2008 SportsNationals Racer Input

[birdbrain]

Pat:

It will be hard for a lot of racers to understand why this race was put on top of an IHRA National event in San Antonio.No doubt it will affect the car counts at both races. Your race is farther south for MOST racers, so driving time and fuel costs could sway racers to go to San Antonio, or they could skip both races, who knows. Obviously you have a great facility and we have a awesome time racing there, but San Antonio is a very entertaining city also. Hopefully the peeing contest between both sanctioning bodies will eventually pass and both races can enjoy the full benefit of having a race on seperate weekends.

Bigshot

[Chad Rhodes]

Originally Posted by birdbrain

Pat:

It will be hard for a lot of racers to understand why this race was put on top of an IHRA National event in San Antonio.No dought it will affect the car counts at both races. Your race is farther south for MOST racers, so driving time and fuel costs could sway racers to go to San Antonio, or they could skip both races, who knows. Obviously you have a great facility and we have a awesome time racing there, but San Antonio is a very entertaining city also. Hopefully the peeing contest between both sanctioning bodies will eventually pass and both races can enjoy the full benefit of having a race on seperate weekends.

Bigshot

isn't the IHRA race 1/8 mile? if so I doubt the SprotsNationals will be the reason for the low car count

[Stocker 2]

Originally Posted by birdbrain

Pat:

It will be hard for a lot of racers to understand why this race was put on top of an IHRA National event in San Antonio.No dought it will affect the car counts at both races. Your race is farther south for MOST racers, so driving time and fuel costs could sway racers to go to San Antonio, or they could skip both races, who knows. Obviously you have a great facility and we have a awesome time racing there, but San Antonio is a very entertaining city also. Hopefully the peeing contest between both sanctioning bodies will eventually pass and both races can enjoy the full benefit of having a race on seperate weekends.

Bigshot

It was IHRA that made the mistake of not checking with Pat when they put their 1/8 mile San Antonio race on top of his highly successful Sportsnationals. Birdshot can only hope IHRA is smarter when they start looking at their 2009 schedule.

[birdbrain]

Originally Posted by Stocker 2

It was IHRA that made the mistake of not checking with Pat when they put their 1/8 mile San Antonio race on top of his highly successful Sportsnationals. Birdshot can only hope IHRA is smarter when they start looking at their 2009 schedule.

Correct me if I was wrong, but the official IHRA national event schedule was out long before the Sportsnationals date was out. By the way why did Pat change the date from last year? San Antonio is a 1/4 mile race, last year they had a major track issue during the race and the track was repaired but IHRA and the owner felt it would be safer to run the event 1/8 mile instead of calling the race off.

Bigshot

[Sluggo]

Originally Posted by birdbrain

Pat:

It will be hard for a lot of racers to understand why this race was put on top of an IHRA National event in San Antonio.No dought it will affect the car counts at both races. Your race is farther south for MOST racers, so driving time and fuel costs could sway racers to go to San Antonio, or they could skip both races, who knows. Obviously you have a great facility and we have a awesome time racing there, but San Antonio is a very entertaining city also. Hopefully the peeing contest between both sanctioning bodies will eventually pass and both races can enjoy the full benefit of having a race on seperate weekends.

Bigshot

If you go back and look at the last three years, San Antonio was run in March up against the Memphis Divisional. The Cajun Sportsnationals was run in April for 2005, 2006, 2007. Now explain why you think that Pat and the NHRA put their race on top of the IHRA Nationals in San Antonio. Sounds like it was just the opposite to me. Seems like someone didn't like the March date that they had been running on and moved it to a better weather date to me.

Big tire belong on the back !!

[birdbrain]

Originally Posted by Sluggo

If you go back and look at the last three years, San Antonio was run in March up against the Memphis Divisional. The Cajun Sportsnationals was run in April for 2005, 2006, 2007. Now explain why you think that Pat and the NHRA put their race on top of the IHRA Nationals in San Antonio. Sounds like it was just the opposite to me. Seems like someone didn't like the March date that they had been running on and moved it to a better weather date to me.

Big tire belong on the back !!

Sluggo

You ought to check the dates in April. They were never the first weekend in April. NHRA changed the date on Memphis and they plugged in Belle Rose. Sounds like to me NHRA didn't like the weather in Tennessee in March/April. Calling the kettle black?

Bigshot

[Ed Carpenter]

San Antonio's national event IS 1/8 mile this year. Someone at IHRA thinks this will be a hit. After the race they might have a different opinion.

Ed Carpenter

66 Chevy II

4244 SS/I

[Alan Warman]

Pat
Were is the best place to stay.That is close to Belle Rose.

[FLOYD RUSSO JR]

hey alan there is best western in donaldsonville,la. r u can call me i live about 20mins. from the track in gonzales,la right off of i-10 an la 30...an i can tell u that there is about 6-7 hotels here...1-225-413-0731 cell thanks boo-boo....

[Pat Joffrion]

Guys ... & Julie (my favorite CPA),

NHRA moved both my divisional and the SportsNationals up two weeks. I requested the same dates as last year, but got mixed in the shuffle.

One of the reasons that makes sense for the April move is to allow racers to leave from the Houston national and tow straight to Belle Rose (only 4 hours). Tow costs would be reduced for racers looking to make two nationals back-to-back.

Top Stock is being considered, with Jeff Teuton's help, I'll work to get something done when we get back from vacation.

I've been really busy at the track the past few days. We just finished our last race yesterday (beat the rain by 10 minutes), and held our racer awards banquet last night at the track. Linda & I will be on vacation for the next three weeks and I may be out of touch with the internet from time to time.

In the meantime, Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to all from the gang on the bayou. Looking forward to St. Croix.....

Pat