A view of drag racing from inside my helmet

4/8/05

n my last column I mentioned that it was cold and the race season seemed a long way away. Well how time flies! They had a test and tune last weekend at the track 4 miles from my front door. Had to be a little “chilly” but it was sunny and I am sure those guys enjoyed the smell of racing gas in the air. Barb and I were in the middle of “down-sizing” our tow vehicle. We sold the diesel pusher we had enjoyed for three seasons because the overall maintenance and cost of diesel convinced us to go another way.

We located a Class C motorhome that will get about four more miles per gallon, cost about half as much to own and maintenance is a lot less expensive. I was paying for $149.00 oil changes in the diesel vs. the $17.95 I now pay for the gas coach, so I guess it fits me better to be back in a V-10 Ford and a Class C motorhome.

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Speaking of the cost of fuel and expenses, WHAT THE HECK IS GOING ON??? There are predictions of gas being near $3.00 per gallon this summer! Will these higher gas prices hurt attendance at national and regional races? Will the local tracks prosper because not as many racers will drop an extra $100.00 for fuel to go to a race 400 miles away when the local track is open? These are questions I have been asking myself for several months and probably longer.

I have decided that the most common tow for me will be the four miles to Cedar Falls Raceway. They are scheduling several two-day events with great payouts and Summit Points. We will probably make a couple holiday races at Eddyville Raceway Park, too. I don’t see towing 400 to 600 miles to go to an IHRA or NHRA points race for $800.00 to $1500 to win when it is $2000.00 to win each day at Cedar Falls.

I realize some racers don’t care what fuel costs are and are committed to trying to win a points race. I understand where they are coming from, but my guess is they are fast becoming a minority. I think local tracks, if they treat their racers / customers fairly, should see attendance grow steadily. Let’s face it, if this whole sport was about how cheap it is to race it wouldn’t exist. There are ways to make it more affordable and I think local track support will prove that.

Speaking of local tracks…. I mentioned last month that the local tracks I have been to have very easy tech inspections. For the past two seasons I have NEVER had my Competition License checked by a tech official. Of course I have one and if you have one you realize how much they cost with the physical, single runs, etc. I just think they should be checked as well as chassis inspection tags and the basic SFI approved equipment. You can make it easier on the tech inspector if you already have all the SFI items listed with numbers and expiration dates for them. It would also make the tech lines move quicker if they ever start inspecting the cars.

I got a lot of input from racers and on message boards about my opinion that cheating COULD be going on in No Box cars and Box cars because track owners and their underpaid tech guys don’t know what to look for. I also had a few track managers call and tell me they had some items and some ideas that will help keep the playing field level.