MG Engine Swaps Forum

The term “bench racing” has been used in reference to racing and hot rodding for many, many years. Hate to disappoint you but it’s not new. When someone repeats something they heard and declares it as fact without any real knowledge or experience that would be bench racing.

Where I grew up, Bench racing was making claims about performance of your car with no objective data to back up the lie



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2017-12-13 11:04 AM by twentyover.

The term “Bench Racing” has been around forever and I think Robert and Greg are spot on for the definition.

I would add that when Bench Racing devolves into one of the parties describing his racing prowess and your upcoming embarrassing lost at his hands, then it becomes “Trash Talk”.

However, Richard brings up a good point. There are many on this board (actually, on ALL boards) that will loudly proclaim that 1) they know best; 2) their way is the only way; 3) you are a moron / idiot / heathen if you dare to disagree.

There does need to be a name for that behavior. How about "Royalty Syndrome"?

Any other suggestions?

Lann

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Lann Mauck
Three Main LLC
Desktop Badge Bars and other odds and ends
www.ThreeMainLLC.com

Bench racing can also be what we do in the Winter months between racing seasons. Usually it entails lies, cocktails, and late hours in the shop accomplishing nothing but enjoying every second with friends.

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jeff@advanceddistributors.com

I prefer "Bar Stool Racing"

As a person who participated in your thread, I would say that had you put the idea forth as a form of bench racing rather than as a factual improvement on how to do an engine swap, you would have had a lot more fun with the thread.

There is no harm in daydreaming a project and how to do it....Hell, I ran my keyboard on this forum for a lot of years before I actually picked up a sawzall and started cutting on my project. Along the way I learned a lot of things and made a lot of changes in the plan ( to where the MGB GT became a Volvo P1800).

I haunt more than my share of boards with build threads. What I have found when it comes to the more adventurous build, the ones that start with "How do I" or "Has anyone done" never get started or done. The ones that get done are the ones where the first post is "You guys wanna see what I am doing".

When I first landed here, I did not have a shop full of tools, time or $$$. I did not have any fabrication experience either. But I did like what was being done and I participated in a lot of threads and then stole all the good ideas for when I did get a shop full of tools.

As another participant, I second Pete's comments. As I recall the approach was more on the order of "You guys need to do it this way!", rather insistent and high handed. Had it been proposed as "What if" the idea would have gotten a lot more traction, as you can see in another somewhat similar current thread, in case you were wondering why that was.

I came to these forums many years after having done my first V8 conversion, and at the same time doing my first body flares and tilt bonnet assembly. I was one of those guys who said, "Hey y'all, check this out!"

And, many years before that I first sectioned a unibody car. Using, of all things, a hatchet and a hammer to cut all the sheet metal off.

So I'm no stranger to doing things in an unconventional way. My objection was not to doing something different or a different way, but in someone insisting that what had been proven tried and true was wrong before they even tried it themselves. Sorry if anyone thinks that gives me, what was the phrase again? Royalty Syndrome? Yeah. That's me alright. Off with 'is head!

Jim

What if we had a forum titled "What If?" for honest questions or hypothetical questions the poster might want to know or think would be interesting for discussion? My recent thread "cutting the car to make a v8 engine swap", could have been, What If? We cut out the foot boxes to set the engine back and make more room for exhaust in a V8 swap? Everyone could start each post with "Imo", in my opinion. Our more experienced members could explain the reactions that come from the actions in question. Kind of like bench building, not the lies, just the theoretical part of it.

If you want to go off the reservation and try something new, grow a set and give it a try. People will be a lot more receptive to discussion if there is some initiative exhibited rather than asking how many fairies can dance on the head of a pin.

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Jim

"If you want me to agree with you then we would both be wrong"

'66 MGB widened 11" with supercharged LT1 Chevy and 6 speed, C4 Corvette suspension
Pictures here Part 1 http://forum.britishv8.org/read.php?13,7581
Continued in Part 2 http://forum.britishv8.org/read.php?13,22422
Continued in Part 3 http://forum.britishv8.org/read.php?13,33108
Continued in Part 4 http://forum.britishv8.org/read.php?13,40751
Continued in Part 5 http://forum.britishv8.org/read.php?13,48698,48698#msg-48698
Continued in Part 6 http://forum.britishv8.org/read.php?13,61672

Not here. You must mean the H. A. M. B.

https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&channel=mac_bm&ei=59gyWsPvIMuijwSsvZeQDg&q=bench+racing+origin&oq=bench+racing+origin&gs_l=psy-ab.12..33i160k1l2.48360.50959.0.56093.6.6.0.0.0.0.119.586.5j1.6.0....0...1c.1.64.psy-ab..0.5.497....0.OmnkfzGAO0g

This is what I always thought Bench Racing was. It is possible to start every bench racing session with "what If".

What if I modified this?

What if our cars raced at the track?

Every successful innovation and every failed attempt to improve started with "what if".

Every one of your MGs started with "what if".

Edit: Strange, I inserted a smiley and it deleted the text after it. Fixed now

Have to disagree with you Carl.

Hope you've been well.




Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2017-12-14 05:30 PM by scott68B.

How?