If an advocate could be found - what would you say?

[B Parker]

Just some thoughts. It would be nice even with the quota's for a National Events anyone with a grade point of six or more could get in as long as they entered during the six grade point time line. Why not also open quota's for one class at each National event. The events that have stock class or super stock class open up to 128. Other events open quota's for the rest of sportsman racing one class at each event. I still think they miss the boat on marketing sportsman classes. Today social media is king in marketing. How much would it cost to have someone market our classes threw social media. As most that know me I started a Burger business 4 years ago in a location that was a Friendly's. They went out of business in this location. In this town of only 24,000 people there is already 2 Wendy's 2 Mc Donald's a Five Guys and a Burger King along with another burger place that has been open for 40 years. Everyone told me I was nuts and the last thing this town needed was another burger place. I marketed the heck out of this place threw every way possible. Last yr we did 1.3 million in sales and this year we project to be close to 1.5 .. My point is if I didn't work as hard as I did to market it I would have been out of business. Why would anyone object to having sportsman classes marketed threw every means possible to see where it could go. Ed I agree the local events like Divisional's are good and the NHRA people that we know and see at these events are great and do a really good job. I also agree with you that everything including sportsman racing and drag racing in general has an expiration date. But why would anyone object to try and do anything we can do to extend the end and make what we already have even greater. BP

[Mark Yacavone]

Originally Posted by Paul Sarvas

Pity there wasn't a wall when your ancestors came to this country...


pS

Another one crawls out from under his rock.
This is called CLASS Racer, not the Prius Times..Take a hike, holding hands with your buddy.

[Paul Sarvas]

Originally Posted by Mark Yacavone

Another one crawls out from under his rock.
This is called CLASS Racer, not the Prius Times..Take a hike, holding hands with your buddy.

How's things in Birtherstan, Mark?


pS

[Rob Petrie E395]

Originally Posted by Paul Sarvas

Pity there wasn't a wall when your ancestors came to this country...


pS

Sorry for continuing the side tracking of this thread. But If they would do it the right way. There would be no need for a wall. And it seems to me that's all anybody really wants. Some did like this guy.

[Bruce Noland]

Originally Posted by 1320racer

opinion, assumption at best, a lie at worst. But again, NHRA National events were never about sportsman racers nor are they what puts spectators in the stands.

You are so far out in left field, it is hilarious. Run over to Amazon and buy a few books on the history of drag racing before making a bigger fool of yourself than you already have.

[1320racer]

Yea Lee Valentine is out in that field with me. He too doesn't think there is a problem with NHRA Sportsman Racing and he's been doing this 55 years! But does agree stock eliminator racers have "always been crying about factors and rules,costs quotas etc."

Nuff said.

[Rusty Gillis]

At one time there were people in the stands when Super Stock was on the track.

[Lee Valentine]

Bruce it's been inevitable that sportsman racers are going to be pushed out of national events with the size of rigs and the amount of crap NHRA tries to pack in. The worry is if they eliminate us altogether or have stand alone sportsman races. We don't have enough young racers coming in to stock and super stock to support the eliminator much longer.

[Carguy49]

The world is changing, and so is everything in it. NHRA racing is not what it started out to be. It is more about the BIG show and what can be done to entertain the new crowds. As Lee mentioned a big part of the problem is space for rigs at each event. Not only the Pros and their multi rig teams (John Force and his 8 semis, as example), but the bigger and nicer rigs that many of the sportsman racers use.

If you want to see what real change is, just have a loved one die from cancer. As you all know I lost my wife last April and life is NOT the same, nor will it be for many years to come. The emotional, mental and financial strain has been and will be enormous. Yes, I am still trying to pick up the pieces.

I hope all involved in the sport can accomplish their goals. Let's all take life for what it is worth. The most important part of racing is the friends that we make along the way (yes winning is very cool, also) and I have made some great friends over the 49 years I have been going to drag strip around the northwest.

May GOD bless each and everyone one of you in your racing programs.

[Bruce Noland]

Lee, the very first race that nhra attempts to produce without Sportsman racers will put them in the entertainment busness without any premise for holding onto its coveted not for profit status. nhra has been a traveling entertainment show for years but it has always had the not for profit protections that the Sportsman racers have helped to protect. Compton found out when he tried to pedal off the Pros that it was a fools errand to separate them from the Sportsman racers. Compton, himself, said many times that he knew that nhra had not treated the Sportsman racers with the respect they deserve. He brought Len Imbrogno in to help fix the problems but never really supported him. And one more point, there is nothing wrong with encouraging nhra to improve relations with us. In fact it is healthy. There were a bunch of unhappy racers at Pomona for various reasons but most are too smart to come out here and be berated by a clown who has never raced with us.