Lack of track prep (2 Viewers)

[ironpony]

so you are saying the teams chip in and pay Goodyear to design tires ???

 

[Dennis]

Here's my theory, if you have more traction than power, then you will always be running the engine at 110% capacity trying to squeeze every last ounce of performance from it to go fast. And any mechanical device being run at max speed and load is going to have a short life.

Full disclosure, I do not receive a paycheck from NHRA and agree 100% with the decision.

What Alan says is correct. If NHRA mechanically tries to reduce speeds then the byproduct is you're increasing carnage. For every part that is restricted, there are hundreds of other parts that are going to be stressed beyond limits as the crew chiefs try to make up power elsewhere.

NHRA literally took the simplest solution, the most cost effective solution for both the NHRA and teams, and people are still trying to over-complicate it with alternatives. The track is the great equalizer. It doesn't matter if you have the money to make 30,000 hp, if you can't get down the track, you lose. Quite simple actually.

Everybody longs for the "good old days" when the drivers and the crew chiefs actually mattered, NHRA puts that back in play. If I was only concerned with records on the scoreboards, I'd go to Bonneville.

 

[Huge]

so you are saying the teams chip in and pay Goodyear to design tires ???

No, But usually the cost of developing, testing, and manufacturing something usually trickles down to the consumer. But, you are correct...they could develop a tire that would slow the cars down.

 

[Huge]

Am I alone in being discussed with the "NEW" track prep?
It seems we've had more carnage already this year, then all last season.
I'm not paying to see an explode a thon. Will nhra go back to proper prep, or do we have to kill a driver first?? Your opinions........

I'm just curious if you have noticed it is a lot of the same cars blowing up over and over again? There are a lot of good running cars out here not blowing up and they are running on the same track with the same track prep. Can you tell me why?

 

[Nunz]

Burk shares some info and some good points here:

http://www.dragracingonline.com/burks-blast-6-7-18.html

You have to admit, have we had a season in recent memory where so many part timers and new racers are going rounds and getting TV time?

 

[Gordon]

I agree with Eugene - I was in Virginia for final eliminations of the "Lane Swap Nationals" and the racing was fantastic. Were they rotating the earth? No, but the racing was close, the cars were thunderous and the crowds were huge... and that came with some fairly significant atmospheric changes in the middle of eliminations.

 

[ROCKY]

Love watching the drivers and crews trying to find the combination to go down the track. Pedal fest not racing? Geez

 

[my friends call me Zappy]

I'm just curious if you have noticed it is a lot of the same cars blowing up over and over again? There are a lot of good running cars out here not blowing up and they are running on the same track with the same track prep. Can you tell me why?

what I've noticed is the cars blowing up are from two of the biggest camps. So it's not just one team strugling, we got two force cars, kalitta, Schumacher, with some of the best tubers in the sport. Even the drivers are expressing, disappointment with the "new" prep.
We all know nitro motors like a load on them, so to take away that load seems foolish to me. Imo

And Gordon Carlton, it's easy to make a crowd look huge when you squeeze them into one set of bleachers. The TV clearly showed there were no bleachers on the other side. I was impressed at first also when they announced a sell out Sat., then I saw the coverage and noticed the lack of seating.

Ok no one seems to like the idea of a max speed limit, ok fine. But lets hear some other solutions that doesn't make parts obsolete, doesn't favor any team over another, and doesn't increase cost, doesn't endanger drivers.........???

 

[TooTall999]

what I've noticed is the cars blowing up are from two of the biggest camps. So it's not just one team strugling, we got two force cars, kalitta, Schumacher, with some of the best tubers in the sport. Even the drivers are expressing, disappointment with the "new" prep.
We all know nitro motors like a load on them, so to take away that load seems foolish to me. Imo

And Gordon Carlton, it's easy to make a crowd look huge when you squeeze them into one set of bleachers. The TV clearly showed there were no bleachers on the other side. I was impressed at first also when they announced a sell out Sat., then I saw the coverage and noticed the lack of seating.

Ok no one seems to like the idea of a max speed limit, ok fine. But lets hear some other solutions that doesn't make parts obsolete, doesn't favor any team over another, and doesn't increase cost, doesn't endanger drivers.........???

Nobody wants to see nitro cars pulling the chutes early to avoid "breaking out"! Give the tuners a chance and they'll get it figured out! You whining about it on here isn't going to change anything. And the only "drivers" I've heard complain are Matt Hagan and Tommy Johnson Jr. Besides if you read the article posted above, you'd have seen this was agreed on by the owners and PRO. It's really the best solution for slowing the cars down and it's working!

 

[Huge]

what I've noticed is the cars blowing up are from two of the biggest camps. So it's not just one team strugling, we got two force cars, kalitta, Schumacher, with some of the best tubers in the sport. Even the drivers are expressing, disappointment with the "new" prep.
We all know nitro motors like a load on them, so to take away that load seems foolish to me. Imo

And Gordon Carlton, it's easy to make a crowd look huge when you squeeze them into one set of bleachers. The TV clearly showed there were no bleachers on the other side. I was impressed at first also when they announced a sell out Sat., then I saw the coverage and noticed the lack of seating.

