F.a.s.t. MIR

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Scampin

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It's that time of year to go and chase the numbers at Mopar Eastern Classis @ MIR. Oct 22-23.

I plan on taking the Duster out and see if I can't better the number some. Getting the car ready to go which means it is all apart again... Bunch of little changes that probably won't add up to much but the car showed me some good numbers last time out that has me hopeful for better numbers in good air. It went 10.91@123 in 3700ft air and a so so track. Hoping for some mineshaft air!!

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Look for my swinger in the show area...first time out. I will also be selling parts this year, have a bunch of stuff ready to load up.
Good luck with the car. Hoping the weather will cooperate this year.
 
WOW...on polyglass rubber? That's hauling *** !!!
 
You should have wasted your time at New England Dragway with us today. Apparently there is a new tire depth standard there other than 1/16”. A standard that is so complex it could not be explained. Tech bounced Shawn for not enough tread on this tire. Approached the track manager who went to the tech guy to understand what was “illegal”. After a long discussion he came back to us and I asked him to look at and explain how that tire did not meet the standard. He refused, wasn’t looking for a reversal, just an explanation. They lost the whole group. You can’t promote a race pulling drivers from over 500 miles away and have that happen. No future at New England Dragway. They will not get anymore if my $$

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I heard about that. I would not have done well in that situation. It's amazing how much damage can be done by one hurt ego..

Hope you are planning to run at MIR? They usually treat us good down there.
 
So they didn’t say what the spec is and what the tire measured at? That’s pretty bad. They don’t realize what this will cost them in the end. Kim
 
No, the tech guy just keep saying it was worn to far. Knowing that car, I got down on the ground and looked. It was not into the wear bars. When we got to the tower, we were absolutely respectful and calm. The first thing the track manager said was he wasn’t going to reverse the tech person. Ok, I understand it is difficult to correct the actions of an employee who is not acting correctly, but that is part of the job. I explained to him that the tire was legal. He said he wasn’t a tech. I told him it is 1/16” of tread depth. We told him that the class came to the track because a similar class bailed at the last minute leaving them in the lurch That we appreciated the facility and the hard work they do in prepping the track and that it was very unfortunate that his failure to respond was going to destroy what could have been pretty beneficial relationship for the track and the class. Also, unlike the class that bailed, we could easily put 15-20 cars at the track with more that 2 days notice. We left the tower and he caught as a the bottom of the stairs and said he was going over and “find out what happened” he restated he was not going to overrule the tech. He spoke to the tech for 10 mins and came over to us. I asked if he now understood what happened. He said yes, I asked him to look at the car he said “oh yeah its beautiful” I said no, the tire. He refused to look. I told him the tire spec is not rocket science. You have a tire gauge you use it. You don’t, wear bar is the standard. 1/16”. He again refused to look. I told him that I believed his refusal to look at the tire was because if he did, he also could not justify what the tech did. He shrugged. I have had techs say some incredibly wrong things, but I have always been able to respectfully question the statements and get it clarified. No harm no foul. The total lack of managements addressing our concerns is unacceptable. About a year ago I personally saw a tech fly up on a golf cart hop out and scream at a racer for going to fast at New England Dragway. To be clear, the tech has a job to do and the racer went to fast. He was told to slow down, he did, but was still 1-2 tenths quick. That tech would be gone if it were my business. There is never a reason to yell or scream at a customer of your business. You are taking the situation personally when it isn’t personal. You calmly say, “sorry, I have to park you, you went quicker than allowed after being warned to slow down”. The tech and management are killing that track.
 
This^^^^ should be e-mailed to the track owner just as you have written it. We have too few tracks now to lose another to lack of business due to poor management.
 
Rhett, I would make sure I emailed the track a few times next season with some reports of events you attended at other facilities, stating....... how you would have liked to have had the event at NED, but they made it clear that your class wasn’t welcome there.

Then, at the end of the season, a compilation list of all the tracks you raced at where the tech officials had no issues with your tires.
 
Some ppl with a bit of authority let it go to their head. It doesn’t matter if their wrong they are still right. I had a few run ins with a certain tech. The track manager cleared them up right away. Kim
 
To not give a reason behind the decision is just stupid . How will you know how to conform next time ?
 
You should have wasted your time at New England Dragway with us today. Apparently there is a new tire depth standard there other than 1/16”. A standard that is so complex it could not be explained. Tech bounced Shawn for not enough tread on this tire. Approached the track manager who went to the tech guy to understand what was “illegal”. After a long discussion he came back to us and I asked him to look at and explain how that tire did not meet the standard. He refused, wasn’t looking for a reversal, just an explanation. They lost the whole group. You can’t promote a race pulling drivers from over 500 miles away and have that happen. No future at New England Dragway. They will not get anymore if my $$

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What rear end is in that car?
 
That one is a dana, he doesn’t need one, but he had it in the car back in the day. Same with the leaf springs. The car is way over sprung, but it’s a street car and it is what was in the car from when he built it the first time in the 80’s. He just sold a pretty serious effort max wedge polara that had run 10.99. He’s tired of dedicated race cars, the polara could be needy. He re-did the Bee with the idea you tow it home and leave it in the trailer until the next race.
 
