Norwalk Raceway to go NHRA? (1 Viewer)

[NitroRichFire]

If Norwalk would go over to the NHRA, would this mean the National Event "Pontiac Performance Nationals" at National Trail Raceway move over to Norwalk, since that is a much better track? I am not familar with Ohio's tracks, but aren't both of these tracks near each other? Within 50 miles??

 

[Sully]

I hope not - Norwalk's facilities need a major injection of money to support an NHRA national event. Little stuff - like pro pits, a media center, race control somewhere other than atop the mountain, and sponsor suites just as a beginning. Also, need some kind of top-end containment to keep the cars out of the airport if they go long - there is nothing there right now and the top-end crossover is a major choke point in the current traffic pattern (and a safety hazard) since any vehicle crossing from one side to the other has to go across the top end of the race track. And the spectator camping sites inside the pro pits just won't cut it in NHRA.

As many problems as National Trail may have, the facilities to support an NHRA national event there are much better than those at Norwalk. Norwalk is visually more appealing because it's all grass on one side and the Bader family does a good job of keeping things spruced up and the grass mowed, but the facility, other than the huge grandstands, is deficient by current NHRA standards. One other thing Norwalk has going for it - the staff attitude at Norwalk is very racer and spectator-friendly.

Oh yeah, those old, slow, hard-to-read scoreboards will also have to go.

 

[NitroRichFire]

I hope not - Norwalk's facilities need a major injection of money to support an NHRA national event. Little stuff - like pro pits, a media center, race control somewhere other than atop the mountain, and sponsor suites just as a beginning. Also, need some kind of top-end containment to keep the cars out of the airport if they go long - there is nothing there right now and the top-end crossover is a major choke point in the current traffic pattern (and a safety hazard) since any vehicle crossing from one side to the other has to go across the top end of the race track. And the spectator camping sites inside the pro pits just won't cut it in NHRA.

As many problems as National Trail may have, the facilities to support an NHRA national event there are much better than those at Norwalk. Norwalk is visually more appealing because it's all grass on one side and the Bader family does a good job of keeping things spruced up and the grass mowed, but the facility, other than the huge grandstands, is deficient by current NHRA standards. One other thing Norwalk has going for it - the staff attitude at Norwalk is very racer and spectator-friendly.

Oh yeah, those old, slow, hard-to-read scoreboards will also have to go.

Thanks Larry! I have never been to Norwalk, but folks I've talked with say it's a better track. Thanks for clearing that up.

 

[Sully]

Norwalk is a great track, it's just not (yet) an NHRA national-event oriented facility. It works for IHRA because their national events feature a lot more Sportsman cars than Pro cars and the IHRA Pro pit space requirements are a fraction of the NHRA traveling circus. Even with the current trend toward motorhomes or truck conversions and stackers, you can cram a lot more Sportsman cars in the same space.

I never have figured out who the sadist was who put race control atop the right-side stands - even the racers assume it's in the well-located tower across the track because they keep putting their dial-ins on the left side of the car. Matters little, the right-side windows are not visible from race control most of the time, making the computer operator's job more difficult. So one radio channel has to be devoted to calling up car numbers and dial-ins from the staging lanes.

The Pro staging lanes are two in number and not long enough to stack two sixteen-car fields nose-to-tail. There are more Sportsman staging lanes (eight, I think) but they are short and there's not much room for pairing cars. As long as they are running random-paired, that's not a big hurdle, but NHRA fields are tpically larger and are either laddered from qualifying or after round one. IHRA went to pairing after round two a couple years ago, so their fields are much smaller before they have to be paired.

About the only NHRA national event facilities with comparable limitations are Seattle and Reading, and Reading has a bunch of suites that Norwalk would need to build - somewhere. Not sure where, though, because the track is backed up to the road already, with just a pedestrian walkway behind the billboard.

Details, details - Columbus underwent a major redesign several years ago because it had many of the same shortcomings. Norwalk can be rebuilt - all it takes is money and time.

The bottom line may be the biggest hurdle - if NHRA moved the race from Columbus, where they keep everything, to Norwalk, where NRP would get a large chunk of the gate, I'm not sure the bean counters would come up with a positive balance in the deal.

Other than tweaking IHRA's nose and providing Billy Bader with a bargaining chip for his annual negotiations with IHRA, I'm not sure what benefits either side would get from the supposed "done deal."

I'm not saying it won't happen, but Bader is not going to give up his big payday unless NHRA promises an even bigger payday - in writing. If the deal happens, my suspicion is that it will be very different than everyone assumes and may not involve a national event at all.

 

[Toejam]

I've never Been to Norwalk or C-Bus, but have no desire to go to C-bus. I just remember seeing those Huge Stands at Norwalk is why I thought the track was suitable for a Natl. event. Larry Sullivan and Bob Orme see the part of these tracks us Bleacher Bums don't ever see or have to deal with.

As for Dean Skuza, I can't think of very many Pro racers coming back with Major backing after after being parked for 3 years. If they get something going, More power to them!

 

[BB]

I used to wish for Norwalk to go NHRA but I'm not so sure anymore. IHRA and Night Under Fire are great entertainment values. Especially since I have no travel expense.
Certainly, none of the obstacles that Larry mentions are insurmountable.