Nhra shortens t/f and f/c race to 1000 ft. - Page 2

sc1153 · 07-04-2008, 12:06 PM

"HATE THE NEW IDEAS"

Maybe I am the MINORITY with this post......I am tired of everything in life being altered to suit needs without directly going to the problem. I am sorry but drag racing is 1/4 mile not 1000ft. Scott Kalitta would have died if his car only ran to the 1000' or the entire 1/4 mile. The pro's will be re gearing their cars to top out at the 1000' mark the same as the 1/4 and will have the same devastating explosions just EARLIER. He was knocked out from the explosion and went head on into a steel pole (holding the catch net). If there was a guard rail blocking that pole he would have hit the wall instead of the pole and maybe still been alive today. Why not race to the 1/8mi while you are at it. Maybe they should require all the tracks to extend their shutdown by 320-500 feet.....oh wait that would make sense......I am against this change and do not like change to effect NOTHING.

This is like going to every stop sign in the USA and putting in a traffic light, because there are too many accidents at stop signs......or maybe people should have to pass a better driving test to get their license. Instead of staying below 15mph on a closed course maybe STAY ABOVE 15mph.

Life is not all safe......more people die getting hit by a greyhound bus in december below 2degrees Fahrenheit in 6 feet of snow wearing swim trunks in the past 10 years than people who died in drag racing accidents because the shutdown wasn't long enough.

Mind you I would not disagree for having more shutdown......GAINESVILLE IS AWESOME for shut down...don't even hit the brakes (8.90 @ 170)

Maybe nobody will NOT agree maybe some will........it is my opinion and I stick to it.

P.S. sorry for going Jason Oldfield on this one

Joe Capri85 · 07-05-2008, 04:11 PM

You said it all!!! How about these track owners making the big bucks from the national evets comming there spend a little and update the tracks.

WDCreech · 07-05-2008, 11:31 PM

posted by sc1153: Scott Kalitta would have died if his car only ran to the 1000' or the entire 1/4 mile.

I beg to differ! His engine let go after the 1000' mark. If that would have been the finish line he would have had the chute out and have shut off the fuel, so there, probably, would not have been the engine explosion that may have knocked him out. I think that NHRA did the right thing. It's just too bad that it wasn't done sooner!

sc1153 · 07-07-2008, 07:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WDCreech

posted by sc1153: Scott Kalitta would have died if his car only ran to the 1000' or the entire 1/4 mile.

I beg to differ! His engine let go after the 1000' mark. If that would have been the finish line he would have had the chute out and have shut off the fuel, so there, probably, would not have been the engine explosion that may have knocked him out. I think that NHRA did the right thing. It's just too bad that it wasn't done sooner!

The engine did let go at the 1/4 mi mark HOWEVER the fuel teams will be re-gearing their cars to top out at the 1000' mark and will be reving at the same RPM but earlier. This means the engine would have blew up at the 1000' mark and knocked him out the same as it did at the 1/4.......POINTLESS CHANGE!!!!!!

Alan Kenny · 07-07-2008, 08:42 PM

Chris FYI,
The gear ratio is fixed for fuel cars . . . They are not allowed to change it or the tire size.

Jeff Beckman · 07-07-2008, 10:50 PM

All racers know that if you shorten the track to 1000 feet, then I need to get to 1000 feet ASAP! So I'll make the engine run to 990 feet or so, same ending. Not gonna change Jack Squat. But less than 2 weeks after Scott K dies, Von Smith darn near hit a tree in the shut down at Norwalk. (They cut it down after). 1. Clear the shut downs of all obstructions. 2. Make all cars carry a device that can be controled by someone outside the car that a. deploys the chuts, b. turn on the fire bottles, c. shuts off the fuel. NHRA could have a person at 1000 or 660 to set this RF signal off in the event of a massive explosion. The people are already there. This combined with CLEAR AMPLE SHUT DOWNS is the answer, we already have fans bewildered by all the classes. Lets not toss in a distance change to boot.

BobOrme · 07-08-2008, 02:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jeff Beckman

All racers know that if you shorten the track to 1000 feet, then I need to get to 1000 feet ASAP! So I'll make the engine run to 990 feet or so, same ending. Not gonna change Jack Squat. But less than 2 weeks after Scott K dies, Von Smith darn near hit a tree in the shut down at Norwalk. (They cut it down after). 1. Clear the shut downs of all obstructions. 2. Make all cars carry a device that can be controled by someone outside the car that a. deploys the chuts, b. turn on the fire bottles, c. shuts off the fuel. NHRA could have a person at 1000 or 660 to set this RF signal off in the event of a massive explosion. The people are already there. This combined with CLEAR AMPLE SHUT DOWNS is the answer, we already have fans bewildered by all the classes. Lets not toss in a distance change to boot.

