Nhra shortens t/f and f/c race to 1000 ft.

[SSTRACER323]

Sorry Bill I disagree with you!!!! on the paying part!!

If NHRA tells me new seat belts every 2 years, i change them.
If NHRA says new flex plate every 3 years, I change it.
If NHRA tells me new trans and housing shield every 5 years i change them.

Track owners do not help pay for it!!!

If NHRA says your track needs to be another 1000ft longer THEY PAY IT!

The sportsman guys are nickeled and dimmed to death all ready.
I feel it is up to the track owners to make it right not me and you.

That is my 2 cents

[BobOrme]

Originally Posted by SSTRACER323

If NHRA says your track needs to be another 1000ft longer THEY PAY IT!

You left out another option. The track can't expand and it loses their national event(s). E-Town would be off the schedule. So would Pomona, and probably St. Louis, Norwalk, Denver, Seattle, Maple Grove, Bristol and even Indy. The real estate just isn't there, no matter who might be expected to pay for it.

It's still 1320' for everything but the two nitro classes. Let them work it out for those two classes before the national event schedule gets reduced due to impossible-to-meet mandates.

[Mark Schmidt]

In the beginning, I hated 1/8 mile, and still prefer 1320 but I live with it. None of us know what 334 mph feels like, but the pros do...they sound unanimous in wanting more shut down area even if it means a shorter track. Makes sense to me. Our industry is in enough of a financial bind as things are. Requiring tracks to extend or die is unrealistic. I don't think fans care about the big mph. NHRA needs to slow these things down and give more shut down area to the drivers. Nobody goes to the races to see a tragedy.

Just my .02 cents

[X-TECH MAN]

I think most are missing the real reason why the fuel cars are going to fast and exploding engines. It is the allowed percentage of NITRO. Why dont they cut the percentage back to say 50 % or less and or the amount of blower boost. You know why....its because its an EGO thing with the drivers and crew chiefs. Structure the rules to cut back on the high dollar madness. The larger the "LOAD" the more timing needed, larger and dual fuel pumps, hotter ignitions, more blower boost, etc. and on and on and most cant keep the candles lit (all 8 cylinders) for a full run as it is. How many real races accually happen when both cars get down the track together to even call it a drag race? How many times is it that one car or another hasnt blown the tires off, dropped a few cylinders, thrown a blower belt, etc. Years ago they used to have 64 car fields for Top Fuel and the winner most often ran the whole race WITHOUT pulling the heads, clutch, or rebuilding the engine every run. WHY....smaller blowers, less nitro percentage, ONE smaller fuel pump, etc. Think of the cost savings and they just MIGHT have more than 15 fuel cars show up trying to fill out a 16 car field. Its all about MONEY and the SHOW. OK just my thoughts after being around this stuff for 47 + years and dont tell me I dont know wht Im talking about when it comes to fuel cars. I worked with Gene Snow on his funny car one summer before most of you guys were out of diapers. Its NO FUN pulling the heads after every run and replacing pistons. I say keep the 1/4 mile and limit the fuel rules for closer racing and save some $$$$$ also. OK....you can all jump on me now. Terry Bell

[Ruth]

Originally Posted by X-TECH MAN

I think most are missing the real reason why the fuel cars are going to fast and exploding engines. It is the allowed percentage of NITRO. Why dont they cut the percentage back to say 50 % or less and or the amount of blower boost. You know why....its because its an EGO thing with the drivers and crew chiefs. Structure the rules to cut back on the high dollar madness. The larger the "LOAD" the more timing needed, larger and dual fuel pumps, hotter ignitions, more blower boost, etc. and on and on and most cant keep the candles lit (all 8 cylinders) for a full run as it is. How many real races accually happen when both cars get down the track together to even call it a drag race? How many times is it that one car or another hasnt blown the tires off, dropped a few cylinders, thrown a blower belt, etc. Years ago they used to have 64 car fields for Top Fuel and the winner most often ran the whole race WITHOUT pulling the heads, clutch, or rebuilding the engine every run. WHY....smaller blowers, less nitro percentage, ONE smaller fuel pump, etc. Think of the cost savings and they just MIGHT have more than 15 fuel cars show up trying to fill out a 16 car field. Its all about MONEY and the SHOW. OK just my thoughts after being around this stuff for 47 + years and dont tell me I dont know wht Im talking about when it comes to fuel cars. I worked with Gene Snow on his funny car one summer before most of you guys were out of diapers. Its NO FUN pulling the heads after every run and replacing pistons. I say keep the 1/4 mile and limit the fuel rules for closer racing and save some $$$$$ also. OK....you can all jump on me now. Terry Bell

AA Dale disagrees with you and says……compression is the answer …..but who the hell am I to disagree with you with your 47 years experience or AA Dale for that matter. However, I do know where I would place my bet.

