NHRA shortens track to 1000 ft for fuel cars

Wow - I find this to be strange...it's a good move vis-a-vis safety, but it's completely against the tradition. Drag racing is done on a 1/4 mile! 1/8 mile variants have never been as popular, and I think partially because it's too short.

This is a good, immediate safety measure. I'd still rather see reduction in HP - either boost changes (smaller superchargers) or smaller displacement engines. The racing was just as exciting at 270 mph as it is at 330 mph. Heck, it was better then since there weren't anywhere near the number of cancelled, tire smoking runs as there are now. You're lucky if 2 cars make it down the track side by side - 20 years ago, that was the norm.

Kudos to the NHRA for acting quickly, but let's hope this isn't the long term solution.

 

While this is a step in the right direction it still does nothing to address Blower/Engine explosions ,only one method of stopping ; Chutes ( please dont talk brakes ) and archaic driver protection of tube frames.
I agree most cant tell the difference between 250 and 300 Mph nor does it matter. Its the show and competition that matters.
Carbon fibre is expensive but rebuilding the engine after every run is more so.
NHRA etc. gets to choose where to spend the bucks.
Coffins are cheapest of all.

 

Agreed - NHRA needs to force teams to change. John Force, as a senior racer and one that has the respect of his co-drivers should be more forceful about effecting change - you know it's hurting him.

This is an interim step - not long term. In time, they'll have speeds at 1000 ft. close to or exceeding what they are at 1320 ft, so they'll be back to square one.

 

Stupid, just stupid.

Shorten the track?


So +-200 feet would have saved SK? Riiiight.

This is nothing but a "cover your ass" rule change thought up by some blood sucking attorneys who are trying to limit the exposure of the NHRA.

It does nothing but ruin the essence of 1/4 mile drag racing.

What should be done is the NHRA should further regulate track design to accommodate faster cars. Just like other forms of racing do.

If a track doesn't have the means or space to do it...tough crap, move the event.


Also, why does it always take someone dieing/seriously hurt for a sanctioning body to make changes?

 

Stupid. 1320 or go home. Fix the issue at hand.

 

Sounds like they are just putting a Band-Aid on the problem till they can look further into better safety measures. I think it's dumb though. I'd rather see slower races than a shorter track.

This is like baseball making the bats 1/3 shorter because a fan was hit in the head and killed by a homerun ball. So MLB makes the bat 1/3 shorter so balls can't be hit out of the park very easy. It's messing with tradition, which ruins the sport.

 

Back in the 60's they banned the use of nitromethane for a few years to slow the cars down. After just a short period of time they okayed the use again to make the racing more exciting again. Just gas was not getting the job done. If they are going to shorten to 1000 feet, why not just go ahead and run 1/8 mile races. 880 feet. They run them all the time at Texas Raceway in Kennedale, Texas and the racing is pretty exciting, especially when they bring out the pro-mods. These door slammers hit 180 in 3.8 seconds on gas with a supercharger or nitrous with fuel injection.

And Texas Raceway was started by the previous owner of Green Valley Raceway in Texas, "Mr. Bardahl", Bill Heilscher. Bill knew quite a lot about both forms of drag racing and picked the 1/8 due to space constrictions and safety. Bill died a few years ago and we miss him.

http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://bp2.blogger.com/_5apJj1h72Ls/R5Jl87jvCeI/AAAAAAAAAjM/YrYYkqtwHQE/s400/green%2Bvalley.jpg&imgrefurl=http://hechointexas.blogspot.com/2008/01/green-valley-raceway.html&h=238&w=400&sz=39&hl=en&start=2&tbnid=BeVQ9WM2y5T8sM:&tbnh=74&tbnw=124&prev=/images%3Fq%3DBill%2BHeilscher%2BMr.%2BBardahl%26gbv%3D2%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-USfficial%26sa%3DG

1. Aerial view of Texas Raceway 1/8 mile dragstrip
2. Gene Hector pro-mod vette
3. Gene Hector at Texas Raceway ran 3.84/182 mph in 1/8 on gas.
4. Texas Raceway pro-mod
5. Another Texas Raceway Pro-mod
6. Texas Raceway altered
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No offense, I think those Nitro Coupes on a 1/8 mile are cool and all, but it's not the same as 1/4 mile racing. As a traditionalist, changing the distance isn't the way to go IMHO.