You should have wasted your time at New England Dragway with us today. Apparently there is a new tire depth standard there other than 1/16”. A standard that is so complex it could not be explained. Tech bounced Shawn for not enough tread on this tire. Approached the track manager who went to the tech guy to understand what was “illegal”. After a long discussion he came back to us and I asked him to look at and explain how that tire did not meet the standard. He refused, wasn’t looking for a reversal, just an explanation. They lost the whole group. You can’t promote a race pulling drivers from over 500 miles away and have that happen. No future at New England Dragway. They will not get anymore if my $$

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Dude, I'm with you 1 million %
It's bad enough that people have NO PHREAKING IDEA how one can get a stock looking, stock tire 340 to run in the 12s yet you guys are going on the 10s and a few (big block) are closer to 140 mph mid 9s ... They should just thank you for making that journey(500 miles) then trying to split fat from a fly
Wish you all the best !
MAPS
 
What everyone here needs to keep in perspective is that this is just one person's opinion of the tech staff and management of New England Dragway. Though I live right next door in Maine, I don't race there a lot, but I do try to go a few times a year. Yes, the tech staff at NED are strict. Let's examine why that is..... it's for SAFETY! Safety of the driver of the car being teched, safety of the other competitors, and safety of the track staff. This shouldn't be an issue. I know the first time I went to NED with my 72 Dart they went over it with a fine tooth comb. The inspector pointed out a few things to me that he felt could have been done better and I took care of those items. I remember last year I went to NED for a special memorial race and I left my helmet at home. The tech staff loaned me one so I could compete. I have no complaints with the tech staff at NED. I would much rather have an inspector tell me " Sorry Les, but we can't let you run until you correct this issue" than have it passed over and potentially having an accident in which my car could be destroyed, my life endangered or that of a fellow competitor or track staff. Now perhaps this situation with the FAST car gentleman could have been handled better by all concerned. I don't know, I wasn't there. But I do know that when my car was fine combed inspected there, the inspector gave me a detailed reason for why he felt something needed to be addressed.
I just think it's wholly unfair for so many to jump on the 'let's bash the track, the management and the tech staff' bandwagon just because on one person's experience or opinion. Safety is the bottom line and if you want to run a car that MAY be unsafe in the opinion of the inspector then go to a track where they aren't as professional or caring, and I hope it works out for you.
 
What everyone here needs to keep in perspective is that this is just one person's opinion of the tech staff and management of New England Dragway. Though I live right next door in Maine, I don't race there a lot, but I do try to go a few times a year. Yes, the tech staff at NED are strict. Let's examine why that is..... it's for SAFETY! Safety of the driver of the car being teched, safety of the other competitors, and safety of the track staff. This shouldn't be an issue. I know the first time I went to NED with my 72 Dart they went over it with a fine tooth comb. The inspector pointed out a few things to me that he felt could have been done better and I took care of those items. I remember last year I went to NED for a special memorial race and I left my helmet at home. The tech staff loaned me one so I could compete. I have no complaints with the tech staff at NED. I would much rather have an inspector tell me " Sorry Les, but we can't let you run until you correct this issue" than have it passed over and potentially having an accident in which my car could be destroyed, my life endangered or that of a fellow competitor or track staff. Now perhaps this situation with the FAST car gentleman could have been handled better by all concerned. I don't know, I wasn't there. But I do know that when my car was fine combed inspected there, the inspector gave me a detailed reason for why he felt something needed to be addressed.
I just think it's wholly unfair for so many to jump on the 'let's bash the track, the management and the tech staff' bandwagon just because on one person's experience or opinion. Safety is the bottom line and if you want to run a car that MAY be unsafe in the opinion of the inspector then go to a track where they aren't as professional or caring, and I hope it works out for you.
Yes, but the track inspector could be bothered to point out WHY it failed tech or was unsafe. Neither could the track manager who arbitrarily said he wouldn't overrule the tech guy or even look at the "problem" or be bothered to make a ruling. Tech man god, manager spank.
Shitty way to run a track.
 
Yes, but the track inspector could be bothered to point out WHY it failed tech or was unsafe. Neither could the track manager who arbitrarily said he wouldn't overrule the tech guy or even look at the "problem" or be bothered to make a ruling. Tech man god, manager spank.
Shitty way to run a track.
That has not been my experience. I'm not going to jump on the bandwagon to trash NED just because of one person's alleged experience.
 
I completely understand your position. The tech person has a thankless job. Is my experience an indication of an ongoing issue at that track? Maybe, I tried to address it in a private way. They were unresponsive. I really care if the track does well even if I won’t go. Not sure how else to try to get someone in power to look, not at the fail or pass aspect of the incident, but at the lack of civility from some of the tech people. For example, a year prior I was standing next to one of the older tech gentlemen, he was backing up in front of a car that was not running but rolling forward. Another racer was reaching out to grab his arm to stop him from being hurt. He stopped before getting in the path of the car. So the racer says “whoops, I almost had to grab you there! chuckling” the tech guy looks him dead in the eye and says “you grab me, your going to be in deep trouble!” He was serious. I still shake my head over that. It’s the adversarial attitude that just doesn’t need to be there. I have personally witness 3-4 incidents that just make me shake my head. Everyone can have a bad day, but at what point is it costing you business.
 
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