What is nhra's biggest issue heading into 2009? (1 Viewer)

[Tim5636sc]

I am doing some research for a project that I am working on and could use your help. I am wondering, (AS A FAN) what is (in your opinion) the biggest issue that NHRA faces in preparing for the 2009 Full Throttle Series. Please vote for the items on this pole. Any comments to support your vote are very much appreciated. I am asking that you refrain from responding about anyone's personal opinion about this. The point of this thread is to get an idea of what "THE DIE HARD FANS" believe the biggest issue facing NHRA is. Thank you for your support.

I posted this Pole on Competitionplus.com two weeks ago, and would like to get the imput from MATER-Nation as well.

 

[tomcat]

As important as all the things listed are, I'm going with the sponsorship policy because I believe that even if the other things are done, without a change in the sponsorship policies of the NHRA, the overall health of the series is still in jeopardy.

 

[Suzie Q]

I wish I could vote on several items. My first vote is driver safety! I have no problem with 1000 ft. I know a lot of you hate it, but if you put yourself in another pair of shoes and walked the track, you may think about it and change your mind. jmo!

 

[my friends call me Zappy]

While all points are important, Suzie is right, 1,000ft has been a BIG step toward safety. And improving the sport to both fans & sponsors. (good close safe racing) hard to beat.

 

[mike cummings]

1320'. nuff said..

 

[Mooseman]

I think safety is an important one anytime not just for 2009 but I think that impact resistance needs to be looked into , Someone a while back posted a link to the public police report for the Scott Kalitta accident and when I read it it said he sustained a 200g's impact on his body . I got intrigued by this so googled what g forces will do to your body and apparently you would be lucky to survive 100g's and when I looked into it further it seems that you could have the safest roll cage in the world and you body may be ok in a accident but its that shaking of your insides and the high g force strain on your insides that really does the damage .

So yeah I think impact resistance needs to be looked into . I also came up with an idea that I was going to use when I oneday get into dragracing so that I would not kill engines to much and thats by modifying a oil pressure gauge so that when your oil pressure drops to a dangerous level it cuts off your ignition and turns on an LED light so that you can know when to cut your fuel off. I don't know how you could do that but it seems like a good idea .

Bringing more money into the sport will probably be the biggest thing though .

 

[RJM323]

I definitely think that marketing to a larger demographic is the most important.... because that will solve quite a few of the other problems as well

more fans= More sponsorship $$$
more sponsorship $$$ = better television coverage
better television coverage = more fans


and then eventually NHRA will be on the same playing field as NASCAR

 

[Johnny Mopar]

I can't stand 1,000 foot nitro racing. It's so short, it's like a squirt. They've got to get back to 1320'. This is the opportunity for NHRA to change the class, lowering the overall costs of racing and get back to 1/4 mile drags...and full fields. On a related note, this would also help get the Funny Cars back to reality. Those enormous wings on back look ridiculous and their front ends are shaped like scoops. Let's dial all this nitro stuff back and make the cars similar to production cars. Fans will actually like it and manufacturers might stay in the sport if the cars look like the ones their actually selling.

With several parked teams and 1,000 foot squirts I can't imagine nitro racing in 2009 being anything more than a snoozer show.

 

[PJ]

I really can't answer just one. I believe many are tied to gether. Marketing needs to improve and that will help bring in more fans which means more sponsors. Although with the current economy it will still be rough. Making decisions that help to market the sport instead of hurt it such as the countdown would be a huge step. A move that has made the championship pointless and meaningless is not good for the sport.
Driver safety should always lead the way in good times or bad.
1000' while I'm not a fan is something I can live with. making the classes more affordable would also be a big help

 

[BF]

I had to vote for the sponsorship policy. Without sponsorship, this sport is in trouble as we have seen over the winter. Although we will have to wait until the first race to know for sure. It amazes me how NHRA follows NASCAR into making similar mistakes. Cell phones and energy drinks being two big things these days, so you get them as series sponsors and exclude all the others from being able to participate? I just don't get that. I still don't like the countdown or 1000' but they won't matter if there aren't any cars to run.

