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5/7/04
A busy month for
a lot of racers ...
And Are Test
and Tunes the
future of our sport?
 
knew I had to sit down and do this column, but
with so many things to do, I just couldn’t
get to it. Then I was looking at local track
schedules and chased around on the Internet
for a while and I DID NOT like what I was finding.
I noticed there was as much, if not more excitement
surrounding Test and Tunes and Street Legal
Drags as there was about “real drag racing”.
Maybe this is where I have a problem. To me,
now this is just my opinion, Street Legal Drags,
Test and Tune events basically suck. Most participants
never come back for regular races and never
really hone their skills at the “sport
of drag racing”. Of course it is their
choice to do it but it could spell the end of
the so-called “regular Bracket Racing Event”
that we have become accustomed to.
Track owners love these types of events. Lots
of cars enter and a lot of people come to watch.
They flat-out make money with little or no overhead
and no complaints from participants about traction,
roll-out, burn-out box being too wet, not being
wet enough, why did that guy get the bye-run,
etc. These events are the “new survival
medicine” for more tracks than we might
want to admit. I guess what bothers me about
it is these racers do really get technical about
the competition. They focus in one the performance
or appearance. It is a new breed and they are
out there in big numbers, a track would be a
fool to overlook this cash cow.
I have stayed hooked to drag racing for so
long because of one thing – competition.
I like lining up against someone, seeing who
was best that run and win or lose, try to get
over and shake his or her hand and hope we get
to do it again real soon. Of course the building,
the technical stuff is fun, but it is the competition
that has always been the attraction to me. Electronics
or no electronics I don’t care anymore.
I have a car for both classes and enjoy the
heck out of both as long as I am racing. Time
trials are a waste of fuel for me but are a
necessary thing to appease the masses.
The busiest time of the
year:
When I owned and managed drag strips I always
found that April was the busiest and most hectic
month of the year. Now that I have to get two
race cars prepped, a trailer ready, and the
motor home ready, I think it has gotten even
busier! I really thought it might be more relaxing
without the drag strips to worry about, guess
not.
I know a lot of you that read this column actually
race and can relate to getting race cars ready,
trailers, spare parts, etc. If you don’t
race but would like to do so … be ready
to spend a lot of time away from the TV screen
and the local tavern. It is a hell of a lot
easier to talk about going racing than it is
to actually do it, believe me. I know when I
get an e-mail if the person writing it races
or not because if I get it in April or May,
he or she is likely not a “real racer”
as we don’t have time for much else but
racing and family.
The COSTS are crazy!!!
Well that’s enough about the time it takes.
Now how about some opinions on the COST to go
racing …WOW! I just filled the tank in
the motor home and it cost $176.00. Now remind
me why I was complaining this winter because
the local track raised their entry fees $5.00!
They are dumping $1.81 regular into the mowers,
weed-eaters and track blowers. I am putting
$7.50 per gallon race gas in my dragster.
**Another interesting note here is I bitched
about the cost of fuel and entry fees but I
still spend $1.49 for 16 ounces of bottled water.
That nets out to about $11.92 per gallon! Then
there is Mountain Dew, Beer and other liquid
items that make fuel seem cheap. Okay, my wife
has been right for the last 30 years –
“there is something inherently wrong with
drag racer’s math.” I guess she was
right.
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