Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan Fahey
When did NHRA start using Indexes instead of national Records?
Where and How can I get the Stock Index's for each year since that point?
D
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Dan,
I believe the index system as we know it. Came about in 1977. Which incidentily started to become the year when most tracks began switching from a class format to an almost exclusive bracket format.
1972 was the year I believe that Jr Stock was eliminated, the remaining "legal" cars laid the ground for Super Stock. The version of Stock we have today was morphed from a more pure version of what was once Stock. You're an old hand and know this as well (probably better) than I do. Of course we ran off National Records up to the age of the index.
Both systems have/had their drawbacks. With the system of today, a car must be able to run a second or more under, or you can forget competing on a national level. In the old days, a car had to be fast enough to run "real close" to the record or barely under. The real headache to that system was when someone would blow your record away. That could turn some really good cars into, essentialy useless heaps good for nothing but scrap. You still had smart guys who knew how to protect both their records and the combinations, as you still do today under the index system.
I have an old ND from 1979, bought it at a swap meet because it lists my buddies car when they set their last stock national record. I had the fortune to have put a lot of time in that car as well. So, it's my only claim to what it meant to set a record in those days. We set a number of them in both NHRA and IHRA in the mid 70's. If you want I could type the index's out and send them to you?