Competition Eliminator Car Counts?

[The Counterfeiter]

I'm certainly not an expert on Comp, but I have been watching car counts at National Events this year and they seem awfully low. Is this normal or has the economy started to take a toll on what most people in the know view as a very expensive way to race?

 

[clwill]

I think it's low too. My observation is that TS and TD have sucked in a lot of people who want to go really fast, to the detriment of Comp, SC, and SG. but that's just one guy's opinion.

 

[The Little Lizard]

My observation is that TS and TD have sucked in a lot of people who want to go really fast, to the detriment of Comp, SC, and SG. but that's just one guy's opinion.

Yep!, Good observation I think we will be heading that way to some degree next year.

 

[Mark]

Too bad; I absolutely love watching comp, and I wish it got more exposure, at least more than the 20 seconds it gets every few weeks during the alcohol eliminator show.

 

[Professor Dave]

While the count may be down, the quality of the cars is not-and one comp car that I know about will be back in action in H/EA and hopefully quite competitive this coming weekend at Cecil County.

 

[NYNitro86]

I know the Nationals at Englishtown had 35 cars, there were actually 39 cars entered at one point, obviously a few dropped out to make the max quota (and they needed room for Rampy as he wasn't on the list until the last week before the cutoff).

 

[Gregg Pickens]

Comp has lost cars to Top Dragster and Top Sportsman because of the cost. Its easier to change your dial in then to go out and find more horse power when someone bombs the index in your class. As it gets harder and harder to just qualify for the Top Dragster and Sportsman classes we may see some come back. At least I hope so. The diversity of Comp makes it fun to watch.

 

[Toejam]

When you see Joey Tanksley running 6.70's out of a C/Dragster, you just know its an expensive class!

 

[Toejam]

Comp has lost cars to Top Dragster and Top Sportsman because of the cost. Its easier to change your dial in then to go out and find more horse power when someone bombs the index in your class. As it gets harder and harder to just qualify for the Top Dragster and Sportsman classes we may see some come back. At least I hope so. The diversity of Comp makes it fun to watch.

Plus, it's a lot cheaper making Horsepower with a 555 or a 633Big Block compared to those 300 CI motors you have to twist to Mach 10!

 

[NYNitro86]

Comp has lost cars to Top Dragster and Top Sportsman because of the cost. Its easier to change your dial in then to go out and find more horse power when someone bombs the index in your class. As it gets harder and harder to just qualify for the Top Dragster and Sportsman classes we may see some come back. At least I hope so. The diversity of Comp makes it fun to watch.

I called Comp at the Lucas Oil Points Race at Lebanon Valley. Even though there was 21 cars that day (and Top Sportsman didn't have 32 cars because of the ADRL race that weekend), It's no secret it's The toughest class to announce (I had all the indexes and what they would run if it was .51 or .61 under for CICs). I felt like I did a decent job (certainly room for improvement) and it was fun to call.

 

[DE3]

I called Comp at the Lucas Oil Points Race at Lebanon Valley. Even though there was 21 cars that day (and Top Sportsman didn't have 32 cars because of the ADRL race that weekend), It's no secret it's The toughest class to announce (I had all the indexes and what they would run if it was .51 or .61 under for CICs). I felt like I did a decent job (certainly room for improvement) and it was fun to call.

I think you did a good job Rob. I know most were not happy with the usual crew there.

 

[Nunz]

I think it's just simply economics. 99% of drag racers (don't hold me to that %) race out of their pocket. With a still-weak and questionable economic outlook, everything is taking a hit, from racer numbers to spectator counts. However, all in all I think the sport is doing well in spite of the tough times. How it could be better is a whole different thread...

 

[Crash]

One more factor, the return on investment is pretty low compared to a lot of other classes. You can buy an entire Super Class operation for what some Comp motors cost, and you get a better purse (comparatively) if you win an event. Probably not a big factor, but it has to be in the mix to some degree...

 

[andujar]

I think you did a good job Rob. I know most were not happy with the usual crew there.

agreed...

 

[NYNitro86]

I think you did a good job Rob. I know most were not happy with the usual crew there.

Usual crew, you mean Lewis?

 

[DE3]

Usual crew, you mean Lewis?

NO not at all, Lewis does a great job. Team up with him at all D1 events and fans and racer alike would benefit. I'm talking about the usual LVD crew. Not to be brash, but they are not informative or emphatic at all, and I heard many complaints about it there. The fans need to be educated on some things, and they just don't get it done.

 

[.]

Many years ago, there used to be a couple of '63 corvettes in comp that drew me to the class. They were the purple A/A and A/AA driven by Vinnie Deceglie and David Beckley respectively.

Loved those cars and I loved the class where they were in. Sitting in the top end bleacher at Pomona watching them was a good time.

 

[Mike]

Paul, Mountain View Tire before Pro Stock!

 

[NYNitro86]

NO not at all, Lewis does a great job. Team up with him at all D1 events and fans and racer alike would benefit. I'm talking about the usual LVD crew. Not to be brash, but they are not informative or emphatic at all, and I heard many complaints about it there. The fans need to be educated on some things, and they just don't get it done.

Tim Rafferty their long time announcer, now retired but does the points race (btw that was also the first time since 1995 that I worked with Tim during a few classes) and Wild Bill Horton did the Alky cars.

I still feel like there are alot of holes that need to be tended to in my commentary of Comp ie; The "Heavy Duty Description" that Alan or Leo would use to intro with "Performance Based Category, There's a hundred different ways to run in comp, cubic inch to weight ratio etc etc" I know your car has the buick heads and is a 6 sec player. It was my first time calling comp I can only get better with time (plus that first session was a big clusterf*** because Portatree had it all screwed up ie;Cultrera driving an H/EA when he drives L/AA etc)

Although I did write down all the classes and what they'd run if they were .51 under & .61 Under to determine any CICs (Szupka had a bunch that were .5+ under, no permanent adjustments though).

 

[Nunz]

I believe Comp is up to 58 cars now...