TruSTART looks to level the playing field.

[SGSST109E]

Its about time. Hopefully NHRA will listen.

[Bruce Noland]

Originally Posted by Peter Biondo

As I sit on the plane ride home from Vegas, I have to say I'm very pleased with how the introduction of TruSTART went today at the Strip @LVMS. Bob Brockmeyer (with the help of Jeff Foster) surpassed Kyle and my expectations. It 'looked' great in the real world and worked flawlessly and was well received by the racers (we also would like to thank the racers at LVMS today who raced on TruSTART on it's 'experimental day').

Mr Hill: with all due respect, I believe your comments (along with RJ Sledge) about introducing TruStart being 'all about selling tech cards' do not logically make sense in the big picture here. Case in point: at this point in time, we do not have any problem filling the pits at out Spring Fling events. Kyle and I (and the 15+ person Spring Fling staff) work very hard on our business model to bring racers the most value and fun possible and it seems racers enjoy it. As a matter of fact, in 2016 we are cutting out the Pro class at the Vegas event (turning away 150 paying customers) just be sure the overall experience of the racers stays up to our high standards. That was the single hardest decision Kyle and I had to make. So my question to you is; why would we (Compulink, Foster, Kyle and myself) spend all this time, money and effort to bring TruSTART to the sport of drag racing if it apparently isn't about selling tech cards? My answer to that would be because we all believe it will add to long term health of the sport.

And the second contradiction to your way of thinking is; if TruSTART isn't a logical, fundamentally sound, and technologically timely idea....then why would it sell more tech cards?

All in I think we all can agree there isn't a perfect and 100% fair world out there and neither will racing (or any sport) be perfect. But the same way we watch the performance side of things to keep parity in racing, we feel this parity should also be watched in handicapped racing (in this case, bracket racing, where a thousandth of a second can decide the crowning of a champion and/ or a final round worth $10,000, $20,000, $100,000 or more).

Being involved with racing for over 20 years and watching it's evolution, I respect all the different opinions on the many debatable subjects that have surfaced over time. WIth that said when it comes to TruSTART, we feel its long overdue and the timing is right. Kyle and I feel fortunate to be in a position to help the sport we love.

Peter

Sounds like a very altruistic response so should we assume that you guys are going to make this software available for free?

[RJ Sledge]

Peter you need to go back and re-read my original post.

I said and I quote "Mr. Hill is right....it will sell more Tech Cards...follow the money."

And in your post you made the same statement, so we agree.

What I don't understand is why you would mention me by name unless it was something else that is bothering you?

If you do not wish to make a post on here you can PM me or 210-373-4004. I have nothing against you, and hold you in high regard, just don't appreciate the way that you singled me out. Your a bigger person than that and I look forward to speaking with you.

Best of luck this year


RJ Sledge

[Peter Biondo]

RJ- I appreciate your comment and your concern with being singled out. Please don’t interpret the tone of my wording so much as negative. I was simply stating the facts and how Mr. Hills comment about the introduction of TruSTART being “all about selling tech cards” as being contradictory to his initial thoughts on it not being good for the sport. Those 2 don’t make sense together. Truth is, we believe it will ultimately sell more tech cards in the long run which means it’s good for the sports health (our races/ short term/ and long term). I grouped you into that when you piggybacked on to his/ that comment. No worries and I didn’t get offended and I hope for you not to either.

Bottom line on this: Obviously, we (Compulink, Kyle and myself) believe it’s good but ultimately the racers across the country will help dictate where it goes. In the meantime, the internet will be filled with opinions and banter and so far it’s looking like 80% positive.

[bob3240]

Count me in. How can this be not fair... Bob Michael 3240 Stock

[Bruce Noland]

Originally Posted by Peter Biondo

RJ- I appreciate your comment and your concern with being singled out. Please don’t interpret the tone of my wording so much as negative. I was simply stating the facts and how Mr. Hills comment about the introduction of TruSTART being “all about selling tech cards” as being contradictory to his initial thoughts on it not being good for the sport. Those 2 don’t make sense together. Truth is, we believe it will ultimately sell more tech cards in the long run which means it’s good for the sports health (our races/ short term/ and long term). I grouped you into that when you piggybacked on to his/ that comment. No worries and I didn’t get offended and I hope for you not to either.

Bottom line on this: Obviously, we (Compulink, Kyle and myself) believe it’s good but ultimately the racers across the country will help dictate where it goes. In the meantime, the internet will be filled with opinions and banter and so far it’s looking like 80% positive.

I think it's OK to admit that this is a product that you and your friends want to market and sell to race tracks. If that is your plan, it's not entirely a "what's good for the sport" deal.

[4406mopar]

Well so far, the only place that was said is on posts by Bruce, nowhere else.

[Larry Hill]

''Trustart will be a good bracket aid, it has no place in NHRA Championship Racing.'' post #114

With trustart the racer has one more chance to get to the next round, that's why it will sell more tech cards.

I am a class racer I love to run heads up, with anybody in the class. 427fe, 427 chevy, ls1, hemis, lt1, 396 chevy, 413MW, 426MW,' vets, and the rest.

Hope you folks made some money in Vegas.

[Bruce Noland]

Originally Posted by 4406mopar

Well so far, the only place that was said is on posts by Bruce, nowhere else.

A bit gullible are ya? No one should come to me as a racer and say you are doing me a favor when the favor puts money in your pocket. Especially when I didn't ask for the favor. You can quote that!

[Peter Biondo]

Bruce,

To understand where Compulink and the Spring Fling are coming from on the introduction of TruSTART, you would need to learn more about us as well as the people involved (Bob Brockmeyer, Kyle Seipel and myself).

From Compulinks standpoint, they are constantly looking to make their software the best and most efficient in all race scenarios. Not an easy thing to do with all the possible scenarios that can play out in a drag race. Now that I know Bob Brockmeyer better, I can tell you he is passionate about what he does and a very hard worker.

From the Spring Fling side of things; we have much more to lose than we do to gain in changing the way the timing system works on a double red light situation. We have been very successful in the way we have been doing things in the past and some would say we are crazy to change anything. Kyle and I have thought long and hard on this AS A RACER and the bottom line is we believe in the concept and want it at our events. If it's not a hit we stand to ruin our event that is already very successful the way it currently sits. It if is a hit, then we will see where it goes from there and the racers will dictate that.

The rest is yet to be determined but logically speaking I would say IF it does spread throughout the country it won't be any different than Crosstalk and Auto start (where tracks that currently utilize the Compulink system (I believe roughly 80% of the tracks use Compulink) can upgrade their system similar to the way they upgraded their systems when they chose AutoStart and Cross-talk. Yes, there will be a cost involved (similar to when tracks upgraded their systems with AutoStart and Cross-talk). And similar to Crosstalk and AutoStart, I am sure it will be very reasonable. And if all goes well, similar to Crosstalk and AutoStart, all racers (and not just Spring Fling racers) will benefit from a better system in the long run.

Hopefully, this is a better explanation on who we are and where we are coming from.