What happened to the Keystone Race?

[Rich Biebel]

Maple Grove and rain go together like peanut butter and jelly....in September and October....

Been there many times when it poured and you couldn't even see the track as you came down the hill on Bowmansville Road....I think it's named.

Had a brand new truck in 1996 and a Nova Stocker.....drove into the big field as others watched and got stuck up to my rims! Had to unload the racecar and get gravel and spent half an hour flinging mud all over my truck and trailer......Was a hell of a mess.......and once the mud dried it was like cement.....

But I still love the place.......and will be there for the Dutch....in a Stocker....again...

[Jack Matyas]

Originally Posted by Rich Biebel

Maple Grove and rain go together like peanut butter and jelly....in September and October....

Been there many times when it poured and you couldn't even see the track as you came down the hill on Bowmansville Road....I think it's named.

Had a brand new truck in 1996 and a Nova Stocker.....drove into the big field as others watched and got stuck up to my rims! Had to unload the racecar and get gravel and spent half an hour flinging mud all over my truck and trailer......Was a hell of a mess.......and once the mud dried it was like cement.....

But I still love the place.......and will be there for the Dutch....in a Stocker....again...

Rich - glad you're coming back .......and in a stocker to boot .

Claude - you would understand much more if you were here and witnessed what was going on .......its very easy to be an armchair ( or computer ) quarterback .

[Rich Biebel]

Thanks Jack....I am looking forward to it.....and hope the weather improves for that race.....

Very tough set of circumstances out there....but NHRA probably did the right thing on this one.......The rigs people have today complicate the issue....

Maybe thats the answer.....everyone has to have a pickup and an open trailer.....Nah....not gonna happen....

[cicero819]

Originally Posted by Jack Matyas

Rich - glad you're coming back .......and in a stocker to boot .

Claude - you would understand much more if you were here and witnessed what was going on .......its very easy to be an armchair ( or computer ) quarterback .

Jack, all I'm saying is that they could improve communications between paying customer and Racers who are with their dollars supporting their company. The only reason for myself to vent my frustration in this media is that after two letters sent to Maple Grove and NHRA complaining about the lack of communication and no replies from either of them the frustration level is quite high. Jack, I enjoy all the hard work you and all the others are bringing to us but sometimes we can't be always a cheerleader. What is so wrong with NHRA explaining to it's customer what they will do, to better it's product and their enjoyment and solve past problems. In business if you keep making the same mistake some customer will just stop coming.Claude

[joe176]

Originally Posted by cicero819

Jack, all I'm saying is that they could improve communications between paying customer and Racers who are with their dollars supporting their company. The only reason for myself to vent my frustration in this media is that after two letters sent to Maple Grove and NHRA complaining about the lack of communication and no replies from either of them the frustration level is quite high. Jack, I enjoy all the hard work you and all the others are bringing to us but sometimes we can't be always a cheerleader. What is so wrong with NHRA explaining to it's customer what they will do, to better it's product and their enjoyment and solve past problems. In business if you keep making the same mistake some customer will just stop coming.Claude

NHRA enhancements are not good in these very tough times......and I'm not an armchair QB !!

[Dave Ribeiro]

Joe & Claude,

It's all about supply & demand , but NHRA won't react till the $$$$
stops coming in everyone weekend ...The little guy continues to carry the burden, paying more & getting less ... It's about Choices & being treated Fair and having Fun ... The weather just makes it Worst, but we are still the Customer & control where we spend our money ???
Maybe it's time NHRA makes some changes, for the better......?

[Chris Kilraine]

Originally Posted by Dave Ribeiro

Joe & Claude,

It's all about supply & demand , but NHRA won't react till the $$$$
stops coming in everyone weekend ...The little guy continues to carry the burden, paying more & getting less ... It's about Choices & being treated Fair and having Fun ... The weather just makes it Worst, but we are still the Customer & control where we spend our money ???
Maybe it's time NHRA makes some changes, for the better......?

Dave,
You could not have said it better, but let us face the fact; everybody, for years, has been complaining about how NHRA does not support the sportsman racers...and what does everybody do about it?.....Continue to support, spend money, get pushed out, and then everyone else has to hear about it on someway or another (mostly here). How many times did you touch a hot stove when you were little until you realized it hurt and you were not going to do it again????

It is never going to change!

This year, as I did race more than I usually do, it made me realize how nice IHRA really is to the sportsman racer; able to make a lot of runs down the track with the double race format, eat food-drink beer-spend time with the family, and have fun with almost all the racers that WERE NOT complain about being treated like this!!!....

I do not mean this post to be a "marketing" or a commercial push for IHRA because I do disagree with the 1/8th mile deals but I can tell you that I have not been pushed out or treated unfairly with them ever! I wasactually hoping to race more NHRA DIVISIONALS this year, but the more and more I see with the format and the so called hospitality NHRA shows to the sportsman racer...I will pass!

Just my 2 cents.........

[Greg Hill]

Over the last 3 years I have not attended a NHRA National event. This has been my choice. I don't like how we are treated at them. When you continue to patronize an organization who obviously doesn't give a crap about you, their customers, they have no incentive to change their behavior. I don't like being told all the things i can't do at National events. I have been able to race as much as I want by going to divisional races, opens, combos and one sports national race. The main reason I quit going to Nationals was the introduction of the Cobra Jet and Drag Pack cars. What I've realized over the past 3 years is that I haven't missed Nationals one bit and I don't think I would start going to them even if the new cars end up in their own classes.

All that being said I do miss seeing friends that I saw at Nationals that I don't get to see any more.

[Tom Goldman]

Originally Posted by cicero819

jack, all i'm saying is that they could improve communications between paying customer and racers who are with their dollars supporting their company. The only reason for myself to vent my frustration in this media is that after two letters sent to maple grove and nhra complaining about the lack of communication and no replies from either of them the frustration level is quite high. Jack, i enjoy all the hard work you and all the others are bringing to us but sometimes we can't be always a cheerleader. What is so wrong with nhra explaining to it's customer what they will do, to better it's product and their enjoyment and solve past problems. In business if you keep making the same mistake some customer will just stop coming.claude

x2!

[Randall Klein]

May be an interesting Test Case, of how the program runs and spectator reaction to almost no Sportsman cars. Maybe NHRA has enough time to book in some wheelstanders etc as filler

I think this occurred at the Gators one year where the Sportsmen were shipped off to Orlando, but I can't remember any pushback comments made from Gainesville spectators...did they miss us? I'm sure Dragster wouldn't mention any negativity.

With alcohol and Comp, they may schedule it to cut down time.

I know one year at Columbus on Sunday a father with two young boys came by our trailor and asked where all the cars were, as they had come to watch S & SS....we told them to contact the track or NHRA, but who does that, and would NHRA respond to 1 or 2 complaints?