Wondering what stock racers think

[Bruce Noland]

Originally Posted by Gary Parker

Fair enough Gary.


My only question is, and again, not arguing, where does it stop?


Meaning, you worked hard to get to 1.00 under. But the reason is, you're never satisfied (mark of a good racer, never satisfied, always looking for that next 0.05) with how fast you are. So, when you get to 1.25 under, what then?


Alan you asked a great question. Where does it all end. The simple truth is , that it does not. Look at the records in any class from 20 years ago. Then 10 years ago and now. First pro stock to go 6.99 or 200 mph. Comp cars running faster than ever. The hemi challenge time for the past 10 years. And how about Booby DeAround going 9.99 in his big block 1969 camaro. Now no one blinks if a big block camaro goes 9's. Lets be honest. Who thinks their car will be going the same times in 10 years if they still have it. If you do you are fooling yourself. If just adding horsepower is the answer, in time we will all just be A cars. Technology changes, rules change and parts get better. No not everyone can run out and get the trick of the month, but over time we have all gone faster than years gone by. To just say that far under or the trigger is here and that's it, will not work. I think we need to look at what has been allowed (like it or not) and go from there. There may not be an easy answer, but we will all go faster in time.....Just my thoughts.. Gary Parker

Gary, I can feel your pain brother but we have to remember there are many racers who simply cannot afford to go fast. They shouldn't be shut out by the over achievers. There are many more .500 - .600 under cars than there are one second under cars. Without them Stock Eliminator would lose its character and vanish.

I'll offer a suggestion for National Events with Class racing. Have three rounds of qualifying with the AHFS in place, then bump the trigger up to 1.10 for Class Eliminations only. The first round of class would not be a qualifier pass. The actual Eliminator would be run using the current AHFS rules again. Yea, the slower cars will have to deal with the sharks in the Eliminator if they decide to enter the race. And the faster cars will have to deal with AHFS triggers. This suggestion is similar to what we had about ten years ago. And, of course mine shaft races would still use the 1.20 rule.

1.100 under should be the number for the Class Eliminator because not all fast combinations are created equal, no matter how much money or time we put into these cars some combinations will be better than others.

[B Parker]

Bruce it took you long enough to chime in. LOL We are talking only a tenth It's not going to change the guys that are only going 5 or 6 under. They are still going to qualify in the same spot. There really is nothing cheap about stock anymore. Sad but the truth. I plan on going to Atco next weekend. It will be 600 to 700 hundred dollars for the weekend by the time I'm back home. I keep on hearing about the poor new guys but all I keep seeing are the new comp cars that have been stuck in our class. Hope to see you out soon. Barry

[Andrew Hill]

What about slowly bumping up the AHFS triggers over time instead of lowering indexes? Maybe a hundredth or two per year? Doesn't keep anybody who can just barely run the index from racing, and the AHFS keeps up with the progress of people constantly trying to pick their cars up.

[TOSTO RACING]

Just trigger the AHFS at the 1/8th mile . That should solve everything lol ! Its just a game and always will be with the AHFS so just have fun with what it is and be thankful there is still Stock eliminator ! I just wish NHRA rewarded people for records and so on. NHRA needs to be more involved in it because the class is getting more popular than when I started in 09 one grade point would get you in anywhere then ,but not anymore !

[Bruce Noland]

Originally Posted by TOSTO RACING

Just trigger the AFHS at the 1/8th mile . That should solve everything!

6 quarts of heavy oil, timing turned back 5 degrees and 130 pounds heavy should do the trick.

Barry, sorry I am late to the party. Been busy on the new-to-me car. Losing a tenth means a lot to everyone of the slower cars on the sheet. Most of the .600 and under racers work hard on their cars and losing a tenth can be demoralizing. Just add the weight and heavy oil and strut your stuff only when it's needed or at an Open race. Racing for Class will also give you a shot to air it out with a new 1.10 under rule. Give it some thought.

[TOSTO RACING]

Yeh I know the AHFS is really just a joke now a days it seems. I really don't know how to solve the issue . Best thing to do is just play the game and have fun !

[B Parker]

Hey Bruce what yah building? Maybe raising the AHFS number would be the better solution. The problem with the popular class's such as A,B,F,G,H stock auto there are a bunch of guys that can even in bad air go 1 plus under. It's to easy to get HP if you catch one in the eliminator. I keep hearing about all these new guys but the only new ones I have seen are spending $100,000 plus on these new comp cars they let run stock. For anyone wanting to join Stock there has been some real nice cars for sale in the last few months. A lot cheaper than you could build a competitive car for. Jimmy Powers car was a great buy for high 20's. His is not the only one though. Barry