June ’02 race at Dover Downs? Look carefully, why could this mean time, be inaccurate?

• Compare the mean of the average speeds from the past ten Dover Downs Winston Cup races. Note: the speed given for each race winner is considered an average speed because it accounts for the speeding up and slowing down when under caution ,pit stops, etc. Write about the similarities and differences that you may find.

• Look at the various designs on the Winston Cup race cars from recent races.  List at least five different shapes that you can identify in their advertising designs and paint jobs on the cars.  Be sure to list what shape, what car you saw it on, as well as what type of product it was advertising.

• What is the fastest qualifying lap in Dover Downs history, find the speed?

• Using the speed above, how long would it take to complete this lap at Dover Downs? (Hint: use the equation which involves distance, time, and rate of speed. t = d / r )
•  If you used the same speed how long would it take to complete a lap at Daytona Speedway?
• How long would it take to complete a lap at Sears Point?

You will want to use the resources listed on the resource page as well as any others that you might find through your own searching technique.  You may use internet sources or off-line sources (book, magazine, etc.)  However remember to document all resources that you use to get your information.  Most of the information asked about will not require a lot of hard searching.  This is like a warm-up lap, make sure your team is working well together, test everything out, and complete part one.  The upcoming sections will require more mathematics, graphing, more in-depth research, and time.  Keep going victory is within your reach if you work together as a team.

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Part 2: This section will require you to use research from part one.  You will still need to use basic statistical measures and graphing techniques.  Your research may need to be more in depth.  Each group should continue to gather data and collect statistics.  Remember, each group can display their data as creatively as they wish.  Once you have collected data from all parts of the project you can combine your results into a cohesive project.  Groups do not need to present their final project in four different parts.  Progress will be checked throughout each section to keep your project on schedule.

• Find the median speed of the past ten Dover Downs Winston Cup races. How does this compare with the mean calculated in Part one?
• As part of the pit crew you must decide which speed to use.  Which would your team use and why? 
• If you were in charge of marketing for the race track, which speed would you use and why?

• List the names of drivers that completed the last NASCAR Winston Cup race or you may use the last Dover Downs Winston Cup race.  Define the word "complete" based on your group's definition and proper racing terminology.  List all URL's and off-line sources your group uses in building your definition.

• Using your research from part one when you calculated the average of all the winning driver's average speeds from the past ten races at Dover Downs, calculate the Mean Absolute Deviation of these speeds.
• What would this statistic mean to the pit crew and statistician of a race team?

• Find the mean speed of the winner of the past ten races in this year's Winston Cup circuit. 
• Calculate the mean absolute deviation of these speeds.
• Would this statistic be more or less useful to a race team, then the MAD calculated using just Dover Downs races when preparing for the June 2002 Dover Downs race?

• Make a histogram of the average race winner's speeds for the past ten Dover Down's races.

• Make a histogram of the average race winner's speeds for the past ten Winston Cup races.

• Compare and contrast these two histograms.

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Part 3: This section will require your group to use more advanced statistical skills, such as scatterplots, plots over time, linear regression and linear models.  This section will also require your group to use deep thinking and reasoning skills.  There must be logic and meaning behind all statistics.  It will be your group’s role to find these answers and help develop the race plan for the team.  You may need to do more extensive research to back up you reasoning and explanations.  Remember to keep the creative process going as you keep building your project.  You are more than half way done, consider this the half way point.  I will evaluate all groups progress and award a bonus to the team leading at this point.  Remember, just like in a race the team leading here is not always the team in the lead at the end, so keep working hard and race to the finish.

• Find data from the last ten years of Dover Downs Winston Cup races, both fall and spring. Find the time of the race (length, duration) and the average speed of the winner.

• Graph the data found above in a scatterplot. 
• Which variable would go on the x-axis, which would go on the y-axis?

• Does a line fit this scatter plot? 
• Use your calculator to create a line of best fit (linear regression line). 
• Record the equation of your line, be sure to explain the slope and y-intercept of your equation including what they would mean in this situation.

• Make a plot over time using the last ten years and the time of the spring Dover Downs race.

• Make a plot over time using the last ten years and the average winning speed of the spring Dover Downs race.

• Why are there some time changes?
• What actions would effect the length of the race?  Be specific.  Do research to back up your hypothesis.

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Part 4 - This section will use your knowledge of algebra and basic probability.  You may want to use a combination of on-line and off-line sources for this section.  This is the last section in the project, the final lap!  Good Luck!  I will be looking for all of you in Victory Lane!
 

• Research the shape of Dover Downs race track. 
• What type of geographical model would you use to best describe it?
• How steep is the banking on the track?
• What type of effect would that have on the pit crew’s set up for the car. (i.e. what will the banking do to the force of the car as it is being driven and how might it effect its equipment?)

¥  What automobile manufacturers currently have race cars in the Winston Cup circuit?

• Make a table or bar/pie/pictograph showing how many cars from each automobile manufacturer participated in the last Dover Downs Winston Cup race.

• Are all cars supposed to have an equal chance of winning?  Explain how Nascar tries to control and equalize aspects of the competition.

• Use probability to determine the chance of winning for each car manufacturer that raced in the last Dover Downs race. You might want to calculate this under the assumption that every car has an equally likely chance of winning.

• How accurate would this probability calculation be in determining the winner, based on your research of past races?
• Does your team feel any other criteria helps decide the winner? Give a detailed list of winning criteria in your final project.

• Examine the winning monetary amounts from various races in the Winston Cup circuit. 
• Which is the highest?
• Which is the lowest? 
• Can your group hypothesize why there are differences in the payout amounts?

• Given the following situation: create an algebraic set of equations to help find a solution to the problem. 
• (So as not to show favoritism to any driver I will use make believe driver names)  Jeff Petty is leading the Nascar Points race going into the last race of the season.  He has 2620 pts while 2^nd place driver Rusty Earnhardt has 2525 and in 3^rd place is Dale Marlin  with 2276 pts.  In 4^th and 5^th places battling are Tony Burton at 2230 and Mark Busch with 2226 , a real close race. 
• Your problem is a detailed one:  In at least what place would Jeff Petty have to finish to assure himself the championship? 
• What is the highest place in the points race that Mark Busch could hope to finish from his starting position of fifth in the points?  Would it be possible for him to win the points race?
•  Provide detailed explanations and mathematical equations to support your answers.

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