On Tue, 27 Sep 2011 22:34:05 -0700, Beryl wrote:

Richard wrote:
...
The elevator - and the trim tab - do a LOT of work on a race plane at
500mph. And a lot at 200 too.

Absolutely.

Add to that there is a lot of speed changes as the aircraft hits the turns.

The winning pilot minimizes speed loss and G forces through the turns.

TANSTAAFL...

That's why to optimize the airplane for top speed, the slow speed
performance suffers.
And the speed change through the turns in a race is NOT that
significant. Ground speed - yes, but not airspeed. That's why a lot of
turns are a "diving " turn. Trade altitude for airspeed in the turn so
you don't need to waste power getting the airspeed back after the
turn. You don't want to loose enough airspeed in the turn (heavily G
loaded) to stall the flight surfaces - or even get anywhere close.