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Tightening up a few loose ends
10/9/06
 Photo by Ian Tocher |
I’m fairly sure that there will be a Pro Mod program on the NHRA circuit next season. My sources indicate that there is a core group of racers and team owners that couldn’t care less about TV or PR or sponsorship, but are seriously addicted to racing at NHRA venues in front of NHRA crowds. I don’t have any real proof yet, but my gut tells me that a group led by Jeff Lynn from AMS, Brad Anderson, Mike Ashley, and a few wealthy car owners will come up with the funding to keep the series alive.
That’s a good thing for Pro Modified and those racers who follow the NHRA series. It makes sense for Brad Anderson because he sells a lot of engines and parts to Pro Mod racers and both his son-in-law and daughter have Pro Mods. As for the rest, they get the old Burkster’s Pro Mod philanthropy award ‘cause they can’t be supporting that series for any monetary reason. My hat is off to all those guys for putting their money where their hearts are. They are racers and fans to their core.
Remember when Pro Modified was this close to being both an NHRA and IHRA professional class with a uniform set of rules and major financial backing? Not anymore, the Pro Mod community has more splinter groups than the University of California has campuses. The rules vary at almost every track and sanctioning body. We’ve got Outlaws with no rules, Outlaws with safety rules, IHRA rules, NHRA rules, and only God knows how many more sets of rules and sanctioning bodies. As a result the purses for Pro Mod racing are pitiful relative to those offered for ten-wide and Pro Street, and the racers and promoters have only themselves to blame.
The news that IHRA tracks like Great Lakes Dragaway, Eddyville, and Cordova, not to mention Norwalk, are all switching over to National Hot Rod Association sanctioning can’t be good news for IHRA sportsman racers. The IHRA seemingly spends most of their efforts promoting their eMax Nitro Jam extravaganza and, while the track owners covet the money generated by the back gate, the parent company of IHRA which also promotes Monster truck races and moto-cross has a track record of making sure their shows are 2.5 hours of non-stop action. And sportsman racing would fit into this how? On the other hand, the NHRA has a long-term sportsman sponsor (Lucas Oil) and are very actively promoting their sportsman program including three “national events” for sportsman racers only.
I have supported the NHRA new “Chase” points championship for the most part, but imagine what is going to happen to the NHRA “Chase” if they have a lot of weather delays next year like they are having this year. Or worse, what if the points leader with six races to go has a bad crash and can’t race?
I’ve been thinking recently about the nostalgia Top Fuel and Funny Car guys. First I’ve heard some wailing and hand-wringing over the possibility, with the potential demise of the VRA and the departure of the Goodguys, that suddenly the SoCal racers that dominate Top Fuel will start changing the rules and allow better blowers, bigger tires, bigger fuel pumps, etc. I say, so what?
There’s nothing Nostalgic about the current VRA Top Fuel car other than the engine location. In their current form they are just slow Top Fuel cars. I say those cars are already too expensive to run, so at least make them marketable. Give them wide tires, big pumps, big blowers and flames 15 feet high. At least make them able to go as fast as an injected nitro A/FD, and then maybe they will get more bookings. The horse is out of the barn for this class. There is nothing nostalgic or economy about them and they are slow to boot. As for the Funny Car guys, they have one chance to save themselves from themselves and lock in the current rules for at least three years or be prepared to go down the same road the Nostalgia(?) T/F cars have.
Just as you don’t have to go to Yankee stadium to see great baseball, this year I’ve learned for sure that lovers of drag racing, nitro and close competition don’t have to limit themselves to the so-called national event races. In recent times I’ve seen great races with packed houses and fair ticket prices. Just a few I want to mention are the World Series at Cordova Dragway, Dragstock III at Rockingham, Thursday at the U.S. Nationals, the World Street Nationals in Orlando, the Sand Drags at Kansas City, Ron Leek’s Wheelstand Nationals at Rockford, IL, and George Ray’s Outlaw Wildcat Dragway in Paragould, Arkansas, just to name a few. There are more. A couple on my list to visit include any track in Australia, England and Scandinavia. Drag racing is alive and healthy -- you just have to be willing to think out of the box.
I’ve forgotten until recently how much I like going out in my garage, with a cold one, a bag of pretzels, turning the radio on to a station with a ball game, a race or the local college station (NO NEWS) and just tinker on El Camino Nitrouso, my ’67 big block Chevy. I swear that is the only thing keeping me sane these days. I just wish the guy I bought the car from hadn’t worked on the wiring under the dash using a chainsaw!
I know it’s coming I just don’t know when. The rules in the ADRL allow for a blown Pro Mod to run ANY percentage of nitro they want. As that series continues to grow, someone is going to put together a serious effort with one of these cars. I’ll pay whatever the ticket is to see left-hand steer, suspended cars with 80 percent in the tank and flames over the roof. Then we’ll see the ultimate Outlaw doorslammer.
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