I think that their is a better chance of lightning hitting me 5 times in one week than another Scott Kalitta incident in the next 20 years, that being said, not that I don’t think that something needs to be addressed and now.

As far as 1000ft ? ……..hmmmm????? ……..well I guess we better get used to seeing at lot of * asterisks * in the record books eah .

Gene Snow?

Kids in diapers?

Police reports have confirm that "in diapers" may be a bit young for his taste.

Amazing what some $$$$ can do.

Gene WAS one of my heroes …….but he is what he is…..and their is a special place for cats like him that are guilty :>(

It’s called the “ ELECTRIC CHAIR”

What these mis-wired folks need is to spend years in a prison thinking every waking hour of every day for years thinking about being fried until these usless bodies can no longer conduct current.

Sounds pretty harsh I’m sure, but PALE in comparison to the mental terror that theses folks inflict on our kids IMO.



Just my .02$ and worth every penny.

[X-TECH MAN]

Yes...Compression is just part of the problem also known as blower boost (overdrive). It just one of the ETC. items I mentioned. I didnt list them ALL on the post. As for the electric chair and prison remarks??????????? I dont know what you are talking about. The last time I saw Gene Snow was around 1975 when Woody Hatten was a photographer for Super Stock Magazine! It was thru Woody that I spent some time working on the funny car.

[Ruth]

Originally Posted by X-TECH MAN

Yes...Compression is just part of the problem also known as blower boost (overdrive). It just one of the ETC. items I mentioned. I didnt list them ALL on the post. As for the electric chair and prison remarks??????????? I dont know what you are talking about. The last time I saw Gene Snow was around 1975 when Woody Hatten was a photographer for Super Stock Magazine! It was thru Woody that I spent some time working on the funny car.

http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dw....856485d2.html
http://www.wfaa.com/sharedcontent/dw...m.596c8c7.html


Useless inf. I remember in the 80’s Gene paying Bill Mullins(sp) way on his dragster to develop the high gear only deal. Bills car was the guinea pig to develop that deal.

[Truckracer]

Originally Posted by X-TECH MAN

I say keep the 1/4 mile and limit the fuel rules for closer racing and save some $$$$$ also.

I'm in total agreement.

I watched the Denver 1000' deal and was sick of the announcers hyping the shorter distance.

Cut the blower size, give em a single fuel pump, and take the big wing/greenhouse off of the cars.

And I really like the remote chute deploy, fuel/ignition shutoff idea. I would add one thing, a pressurized accumulator on the brake system, not enough pressure to lock the brakes at speed but enough to apply maybe 50 to 60 percent braking to slow the car.

[Nitro Joe Jackson]

make FC's look like cars again, not bat mobiles, take the big wing away from TF, make all run 55 gallon fuel pumps. That will do alot.
Mainly like Prudhomme and Garlits said on TV, it has gotten way out of hand.

[Jason Oldfield]

Garlits seemed much more PRO 1000 ft. than against it. Prudhomme on the other hand...well, he was definitely vocal.

I don't know what the answer is to slow the cars down while maintaining costs, but I'd love to see the body styles revised so that they much more closely resemble their production counterparts. I don't think its a coincidence that the nostalgia funny cars are so popular...you can look at them and immediately identify what model car it is that they are running. Take the headlight decals off of today's machines, and I don't think you could tell one from the other. They're all big bubbles with a huge wing on the back.

Alternatively, I'd say loosen the rules up considerably and let them do to the bodies as they like, so we could actually see innovation in action (ala Kenny Bernstein's Reatta). But, this would be a distant second choice IMHO as it won't do anything to curtail costs or slow the cars down.