Cheating

[Adger Smith]

Thanks, Issac
If I counted & did my math right I get a .03436 average for the 19 guys you listed... Interesting.. I wonder where that .0296 avg for stock came from? Must be a bunch of guys doing better than the 19 that Issac listed to pull the avg down to .0296.

[LNorton]

Originally Posted by Bernie Cunningham

Tim, that's a lot of work but I can say right now, LED's, it's got nothing to do with your witch hunt. The box guy's just take out more delay and we all got better !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Two steps have been around for ages, c'mon be fair with your think'in. You need something else to do. LOL

What happened 10-15-20 years ago has nothing to do with what happens now, it's called EVOLUTION, I believe the opposite would put us back in the stone age, we'll continue to use technology whether YOU like it or not !!! Keep up or light your fires with a flint.

Bernie,

Tim has been around longer than you may think, and as much as you think that the 2-steps do not make a difference... they do. You may have been around for a long time, but in the days of the incandescent bulbs it was much easier to anticipate the bulb than it is nowadays. I know this because when I was in junior dragsters I used this to my advantage. You could watch the different stages of the bulb and react on on a particular spot within one bulb, but the LED's do not allow this, and in juniors my avg reaction time was around .020.

Take the 2-step out of your car and see how consistent you are one weekend.

I won a lot of cash in my street truck the last year of incandescent bulbs, but it took me until this year to adjust.

Whether or not stock allows it, I will use the stock 2-step on our stick car. And it makes a BIG difference in the light. The big names will still win, but you will see a much smaller difference in the MOV.

[Rich Biebel]

I have not been to many races this year but did race E-Town last weekend. I saw SS make some runs and remember seeing an amazing number of .00 to .020 RT's. That was not normal for just a few years ago. I also have noticed that the average RT in Stock is way better than in the past. I see a lot of .020's and .030's Racing in ANY category has gotten tougher over the years.

[Tony Curcio]

Some clarifications that I think are important:

1- The primary reason a two-step improves consistency has more to do with accurate staging depth and accurate launch rpm, than with "the hand is quicker than the foot". Particularly when a track is hot, as it was in Englishtown last week, you can see the footbraker's front tires sliding into the beam, not bumping in. And of course, the second you take your eyes off the tach, the rpm changes.

2- IHRA's "Diry Dozen" were using a Matty Box, which timed the run and cut off the engine near the finish line to prevent breaking out. It had nothing to do with reaction times.

3- The IHRA stock elim racer caught with a delay box was reacting to the top bulb, then the delay box released the car a full second later, which is easy to spot if you look for it. This guy was spotted by one of the Emmons brothers, who protested immediately.

4- The Super category cars are fast enough to go red reacting to a .400 pro tree. The faster stockers could go red on a .500 pro tree, and a blinder effectively creates a pro tree. But somewhere around j-k-l stock, these cars need short front tires and other tricks to get them to cut a decent light on the flash. I don't see how the slow stockers could benefit from using a delay box, except when reacting to the top bulb, which as I said would be very easy to spot.

5- The very best average on Isaac's list belongs to Lee Zane, who is usually in K/SA. Clint Blezien and Jody Lang are also in slower cars.

My conclusion is that delay box use is not the explanation for the top racer's success. It's not impossible, just not likely. In fact, my observation is that the pro-sportsman racers are extra cautious about being legal, as they are more likely targets for scrutinty, and could lose their sponsors and livelihood if caught cheating. This may also explain why they are most vulnerable in heads-up situations. Perhaps it's a combination of practice, practice, practice and some natural ability thrown in.

I know I haven't persuaded Ed O'Brien, but I hope casual readers will consider these points.

[keith ohanesian]

Ed u are a joke

[keith ohanesian]

Ed u couldn't win on a by run... So why are u so concerned? Stop trying to always rock the boat. Have a beer sit back and listen to the ba ba ba ba sound of the two step in the lane next to u as they leave on the top, middle and bottom bulb in your small head!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[racerhead]

The stats quoted from The Racer's Mind are not complete averages. They are average winning reactions taken from round three through finals at national events in '05. Their purpose in the workbook is to help drivers choose their target reaction.

Bruce Deveau

[keith ohanesian]

Mr. Ed in my neck of the wood the " the box class" is call pro which was heavy.. That is a non electronics class. U should try it some time I think they have there own forums. Man that would give us a break from u. By the way stock is not a non electronics class

[Ron Middleton]

Ed,
They feel like it will handicap them when it happens and they don't want change. I've heard so much bitching here locally on the subject it's ridiculous. Fact is our electronics track champ last year won just as many races with his wife's Durango as he did with his super gas Camaro. Good racers will always win more racers than mediocre races and that's all there is to it. Look at Rampy going from Stock to Comp and he still is a threat in either same as Lee Zane and others.

[Keith Anderson]

Tony.....I agree with you 100%, I think you have explained your view, which even Ed would be hard pressed to ignore.