stupid things you do at the drag strip

783 Views 28 Replies 0 Participants Last post by bengston, May 29, 2003

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Discussion Starter · May 17, 2003

Send to me, either here or via email, a description of the 1 or 2 most stupid things that you do at the drag strip, while racing or while in the lanes.
This is for a top 10 "most stupid things we do while at the drag strip list" for In the Staging Lanes

Nabil Guffey gave me the idea to make this list. We all do funny things, (really not stupid but just funny).

I'll break the ice by going first.
During a bracket race, I always have to push the ash tray back in. No matter how hard I try to force myself to just look at the track and finish my run, I always end up pushing the ash tray back in. It's stupid that I cannot finish the run with the ash tray out.

If you don't want to post here, email me at [email protected]
I'll take 10 entries for now and put them in my column.
thanks, Karl

1 - 20 of 29 Posts

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Discussion Starter · #2 · May 17, 2003

I'll give ya a couple of really stupid ones, not sure if it's quite what you're looking for but I've done both my first time at a track:

1) Forget to turn the AC off

2) Do a burnout in 2 then realize you didn't put it back in D right about the time you hit the rev limiter

3) Be in a big hurry to beat bad weather home and mount your directional RE730s on the wrong sides, only to realize it 5 miles later and have to change em again in a random parking lot

yeah...can ya believe I went to college and everything?

G

Discussion Starter · #3 · May 17, 2003

YES, yes, that's somewhat what I'm looking for, you know, those are very silly mistakes.
I think some of those might qualify for the top 10. hehe.
Really I want to concentrate on things you do each and every time you go down the track, things that serve no purpose and are really stupid. Like when I race heads up I always push the throttle so hard that I lean back in the chair and tense up and virtually push the car harder down the track.
Karl

G

Discussion Starter · #4 · May 17, 2003

you got a second on the a/c...must be a N.C. thing..
and running all your dial in runs in either o.d. or D and then not running the race in the practiced gear.

G

Discussion Starter · #5 · May 18, 2003

The stupidest thing ive done is,
1- forget to turn a/c off
2- keep my foot on the brake after the light goes green and I mash the accelerator pedal.

But that was in a FROD Crown Vic I used to have lol

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Discussion Starter · #6 · May 18, 2003

I would say....(don't laugh)....breathing. I'm so conscious of trying to warm up the drags and check seat for drag position instead of cruise mode. Are my lights on? Did I close my hood good? What gear am I in? Are the vents or a/c off? Did I remove the floor mat? What RPM do I wanna launch at? Turn off the damn stereo!!! Did I take out the trash and on top of that,....try to cut a good light. I even take a deep breath before tripping the first light. The rest is kinda gray. Then it feels like I'm back in high school and smoked a joint.....all I hear is my heart beating.

Damn I enjoy racing!

Now I'm hungry.

G

Discussion Starter · #7 · May 18, 2003

How bout:

1-Doing a burnout in reverse in the staging lanes

("thats weird, it felt as if somebody was pulling me backwards").

2-U are almost up and you realize your trunk is open.

I will conceal the identity of these individuals for their own good.

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G

Discussion Starter · #8 · May 18, 2003

these are good, very good. (very silly too).
One that I can relate to is the breathing and hearing your heart beat.
Keep them comming.

What things do you ALWAYS do at the track that are silly? Not mistakes, but habits or quirks.

G

Discussion Starter · #9 · May 19, 2003

Well Sometimes I run with the belt off, and when I think I am close enough to the staging lanes, I stop to take it off. But usually my calculation is off, so I am stuck sitting in the lanes with the windows up, sweating and losing my breath.....

When I drag race, I always have my parking lights on... When I'm finished with my run, I pop the hood ASAP, and in the process I forget to turn off my lights

.....

Also, I took out my spare, and I hid it behind a wall. Well when it was time to go, I forgot it. Had to turn around to get it

!!

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G

Discussion Starter · #10 · May 19, 2003

God there are so many....I guess the silliest one is talking to the shift light..."now?...wait for it...now? BLINK....SHIFT!!!

