[Jim Bailey]

Chuck, I completely understand your situation, and I respect the performance level of your car. I also relize there is some geography playing into this equation. But as in all other stock classes, isn't the object to protect your combo? I know many guys that have spent years doing just that, and they are very smart about it. You can hit it to qualify well or to win class ( as Wann often does ) but then you have to practice a little restrain to lower your average. I run my car pretty heavy so I have some room and I still have my 4 barrel if necessary. It's nice / fun to run our stuff flat out all the time. And in the best of conditions we're protected by the mineshaft rule. But let's not let our egos get in the way of our wallets. Furthermore, I don't think nhra's gonna give us different east coast / west coast index.