Four Wide

[Wayne]

I'm watching....but I'm blocking half my screen off with cardboard

ROTFLMAO!!!
Jack; please send new monitor/keyboard asap!!!

 

[.]

I'm not a fan of 4-wide racing but I'd sure to love to hear the noise at least once!

 

[jackass]

but do you know how many people would pay to see that!!

you have never sat through a 600 when it 90 degrees in the day and 80 at night? after hour number 8 and the 35th caution flag they would be done.. from ever coming back....lol
i have to say i was going.. mainly to catch up with some friends but.. the more i thought about it.. it isn't worth it to go..sorry not my cup of tea..

 

[twostep]

i'll get on board with 4-wide as a good thing when the oval guys across the street run the 600 with the first 300 miles in one direction and the second 300 in the opposite direction....

Nah, why go to all that bother. Just require them to run 4-wide too, for one race. Right there at Charlotte Motor Speedway's Coca-Cola 600. Mark off the entire track. Four lanes. Your lane is based on your qualifying order. If you drift out of your lane except to pass, you're penalized a lap.

If you were a NASCAR fan would you attend? Why not?

 

[Bill]

And I'll bet you five dollars to a dog turd that everyone on these drag racing forums who emphatically says they refuse to turn on the television and watch the Charlotte race - watches it anyway. Kind of like riding a MoPed, riding a fat girl or guy, or riding in a Pontiac Aztek. It ain't THAT bad, and no one says you have to tell your friends.

Two wide, four wide, eight wide... who cares????

I'll turn on the TV for NHRA drag racing when they start covering the cars I care to watch; Sportsman drag racing.... you know, 90-percent of the cars that show up to race??? I'm not talking about Bracket cars (X.90-sec, throttle stop cars,) but the performance-based cars that populate Stock, S/S, and Comp Eliminator.

There are people watching this anomaly who have never actually BEEN to an NHRA drag race, and are blissfully unaware that they are missing ANYTHING...

A wheelstanding Super Stocker would generate culture shock to them, big time.

I never cared for racing wherein the crew chiefs get their horsepower out of a can....

This is only a message for those who think that televised Pro Racing is a be-all/end-all entertainment for ALL drag fans.

The diversity and variety that is exhibited in Sportsman racing was legislated out of the cookie-cutter racing that exists in the Pro Ranks years ago, and there's no end in sight. It just gets worse...

Makes for a very boring contest of drivers vs. drivers and crew chiefs vs. crew chiefs, with ingenuity in action thrown to the winds.

And, no, it doesn't have to be that way, but it is.

And, it will never change, in my lifetime, so I rent a good movie to watch while NHRA runs their circus.

As I said, this tirade is only for the people who think that current TV drag racing is "just fine."

It's not, for some of us who monitor this board.

 

[sdwarf36]

Ok-fine-I'll watch. Sigh. But I ain't riding in no Aztek!
When i was over dirt racing in New Zealand, they did something intresting with their beater class-an offical would stand at pit exit and when you went out on the track for your race, he would point which direction you went! Some races were clockwise-some were counterclockwise-so there was no setting up your car to be better one direction or the other.

 

[Sleepy]

And I'll bet you five dollars to a dog turd that everyone on these drag racing forums who emphatically says they refuse to turn on the television and watch the Charlotte race - watches it anyway. Kind of like riding a MoPed, riding a fat girl or guy, or riding in a Pontiac Aztek. It ain't THAT bad, and no one says you have to tell your friends.

You owe me a keyboard !!

 

[Muddy]

18 holes in morning, across the parking lot to the race all day, dinner @ hooters
what is there to NOT like about zmax dragway!?
that is damn near the perfect day.

4 wide

 

[the zone]

John Waters, just a question, if you are so down on the new drag racing why bother to post here.

Life needs more positive comments then negative. If you want negative watch the news and enjoy yourself there.

The real world dictates that things change, I am sure you have gotten used to many changes in every day life.

While I am not a fan of 1000 feet (I think slow down the cars and go back to 1320), I think four wide is kind of cool.


Dean

 

[twostep]

There are people watching this anomaly who have never actually BEEN to an NHRA drag race, and are blissfully unaware that they are missing ANYTHING...

This old cahoot has been to, oh, 1000 or so drag races and competed in about 200 of them. I don't need to tell you that SS and Comp Elim are without a doubt two of the most interesting classes in the sport, and I make it a point to not only be in the stands when they're running, but to make a couple of passes through the pits to see the wide variety of cars, paint schemes, ingenuity in action and the wonderful people you meet along the way.

But those classes don't show well on television; there's no way to convey the intensity of a 9.50/140 car, wheelstand or no. I don't follow NASCAR but I don't dislike it....and watching them putt around that tiny track in Bristol, TN is like watching paint dry. Same reason; too slow for TV to convey any excitement. You gotta be there to feel the heat.

My apologies, Lloyd....

 

[Muddy]

John Waters, just a question, if you are so down on the new drag racing why bother to post here.

Life needs more positive comments then negative. If you want negative watch the news and enjoy yourself there.

