[Chris Cogan]

Those in the professional ranks need to wake up. Last year at the Norwalk event, rain cut Saturday's activities short so I ventured into the pro pits as the masses were heading toward the parking lot. I looked like a minnow trying to swim into an opposing stream of salmon! Anyway, eventhough I was wet all the way to my BVD's, I was rewarded in the fact that most of the pro guys were still out (under their awnings) tidying up for the day and the crowd was almost non-existent. I am a avid pro stock fan, so I was hanging out around the pro stock boys and many of them had taken their ropes down and allowed me to check out their cars up close. I was in gearhead heaven. I had an opportunity to speak with a very well known driver while I was checking out his car and I asked him why he wasn't using titanium fasterners on his beadlock wheels. Many teams do. His response was, "Well, I've only got so big a budget each year and eventhough I considered them because it is the right thing to do for performance, I opted to spend my money elsewhere." I then looked over his shoulder and this is what I observed: Two 53' transport trailers and matching rigs to pull them. Two custom pusher RV's with a tent between them and about 20 people fine dining on steaks coming off the grill. Two portable air conditioning units providing cool air for the guests and also branched off to provide cool air to the cars (note plural) radiators. About a dozen crew members all dressed in matching uniforms, Custom golf carts, etc........I was speechless. Here was a guy who has won numerous championships and wouldn't spend $700 to reduce nearly a pound of rotating mass, but had all the comfort items that don't help those cars get down the track any quicker or faster. UNBELIEVEABLE!!! I was totally and utterly dumbfounded. I don't know about any of the rest of you, but if I could afford to run pro stock, I would tow to the races with my 3/4 suburban and a 28' enclosed trailer and put all of my available racing budget into making the car as nasty as possible. I can remember going to the races with my dad and we would sleep in the back of the crew cab or in a sleeping bag under the open trailer. We probably didn't smell to well by Sunday, but we were there to race........PERIOD!!! Nothing else mattered. I'm sure many of you have similar stories. Let's hear them. Check out the picture of the Grump's operation back in the day. Nothing fancy, all about the racing.