John Force's rant (2 Viewers)

[BlueStangGT]

Exactly. It's just like back in 2003 at Memphis when Skuza burnt his car to the ground in the semi's. We went back and about 6 or 7 teams jumped in to help. We got the car done, and actually fired it up in the pits. We knew it probably wouldn't make it down the track under power, but we couldn't just let Bazemore have a single to the win.

There were about 2 or 3 NHRA tech officials hanging out in the pit watching the thrash, and inspecting various items, I'm sure they were there in the Force pits last weekend.

You're correct, there were several at various times throughout Hight's thrash, particularly during the last 30 minutes or so.

Jenn - You're also correct about him not getting out of his suit, but it appeared to be just a matter of expedience as he spent the first 35 minutes of the turnaround working on the car while still suited up. He then went into the trailer and reappeared at about the 69 minute mark, helmet and all, and was strapped in before the body went on.

I just took the first look through all the photos I shot from the edge of the pits during the thrash. A lot of the time I was shooting blind so only a few are any good but several of them show the turnaround clock in the doorway of the transporter.

 

[Bazzil]

I haven't been around for a while, but what did Force say and where can I read up about this incident and the "discussions" that followed?

 

[Nitrohaulic]

I like the way some people feel like they're the ones who should be able to tell where the "affirmative action" lines should be drawn when deciding what is and isn't an unfair advantage against "underfunded" teams. It's okay if they have an arbitrary four teams in an operation to draw data from (not the three or five that I thought it should have been). It's okay to replace everything AROUND the chassis, amounting to a much higher dollar amount than what the chassis, itself, cost. But, don't you dare change the sacred CHASSIS! I think they should be able to have as many cars as they have bullets. However many they can carry to a race. They can still only race one at a time.

It's professional level racing. Why hold the majority down do a minority's level? Let the minority elevate itself or leave. If you can't afford to be there, go nostalgia racing. I should be surprised at an organization that already has an affirmative action points scheme.

Like others have mentioned. Someone's going to determine how hard of a "hit" is a "hit." Then you disqualify a car and make it go through an SFI inspection. Woo Frickin Hoo!!! Like Bob Glidden said, they can't find nitrous unless it's in a bottle painted blue. Who thinks Hight's front end was still in alignment after those hits? An SFI inspection doesn't check for that anymore than it checks for numerous other things that could have left that chassis in an unsafe condition.

How does ANYONE look at an assembly of tubing and know what has and hasn't work hardened/been stressed to the point that it's just getting ready to start cracking and breaking? How do any of you know that you're not disqualifying a car that might be safer than the car it just raced against?

 

[None]

Great posts. I'm definitely in the "damage the chassis during elims, you're done" camp. Leave the rule as is.

Right on!! What kind of racing allows one to change cars after the race starts? This certainly wouldn't be the first time a car was brought to the starting line to "bluff" their way into a win. Makes no sense to allow teams with additional cars in the holster to change willy nilly.

 

[headporter]

There is 1 thats ONE way to Skirt the Rule. If memory serves me right.. Lee Beard did it in TF. Have Front and Rear sections BOLT together. and replace what needs fixing. As long as the Drivers compartment remains. Since thats were the Cert. is located.

Food for thought. for the people who can't drop the idea that their favorite driver is out of a race. Because they had a parts failure or forgot where the chute lever was. Tony P. Put his car in the sand trap and fliped it, and it ran the next round.

 

[T.Smith]

It's professional level racing. Why hold the majority down do a minority's level? Let the minority elevate itself or leave. If you can't afford to be there, go nostalgia racing.

That's funny, then how come the majority all sit in the PRO meeting and complain from time to time about the costs to run these cars?

If it's such a good idea to let the majority do whatever they want, then just lift all the rules and let 'em run 3.90's @ 380mph. Then they could throw tires off every round, blow engines out of the frame rails, bounce off the walls and destroy a race car per round. Don't complain in a couple years when only 8 nitro cars show up to race at Bristol.

 

[Nitrohaulic]

Right on!! What kind of racing allows one to change cars after the race starts? This certainly wouldn't be the first time a car was brought to the starting line to "bluff" their way into a win. Makes no sense to allow teams with additional cars in the holster to change willy nilly.

You're relying on precedence. You're basically using "Because that's the way it's always been done" as a reason.

I have to wonder something. Let's say a team did have two cars that it alternatively ran in eliminations. That's assuming a tuner would even want two. Could a team operate with fewer crewmembers, since some of them could remain in the pits rebuilding one car while another is waiting in the lanes? The extra engine isn't going to cost anything, because a fueler's going to consume that and more in a season, anyways. Could the extra car be cheaper than a couple people on the payroll for a year? This might actually LOWER costs instead of increasing them.

Don't forget. Unless you destroy it, you can sell the car when you're done, so you're really renting it for the difference between what you pay for it and what you sell it for.

 

[T.Smith]

Could the extra car be cheaper than a couple people on the payroll for a year? This might actually LOWER costs instead of increasing them.

Don't forget. Unless you destroy it, you can sell the car when you're done, so you're really renting it for the difference between what you pay for it and what you sell it for.

Yeah and what about all the testing that will need to be done with the spare cars?

And who would want their used up junk anyways? These aren't super comp cars and the chances are if someone is going to go nitro racing, they are going to have new cars built for themselves.

 

[Nitrohaulic]

Yeah and what about all the testing that will need to be done with the spare cars?

And who would want their used up junk anyways? These aren't super comp cars and the chances are if someone is going to go nitro racing, they are going to have new cars built for themselves.

If NHRA does something that you don't approve of, I'm sure you can find an old pic of a crying baby somewhere. Oh, wait. No, that's what you posted when I complained about something NHRA did.