Speaking of Divisional Schedules: NHRA D2

[Alan Roehrich]

Originally Posted by Rollins_2241

Let's look at the constraints and then optimize within those.

Facility: The candidates are Bradenton, Gainesville, SGMP, Silver Dollar, Atlanta, Bristol, ZMax, Orlando (barely and only without alcohol). Everything else is either IHRA, 1/8 mile, or not up to the task. Economics favor NHRA-owned tracks as frankly most LODRS events are money losers, especially those with alcohol.

Weather: Mid-June through mid-Sept. is almost out of the question from middle Georgia south. Mid-Dec. through mid-Feb. is dicey anywhere and is off season anyway.

Timing: Close to but not on top of Nationals is preferable, with a fatigue factor (e.g. three big races in a row) considered.

I would like to see two LODRS before the Gators, one before or after the Southerns, one before or after the second Zmax race, others in between. It's well known that Rowland wants the previous Orlando date. So, I suggest

Bradenton, Gainesville (the weeks they are now)
SGMP (the week after the Gators or less preferably, the week before)
Atlanta (the week after the Southern Nationals)
Bristol (sometime in the summer)
Reynolds (the week after the Zmax second national)
Orlando (the week Reynolds is now).

The Reynolds race does well where it is now, so you could add an early October Orlando race and leave Reynolds alone.

The air in Bristol in the summer is horrible. When it was postponed and held in July, it was near 100 degrees, and the corrected altitude was 4000 feet. It was miserable for the racers and the spectators, as well as the cars. It wasn't as bad as the genius decision to run Memphis in August, but it was real close.

Again, the reason Atlanta did so poorly this year is that it was an LODRS race on the third weekend of a four weekend stretch. Had there been a weekend off between Indy and Atlanta, there would have been more cars there in Atlanta, and possibly more cars would have gone on to Charlotte.

Reynolds needs to move to a week later in October. And we could still have something the 1st weekend of November, or even the second. Considering the people at SGMP wanted to be away from the early part of the year, following two races at Gainesville, plus Bradenton, I'd bet they might go for a race a week or two after Reynolds, if Reynolds was a week later. A lot of racers who want to go fast would like it, as the air would probably be pretty good, and the track is good. It would also draw well because it would be the last LODRS of the year in the region, racers would want ot get that last race in before the off season.