Is drag racing tougher now than 10-20 years ago?

4 Responses to Is drag racing tougher now than 10-20 years ago?

1. Roger says:

   Monday, December 28, 2009 at 2:29 am

   This opens a very interesting subject!

   Much depends on what bracket you race in. In the Super Categories where everyone has air shifters, delay boxes, two-steps, weather stations and data storage, I would say, yes, the margin for error is much less than years back.

   In the fuel categories with the clutch management systems, the costs are probably the major consideration. But the clutch management systems and computers make it easier to get a car down the track – or should at least.

   There is no doubt that the equipment today is much better than years back making it possible for anyone to win on any given day in any bracket. The quality of the cars and equipment today is certainly more competitive today than years ago. Even in Pro Bracket the two-steps & trans brakes have narrowed the gap between cars.

   Personally, I would think the playing field in Pro Bracket would be much more level if trans brakes were not allowed. This would open the door for those who foot brake and run sticks!

   Ok trans brake guys, beat me up! 😉

   Thanks for opening this post Paul.
2. Roger says:

   Monday, December 28, 2009 at 6:21 pm

   I’d like to add another wrinkle to this thread. The advent of electronic ignition – particularly the magnetic pickup which replaced the old points – greatly increased consistency.

   Until the magnetic pickup the distributor was constant maintenance. For high rpm engines in particular. Point tension needed to be checked to increase the rpm capability of the point distributor and reduce point bounce and float. Dual points with the timing of the individual point openings staggered 6-degrees helped increase coil saturation and spark output by increasing the dwell time seen by the primary side of the coil.

   But the high point tension quickly wore the point rubbing block(s). As the rubbing block(s) wore the dwell increased which retarded the ignition timing. To be consistent you were required to check and adjust your ignition timing every couple of runs. And points needed to be changed and adjusted usually after every weekend of racing.

   Same goes for the high maintenance in the valve train. Rocker arms, valve springs and pushrods often needed replacement at the track.

   So in that vain, it was tougher years ago to be consistent. The advent of the modern electronic ignitions and vastly improved engine components, clutches and torque converters have made many of those headaches far less frequent.

   For me driving a stick, the two-step rev limiter has certainly made it easier to concentrate on the Christmas tree. There was a time when you had to focus one eye on the tach and the other on the lights coming down.

   So, was it tougher back then or today? The debate will certainly continue! 😉
3. Chris Young says:

   Tuesday, December 29, 2009 at 12:19 pm

   IF YOUR TALKING BRACKET RACING I WOULD SAY NOW IT’S HARDER. YOU CAN GET MUCH BETTER PARTS AND PRETTY MUCH EVERY CAR IS WELL PREPARED NOW, BUT IT MUST HAVE BEEN VERY DIFFICULT TO RUN A MP CAR BACK IN THE DAY BECAUSE YOU WHERE TRYING TO GO FAST W/JUNK FACTORY PARTS AND NO TWO STEPS AND A CRAPPY NON ADJUSTABLE CLUTCH. I KNOW ONE THING IS FOR SURE, YOU HAD TO BE A MUCH BETTER WRENCH IN THE OLD DAYS! THOSE CARS BLEW UP EVERY OTHER WEEKEND AND YOU COULDN’T BUY A COMBO OVER THE PHONE LIKE TODAY!
4. Roger says:

   Tuesday, December 29, 2009 at 1:06 pm

   Chris is right about you needing to be a mechanic in the old days. Today I believe the drivers are very, very competitive!

   It wasn’t that many years ago we needed to replace those old rag clutch disc every 15 runs! You could tell when they were about to fail, the car would run a great number due to just the right amount of slippage and would often smoke on the next pass!

   Oh, the ‘good old days’ when we spent more time working on the car than racing it 😉

   I’m sure Chris also remembers when we used to take an extra set of pushrods, rockers and valve springs out with us each race. Thankfully the parts have vastly improved.

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