Staging light error caught on film & Div. Director's respons

[Sean Cour]

Originally Posted by Bucky Hess

Something like this happened to me at the gators about 10 years ago in the 4th round.I footbrake and push my car against converter to stage .i dont bump in .as my lite came down it redlit me. they said when i staged it was so shallow that my car backed upagainst the converter bull ****

How the hell does a car "back up against the converter?". Sometimes I wonder.......

[Ed Wright]

Originally Posted by Sean Cour

How the hell does a car "back up against the converter?". Sometimes I wonder.......

Really!

[goinbroke2]

Re: "Backing up against the converter"
Obviously a car will not back up against the converter, but I have seen a car rock a couple inches by varying the rpm with the front tires locked. Not impossible to imagine linelock the front and bring up the rpm to flex/push/etc into the lights. Then rpm drops and the car flexes back. Not saying this happened, just saying, never say never.

In '88 or '89 I won a bracket race with a green light.....and a .499 light. The other guy came back yelling but was told the computor rounds up to the nearest 10th or something like that. He accepted it and I went on to runner up. ($200.00 if I remember right)
I thought it was strange but wasn't going to argue.


I think the adage "that's racing" applies here.
Treat it as a learning experience and paint the front rims flat black.

[Bryan Worner]

I just love the reply that it was your car's fault! I want to see just once, an NHRA official admit they, or their equipment, were at fault! But, I might as well wish in one hand and ***** in the other!

I wonder if these officials actually believe some of the bs they feed us??

[Racin Mason]

I think Mike Gray nailed it with the call on the camera flash. I emailed the division director asking him to take another look now that we had more insight into what might have really happened. Believe it or not, he has not responded.

Does anyone have any contact information for Rick Stewart, someone at Compulink or anyone else who might actually give a s#*t that their timing system has a flaw that needs to be addressed? NHRA has already been so embarrassed by things like the pro stock bike final round that was overturned with video evidence, the Mike Edwards delay in the start of the tree during the first round in Gainesville and then the 4-wide tree mess last weekend that you would think someone who cares might want to take some initiative here.

I am guessing here that the laser receptacle reacted to the camera flash as if the beam was re-established and that caused the red light to come on. If this is the case, then if they just flipped the beams so that the laser receptacle is on the side closest to the tree and the laser is generated on the outside of the lane, this would never happen again. Simple solution really. They just have to recognize there's a problem and that is the hard part...

[Mike Gray]

Originally Posted by Racin Mason

I



I am guessing here that the laser receptacle reacted to the camera flash as if the beam was re-established and that caused the red light to come on. If this is the case, then if they just flipped the beams so that the laser receptacle is on the side closest to the tree and the laser is generated on the outside of the lane, this would never happen again. Simple solution really. They just have to recognize there's a problem and that is the hard part...

Not sure I have it right (see comments under thread "Red Light Answer")
Pat Joffrion explains the staging system.
At his track the beam is generated on the inside, I assume Pomona and other tracks are the same.

[RPinoski1]

Pat stated "the sensor for the light is on the inside. He felt the flash had no effect being from the outside.