Anyone who thinks the nitro tuners haven't already been throwing everything they have at the track to get to the 1000' mark is mistaken. They've had to due to the rev limiter that kicks in on the top end. Also, how can they can magically achieve more traction on the same racing surface by turning up the wick just because the finish line is closer? They can't.

This is a change that may or may not be temporary. It will be in place for the rest of this season. It was the one thing that they could do that wouldn't have immediate significant financial impacts on both the teams and the tracks.

Remote shut off of some systems and activation of others is definitely worth looking into. Measures to slow the cars down is too, but they shouldn't be measures that will cause even more engine carnage than there is now, or reduce the likelihood of side-by-side racing because the changes render the cars more prone to getting out of shape and/or losing traction.

The end of the racing surface most certainly needs to be addressed at many tracks. How it is addressed differs from track to track due to the availability or unavailability of real estate to expand it. None of them should serve as launch pads producing airborne race cars. They should all have real sand traps. There should be nothing to run into other than catch nets, and there should be multiple catch nets at every national event track.

While there are no absolute guarantees that any of these changes will prevent another driver from dying in a racing accident, they could well go a long way toward reducing the number of funerals the sport has experienced in the last few years.

Some folks don't watch or care about some classes of drag racing, and that's fine. I watch and care about them all. When too many people die doing something, the companies that insure the activity stop doing so - see rocket cars in the USA and class B rally cars world wide. I think it is far better to do this (move the finish line) now, and spend some time looking at other remedies to prevent potential catastrophes than to lose more lives and the ability to contest the sport at all.

Jeff Beckman · 07-08-2008, 04:30 AM

Just another late night thought, If the grand stands were moved to the finish line, all of the classes would make more sense to the fans as they would see the point to altered start times and throttle stops. Also I am not against moving the fuel cars to 1000 feet. But I fear we are not addressing the problem with this measure. The big money sponsors and events along with the insurance companies will leave if we keep killing people. We may have to leave some tracks just like NASCAR.

Barney B · 07-08-2008, 07:28 AM

I personally do not agree with the 1000 foot deal, I think it is a bandage for the problem.
My thoughts are as long as there is a contest for speed, there will always be danger. Just try to keep improving on safety.

BB

H.A.A.C. Racing · 07-08-2008, 08:14 AM

I agree, it is a band aid, but one that needs to be put on until other things can be figured out. I don't believe they can make the cars run any harder to the 1000' mark, they can't change the gear rule or tire size. I think it is great of NHRA to do something fast. I don't know much about the forces involved in these cars but someone who does in Jim Head (if you did not know, he is a scientist) The first words out of his mouth is "we should be racing to 1000' and when they had a drivers meeting, all the other drivers agreed. I think we should all stop bench racing and let the people who put their lives on the line to entertain us decide whats best for them. I believe that drag racing should be 1320' and would not be happy if it stayed @ 1000' but if it is what needs to happen for now, I think we should all be o.k. with it.

07-04-2008, 12:06 PM	#11
sc1153 Member Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: Parlin, NJ Posts: 420 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Nhra shortens t/f and f/c race to 1000 ft. "HATE THE NEW IDEAS" Maybe I am the MINORITY with this post......I am tired of everything in life being altered to suit needs without directly going to the problem. I am sorry but drag racing is 1/4 mile not 1000ft. Scott Kalitta would have died if his car only ran to the 1000' or the entire 1/4 mile. The pro's will be re gearing their cars to top out at the 1000' mark the same as the 1/4 and will have the same devastating explosions just EARLIER. He was knocked out from the explosion and went head on into a steel pole (holding the catch net). If there was a guard rail blocking that pole he would have hit the wall instead of the pole and maybe still been alive today. Why not race to the 1/8mi while you are at it. Maybe they should require all the tracks to extend their shutdown by 320-500 feet.....oh wait that would make sense......I am against this change and do not like change to effect NOTHING. This is like going to every stop sign in the USA and putting in a traffic light, because there are too many accidents at stop signs......or maybe people should have to pass a better driving test to get their license. Instead of staying below 15mph on a closed course maybe STAY ABOVE 15mph. Life is not all safe......more people die getting hit by a greyhound bus in december below 2degrees Fahrenheit in 6 feet of snow wearing swim trunks in the past 10 years than people who died in drag racing accidents because the shutdown wasn't long enough. Mind you I would not disagree for having more shutdown......GAINESVILLE IS AWESOME for shut down...don't even hit the brakes (8.90 @ 170) Maybe nobody will NOT agree maybe some will........it is my opinion and I stick to it. P.S. sorry for going Jason Oldfield on this one __________________ Chris DePascale S/ST 1531 & S/C 1153....Addicted Racing Jad153@aol.com

