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Amazing the difference a month makes...
- Thread starter Toejam
- Start date
Sean D, shondoo
Nitro Member
Hey Sean!!!
Oh, c'mon, Joe! There's no need to stick out your tongue at me. I offered to buy you a beer at Indy this year, for Pete's sake! Why no love, man?!
Sean D
I offered to buy you a beer at Indy this year, for Pete's sake! Why no love, man?!
Sean D
hey now we're talkin.....
Sean D, shondoo
Nitro Member
hey now we're talkin.....
Tell ya' what; forget my original bet for the beer. I'll buy you one in Indy no matter what the fields look like this year. I've been missing all the 'Mater meetings, so it's about time I made one.
Sean D
my friends call me Zappy
Nitro Member
Well Joe, full nitro fields at Phoenix, yer RIGHT again.
(I just had to stir the pot,)
(I just had to stir the pot,)
"Dr. Dirt"
Nitro Member
Just the absence of some of the major players has opened doors that otherwise would not have been even cracked. 1/2 of the entire T/F qualifying field in Pomona were part-time racers and 1/2 of the overall field in Phoenix was the same. I would hope the other regions of the country will produce the same results as Phoenix and Pomona but I'll be one of the ones who believes before this year is over we'll have seen more than a couple short field races due to the ever-exciting economy.
Bross Hawg
Nitro Member
How bout Hotlanta or Bristol?
mick
Nitro Member
i also hope the door stays open for the independents........at least a 14-17
car field guarantees payout; think we mite see urs' rent-a-TFer later this
year at a few races.
how many places does nhra pay to not qualify?
there's quite a few events i still wouldn't be surprised to see 14-15 car fields.
topeka, st. louis, western swing, brainerd, reading & memphis come to mind.
car field guarantees payout; think we mite see urs' rent-a-TFer later this
year at a few races.
how many places does nhra pay to not qualify?
there's quite a few events i still wouldn't be surprised to see 14-15 car fields.
topeka, st. louis, western swing, brainerd, reading & memphis come to mind.
my friends call me Zappy
Nitro Member
Well Joe, you get to stick out tongue again sir. 3 races=3 times full fields
I for one don't care if they are full time - part time- or "one race wonders". As long as there are 16 or more in the PRO classes, in these tough times, I'm a happy fan.
I for one don't care if they are full time - part time- or "one race wonders". As long as there are 16 or more in the PRO classes, in these tough times, I'm a happy fan.
"Dr. Dirt"
Nitro Member
I'm with you Paul!Well Joe, you get to stick out tongue again sir. 3 races=3 times full fields
I for one don't care if they are full time - part time- or "one race wonders". As long as there are 16 or more in the PRO classes, in these tough times, I'm a happy fan.
Tough times bring opportunities for the independents, move-ups, etc. I personally get a kick out of 1/2 of each field so far coming from this group! Isn't that how our pros today got their starts?
He had runner up in his back pocket.my friends call me Zappy
Nitro Member
Yes Bobby. There are some that don't like it when someone dominates in a class, ie Force-GA-Tony Shoe-ect. Well with so many new faces, heres the chance for "up-sets" so to speak.
Also, there were several fans that talked about NOT going to their nearby Natl. events this year for fear of 10 car fields. I'm hoping after 3 in a row, this changes their minds. I'ld hate to see them sit home, and miss a good race.
Definitely one positive to come out of the decrease in full-pull cars is having the part-timers come out more often. You know what would encourage even more of this and mix things up? Restoring the old ladder system, where the No.1 qualifier races No.9 and so on, instead of 1 running 16. I believe it would give even more chances of success to the part-time & lower budget teams, and during the course of the season we would most likely see more upsets.
I will eat crow for now, but I still do not see this being a season long thing...
As for not attending my local National Event at Joliet, I made that decision years ago with there outragous prices. I will stay closer to home and attend the Divisional and Nostalgia Races in my own backyard...
As for not attending my local National Event at Joliet, I made that decision years ago with there outragous prices. I will stay closer to home and attend the Divisional and Nostalgia Races in my own backyard...
I will eat some crow solely on the number of cars that turned out so far. I don't want anyone to think I am criticizing any independant team for thier efforts, I do applaud them. However as a fan, I can't get all excited about quantity for the sake of quality. I personally don't get much reward in watching the 3 to 5 bottom positions occupied by cars that absolutely struggle to even make a class representative run over 2 days. I discount Pomona because they only had 1 run, timing system was screwed up and if there were more qualifying runs, the cream would have rose to the top as it always does. My point ...Well Joe, you get to stick out tongue again sir. 3 races=3 times full fields
I for one don't care if they are full time - part time- or "one race wonders". As long as there are 16 or more in the PRO classes, in these tough times, I'm a happy fan.
Phoenix: Final Order
#16 Terry Haddock 4.094 237.80
#17 Steven Chrisman 4.167 279.79
#18 Steve Faria 4.505 222.14
#19 Rob Passey 7.530 81.82
#20 Arley Langlo 15.695 51.17
Gainesville: Final Order
#17 Tim Boychuk 4.178 273.16
#18 Chris Karamesines 6.137 107.21
#19 Terry Haddock 8.228 96.53
Again, not crticizing the effort. I have no idea how my daily driver goes A to B. My point was that I know I am not willing to throw my hard earned $$ at these types of performances, combined with 1000' racing. Just my personal preference, but I bet I am not alone.
With that said, the Houston entry list shows 16 TF cars including a first time independant team ... Schumacher, Dixon, Cory Mac, Brown, Bernstein, Baca, Kalitta, Lucas, Erbacher, Millican, Langdon, Massey, Buff, Todd Simpson, Hartley and Steven Chrisman.
Vegas 1 looks exactly like Pomona (19 cars) ... I have no reason to believe the results will be any different than Phoenix / Gainesville above. The rest of the entry lists are likely too far out to be accurate at this point.
vegasnitro
Nitro Member
I agree Eric ... I have always said the proof will be Topeka, Joliet, Western Swing etc.
Pomona is first race of the year, Phoenix is right on it's back with a reasonable tow, Gainesville is the first race on the East Coast, Houston is the first in the Midwest and Vegas picks up the guys from Pomona and Phoenix again.
Looking on NHRA.com at the entry lists for Houston and Vegas 1, there are 17 Top Fuelers pre-entered for both races ... but only 15 Funny Cars pre-entered for both races. That is the opposite of what we were expecting, we did not expect Funny Car to be struggling to fill out the field ...
my friends call me Zappy
Nitro Member
To look at it another way: Pomona and G-Ville are on both coasts, a long tow. I'm thinking we may see even more cars at the central races like Topeka, Rt66, St. louis, western swing, ect. A shorter tow should bring out more independants, don't you think??
