A LITTLE OF THIS, A LITTLE OF THAT
12/8/06
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his being December, what better time to clear out the debris of 2006, and take a quick look towards the coming 2007 drag racing season. The recently concluded year had its high points (and warts for that matter) and 2007 will probably hold much the same. Let's opine about the 2006 season first.
Much has been made lately of the Tony Schumacher Leaking Pass at Pomona. Almost everybody has been keen on throwing NHRA Chief Starter Rick Stewart under the proverbial bus, right before/after they do the same to Tony Schumacher and/or Alan Johnson. Looked at from the safe distance of hindsight, it all may have been merely a good look at what happens when big money and prestige are at stake.
Anybody who has been on a starting line has to know how confusing and tense a scene it can be. Should Tony have been shut off? Of course he should have been! Is it conceivable that all involved thought they were doing the right thing, given the circumstances in play at that particular moment? Of course it is!
All that aside, it should never happen again. No one need lose their job over it; NHRA just needs to review and enforce the existing rules and procedures, and then make sure Rick Stewart does what a Chief Starter is supposed to do. And that, dear friends, is to control the environment. Cars that are ready get the green light. Leakers get the throat-slash, no matter who they are. Stewart does just that, no more or less, and there is no better place to have a race car than on an NHRA starting line. May it be so in 2007.
A more recent development has the IHRA possibly (likely) dropping their Top Alcohol Funny Car eliminator in 2007. I guess the surprise would be anyone being surprised.
Immediately after IHRA announced they would be bringing back Nitro Funny Cars to their national event lineup, speculation on the future of the Alky Floppers started up. The usual reassuring platitudes were mouthed and, as 2007 approaches, the platitudes have not held up. It's kind of like when you read the sports pages and some team has just given its head coach the Vote Of Confidence. By now, you know that is code for "we are interviewing for his replacement." To be fair to IHRA, TA/FC can still be a part of the 2007 scene, if somebody comes up with the right amount of money. Any takers?
Some drag racing publications seem fixated on who isn't in the sport, as opposed to who is. I’m speaking of the tired, cliched puff pieces written about those racers who are supposedly "this close!" to returning to competition, contingent on signing that Big Sponsor. All kidding aside, if these racers were really dying to get back in the hunt, they would do so. Who among us wouldn't have a nitro dragster or funny car or whatever, if we could just find someone else to pay for it? My advice to those racers is to get the deal done, THEN talk about what you have to offer the sport. My advice to the "writers" who do these "stories"? Quit being an enabler, please!
I didn't see where Midwest nostalgia drag racing did enough in 2006 to be considered an emerging trend. With the exception of the Nostalgia Pro Comp Association, the action was pretty much hit-or-miss. Maybe it just isn't getting through to my eyeballs. I have an evil plan in place to change all this. My plan is to make all the nostalgia guys so mad they will pick up clubs (figuratively speaking) and make me and the rest of the drag racing world fully aware of every move they have planned for 2007. Being nice to them hasn't paid much of a dividend. Maybe a little vinegar will do the trick. Maybe I'll start calling them the Ghost Racers, or dinosaurs, or irrelevant. I'm waiting.
To balance the yin and yang of it all, let me recommend a nice racing series to y’all. I used to hold the Super Chevy series at arm's length, as it was mainly a show car venue. I have friends who love car shows, but I don't. These days, however, The Super Chevy Show has a strong bracket program and the increasingly popular Nitro Coupes. These cars put on a great show, to say the least. From my viewpoint, they provide a relief from the sameness that you see at NHRA and IHRA national events. The cars are different, the drivers more like the working man who buys the tickets. What's not to like? And the circuit itself is beginning to return to smaller venues like Kansas City International Raceway, whose fans will appreciate the chance to see a professional level show with fast, nitro burning cars and loads of great show cars to boot. See a Super Chevy Show soon! There may be one near you in 2007!
I have to admit I may have jumped the gun a bit in declaring the Little Guy nitro racer a dead dog. Just look at what happened in IHRA Nitro Funny Car action in 2006. Jack Wyatt won multiple events and finished second in points. The IHRA F/C points champ for 2006 is Dale Creasy, Jr. You just don't get any more "Little Guy" than those two racers! (By the way, Little Guy is not a pejorative in this usage. You know, a derogatory word.)
The IHRA in many ways remains the home of the independent pro racer, and that's a good thing. Years ago, my first editor, the late, great Steve Collison told me the NHRA national events were of little interest to him, as all the pros were the same, year after year. I thought he was crazy at he time, as I didn't see it that way. Now, I see what he meant. If nothing else, IHRA stands for a breath of fresh air, apart from what is available elsewhere. They aren't without their faults (think, TA/FC), but I am glad they are in the mix.
And that, folks, is it for 2006! It wasn't my best year, but 2007 will be here before you know it. Maybe before you are ready for it, even. Get to work, and get ready for the 2007 drag racing season. That's what I'm going to do. Later! 
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