Ok no one seems to like the idea of a max speed limit, ok fine. But lets hear some other solutions that doesn't make parts obsolete, doesn't favor any team over another, and doesn't increase cost, doesn't endanger drivers.........???

The same teams you are talking about also have cars going down the same track with the same prep and not blowing up, and winning races. You said you don't want any team favored over another well this is probably the most level playing field they have had in a long time and the first round results show that. My guess is that the drivers complaining are the ones that are struggling right now. It doesn't take much to dial back the ignition timing, compression, and blower boost, so what parts do you think are obsolete because of a little less track prep? As far as the crowd goes did the tv show you all of the fans in the pits or them sitting in their cars on the road for an hour and a half just to get into the facility? We actually left the hotel a half hour earlier on Sun just to make sure we didn't get stuck in the traffic. I'm not trying to change your opinions I'm just trying to understand them more clearly and to share what I see and hear around the pits...and one of the things I saw was a lot of very excited fans all three days at the Virginia race.

 

[ironpony]

drivers complaining, go back to the laid back headers last year, seems they were complaining then too.
the track is the playing field, every one is running the same track, want to complain about something ?? complain about the tracks that clearly have only one good lane.
When there is 100% traction, how hard is it to actually tune a car ?

 

[Pete]

drivers complaining, go back to the laid back headers last year, seems they were complaining then too.
the track is the playing field, every one is running the same track, want to complain about something ?? complain about the tracks that clearly have only one good lane.
When there is 100% traction, how hard is it to actually tune a car ?

Bingo!

 

[Gator]

You want to slow the cars down permanently? Change the class rules. Not cubic inch, wing size, tire size, etc. Here are your new classes....
Top Comp 3.70 Index 1320ft
Funny Comp 3.85 Index 1320ft
Pro Stock Comp 6.60 Index 1320ft same engine make in car body.
Motorcycle Comp 6.85 Index 1320ft
Mod Comp 5.90 Index 1320ft

Go under the index, you break out, run doesn't count/DQ'd

 

[Nunz]

3.70 in 1320 ft would be... a pretty fast ride.

 

[TooTall999]

You want to slow the cars down permanently? Change the class rules. Not cubic inch, wing size, tire size, etc. Here are your new classes....
Top Comp 3.70 Index 1320ft
Funny Comp 3.85 Index 1320ft
Pro Stock Comp 6.60 Index 1320ft same engine make in car body.
Motorcycle Comp 6.85 Index 1320ft
Mod Comp 5.90 Index 1320ft

Go under the index, you break out, run doesn't count/DQ'd

Try explaining breaking out to a newbie. Bottom line is cars are only going to go as fast as the track will let them. No new equipment needed, no stupid "break outs". Why does everyone try to over complicate things?

 

[Dave]

So TAD and TAFC would be the only heads up race to the finish line classes? Wow.

 

[JHOLE]

So TAD and TAFC would be the only heads up race to the finish line classes? Wow.

Nah, that would be combined again into " Pro Comp Comp ' - 5.90 index .... - OBVIOUSLY , I'm kidding...

... although.. , if it brought back Pro Comp ...?? ... hmmm

 

[stitcherbob]

April 1st was a while ago....

 

[stitcherbob]

Wanna really slow them down? Take away any NHRA controlled parachute system or crew chief controlled shut off button and replace them with 1 button....
NHRA controlled engine exploder button....go too fast they shut you down right NOW....and get plenty of film for the " thrills and spills " reels

 

[None]

Paul,

Not arguing, just asking. If you think the solution is "Simple" then what would you do?

Most of us insiders agree that the cars need to be pulled back a little. They don't need to be going 340 MPH to put on a good show. The cost is also ridiculous to run them that hard. Not sure how mechanical you are, but in throw down conditions it's very common for a set of connecting rods to make one run, then go in the trash, or a crankshaft to have a life span of three runs. When even the Schumachers of the world think it's expensive that's saying something.

Here's my theory, if you have more traction than power, then you will always be running the engine at 110% capacity trying to squeeze every last ounce of performance from it to go fast. And any mechanical device being run at max speed and load is going to have a short life.

But: If you have more power than traction, you automatically have to dial back the power level to get it to the ground, that will make the parts last longer, and should also minimize the explosions that come along with pushing parts past their limit.
The crew chiefs know how to do this, when the track temp is 140 in the summer they know they can't utilize all the power, so they back down the power, and nobody has to buy any new stuff, use what you have and don't beat it up so badly.

I talked about this on WFO Radio a few weeks back, there's also an interesting interview with Ed McCulloch on competition plus about the subject.

Saying the track is unsafe is completely wrong, there is simply a little less traction. Again, when we're in Norwalk, or Sonoma and the track temp is 135+ is the track unsafe? Of course not. Can you set records? Also, of course not. Because you don't have as much grip, so you back up the power to match the grip. Just like they are having to do now.

All of this is my opinion.

Alan

I have always believed it is the crew chief/driver that has the responsibility to get from point A to point B as quick as possible and still get stopped before point C. 660', 1000', or 1320' makes no difference. 40 degree to 160 degree track. No track prep to the best they ever had. You have to run the track you're at or put it on the trailer and go home. My only complaint would be unequal lanes.