To be fair, one could argue that "Hoosier guy" should be much slower than "$1500 tire guy" due to his significant skill deficit but his Hoosiers made up the difference to get him matching lap times, thereby still benefitting him.I can't recommend the ECF enough. I have tried most of the 200tw tires and although the ECF's are a consistent 1-2s behind the front runners of the 200tw group, the longevity they have has made up for it when I look at the grand scheme of things. It's the longest lasting tire I have ever ran.
For reference, I got 10 events out of my NT01's before they chorded (this tire is held to a gold standard for wear, especially on this website), 9 events out of my RS4's, 6 events out of RT660's and 12 events out of my ECF's. I average ~3.75 heat cycles (sessions) per event.
Ultimate track tire guide | 200tw, 100tw, street-legal track, R-comp
In this tire buyer's guide, we cover 200tw, 100tw, street-legal track and R-comp tires.grassrootsmotorsports.com
IMO, unless you are fast enough to truly extract the performance of the "fastest" 200tw tires, you are simply wasting money by buying anything but the ECF.
I present everyone with the scenario I run in my head......
Two identical cars, each with their own driver. One driver is on "slower" $1500 tires, the other is on "faster" $2500 Hoosiers. Both cars achieve the same lap time. What does this mean? It means Hoosier guy is quite literally throwing money away. His driving skills are not there to extract the extra performance the Hoosiers offer.
This is an expensive hobby, tires are by far the most expensive part of it. If I can lower my consumables cost by hundreds of dollars per event, still get the lap times I need, and still have fun, why wouldn't I?
That being said, I completely agree. If someone sets a faster lap time than me with a slower car, my reaction is "I need more practice and coaching" not "I need faster tires"