The Great 1/8 mile vs 1/4 mile Racing Debate

[442OLDS]

Which would you rather race your Stock or Super Stock car on?

[Jim Kaekel]

1/4 mile is the better race, without a doubt. In my opinion, 1/8 mile is tougher to win at with less time for decision making at top end. It also takes alot of the "speed thrill" out of the equation, particulary in a Stocker. Personally, since I do this sport for the enjoyment, I have little use for 1/8 mile racing.

[Brandon Peterson]

Being located in central North Carolina 1/8 mile racing is about your only option....there are quarter mile tracks around but 1/8 mile is still what most run on a bracket program..... I love 1/4 mile racing just as much as 1/8 racing....there is a different speed factor but there are other things that make 1/8 racing just as exciting as 1/4 mile racing.....i dont own a NHRA legal stocker so my options are limited to about 3 to 4 quarter mile races a year with IHRA......but it doesnt matter to me which one i do you still gotta drive both ends of the track...

[Eric Merryfield]

Originally Posted by Brandon Peterson

Being located in central North Carolina 1/8 mile racing is about your only option....there are quarter mile tracks around but 1/8 mile is still what most run on a bracket program..... I love 1/4 mile racing just as much as 1/8 racing....there is a different speed factor but there are other things that make 1/8 racing just as exciting as 1/4 mile racing.....i dont own a NHRA legal stocker so my options are limited to about 3 to 4 quarter mile races a year with IHRA......but it doesnt matter to me which one i do you still gotta drive both ends of the track...

In IHRA D-1 you better like both! The 1/8 mile is harder for me at the moment due to top end coming up so quick and a lack of an actual stripe on the finish line at a lot of the 1/8 mile tracks increases the challenge. That said, the 1/8 is a lot easier to dial your car, and all things being equal you decide the race at the start line. 1/8 mile is easier on gas, the equipment. If all the tracks had the "good" timing systems painted their finish lines in addition to the cones I think that a lot of guys would be pretty indifferent.

As my opponent Jim Marshall who I broke against at Skyview in the 1/8 mile so perfectly put it....For us(racers) it just doesn't get any better than this.......And that would apply to 1/8 mile, 1/4 mile, when it rains, etc.

I know it has been said time and time again by many more experienced at this than myself, but if racing brings you joy then the distance doesn't matter. I will say this, in my opinion you would be hard pressed to run into a nicer group of people than at the dragstrips.

Eric

[Jack Matyas]

Don't get me wrong -- 1/4 mile is my first choice and always will be -- that being said lets look at what happens racing the eighth -- get a light and run to the stripe.. period .No time for games --i.e.-- click it at 1000' or some other place -- no coasting - no bogus dials etc- with 1/8 mile racing there is just no time for extras and that appeals to me..................I guess the "Young Guns" could do some of that stuff in the 1/8 but at my age walking and chewing gum at the same time is tough.........BTW , for those of you that know me well -- I spent the first 10 years racing at a track that was a little less that an 1/8 -- but back then they didn't use "dials" .

[Brandon Peterson]

youd be suprised at some of the games being played on 1/8 mile tracks i saw plenty this weekend at piedmont......i love drag racing and it makes no matter to me what length of track i race at i just wanna race nad have fun.......i runnered up at Maryland 2 years ago at my second natl ever and second time running 1/4 mile racing...it was a blast and i look forward to the 1/4 mile races i go to....you diff. have more time to make something happen o nthe other end but you also have more time to watch yourself get beat i know that for a fact....it aint pretty watching someone ride beside you from before the 1000 ft to the 1/4 mile mark...lol

[Mike McCandless]

I hate 1/4 mile racing, but my car is slow. Being so used to 1/8th mile, when doing 1/4 mile I feel like I could take a nap once in high gear. All 1/4 mile racing did was give me a crick in my neck due to looking back too much haha. My street car is 4 seconds faster in the 1/4 than my race car. So the "speed" factor doesn't matter to me. In all honestly, once in a faster car for more than a few runs, it all seems the same.

[Greg Reimer 7376]

1/8th mile is definitely easier on the merchandise. The engine isn't screaming its lungs out after the point where it starts to nose over like a steeply geared stocker does on the quarter mile track. Most stockers leave so hard thet the average streeter or bracket car spends most of the 7 or 8 second run watching the stocker from the rear. I ran the Summit series at Irwindale with an O/SA 68 Chevelle wagon with a 327 and a 5.57 gear, and you definitely need to drive both ends of the track. There is less time and distance to make your final decision in the eighth for sure, but the trade off in longevity is probably worth it. We learn 90% of what we need to know in the eighth in a test and tune situation anyways. It's a personal preference.

[Jack McCarthy]

i love the 1320... unfortunately my car is a 1/8 mile beast...
when im hauiling *** at 98mph on the 1/4 you aa/sa guys go by me like im tied to a hitching post... and when we run combo GEEZ its like a 747 taxied bye...

it is easier to judge the stripe with similar MPH so its easier for me to win a round or two...
again unfortunately i hate my local 1/8 mile track and often go to Bowling Green instead...

captain of the landbarge
jack

[Larry Hill]

Lets Race