The real world dictates that things change, I am sure you have gotten used to many changes in every day life.

While I am not a fan of 1000 feet (I think slow down the cars and go back to 1320), I think four wide is kind of cool.


Dean

Everyone is entitled to have and express an opinion. That's what America is all about.

Your right I have seen many changes in my life, some I like, some I don't. I express my opinion about both with positive comments about the one's I like and negative comments about the one's I don't in the hope someone will listen and change those I don't like.

In the last few years the things I don't like have been creeping ever closer to outnumbering the things I do like. I won't go into the problems I see with drag racing today but if we don't speak up clearly then there won't be drag racing for the generations that follow us.

BTW I tend to agree with you about 1000 ft. Althought it was a good temporary solution (which I supported on this board) it never should have been made permanant despite what the CC and owners wanted.

 

[The Swegian]

What happened to the post-race petition that was signed by nearly all the drivers last year emphatically declaring they would never race in the 4-wide format again? I'm not trying to stir anything up. I'm just drawing a blank as to the aftermath of that petition.

 

[Muddy]

What happened to the post-race petition that was signed by nearly all the drivers last year emphatically declaring they would never race in the 4-wide format again? I'm not trying to stir anything up. I'm just drawing a blank as to the aftermath of that petition.

They folded like a 3 dollar tent in a Oklahoma tornado when B. Smith and NHRA drew a line in the sand.

 

[Bullard Anderson]

It's here, and hopefully not to stay. It's a special race, I guess! Right?? I mean if the multi millionaire track/car dealerships guy wants this to be a special race surely the purse is doubled or something. Right?

I guess I feel if it's such a big deal to Bruton he should make it a big deal.
But I seems it will be much the same as last year and a fan may not even feel his/her driver is at the track on Sunday. BANG, BANG, BANG, BANG your outta here next 4.

 

[Bill]

"But those classes don't show well on television; there's no way to convey the intensity of a 9.50/140 car, wheelstand or no."

Carl, I have read enough of your posts on a variety of subjects to be aware that you are someone who appreciates more than just the Pro eliminators, giving time and credence to the Sportsman cars. You have your head on straight, obviously.

Having said that, I would beg to differ with you on your contention that Sportsman cars don't show well on television. Granted, the "intensity" of a 3.7-second T-F run has no counterpart in Sportsman racing, there are lots of other facets of racing in the slower classes that could be displayed, such as camera shots from the front seat of a wheelstanding car, in-car shots from the passenger seat of a Super Stocker with a clutchless 4-speed, showing how the process of running through 4 gears in 9 seconds LOOKS to the uninitated, brief explanations of how the rules work RE: the CIC in Comp as compared with breakout issues in Stock and Super Stock; and an explanation of why this turbochsrged 4-cylinder Comp car can actuallty outrun some of the big-block cars, heads-up.

A Top Fuel run only lasts a little over three-and-a-half seconds. Quantitatively, that's not much "intensity" to display; if they blink, they miss it.

Conversely, a Super Stock A Hemi car has the potential for big wheelstands that may well, last longer than the entire 1,000-foot trip the Fueler makes...

NHRA has never put ANY effort into "marketing" Sprtsman cars on TV.
If they wanted to, they could do it.... the material is there.... but they don't, and they won't. It's 80-percent political.

I for one, am not convinced it couldn't be done, with some effort. I am convinced that it won't.

Thanks for your comments!!!!

Bill

 

[PJ]

What happened to the post-race petition that was signed by nearly all the drivers last year emphatically declaring they would never race in the 4-wide format again? I'm not trying to stir anything up. I'm just drawing a blank as to the aftermath of that petition.

when one Mr Smith owns a many of the tracks that the NHRA goes to he carries more weight than the teams do

 

[PJ]

I'm not a fan of 4-wide racing but I'd sure to love to hear the noise at least once!

It was impressive to hear and feel but not much else


Between the exhibition year and last years' first attempt I have seen it in person and on TV, lost my interest more each time. I'll probably give them this one last chance to see how it goes but I'm not hopeful. They've already chased me away from watching the end of the season, whats one more race....

 

[my friends call me Zappy]

I just don't see what all the fuss is about. This change is only for one race.(So far, I for one hope it does spread to a couple of the tracks that have the room to accommodate four wide.)

I don't recall any big hubbub when they changed Pro stock to 500 in.
or how about when they took the engine from in front of the driver, and put it behind the driver in top fuel. Now those were two dramatic changes.

With four wide, they are still leaving from a dead stop – and driving straight to the finish line. So really not all that much different. Why all the clatter??

If someone enjoys seeing two at a time, I can't for the life of be figure why they would dislike seeing for the time....

 

[Super Mod]

I'm watching....but I'm blocking half my screen off with cardboard

I'm also muting my right channel of my surround sound

 

[Super Mod]

I don't recall any big hubbub when they changed Pro stock to 500 in.

Now there is a hubbub 30 yrs later when those around us want to put a small block and a flat hood on them. So yeah, it was a mistake to go to 500 c.i.