Amato's take on NHRA Safety

[Butch]

Found this in the Phoenix, Paper today

NHRA safety strikes chord with Amato

 

[Bobby]

"The long and short of it is, if the track didn't have what it did at the finish line, and Scott had a little more runoff, we wouldn't be having this issue right now."

I agree with the first half of that sentence.

I don't agree with his statement that 282 mph is blase. Not one bit.

 

[Prestaged]

I love Joe and have a lot of respect and admiration for this self-made man. But I wish he would not have said that NHRA is "proactive." That is a joke. I think he meant reactive.

 

[kingcobrafan]

I love Joe and have a lot of respect and admiration for this self-made man. But I wish he would not have said that NHRA is "proactive." That is a joke. I think he meant reactive.

Hope so, Roger. If NHRA had been proactive, there wouldn't have been an angled-upward sand pit, catch-net pole or camera boom where a driver could hit them.

 

[Sean D, shondoo]

I don't agree with his statement that 282 mph is blase. Not one bit.

I think he might actually be right to a certain degree, Bob. Kinda' gets back to what has been getting re-hashed around here about car/driver identities and such. NHRA has put such a premium on the marketing of the performance instead of the cars and drivers that it's what people automatically look for when attending an event. Not everyone, obviously, but there is a portion of it, I can guarantee you. I talk to casual fans on a daily basis and they almost never talk about the drivers themselves. It's always about how quick or fast someone went. What's even funnier yet is to hear some of them talk when they're racing out west during the middle of the summer (like right now). They almost have a critical tone to their voice when talking about how slow the cars run. They have no comprehension of what the heat does to hamper the performance of the cars through the engines and track temperatures, but because they've had the performance of NHRA drag racing pounded in their heads for so long, they don't know the difference.

I love Joe and have a lot of respect and admiration for this self-made man. But I wish he would not have said that NHRA is "proactive." That is a joke. I think he meant reactive.

This is beating another dead horse, but whether anyone likes it or not, you can only be so proactive. The NHRA has formed this board to do what they can to be as proactive as possible, and you know what? It's going to happen again, and you can take that to the bank. Furthermore, a percentage of the people that are praising the sanctioning body right now for forming this board, and rightfully so, will also form the bandwagon of scrutiny when something else bad happens, because in their expert opinions, it would've been the result of something the board should've been able to see, but didn't.

Papa Joe said it best when he talked about losing sight of the important stuff for the sake of the thrill of speed and winning. Every single one of the drivers, including all of us on the lower levels, are not only guilty of it, but we'll always be guilty of it. That was proven out on Sunday at Englishtown, when in light of the tragedy the day before, everyone suited up and ran the race on 1320' with the same amount of shut-down as the day before. And before anyone jumps on here and whines about the fact that they had to because of sponsor obligations or whatever, I don't want to hear it, because that's bull$hit. If there was ever a perfect time for a boycott, that was it. But they didn't, and it was because, in part, to exactly what Joe talks about in this article.

The bottom line is, these tragedies bring out the deepest of emotions in all of us, and when those emotions find their way out, we can tend to be a little overzealous when we talk about what we need to do or are going to do in some sort of protest. But at the end of the day, when the emotions have a little time to settle and we regain some of the perspective that these emotions can sometimes blur, we react in the best way we can, very much like the forming of NHRA's new safety board, and do what we can to prevent a repeat performance. That's all we can do, and all we'll ever be able to do.

Happy racing, folks.........

Sean D

 

[Bobby]

Sean you just illustrated what needs to change. De-emphasize the speed ( as if 280 from a standing start in a 1/4 mile isn't fast enough), and emphasize the drivers.

 

[Sean D, shondoo]

Sean you just illustrated what needs to change. De-emphasize the speed ( as if 280 from a standing start in a 1/4 mile isn't fast enough), and emphasize the drivers.

I totally agree, Bob. The sport may feel a little backlash from such a move, because of the marketing I spoke of earlier, but it's certainly not an obstacle that can't be overcome with a savvy new marketing approach.

It needs to happen, and should.

Sean D

 

[BB]

I totally agree, Bob. The sport may feel a little backlash from such a move, because of the marketing I spoke of earlier, but it's certainly not an obstacle that can't be overcome with a savvy new marketing approach.

It needs to happen, and should.

Sean D

That "little backlash" would be fatal. Drag racing has always been about performance. What you're talking about would be like taking the football away from the NFL and making it about the players.

 

[MoparBilly]

That was proven out on Sunday at Englishtown, when in light of the tragedy the day before, everyone suited up and ran the race on 1320' with the same amount of shut-down as the day before.

Happy racing, folks.........

Sean D

Sean,
I agree with the tenor and substance of your post, but strictly from a historical standpoint it should be noted that your above statement is incorrect, there were in fact 3 top fuel drivers who did not suit up and run that Sunday...

 

[Sean D, shondoo]

That "little backlash" would be fatal. Drag racing has always been about performance. What you're talking about would be like taking the football away from the NFL and making it about the players.

I'm not sure how you can just arbitrarily say that it would be the end of Drag Racing, and would be very interested on how you would fix the issues and remain focused on performance. To me, the fatality of Drag Racing has been in the works for years in the form of this bull$hit marketing approach on performance in the first place. It's done nothing but drive the operating costs through the roof and all but eliminated the little guy from the equation. And what do we get for that? Either short, or on the brink of short fuel fields, and as long as this approach is pursued, it will get nothing but worse. Are you honestly telling me that you prefer 4.40's @ 330+ with a bye-run or two in the first round over 4.70's @ 290 - 300 with 20 cars competing for the spots? You're certainly entitled to your opinions, Matt, but if that's the case, you can have it, my friend.

