Thinking about this in depth.......

[JMatt]

A question (and I have no idea the answer, it's a sincere question):

Someone mentioned 1550 cars in Stock took passes in NHRA events last year. Any idea how many of those cars have been built in the last 5 years? Last 10 years? As compared to how many have been making passes for 20-30 years now?

I guess the point of my question is - is there new blood coming into class racing? How much?

[69Cobra]

You just described the last 15 years of my racing. My Dad parked our car in '87 as a Stocker and it sat until about '94 when I started racing it at the age of 17. Every upgrade I've done to the car over the last 15 years I've done with Stock Eliminator in mind. Like CycloneFE said I've got years of data and now have the car 60'ing pretty close to where it needs to be to be competitve in class. Now I'm focusing on building a competitive engine to get the job done. Don't get me wrong I still have alot of work to do but its only work and I'm not scared of work.

Originally Posted by CycloneFE

Jim is correct in his thinking(I feel) and a lot of the other responses have very good merit.

My thoughts on how to get into class racing for the most reasonable outlay is this;

I already had my Cyclone. Every addition to it has the intention that I will race in stock. Every purchase must be a legal stock part. The roll bars were put in with the intention of running stock. The motor is from a shop that I think I can trust and is NOT stock legal, but affordable. My converter is race ready, but the trans may be weak as it is not top dollar. The rear and suspension is all Calvert and should work well. I am currently waiting on ride height to order shocks and they will be race ready.

I fully intend to bracket race this car for quite a while. Money will be saved and data can be gathered. Once the car can perform in the incremental times as a comparable stocker I will spend the money needed for the motor and the trans.

While I am not young(51) this is a formula that can be used by anyone beginning or getting back into racing as I intend to do.

Just my 2 cents

[CycloneFE]

Kris,

Glad to see I am not the only one. One day it will be a pleasure to line up with you and have a great race.

Steve

[savoyracer]

Originally Posted by Indyracer

A question (and I have no idea the answer, it's a sincere question):

Someone mentioned 1550 cars in Stock took passes in NHRA events last year. Any idea how many of those cars have been built in the last 5 years? Last 10 years? As compared to how many have been making passes for 20-30 years now?

I guess the point of my question is - is there new blood coming into class racing? How much?

...........Darn good question.........maybe Nitro joe Jackson can find that answer..........I know that at the divisional races I attend [spectator] in division 6 it seems that I have watched a lot of the same cars for many years, and of course the same drivers. I imagine with the new "factory" cars out this last year we will see a small flurry of new cars on the track this next year, and I imagine it will be drivers that we are familiar with, not very many new ones, if any. We all seem to talk about how old we are, and how good things were way back then, not many guys saying how young they are. Just another notch on the belt of the Baby Boomer generation!!.........

[Schmidt A103]

circle track races take minutes not second,so even an economically challanged team can dream of winning because he caught a lucky break.Drag racing takes seconds.If it werent for red lights,heads up racing would always be about having the highest dyno numbers and the most cubic dollars.

Fastest street car racing is one example of this.When they try and make little guy classes it become impossible to make them last.This is because if you made a class that required 6000# cars with 100 cubic inch normall asperated engines on pump gas and powerglides somebody would still find a way to run a budget that rivaled the national deficit to make a car that run 8's and bombed the class for a $500 payout.Outlaw racing took off,but that because they just limit the tire and chassis and allow unlimited power.Putting the power to the ground is the game,and aside from the fact that an extra 1000 hp over your competitor might get you a 2 mph advantage at the big end{because you cant even get down half your power until after the 1200 foot mark},it is a fair race for anybody who can cram a 2000hp engine in a 3000# car on 10" wide tires.

Class racing drag cars iis always going to be tough.Nobody wants to run a spec car like the roundy roundy guys do,and you cant exactly pair a big block Camaro against a 283 biscayne,heads up,there will always be some kind of handicap involoved.

[69Cobra]

Well Steve that would be an accomplishment for both of us right now. So I look forward to that. Lets make that the class finals at the US National, how's that.

Originally Posted by CycloneFE

Kris,

Glad to see I am not the only one. One day it will be a pleasure to line up with you and have a great race.

Steve