‘Tis the Season to Consider Some Changes, Right?
11/8/07
For most of the country the race season is winding down. I’m jealous of you guys in the Southeastern part of the country as you have about 15 Big Buck bracket races to choose from in November. The NHRA and IHRA World Finals are over; the championships have been determined. NOW WHAT?
- Should we expect to see sweeping changes in the NHRA with HD Partners taking over?
- Will IHRA actually be the first national sanctioning body to “see the light” and run some national events on the 1/8th mile in the interest of safety?
- Will local bracket racing thrive in some regions and fade into obscurity in others?
- Will the sportsman division of NHRA see changes when it comes to national events?
- Will the cost of gasoline (today it is $3.09 in Iowa) or diesel (today it is $3.30 in Iowa) have an effect on local or regional racing?
That’s enough questions for me this month. I will give you my opinions and I hope you take the time to ponder these “basic questions” and send us your reply or opinion.
Should we expect to see sweeping changes in the NHRA with HD Partners taking over?
It is my opinion this has been one of the most “kept under wraps” sales in history. HD Partners’ purchase could change the entire professional and sportsman landscape. Will it? That is the question. If I were a professional team owner I could probably answer this question. We have many team owners that read this magazine and this column as well as NHRA officials. Will they respond? That is another good question isn’t it?
I think HD Partners will sit pretty tight for 2008. Their biggest concern has to be the nitro teams. Expenses to be competitive are out of hand. Only a couple teams really compete. The other teams make some money collecting qualifying and round money but that’s about it.
ADVERTISEMENT
The professional “show” takes way too long, is burdened with tracks that have only one lane that “works,” giving the higher qualified cars an even better chance of winning. (Note: this could be at least temporarily fixed by flipping for lane choice before each run. At least the low budget teams would have a better chance.) In the end, I DO NOT think you will see sweeping changes, yet!
Will IHRA actually “see the light” and run more national events on the 1/8th mile in the interest of safety?
I hope so! I know they did it last year because of track conditions and I think they got a taste of the crowd liking it, the racers liking it and the “show” was not affected by it. Tire issues are putting our favorite drivers at more risk than they should have to endure. Speeds are exceeding the ability of safety equipment to protect our drivers and SFI seems afraid to stand up to NHRA or IHRA and recommend sweeping changes to chassis specs. I am sure part of this is because they are not funded properly. The NHRA and IHRA should fund an independent lab to not just test parts and issue stickers but to engineer improvements for safety. NASCAR does just this with their C.O.T., soft walls, air flaps, etc, etc.
Until then, I hope IHRA has the integrity to run national events on the 1/8th mile. They have already announced their season opener at San Antonio is 1/8th mile, and have hinted at more to come. They will have a smoother event, fans can actually see the finish line and it is SAFER.