Lengthen runoff areas, slow the cars down (lower displacement and or throttle back the nitro mix (less than 90%?) and mandate better in-car safety ala the NASCAR COT or F1.

 

Don't get why the chutes rigging shrouds etc aren't fireproof and auto-release over-riden at the line in this time of materials advance and telemetry.

A levy for the R&D if needed seems a no-brainer.

 

By having the race engines run a shorter distance the racers are using less nitro fuel. There is a possible shortage of nitro coming along in the near future just before the Indy Nationals due to the Olympic Games.
Don Schumacher was fined $100,000 by NHRA for having his own nitro in his pits. The nitro was to be used for testing, not racing but had not come from the official NHRA supplier of nitro. The official supplier is trying to buy more nitro where ever he can, due to a possible shortage...
NHRA is not even competent enough to groom the track properly so that both lanes offer equal traction at their race events.
CH

 

Couldn't have said it better myself.

 

I raced nothing but 1/4 for years. I believe a lot can change between the 1/8 to 1/4 length. I agree with the R&D being needed to improve safety but if it means we may lose the 1/4 races, I propose the 1/8 not 1000 feet. I remember years ago when NHRA banned nitro altogether. It only last a short time before nitro came back in. Maximizing hp allowance, cubic inches or % of nitro used could help slow the cars down temporarily but real racers will find new advances and technology that will bring the et's back down and speeds back up.

 

It doesn't help when you have a WALL at the end of the track.

And, they could have catch-netting just as they do on aircraft carriers they raise when
a damaged jet is attempting to land...

 

just curious - what do the Olympics have to do with a Nitro shortage?
kevin

 

John Force has felt the loss of a driver, Eric Melden. His shop in Indy has a room devoted to Eric. He's concenred with safety.

Top Fuel = strap yourself to a freaking rocket and go like hell for 1/4 mile and just hang on. Those guys and gals are better than rock stars. 1/8 mile is too short. Period.


EDIT: not to sound callous...I lost my grandfather to a racing accident. Racing is dangerous, but would rather do that than drive to the grocery store.

 

Modern fuel dragsters are running approximately 275 MPH in 3 seconds at 1/8 mile, assuming all goes well.

Most catastrophic engine explosions are in the last 320 feet. Head gaskets leak-by, cylinders cross-fire,
engine goes lean and blows the blower off, or kicks the rods out. Mucho fire and $$$$.

When NHRA re-introduced fuel(nitro) in 1960, engines were briefly limited to 5 liters (305 cu. in.)
I was at Lions Drag Strip when Schrank Bros. ran 188 MPH with a 276cu. in. blown fuel DeSoto, twice.
Mickey Thompson was track Manager and saw the futility of the engine limit, since Garlits and "Greek"
were only running low-mid 190's with 392 Chryslers. The big engines were back in two weeks.

Longer tracks, much better safety for the drivers, and better braking systems are needed. All cost
a lot of money for racers, sponsors and promotors etc. Professional drag racing, along with several
other forms of motorsport, is in serious financial trouble. The costs have simply outpaced the ticket
profit and available sponsor revenue. Even NASCAR is headed that way and the COT is a way to at least
try to hold some of the expense down. Same with F-1 and running a single engine for two races.

I love nitro, loud noises, V-12 engines (Ferrari & Rolls-Royce Merlins) and most forms of racing. Maybe
a Band-Aid is best until a premanent solution is hatched.

 

sorry to SK get hurt,

 

Next they will change the norm of 0-60 times to 0-30 times. Its all a cop out. in 2010 all drag racing will be done in a penny Arcade.

 

China is home to the 2008 Olympics. Air pollution is a huge problem in China so the manufacture of nitro fuel along with many other things in factories will be shut down until after the Olympics. All this as a way to help clean up the very bad air quality situation there.
Also the problems with the shipment of nitro during the Olympic period when any 'incident' would reflect badly on the host country could contribute to a potential fuel shortage for racing.
CH