Terry Haddock Speaks On Testing Issue

[Bobby Bennett]

Drag Racing Internet Magazine - Competition Plus.com - HADDOCK: FOLLOWING TESTING RULES HURT ME

 

[Bowtie]

“This sure takes a lot of integrity away from the sport when the heroes get all the television time and now the heroes get to dictate the rules. Or, adjust them as need be.”

I don't think you can add much more to this!

 

[rollingthunder]

hey like was pointed out in the other thread. about. he should have asked for special clarification one on one with Light. Then he could be doing the same thing as force.

 

[J]

Yea this whole deal sucks,NHRA has to many rules that they catn keep track of,maybe some1 needs replaced!!!!

 

[my friends call me Zappy]

THE NHRA TESTING BAN IS WRONG. NHRA rules should only apply to Natl. events, period. What a team / car / or driver do during the week or on off weekends are none of nhra's concern.

These people have a right to make a living elsewhere, wheather its the IHRA or the county fair, doesn't mater.

Haddock was screwed.

 

[RacerRose]

THE NHRA TESTING BAN IS WRONG. NHRA rules should only apply to Natl. events, period. What a team / car / or driver do during the week or on off weekends are none of nhra's concern.

These people have a right to make a living elsewhere, wheather its the IHRA or the county fair, doesn't mater.

Haddock was screwed.

I fully agree. NHRA makes it seem as if the nitro teams are exclusive to race with NHRA only, and only at NHRA tracks. What if a team matched race 8 to 10 times a year, then decided to run a national event. Would they be considered to have tested that many times, and not allowed to earn points?

 

[my friends call me Zappy]

Thats right Brett. NHRA thinks they own the teams and can dicktate what they can & can't do.
Next they will tell the teams, " If you run an IHRA event you have to shut off at 1,000ft"

 

[mick]

terry presents a good argument.
vague interpretation of a poorly written rule;
first as a multiple series participant (terry) competes in IHRA and NHRA,
now as JFR asks for and receives a favorable ruling for r. hight test.

 

[Rajunz]

In hindsight, NHRA played by these exact same rules back when Haddock's dragster got docked. They docked the car and team, NOT the driver, he was indeed allowed to earn points in a different car. Haddock should have asked for a clarification just as Force did, then we wouldn't be having any of these discussions.

 

[my friends call me Zappy]

One point here: When the dragster got docked, he didn't just compete in a different car....he competed in a different class.

 

[Suzanne]

Maybe someday, all the players will walk away and go race IHRA, and leave the NHRA with no way to pay the bills, what goes around, comes around.

 

[Bullard Anderson]

The NHRA shouldn't be able to dictate where you race. Somebody for the love of A.J Foyt, Dan Gurney, Mickey Thompson, and Robby Gordon (all versatile racers) PLEASE challenge this rule.

Clarification? Everyone involved with the NHRA and it's fans knew what the rule meant when it was handed down in black and white. It wasn't a point of clarification by John Force, it was a question of "hey, chief! Can I get around this."

Lesson to Mr. Light, if it requires another page to get across your rule in a press release, please take the expense.

But in this case I think the rule was clear and precise enough until someone asked the difference. Who is that someone, and how can it help?? Does that matter??

A rule that was very understood by all including JFR until the need arose to see about getting around it.

 

[Rajunz]

One point here: When the dragster got docked, he didn't just compete in a different car....he competed in a different class.

Doesn't matter, when Densham got docked, it was Haddock's funny car that got docked, not the driver. Gary could have raced his own car that weekend and gotten points. Everyone here loves beating down the NHRA, but the reality of it is that they have played consistantly on this rule, no one sought a clarification of the rule except for Force.

Haddock's doing a whole lot of crying in that story, he DID NOT loose 120 points by missing St. Louis, maybe in his fantasy world. Had he seriously been chasing a Top Fuel playoff spot in the Countdown, he would not have run that car more than 4 days, period.

 

[turbo ken]

The old adage of it's better to ask for forgiveness than for permission doesn't apply to the NHRA.

 

[my friends call me Zappy]

Maybe someday, all the players will walk away and go race IHRA, and leave the NHRA with no way to pay the bills, what goes around, comes around.

I hope yer right Suzanne. Someday the racers will see that they (the racers) are the show, not nhra.

 

[Dave]

Terry makes some valid points. I did not know he was docked points by NHRA. This testing rule has got to be the dumbest sh*t these clowns have come up with yet. As I said in another post, NHRA doesn't understand their own rules. They took points from Haddock's Dragster and Funny Car at different events and nobody really knows why.

This kinda sounds like similar to one of the big b*tches about the HD Partners thing when they were going to buy NHRA. If you will recall, they wanted to make each driver and team essentally NHRA/HD's property. The b*tch was that the drivers and teams didn't want NHRA dictating when and where they could run their cars. I think Jim Head said something like "NHRA doesn't own me or my car". In my opinion, this testing rule puts NHRA in control of these human beings. I know they are pretty much the only game in town, but who the hell do they think they are?

This rule was supposedly installed to keep costs down and because of a Nitro shortage. Haven't heard too much about the Nitro shortage lately, have we? As far as keeping costs down, what a joke. When these teams go back to Duallies and Chapparel's, I'll believe they are trying to keep costs down.

Now that this testing rules have been completely screwed up by NHRA, the only fair thing to do is to eliminate it all together, give Haddock his points back, and let Force or Schumacher or anybody else test as much as they want.

I believe the sport of Drag Racing is becoming a real joke. With the future of IHRA up in the air and the fact that there really isn't anywhere else to race, NHRA has control of the sport...as long as people allow it. The NHRA has a monopoly going right now and I don't think it's fair. I must admit I was never the biggest Wally Parks fan, but it sure seems like since Wally tipped over, NHRA has gone completely nuts.

Somebody please help us!!!

Dave

 

[J]

In hindsight, NHRA played by these exact same rules back when Haddock's dragster got docked. They docked the car and team, NOT the driver, he was indeed allowed to earn points in a different car. Haddock should have asked for a clarification just as Force did, then we wouldn't be having any of these discussions.

Shouldnt have to ask for a clarification,shouldnt be this confusing.

 

[Rajunz]

Shouldnt have to ask for a clarification,shouldnt be this confusing.

I definitely have to agree with that statement Jeremy. The rule (all rules) should have been written so that there is absolutely no gray area, that was a huge screw up on their part.

 

[luxexpress]

One problem with the rule, in the first place, was that it ignored that some teams actually survive on racing their cars, not sponsor dollars. Making them chose between match races, IHRA races, and getting points in the NHRA series, to me, was wrong. These non NHRA events are very different from a official test session where they have the track to themselves and make multiple hits at their pace. IF DSR or JFR decided to run more match races to circumvent this so be it. More exposure to the NHRA and its drivers. I really doubt it would have given them a big advantage or they would have done it in the past.

 

[Bowtie]

one problem with the rule, in the first place, was that it ignored that some teams actually survive on racing their cars, not sponsor dollars. Making them chose between match races, ihra races, and getting points in the nhra series, to me, was wrong. These non nhra events are very different from a official test session where they have the track to themselves and make multiple hits at their pace. If dsr or jfr decided to run more match races to circumvent this so be it. More exposure to the nhra and its drivers. I really doubt it would have given them a big advantage or they would have done it in the past.

ding ding ding winner winner chicken dinner!!!! pretty soon even the sportsmans will be limited to testing and racing if they keep this up!