01
Use a bar race only when rank changes
A bar chart race is a ranking played over time. If every bar keeps the same order, a normal bar chart is clearer. If you have one number, use a counter. If you have a trend for a single series, use a line.
02
Worked ranking: four names, three dates
Try North 20 / 40 / 70, South 50 / 45 / 60, East 30 / 55 / 50, and West 10 / 25 / 80 across Year 1, Year 2, and Year 3. West should climb from last to first. If you cannot see that climb, remove a category or slow the race before you add color.
03
Leave time to read each pass
The viewer has to track which bar moved. Hold long enough at each date for the longest name to be read once. Abbreviate names that collide with the bar, and keep the unit in the title rather than on every row.