Well i got my registeration papers from the track so i can use my numbers from last yr and i was lookin and they also have it so u can sign up for differnt classes of racing. i was thinkin it would be cool to sign up for one ofthem and see how i do but wasnt sure. mainly becuz im goin to be doin alot of mods to my car this yr and might end up not making all the races. i was lookin at the Street ET class (12.00-19.99) and the Heavy ET class (12.00-15.99).

i was thinkin id just keep it down to just some test and tunes and some of the little special GM events this coming yr, becuz most of those end in braket racing and i havnt done a whole lot of bracket racing, maybe like once.

what do u guys think? should i spend the extra $30-$50 or wait till next season so i have a better handel on my car and i wont be modding it as much power wise.

 

The best experiance you will get ,is by bracket racing not T/T.

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Agreed. T&T is just a heads up race. HP wins. In a bracket race HP means nothing since you need to cut a good light and be able to run as close to your dial in without breaking out. Having an opponent to race against makes it harder because you have to be aware of where he is on the track compared to you. If you launch before him (you're the slower ET vehicle) and he breaks on the line. If you run it right out to the end and break out, he wins.

As for the class, I'm not to sure what the distinction is between those 2. I think street ET means you must use street tires, have mufflers etc. In a bracket race it can be just as hard winning in a slower class as it is in the faster classes. You might want to start off in the street class just to get used to running in brackets. Once you have more experience, move up to Heavy where the competition is a bit tougher. The faster the class, the better the payouts are.

Don't think that you'll win or lose every race. Bracket racing is mostly luck. The heavy hitters can red light, break out or screw something up just as easily as anyone else. I've gone 3 rounds when the car let me down but won because my opponents all red lit.

 

the differce from the 2 classes are the Heavy ET has 10.00-15.99 and no electronic, im guessin your aloud slicks, no mufflers and what not becuz its a sunday race and i think sundays and wed nights (late) your can run no mufflers. Street ET has the 12.00-19.99 and no electronics, 4 DOT, mufflers.

im reading that right off of the registration paper. i dont think i can run in the Street ET class becuz i run DOT slicks (that are well used) and im probably goin to get a set of new Hoosier slicks before the season even starts so i know i have some good meat. the street tires i have now suck *** on the track, worst 60' was like 2.7x and i think they slowed me down and also they spun when the 1-2 shift comes, thats why i use the DOT slicks.

keep coming with all the info you guys can try to give me, becuz its only $30 or $50 and i know id make that back no problem in next paycheck ya know. im just really unsure what to do, weather to go and do the bracket class or hold off and try and get my car dialed in so i know what i will run for when i step up into a class to make some points.

 

You'll have to dial your car in every race anyway. Most of the time you'll get 3 T&T rounds before the first round of eliminations. That allows you to judge how the car runs on that day and adjust the dial. After every elimination round (if you win) you change the dial if you have to for the next round. That's why you build a car to be consistant not fast for bracket racing. Everyone else is in the same boat. If you arrive late you get less T&T rounds and need to guess at an ET. 3 rounds is the minimum. Less than that and the accuracy of your T&T passes dramatically drops. The more T&T passes before elimination rounds you get, the better. In the first round if your opponent breaks or red lights, it's a free T&T so you run it right out since you have an automatic win.

That's why bracket rqcing isn't as easy as it looks. You don't just stage the car and make a pass to see how fast it will go.

As a drag racer I totally agree that watching bracket racing is very boring. I don't even see any racing except for the 2 cars going down the track while I'm sitting in the water box. But, get behind the wheel and you'll realize just how much is involved in such a simple sport. A 13 second pass may look slow when you're sitting in the stands but it's over too quickly when you're behind the wheel.

 

hmmm everything is making more intretested in join the classes but i think since i run slicks or DOT slicks ill end up havin to be in the heavy ET class. but also thinkin about doing this is very excitting but also this is my daily driver car so if something breaks im screwed but i guess thats all apart of racing. then ill also have to set my car up more safely becuz of the slicks. i know ill need a driveshaft loop , a helmet (hopefully gettin one for xmas).

well even watchin a 13 second run from the stands is cool to me, and bracket racing is more exciting becuz the watchin the other guy make up the handicap is cool to see weather he breaks out or not. even in my car when im only running 15's right now it feels like the run is over in no time after i stage.

i goin to check my tracks site to see about the rules for each class about tires and what not.

 

We had a married couple who raced. He drove a 12 second 67 Fairlane. She drove a 20 second Festiva. It was fun watching them when they could get paired up against each other in a King of the Hill race. That's a race where all the classes are lumped up together usually because of low car counts or time restrictions to have a bunch of classes. She would have an 8 second head start on him and could usually win. When I raced my truck at 15 seconds, I've gone up against 8 second dragsters and won.

