Re: Make Divisionals Great Again
 

That won't put asses in the stands but I agree the indexes should be dropped a full second but the NHRA ain't going to do because of the vocal minority that feels it would push them out or make them less competitive.

Re: Make Divisionals Great Again
 

I have been fortunate to attend the last few of Bill Bader Jr’s “State of the Union” meetings with the racers which are held at the award banquets each year. I wish everyone was able to experience them. Bill puts a lot of preparation into the list on his agenda and welcomes input from everyone in attendance. The topics range from schedules, on track procedures, car counts and payouts just to name a few. Bill can tell you the average time between pairs for events run at his facility. These are discussed at the meeting along with ideas to minimize potential downtime. Bill’s personal cell phone number is announced at every event for feedback. I don’t question Bill or the Norwalk staff’s desire to make the next Divisional (or any event) at their facility greater than the previous one.

Re: Make Divisionals Great Again
 

Bader nailed it in his statement "an evening of entertainment." Look at all the TV racers, all run at night. Night of Fire, jet cars, fireworks, all at night.

Edgewater ran a Divisional event in August for about 25 years, the stands were full on Saturday night and completely empty on Sunday in the 90° heat. Then NHRA declared that all qualifying be finished by 6:00 PM on Saturday, so no Alky cars running at night. They also required fees for the manufacturers midway and t-shirt sales, so that died out. It was around 2002 that the track gave up the Divisional.

They now have Pro Mod shows and Nitro Chaos shows at Edgewater, and they run them on Friday and Saturday night with good spectator counts.

Re: Make Divisionals Great Again
 

Please don't talk about lowering the indexes. That only hurts the little guy. Everyone knows what the problem is and they use them, but it is the way it is. If you change the I sexes, they will screw it up.

Re: Make Divisionals Great Again
 

there are no little guys racing the .90 classes, this isn't 1990 when a 700HP 454BBC in a S/C or S/G car was competitive and your car was on a open trailer. If you can afford the tow vehicle, trailer, entry fees, race fuel, tires, yada, yada, yada and time off of work you can afford to upgrade your program but all this is off topic.

Re: Make Divisionals Great Again
 

It has been said here, many times, that we're not a car culture anymore and that young people have no interest in cars, racing.
So, how does one explain The Southeast Gassers phenomenon ?

Started about a decade ago by Quain Stott with one car, there are well over a 100 cars being built or raced.

Strictly enforced rules ..1967 or earlier cars, appearance
Stick shift only, clutchless forbidden
1/8 mile only, on smaller southern tracks
Must do a wheelie
Strongly suggest car names..NO vinyl or air brush
No ETs on scoreboard
Burn outs across the line,...Back up girls allowed
Flat out racing. First to the finish line wins
Racers don't pay entries. They are the show!
Annual points fund

Spectators travel hundreds of mile to watch these races and usually pack these venues.
Many videos available on Y/T

Now, compare this to NHRA Divs, with throttle stopped BBC PG ....Never mind

Re: Make Divisionals Great Again
 

The fans understand HEADS-UP RACING!!

The match race that Robin and I put together at the NMCA event at St Louis is a great example. By the last round, almost everyone at the track was in the stands watching.

Class Racers have the ingredients to draw crowds. But, do we have the will?

Re: Make Divisionals Great Again
 

Don’t confuse what well established racers want, with what the fans want.
A sea of 69 Camaros is boring, regardless of their amount under the index. A group of diverse cars racing is more interesting and enjoyable for the fans.

And for the record, people aren’t stupid, where are all these people that “can’t understand handicap racing”??? Anyone that doesn’t understand at first can be taught very easily. To say fans only want/like heads up is not true otherwise the stands would be full for class heads up runs and empty when running eliminations, but it’s the same “class racing people” that watch.

I would say, find what brings in more racers. Reducing hp on unused combos, make records worth something (recognition and $$) tear downs before awarding records, etc.

That’s my $.02 Canadian which is what -$.00001US��

Re: Make Divisionals Great Again
 

We already have 3 classes of heads up racing in the .90 classes. Unfortunately the indexes are too slow for the technology that we have today. That is the reason i brought up the index change to make the racing seem more like actual heads up racing. It would still have a breakout just less time on the stop. Maybe rename those classes Heads Up Comp, Gas and street. Like I said earlier you have to give the spectators something exciting. Then maybe they will come back to the next event.

Re: Make Divisionals Great Again
 

There’s no match racing out here anymore!
He!! Yeah!
We need a West Coast Indy here!
All class runoff with winners of each class running off an index until we have a winner. No dial in! Ok start shooting at me now.
I’m a huge fan of Top Sportsman and Top Dragster for obvious reasons. When you see the stands and fences lined watching , that’s the first clue!
It has to be exciting!