 

[Wes]

I wish I could vote on several items. My first vote is driver safety! I have no problem with 1000 ft. I know a lot of you hate it, but if you put yourself in another pair of shoes and walked the track, you may think about it and change your mind. jmo!

Me, too Suzie! Drastically improving driver safety, massive reduction in cost of operation, facility mandates, better television, improved relationship between the teams/owners/drivers and Glendora, and standardizing the racing distance (I don't care what it is just as long as everyone races the same track).

However, I believe that if any forward progress is to be made in any of those areas the key to it all is cutting the costs in half...burn less nitro, use less oil, spend fewer tires, wear out fewer chassis, drive fewer rigs, operate on leaner staffs, etc., etc. If that can be achieved many of the other points will be in closer reach. That's my opinion on the whole deal...hope that helps for your project.

 

[merc49]

Yep, we needed an "All Of The Above" choice.

 

[Toejam]

I wish I could vote on several items. My first vote is driver safety! I have no problem with 1000 ft. I know a lot of you hate it, but if you put yourself in another pair of shoes and walked the track, you may think about it and change your mind. jmo!

Suzie I think since Scott's Death safety is now a Priority, it's too bad it takes a racer dying to get the point across. However in this sponsorless mode this sport is in people are looking at the Future via sponsorships, car counts, etc..

 

[Lori]

So many issues that are crucial, it is hard to choose one. I picked the marketing of the sport, and from that sponsorship rules should be addressed. This is a business, and as a business it should be marketed well in order for the business to thrive. When that is successful, then the sponsorships might be a little easier to come by at which time that structuring definitely needs revision. Some of this sport drink and armed services sponsorship issues really need to be discussed and rethought. The doors for all sponsors should be open, not closed cause someone else has gotten there first. JMO.
Safety is extremely important, but it always has been. As someone else already said, it took a couple deaths for it to be given the attention it so rightly deserves. That is a sad state of affairs, but here we are and should definitely move forward to keep the drivers as safe as is possible.
Very hard to pick from that list, all of the above certainly would have been my vote.
An excellent list you put together. Well done.

 

[yoda]

If I see a C.O.T., I'm gone... NOTHING has ruined NASCAR more than the cookie-cutter concept of what being a CAR fan is all about.

It's bad enough when our nostalgia classes hijack styling cues from the raingutters and spitwads, but if the only thing that makes the cars different is the slug in the seat and the bank account, this NHRA will die a sorry, quiet death...

Which may not be a bad thing.

By the way, sorry Timmah... nothing of what you listed is anything I see as important as keeping the folks out here safe. Period.

 

[Ma Green]

I'd like to see NHRA brass admit they need to do anything. Unlike every other sanctioning body, they've not said one word about what's going on with their racers and that the economy might hurt them next year in any way. Typical head-in-the-sand approach they always take.....and look where it's gotten them. I do think every national event track should have the same safety measures. I also think that if they go back to 1320', they need to look at slowing the cars down....perhaps like Dale Armstrong suggested.

 

[Jenn]

I wish I could vote on several items. My first vote is driver safety! I have no problem with 1000 ft. I know a lot of you hate it, but if you put yourself in another pair of shoes and walked the track, you may think about it and change your mind. jmo!

I'm with my Bazumba sister, safety first.

 

[Fast Al]

Improve the TV coverage. With more coverage comes more corporate sponsors. The TV coverage and marketing go hand in hand, each benefiting the other, and the more diverse the better. I also feel that in depth coverage of drivers and their sponsors would, again bring more exposure for the sport in general, and not just the usual John Force antics. Not that I don't love JF, because I do, but the more focus on ALL the drivers will get more fans invested in them personally,thus more fans following them race to race.:

 

[paoldtimer]

You can't have one without the other and the other and the other....house of dominoes.
IF I have to select one, safety is the number one priority, followed closely by getting back to 1320'.

 

[PJ]

I'm with my Bazumba sister, safety first.

ya know I'm with Bazumbas too, that should be on the list and they are important issues