If you use slicks you'll need a loop if running quicker than 13.99. Slower than that doesn't need a loop but it's good insurance anyway. I have a loop on my daily driven 15 second truck only because it also runs low 13's on NOS. Low 15 seconds usually means you're in the 80+ mph range. I wouldn't want to blow the front u-joint at that speed. Usually when a u-joint blows it's on the starting line since that's where the most amount of torque is going through the driveline. A loop just keeps the damage down to a minimum.

 

well my car should be in the low 15's with the mph im running which is 88.88 almost 89 mph. i was thinkin of makin one for the rear also so i have even more added insurence. i was a brand new ford lightning break his drive shaft at the track, the was bouncing all over the place till it stopped.

i was lookin at my tracks web site and so far for the street et class i cant run slicks but have to run 4 dot tires, im positive im goin to be gettin a set of full slicks before the season even starts this coming yr so i guess ill take my chances with the heavy et class.

do u know or anyone know if you have to pay each time to enter for the race day? like to register for the heavy et class is $50 do i have to pay that each time in order to run during the schuled races? they have 10 races startin from march 16th and ending in sept.

 

The $50 gets you in the pits for only that day and you can make as many passes as possible for that day. The next race weekend you pay $50 again. If you have a 10 race season then your season entry fee will be $500. Just something to consider in the budget. Sometimes there might be a weekend pass. We race on Saturday nights and all day Sunday. It's $50 for Sunday but only $25 for Saturday night because it's more of a T&T than a points race. Friday nights is a street legal night for $20. If I go on a Friday night and pay the $75 for the weekend, I T&T for free on the Friday night.

Street class says you must have DOT tires. ET Street, Nittos etc are considered DOT tires even though they are a slick. Check with your local track on the designation of a DOT tire.

Also from what I've seen the street class is also considered a trophy class. You pay less to enter but only recieve a trophy when you win. Heavy class should have a cash payout plus trophies for winner and runner up. Each track is different on how they reward the winners.

My typical operating expenses for a full season of 10 weekends including entry fees, fuel, oil etc is in the $1500-$2000 range providing I don't break anything or decide to travel to other tracks for more track time. I just purchased a set of slicks in the fall for $600 and they should last 2 years. That's wear and tear expenses.

Some tracks have competition events within a race. Things like;
Pay an extra $10 and write a dial in on your window for the third time trial run. Closest to their dial wins the pot.
Those little events although you don't have to participate, can have a bigger pot than winning the main event. Our track has a sponsor that awards $50 to the first person to cut a perfect light during eliminations. If it's not won, it's carried over to the next weekend. I had a perfect light this year but it was during time trials.

 

okay sounds like i better start savin extra cash on the side if i really do decide to do this but considering the way the races are layed out id have no problem with the cash as long as i have a job.

and the DOT slicks i have no are just about well used up, they have a good 25-30 + passes on them, i was lookin at the Hooiser 26x10x15 slicks in jegs for 2 it will cost me alittle over $300 for the set.

yeah the heavy et class has trophies, cash pay outs and points jackets at the end for the top 17 racers , so for the top 17 races u get aleast something.

they also have the King of the Hill race also, i think it was they take the top 3 racers from the classes runningthat day which is i think 3-4 differnt classes and bracket race them and you get a trophy and cash payout at the end for the top 3 racers and i think the winner gets a special jacket also.

 

Tim,

The way englishtown does things is you pay the 30-50 bucks to get into the point series. Then you can race designated sundays in your class for points. If you are not planning on makingmost of the races, don't bother. The people that are seriously into it for the money go every sunday as if it were church.

Just pay the $2 to keep your number and you can go down and race whenever you want, you just won;t be in the points series.

 

I never thought of it that way but we have something similar. On Sunday's I pay $50 to race in the regular brackets. If I only wanted to do T&T on Sunday I'd only have to pay $25 but I'd have to sit just off the staging lanes and wait for an opening before making a pass. I suppose during a T&T I could make a pass in any class during time trials so I could get more hits in the morning. Once eliminations start there's not much time for T&T until after the third round when most people have been eliminated.

 

Another thing you can do on your T & T days is treat ever run like it's a round of eliminations. Go thru your notes and pick what you think the car will run, make a note of it and then try to cut the best light you can. This will be good practice for when you decide to take the plunge and join the bracket program.