Sean,
I agree with the tenor and substance of your post, but strictly from a historical standpoint it should be noted that your above statement is incorrect, there were in fact 3 top fuel drivers who did not suit up and run that Sunday...

I wasn't completely aware of that, Billy, and if that's the case, I'll take a portion of my statement back. However, some of the loudest and most public voices during the whole ordeal, i.e., Vandy, Head and Scelzi, saddled up, didn't they?

Like I stated to Matt, everyone, including me, is entitled to their opinions, and I respect that. It's my stance, however, that a change needs to happen. I don't believe for a second that the NHRA can't survive a change in direction from a marketing standpoint and removing the focus on performance. If you slow them down a tick or two, add traction control and have consistent side-by-side fuel racing, the people, including me, would eat it up.

Sean D

 

[d'kid]

Look at the Promo Video on TV...

Wildthing blowing up, Cory Mac at Bristol, the Skoal car shedding it's skin, and all the 'mileage' from T-Ped from Pomona this year... That $hit should be downplayed, not the lead for getting people to the track... and that's why I walked away from this frickin' thing... when John Parish crashed and burned his alky flopper in the mid 80's... I was just not going to see any more friends get hurt...

Yeah, it took me 20 years to even want to go back to a drag strip...

d'kid

 

[BB]

Drag racers were trying to increase performance long before there was ANY marketing. In most cases, that's why we race, isn't it? I think that safety is sometimes secondary, mostly on the racers' part, but there is absolutely no excuse for it being secondary on the tracks' part. Or NHRA's. Don't misunderstand me, I think many things need fixing on the safety side. There have been incidents of "stuff" flying into the stands and it's just been short of miraculous that we haven't had a major incident with that. I don't think that simply slowing down the cars or de-emphasizing speed is the answer. There wouldn't be much difference between a car going into the stands at 200 or 250 mph. I would like to see a rule that putting ANYTHING, oil, parts or whatever on the racetrack would disqualify the run. That would slow everybody down and slow down the burning parts and money to win thing.

 

[Rexfiles]

Look at the Promo Video on TV...

Wildthing blowing up, Cory Mac at Bristol, the Skoal car shedding it's skin, and all the 'mileage' from T-Ped from Pomona this year... That $hit should be downplayed, not the lead for getting people to the track... and that's why I walked away from this frickin' thing... when John Parish crashed and burned his alky flopper in the mid 80's... I was just not going to see any more friends get hurt...

Yeah, it took me 20 years to even want to go back to a drag strip...

d'kid

HOLY CRAP Karl.........

I was there, John was racing Bobby Lagana in his Nitro F/C (senior, not junior) got out of shape, stayed in it, went off road, dug into the grass and the next thing was Holy HELL breaking loose.

My girlfriend was freaking out and I was sure he was killed.

I forgot all about that.

We were in the back of my pick up truck at around half track, spectator side, and got the full gruesome up close in yer face............

It seemed like it would NEVER end, I remember it rolling and piroueting (sp?) 'till past the lights.

Just got a shiver when I saw what you had typed.......

How is John Today, if I may ask?

REX

 

[d'kid]

HOLY CRAP Karl.........

I was there, John was racing Bobby Lagana in his Nitro F/C (senior, not junior) got out of shape, stayed in it, went off road, dug into the grass and the next thing was Holy HELL breaking loose.

My girlfriend was freaking out and I was sure he was killed.

I forgot all about that.

We were in the back of my pick up truck at around half track, spectator side, and got the full gruesome up close in yer face............

It seemed like it would NEVER end, I remember it rolling and piroueting (sp?) 'till past the lights.

Just got a shiver when I saw what you had typed.......

How is John Today, if I may ask?

REX

Last time I talked to John was a couple of days before... stayed home that weekend, Got the phone call Monday morning... asked how John was, was told he would survive... said okay, I'm outta here... and didn't get close to a drag car, drag strip, nor talk to anyone close to racing the next ten years...

d'kid

 

[Bobby]

marketing increasing speeds could only work for a limited time, and that time is over.

 

[Sean D, shondoo]

marketing increasing speeds could only work for a limited time, and that time is over.

Amen, brother........

Sean D

 

[Al smith]

Look at the Promo Video on TV...

Wildthing blowing up, Cory Mac at Bristol, the Skoal car shedding it's skin, and all the 'mileage' from T-Ped from Pomona this year... That $hit should be downplayed, not the lead for getting people to the track... and that's why I walked away from this frickin' thing... when John Parish crashed and burned his alky flopper in the mid 80's... I was just not going to see any more friends get hurt...

Yeah, it took me 20 years to even want to go back to a drag strip...

d'kid

HOLY CRAP Karl.........

I was there, John was racing Bobby Lagana in his Nitro F/C (senior, not junior) got out of shape, stayed in it, went off road, dug into the grass and the next thing was Holy HELL breaking loose.

My girlfriend was freaking out and I was sure he was killed.

I forgot all about that.

We were in the back of my pick up truck at around half track, spectator side, and got the full gruesome up close in yer face............

It seemed like it would NEVER end, I remember it rolling and piroueting (sp?) 'till past the lights.

Just got a shiver when I saw what you had typed.......

How is John Today, if I may ask?

REX

Oh you mean John Paris John Paris Airborne © Norman Blake[all rights reserved] on Flickr - Photo Sharing!

 

[mick]

marketing increasing speeds could only work for a limited time, and that time is over.

the years of innovation are over, or at least most likely changed forever.
it sure was a thrill to watch.

i also agree, 282mph is not blase - i will continue to enjoy the show; possibly
even more than now - never know, the future product may be better
than what's out there now?