Wondering what stock racers think

[B Parker]

I agree with my brother Gary. The index's are a joke where they are at. Dropping the index's a tenth is not going to change a thing for the guys at the bottom of the list They will still be there but only now 3 or 4 under. As far as guys quitting because they lowered the index a few years ago. I have been doing this most of my life ( I'm 62 ) and don't know anyone that stopped because they lowered the index's. Lets face it the age of us class racers left and NHRA has been the real reason why most have quite. I said it on here a few years ago. It sucks I'm addicted but my drug dealer really doesn't want me around anymore. How many cars would be at nationals if they took the limit off and we still had the sponsors that have been chased off.

The real Stock Eliminator died years ago!!! Stock is just the name they still use for our class. As they say STOCK has left the building. Not something I wanted but it's the reality of it. For those of you that are key board racers with an opinion maybe you should get to a race and talk to the top half of the field. How many are 100 lbs plus over with extra oil and the timing turned 10 degrees out running an air filter to slow their cars down so not to go 1 second under. That's great until you get a heads up. As Gary said he may not hit some races because he already triggered it once. He has my Corvette that I bought and raced just a few years back. I bought the car from a nice guy who couldn't qualify at indy with it. He told me it was a tough combo and it had been factored to high. That same car now goes 10:70 in G/SA with ease. Not just because of money spent on it. It's because of what we have learned threw the years and testing. If you don't have a clue ask others for help. Most of us old time stockers can't wait to tell you things that will help you go faster without spending big money.

Some of my 1969 camaro friends that race a 350/255 hp rated at 280 combo are concerned their combo is going to end up getting hp. With Sorensen willing to step on his a little. Is that combo overrated ?

James I disagree with you about Indy. It's the only national event where now we really can see who is the big dog in the class. In 2014 with dog poop air as you would say you went .951 under. It's now 4 years later I would hope you have picked it up even a little bit more. That would put you at 1.20 plus under in good air. Maybe your combo needs HP. LOL Billy most of the high HP cars already had solid lifters. The only thing roller rockers did was help in parts breakage. You also go pretty fast with a ( As you would call it) dime rocket. Why??? I already know the answer but maybe you could tell the others the little things you do to make the car run that fast that won't set them back big dollars. I have just started to race stock again. I bought someone else's car had the motor freshened up plus changed some parts. This last Saturday went testing at our local track. By the end of the day picked it up .09. It cost me $ 100 for the day between gas tires and entrance fee. No big changes just little things that I thought would help. There was only one other stocker there testing. For those that are running only a few under get out and test. Ask others for help with cheap stuff you can do to pick your car up. I hope some of the other racers who are sick of having to play the game pipe up on here. Barry

[Frank Castros]

The cheapest way to go faster has always been to test and tune.

[Casey Miles]

Another way that NHRA could clear up the HP issue is to go to cubic inch to shipping weight, that way NHRA wouldn't have to police anything as far as indexes. Qualifying would be a totally different list.


Casey Miles

248H Stock

[goinbroke2]

Cu in to weight would be the end of most fords as the heads suck (Cleveland exception) and you'd see a sea of sbc's just like comp elim.

Very few would benefit and lots would suffer with that.

[B Parker]

Thank you know who you guys aren't still coming on here saying Stock is an entrance level class. Yah maybe 20 years ago. But that horse left the barn too with all the enhancements we have had in the last 20 yrs. There is nothing cheap about running a competitive Stocker today.

What's a set of rear tire cost?
How much is racing gas now?
What's it cost to get to these races?
Entrance fee?
The list could just keep on going. How are you getting the car there and where are you staying. Back when we started it was the entrance level class that paid money at the local track. But those days are long gone. Racing and entrance level really just doesn't belong together. Barry

How would that work? Like a modified eleminator set of rules? I don’t think that would work at all.

I think moving the indexes wouldn’t be the best thing right now. Maybe raise the instant hit to 1.25 or 1.30 under. Also the trigger to 1.10 under instead of 1.00.
Keep the index where it is now. Keep it a little easier for the guys that are starting out and the ones running the really tough combos.

Originally Posted by Casey Miles

Another way that NHRA could clear up the HP issue is to go to cubic inch to shipping weight, that way NHRA wouldn't have to police anything as far as indexes. Qualifying would be a totally different list.


Casey Miles

248H Stock

[Race Clean]

It's simple, just add a triple A Class at the top of the chain again and give everyone that should have more HP exactly just that,(with a full tech inspection of course) it seems to be to easy to protect combos with averages, loose that!
With one more Class you have room to move everyone thats need to be moved up one class and the Indexes are not lowered for any odd combo's.
It's had been said Stock is no way near what was intended and I agree to much goodies have been given, It's greed driven,everyone want's something for there combo without thinking about the long run,and NHRA just didn't stand it's grounds on this. (either)I am surprised there still is a Stock Class considering how close it is to SS.
My personal take on when the downfall started is actually when they allowed the combo's to move up one class, then the good combos took over most of the classes and many up to then decent car got somewhat obsolete(Bad for the Car count I think, not everyone want's a Camaro,believe it or not),I am pretty sure someone now gonna say, work on your stuff but we all know that ain't always the problem
And after the the hp committee "lost their job" this was over in my opinion!

I know this does nothing for the really slow guys,I think we can't do much for them until this turns to a real bracket racing.