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G

Discussion Starter · #11 · May 19, 2003

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by Hagar:
God there are so many....I guess the silliest one is talking to the shift light..."now?...wait for it...now? BLINK....SHIFT!!!

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Norm, hehe, I'm the same way with that shift light, especially for 1st gear. Very hard to wait on it especially if youve ever been late on a 1-2 shift....
buck buck buck rev limiter!

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Discussion Starter · #12 · May 19, 2003

Well I've got a couple of quirky things that I always do:

Before staging, I yank on my seatbelt to make it as tight as possible. I'm not sure why, I mean it's not like I'm autocrossing.

While going down the track, I press so hard on the accelerator it's almost like I'm trying to push it through the floorboard. Sometimes I feel like the throttle cable is pulling so hard on the motor, it's like it's trying to hold the ponies back!

After crossing the finish line, I open both front windows. Keep in mind that I'm doing 110 to 115 mph! One time I blew 2 or 3 timeslips right out the window. You'd think I'd decide that's not a good idea...

G

Discussion Starter · #13 · May 19, 2003

buck buck buck rev limiter!

hehehe..., yeah Karl been there too, especially when I had the shift lite to high vs. the rev limiter

The rat is turning 6400 now (peer pressure is a wonderful thing), with solid motor mounts, 3 inch exhaust and 10lbs in the slicks I'm glad its a visual aid becuase you sure as heck can't hear nothin !

G

Discussion Starter · #14 · May 19, 2003

I always do a "butt wiggle" side-to-side in my seat just after pre-stage. This somehow gets my mind focused on the tree and positions me deep into the leather.

I then turn my rearview mirror straight down to convince myself that there ain't no reason to be looking back now...the race is in front of me!

I then stage...regardless of my opponents position...

I take a breath at the first yellow and hammer it on the 3rd yellow and start to breathe again at about the eighth mile marker.

G

Discussion Starter · #15 · May 19, 2003

2

Karl, this may not apply, but it sure was STUPID....

Yesterday, the 19th, I talked my wife into bringing her truck, (V-6 Dakota), to the track and running in Street class with me....her first non-club, real money, bracket race....

First time run 18.12....
Second time run, (a little warmer out), 18.21...

First round the wife wants to dail 18.10...
Me, "the expert"

, tell her that it's even warmer now and there is no way the truck will run faster....so she dials 18.20

You know what happened, don't ya?....she cut a good light...was ahead by a car length...
AND BROKE OUT BY .07...with a 18.13...
Guess who she was mad at....
(She hasn't learned how to race the stripe yet).

Later,
Bob T.

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Discussion Starter · #16 · May 20, 2003

A/C on ... check .. Done that !!
2nd gear hit the rev. limiter ...yep.. Done that !!
Push the low dollar G-Tech (ash tray) back in .. Yep.... Done that !!

Forget to adjust the High Dollar HAL shocks so the car will launch. Check.. Done that !!

Yep I've done it all ... DUH

... Something I do every time ??? maybe the ash tray, now that Karl made me think of it ... LOL Thanks Karl ...

Kenny

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Discussion Starter · #17 · May 20, 2003

Being a long time stop lite racer I haven't got use to waiting for the staging lites. I saw the lite change I went. We're feeling much better now

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Discussion Starter · #18 · May 22, 2003

Getting into the wrong lanes during test n tune night and lining up against a guy competing with a pro tree! Then doing it again!

G

Discussion Starter · #19 · May 22, 2003

I LOVE PRO TREE's!!!

I like to challenge guys to a race with a pro tree. If they're even close I usually leave them hard - I average .480's on a .400 pro tree.

Mike

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G

Discussion Starter · #20 · May 22, 2003

how about,doing the burnout,staging carefully, ready to hit it,come to find my car stalled,my wife said i looked silly.
back to the lanes one day for a final,got out of the car and slammed my hand in door,some guy says "oops" i turn and open the door like it did not happen,ran over and stuck it in some guys cooler,was fractured,
got back in the car and won the race.left and went directly to a hospital.
the pitfalls of the lanes

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