LOOKING AT 10-WIDE
Here's an outsider's view on the ten wide deal. I've had the privilege to work/announce/run a few Outlaw 10.5 races here in Texas. Clearly the attraction is the appreciation of what these guys do on the “small tires”...not to mention the wild runs the small tires create.
Sure they have some ties to “street legal”...that has appeal to that market. However, the racers and decision makers in this class need to realize that overall performance is NOT the selling point for these cars. There needs to remain a clear distinction between an Outlaw 10.5 car and a Pro Mod. The closer they become, the more, in my opinion fans will opt to go see other types of cars such as Pro Mods. So, if they keep allowing bigger and bigger tires, pretty soon, you have a bunch of slow Pro Mods instead of wild ten wide machines.
Rewind back a few years ago when the NMCA created the Outlaw Street class. I don't remember the rules, but it was kind of anything goes on DOT legal tires. At the time, the best DOT tire still had quite a bit of tread...like the big Mickey's and Hoosiers. The cars were absolutely wild. Then came along the new DOT-legal slicks that weren't much more than a slick with a couple of grooves in it. Sure performances increased drastically, cars were more consistent. I really can't tell you what happened to the class after that because I quit paying attention to it. I don't think I was alone.
Opening the doors to bigger tires will be the beginning of the end for the Outlaw 10.5 world.
Another thing working against that class is cost. This goes hand and hand with tire. The more tire you have, the more power you can hook up, and mo' power cost mo' money. Granted chassis improvements will allow you to hook up better, but that's a much slower curve than the biggest tire of the week. I think the bigger tire definitely gives budget a bigger advantage.
Watching the rapid growth over the past few years of this class, along with the huge purse increases, I've mentioned to several people that if they aren't careful they will price themselves out of a class. While it would be nice to have a class with payouts that you can “make money” almost always in heads up drag racing, the bar is always above the payout. Tire size was a great limiter on budget.
Of course the racers want bigger tires. Every racer, including myself, wants to go faster. Without rules and enforcement, racers WILL get bigger tires. While some damage has already been done, it's not too late to hit the brakes over the off season and tighten down on tire rules. In my opinion they should actually go smaller than what's out there right now.
While I'm on my 10.5" soap box that really measures 12", I think racers like Tony Johnson are showing the future of 10.5 racing. Screw blowers on alcohol. You can make more hp for half the money the nitrous guys are spending. You should be able to make all the power you want, run the motor fat and happy for a lot less hassle and expense than the 900 cid fifteen-stage nitrous motors can.
That's just my take from the outside. I'll go back to my happy little alcohol/comp world.
Will Hanna