07-05-2008, 04:11 PM	#12
Joe Capri85 Junior Member Join Date: Mar 2008 Location: Detroit area Posts: 14 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Nhra shortens t/f and f/c race to 1000 ft. You said it all!!! How about these track owners making the big bucks from the national evets comming there spend a little and update the tracks.

07-05-2008, 11:31 PM	#13
WDCreech Junior Member Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Anchorage, AK Posts: 45 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Nhra shortens t/f and f/c race to 1000 ft. posted by sc1153: Scott Kalitta would have died if his car only ran to the 1000' or the entire 1/4 mile. I beg to differ! His engine let go after the 1000' mark. If that would have been the finish line he would have had the chute out and have shut off the fuel, so there, probably, would not have been the engine explosion that may have knocked him out. I think that NHRA did the right thing. It's just too bad that it wasn't done sooner! __________________ 1964 GTO 2750# 606" IA Pontiac 8.2550@164.17-1/4 1.1981-60" 5.2901@131.97-1/8 Last edited by WDCreech; 07-06-2008 at 10:47 PM.

07-07-2008, 08:42 PM	#15
Alan Kenny Junior Member Join Date: Sep 2007 Posts: 45 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Nhra shortens t/f and f/c race to 1000 ft. Chris FYI, The gear ratio is fixed for fuel cars . . . They are not allowed to change it or the tire size.

07-07-2008, 10:50 PM	#16
Jeff Beckman Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Columbus Ohio Posts: 308 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Nhra shortens t/f and f/c race to 1000 ft. All racers know that if you shorten the track to 1000 feet, then I need to get to 1000 feet ASAP! So I'll make the engine run to 990 feet or so, same ending. Not gonna change Jack Squat. But less than 2 weeks after Scott K dies, Von Smith darn near hit a tree in the shut down at Norwalk. (They cut it down after). 1. Clear the shut downs of all obstructions. 2. Make all cars carry a device that can be controled by someone outside the car that a. deploys the chuts, b. turn on the fire bottles, c. shuts off the fuel. NHRA could have a person at 1000 or 660 to set this RF signal off in the event of a massive explosion. The people are already there. This combined with CLEAR AMPLE SHUT DOWNS is the answer, we already have fans bewildered by all the classes. Lets not toss in a distance change to boot. __________________ Jeff Beckman 318J ET, SG 318T SC

07-08-2008, 04:30 AM	#18
Jeff Beckman Member Join Date: Nov 2007 Location: Columbus Ohio Posts: 308 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Nhra shortens t/f and f/c race to 1000 ft. Just another late night thought, If the grand stands were moved to the finish line, all of the classes would make more sense to the fans as they would see the point to altered start times and throttle stops. Also I am not against moving the fuel cars to 1000 feet. But I fear we are not addressing the problem with this measure. The big money sponsors and events along with the insurance companies will leave if we keep killing people. We may have to leave some tracks just like NASCAR. __________________ Jeff Beckman 318J ET, SG 318T SC

07-08-2008, 07:28 AM	#19
Barney B Senior Member Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Wadsworth, Ohio Posts: 510 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Nhra shortens t/f and f/c race to 1000 ft. I personally do not agree with the 1000 foot deal, I think it is a bandage for the problem. My thoughts are as long as there is a contest for speed, there will always be danger. Just try to keep improving on safety. BB

07-08-2008, 08:14 AM	#20
H.A.A.C. Racing Member Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 319 Likes: 0 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Nhra shortens t/f and f/c race to 1000 ft. I agree, it is a band aid, but one that needs to be put on until other things can be figured out. I don't believe they can make the cars run any harder to the 1000' mark, they can't change the gear rule or tire size. I think it is great of NHRA to do something fast. I don't know much about the forces involved in these cars but someone who does in Jim Head (if you did not know, he is a scientist) The first words out of his mouth is "we should be racing to 1000' and when they had a drivers meeting, all the other drivers agreed. I think we should all stop bench racing and let the people who put their lives on the line to entertain us decide whats best for them. I believe that drag racing should be 1320' and would not be happy if it stayed @ 1000' but if it is what needs to happen for now, I think we should all be o.k. with it.