[Alan Roehrich]

Question for my good friends the Parker brothers, and I'm just asking so people will understand what you're wanting. I'm not arguing or disagreeing, more hoping to inspire a productive discussion.



What is your goal for lowering the indexes? What are you hoping to accomplish?






As for some of the other suggestions, I've been advocating one pound weight breaks starting at 7.0 pounds per factored HP for several years now, with A/S and A/SA being 7.0 pounds. As well as adding class eliminations after the first round of qualifying at every event.


Smart racers are always going to protect their combination, they'd be idiots, and real slow before long, if they didn't.


It should be painfully obvious to anyone who is thinking, we do not want another HP committee, not with NHRA people, and not with racers either. There probably are much better ways to manage the class than the current AHFS as it is, but that's an entirely different discussion.

[Gary Parker]

Alan...
I know there are many that can go 1 second under. Most because of hard work. Just do not think it is right we get horsepower for all our hard work. Like I said the AHFS was for new cars rated way off and the under rated combos that have never been factored. If not lowering the indexes, raise the trigger. There are some combos that are hard to make run a second under. But over time most should be able to run pretty good if worked on. They take horsepower off cars that do not go fast. I wonder if some of those combos have not been thrashed on. Its easier to run slow and let NHRA take horsepower off. I know no answer is easy. But I was wondering how people with race cars felt. As we have been told for my 40 years of running stock. We are a performance based class. Thanks Alan

[Billy Nees]

Originally Posted by B Parker

I agree with my brother Gary. The index's are a joke where they are at. Dropping the index's a tenth is not going to change a thing for the guys at the bottom of the list They will still be there but only now 3 or 4 under. As far as guys quitting because they lowered the index a few years ago. I have been doing this most of my life ( I'm 62 ) and don't know anyone that stopped because they lowered the index's. Lets face it the age of us class racers left and NHRA has been the real reason why most have quite. I said it on here a few years ago. It sucks I'm addicted but my drug dealer really doesn't want me around anymore. How many cars would be at nationals if they took the limit off and we still had the sponsors that have been chased off.

The real Stock Eliminator died years ago!!! Stock is just the name they still use for our class. As they say STOCK has left the building. Not something I wanted but it's the reality of it. For those of you that are key board racers with an opinion maybe you should get to a race and talk to the top half of the field. How many are 100 lbs plus over with extra oil and the timing turned 10 degrees out running an air filter to slow their cars down so not to go 1 second under. That's great until you get a heads up. As Gary said he may not hit some races because he already triggered it once. He has my Corvette that I bought and raced just a few years back. I bought the car from a nice guy who couldn't qualify at indy with it. He told me it was a tough combo and it had been factored to high. That same car now goes 10:70 in G/SA with ease. Not just because of money spent on it. It's because of what we have learned threw the years and testing. If you don't have a clue ask others for help. Most of us old time stockers can't wait to tell you things that will help you go faster without spending big money.

Some of my 1969 camaro friends that race a 350/255 hp rated at 280 combo are concerned their combo is going to end up getting hp. With Sorensen willing to step on his a little. Is that combo overrated ?

James I disagree with you about Indy. It's the only national event where now we really can see who is the big dog in the class. In 2014 with dog poop air as you would say you went .951 under. It's now 4 years later I would hope you have picked it up even a little bit more. That would put you at 1.20 plus under in good air. Maybe your combo needs HP. LOL Billy most of the high HP cars already had solid lifters. The only thing roller rockers did was help in parts breakage. You also go pretty fast with a ( As you would call it) dime rocket. Why??? I already know the answer but maybe you could tell the others the little things you do to make the car run that fast that won't set them back big dollars. I have just started to race stock again. I bought someone else's car had the motor freshened up plus changed some parts. This last Saturday went testing at our local track. By the end of the day picked it up .09. It cost me $ 100 for the day between gas tires and entrance fee. No big changes just little things that I thought would help. There was only one other stocker there testing. For those that are running only a few under get out and test. Ask others for help with cheap stuff you can do to pick your car up. I hope some of the other racers who are sick of having to play the game pipe up on here. Barry

Barry, I can't disagree with anything that you have said here. My issue with the indexes and the AHFS in the state they are in is that they are basically forcing any Newbies or Wannabees to race a new car, a 396, an LS or an LT-1. There's not much room to race some of the older combos that used to be interesting AND competitive. The AHFS helped the 302 FFFords and that was all. A suggestion made to the NHRA by Dwight, Yac and I to give obsolete and non-competitive combos back a significant but reasonable amount of HP fell on deaf ears. Oh well, that's for another thread.

Now, I want all of you "Bad Boys and Big Money Boys" to think about this idea for just a few seconds before you have to run back out to the shop to find more HP or call your Brokers to find more money;

Do away with the AHFS and Indexes as we know them.
All non-competitive combos get 15-20% HP reduction immediately.
At Indy, all Class Winners automatically qualify for the field, the rest of the 128 cars are furthest under the RECORD.
Class Winning ET BECOMES the RECORD. If no-one in Class, then previous record stands.
Following season (starting at the WinterNationals), the RECORD becomes the INDEX. The RECORD stands for 1 season (Winters to World Finals) but is set every year at Indy.
Anyone running under the RECORD at any NHRA sanctioned Event during the course of the year is subject to immediate tear-down AND HP hit.

Do this and I guarantee you that you'll find out just who the "Bad Boys" are out there.
I can also guarantee you that there will be a lot more diversity in Stock Eliminator and a lot less empty Classes at Indy.