Drag racing Enjoy it while you can

[GTX JOHN]

We have at least one Friday Night a month Grudge Night. Lots of Street Outlaw Big and Little tire stuff.

Lots of money changing hands at those races.....Just like the Old Street
Racing!

[Myron Piatek]

Originally Posted by Steve1118

Drag Racing is fine. It's not going anywhere. However, it is changing.

A local drag strip, or even a drag strip that hosts national events is a business. So many seem to lose sight of that. It needs support from the locals. Some of the guys complaining here wouldn't be caught dead at their local track, but complain and moan when it closes.

We sponsor a little Nostalgia series at our local track. It is very, very successful and we have cars coming out to the track that have been tucked in garages for years. We have Nostalgia SS, Nostalgia Gassers, and old type Modified Production cars. It has worked beyond our imagination. The Nostalgia thing works....period correct cars. Technical rules loose, to make it easy to race, and easy to get the old iron out there. Always cool. Draws a decent spectator count, too.

I never understood why the sanctioning bodies having Stock & Super Stock classes don't advertise with the nostalgia, car show an old vs new angles. Many of the cars in those classes are antiques, vehicles that parents & grandparents had while growing up, many are of car show quality that you can eat off of! Just like car shows or magazines, many you just don't see anymore anywhere else because they are "safely" tucked away. At the races, many are doing what they were built to do. While still not the main show at national events, it could reach a broader market, especially at divisionals, opens, association races, etc. A extra note in the corner of a print or internet ad couldn't hurt.

[X-TECH MAN]

Originally Posted by boostedf22c

but i don’t have kids or grandkids.

lucky you ! Wished it was me ! ! !

[boostedf22c]

Originally Posted by X-TECH MAN

lucky you ! Wished it was me ! ! !

It’s the only way I was able to build a Comp car.

[Coleydog]

Originally Posted by Myron Piatek

I never understood why the sanctioning bodies having Stock & Super Stock classes don't advertise with the nostalgia, car show an old vs new angles. Many of the cars in those classes are antiques, vehicles that parents & grandparents had while growing up, many are of car show quality that you can eat off of! Just like car shows or magazines, many you just don't see anymore anywhere else because they are "safely" tucked away. At the races, many are doing what they were built to do. While still not the main show at national events, it could reach a broader market, especially at divisionals, opens, association races, etc. A extra note in the corner of a print or internet ad couldn't hurt.

I agree but the bad part, most and I mean most think they're too good to do that stuff. They wouldn't think of going to a regular bracket race.
One showed up one day and all the people and racers where all over it saying how cool it was and couldn't believe it ran that fast with a stock looking engine.
Mike

[rognelson777]

Originally Posted by boostedf22c

I agree. But I don’t have kids or grandkids. However, I try and get ANYone I know to the track. And they all love it. It’s a pretty easy sport/hobby to get excited about and addicted too. The cars, awesome people and good and bad times. Just need to keep getting people interested.

So when you get anyone to come to the track, what do they like and do not like. You are also probably one of the youngest comp car owners
I know you race a lot of heads up races and also comp. Previously super stock.
Just looking for your insight.

[boostedf22c]

Originally Posted by rognelson777

So when you get anyone to come to the track, what do they like and do not like. You are also probably one of the youngest comp car owners
I know you race a lot of heads up races and also comp. Previously super stock.
Just looking for your insight.

They like the people. The social aspect. Hanging around with family and friends. The racing when it’s head up. When I start talking about Comp rules and indexes and handicaps and all that they kind of lose interest.

I mean I don’t blame them. I still don’t quite understand it all. I’m a first generation racer. I wasn’t brought up around NHRA class Racing. I totally respect it, I’m just not all that excited about it anymore. I was introduced to Racing with heads up, Pro Tree. And I never realized how much I truly disliked NHRA class racing until I owned/drove a “fast” car. And by “fast” I mean so much under this made up “index” that someone came up with. We all kind of lost passion in this type of Racing once we started talking about slowing the car down. Most would be thrilled to have a Comp car that can go almost .90 under. But when the talks are...slowing it down, dumping it early, etc.. Doesn’t even make sense in RACING!! The people/racers are the only reason we are still supporting some of the NHRA races. And the fact that Indy is only 8 miles from our shop. Haha.

Crazy to think at age 40 I’m one of the young ones. Haha.

[Mike Pearson]

Originally Posted by boostedf22c

They like the people. The social aspect. Hanging around with family and friends. The racing when it’s head up. When I start talking about Comp rules and indexes and handicaps and all that they kind of lose interest.

I mean I don’t blame them. I still don’t quite understand it all. I’m a first generation racer. I wasn’t brought up around NHRA class Racing. I totally respect it, I’m just not all that excited about it anymore. I was introduced to Racing with heads up, Pro Tree. And I never realized how much I truly disliked NHRA class racing until I owned/drove a “fast” car. And by “fast” I mean so much under this made up “index” that someone came up with. We all kind of lost passion in this type of Racing once we started talking about slowing the car down. Most would be thrilled to have a Comp car that can go almost .90 under. But when the talks are...slowing it down, dumping it early, etc.. Doesn’t even make sense in RACING!! The people/racers are the only reason we are still supporting some of the NHRA races. And the fact that Indy is only 8 miles from our shop. Haha.

Crazy to think at age 40 I’m one of the young ones. Haha.

What people need to understand in Sportsman racing there is more to the equation than just going fast. There are a lot of nuances that come into play with Sportsman class racing. The combos are not all created equal so to balance that you have to have some sort of index system. The racers are really in control of the indexes. If you run your car all out the index will be adjusted to the performance that the car is capable of. If you are holding back then the index does not get adjusted as fast. The best place for a spectator in handicap racing is the finish line not the starting line if they want to see how close the racing is at the top end. The index system is not very difficult to understand if the announcer is knowledgeable about the type classes that are being run. Not everyone is interested in heads up and grudge type racing so there is a little something for everyone in drag racing. The cost to run a comp car has really gotten out of control and that is killing the class for the majority of racers. All of the other NHRA sportsman classes have also gotten very expensive to compete in but those classes are still healthy. I have been racing for 40 years and have about 10 - 15 years left to race if my health holds out. Hopefully I can keep going for a while. I do enjoy racing Super Stock even though I am one of the slow guys. Its all about having fun in the end.

[lorenr]

I spend a lot of time here on the west coast. I hear a lot of talk about self driving cars and communicate now and then with an electrical engineer working on the subject at Google. He won't say a word but, I get the impression that the cars are a ways off.

Have another friend working at Flir. Probably need their stuff to make the cars a reality. He also doesn't say much.

Pretty sure they will have a few cars in ten years. Then, they'll need buyers.

I wish them luck.

[X-TECH MAN]

Originally Posted by lorenr

Pretty sure they will have a few cars in ten years. Then, they'll need buyers.

I wish them luck.

I don't......Sounds like the way old people and foreigner drive today !