 

you guys are making some good points here at the end, i guess ill just pay the $3 for my number and go to t&t days and GM special events. i just dont like the test and tunes becuz at etown it gets packed with tons for ricers

 

I know all tracks are different and a 15 sec ride having traction issues with slicks is almost impossible, BUT...the point was made to treat all your T&T like an elimination run, even if you dont write the number on your car, this kinda of practice makes perfect. I cannot stress enough how much some sort of weather station will help bracket racers make good descions. Our track has no serious racers on TT for the simple fact that the track prep is nonexistent since so many radial tired cars show up and ruin the starting line, we get no stick'um and maybe an ocassional blower to clear some of the snad off, so in our case if you have something to test out, it's actually cheaper to enter Trophy calss on race day. $10 cheaper than TT and the track is prepped for racing. The more you know the better off you are on choosing a number. Even if you only go to race once in awhile go, our sport needs more people period. I run points at our IHRA track and then beat up on the NHRA guys for fun, but their points races are set up just like english town-you have to pay x amount of money just to get into the points series. But if you just wanna show up and race you can do that also. I've always ben a believer in your only as good as your competition, so if you can handle gettin your butt handed too you at first, these better drivers will rub off on you, give you tips and pointers and make you that much tougher to beat. Beileve me, you'll have a blast once you get into it and yes it does get expensive if you hit every event possible so you have to keep your head about you...but what can i say, during the summer, racing first-bills second

 

Some tracks offer some added competition. Since you usually get 3 time trial runs before eliminations to try and sort out your car on that particular day you might be able to get into a dial in competition in the third time trial.

Before the first time trial you might pay an extra $5-$10 to enter. The nice thing is that the winner usually gets all the money and the track gets nothing from this competion. All those who are entered get to write a dial in on their window for the third time trial run. They still make a regular heads up time trial but whoever runs closest to their dial without breaking out wins the pot.

Most of us still need the 3 time trial runs and sometimes want a fourth because we screwed up something and a pass is a garbage run. The more passes you can make to figure out a dial in the better so if you can guess your dial in after only 2 passes, you have a very consistant car or you didn't screw up a run.

There are other types of competitions like this so during eliminations there's more to win than just your class. It all depends on what kind of program the track wants to set up.

For us the only other thing we have is a king of the hill race or better know as the bonehead race. Everyone who goes out in the first round can buy into this race so you can have an 8 second dragster against a 16 second pickup truck. The nice thing is that the winner can usually win more money in this race than if they stayed in the regular competition. They just don't get the extra points for the points series. They use the king of the hill racers to fill in between the regular rounds to give a chance for the cars to cool down.

 

I kinda like the sound of that king of the hill race. Last year we had problems with our gamblers races so this year they decided not to start gamblers until the start of 3rd round elimns-if your still in eliminations you can get into the gamblers also. The only draw back is that most of the time we have to stop the gamblers because certain drivers are still in regular comp. So to "be fair" they put the gamblers on hold until the remaining players in comp are done before they restart the gamblers again.
IMO that's BS since drivers know good and well they could go round robin if everything falls into place right and then to put 80 other guys on the back burner is a just not right. Sometimes it's also an advantage for the drivers still in comp since they get to run with ever changing air so they're fresh, all the while the rest of the guys have an ice cold car. I know there's no way to make everybody happy, but there's got to be a better way. We've had to finish gambler races on day 2 before the start of regular comp since we'd hit our nighttime curfew for noise, then it's throw the whole 2nd days program outta whack.
I',m gonna keep this in mind for our banquet along with some other ideas we've been passing around. Not to mention that still has'nt been scheduled, nor has a 04 schedule been produced yet. Drivers round money is nowhere to be found I guess either.

 

Our points race payout is based on car counts. $50 entry fee. 40% of class goes to payouts. Winner gets %50 of that. Each class has they're own payouts.

So 20 cars in Pro each pay $50. That's $1000 total for the pro class. 40% of that is $400 (total prize money for pro). The winner gets $200. Runner up gets $100. semi's get $25 each. If there's more than 32 cars then they pay back to 1/4"s. (or 1/4's/semis whichever way that works)

Now in the king of the hill race each driver only pays $10. After all the first rounds we could have 70+ cars all lumped into one class if they want to all run. That's $700 total prize money. Winner gets 60%, runner up gets the other 40%. That means instead of winning $200 in eliminations you could win $420 in KOTH and you only spent $60 in all the entry fees. Of course you need to go a lot more rounds to win and you already screwed up something in the first round of eliminations.

Unless you have big sponsors you won't make a lot of money bracket racing. Most of us just want to win enough to just cover operating expenses. I think a typical race weekend for me is around $200-$250.

We also have a local track sponsor that offers $50 to the first person to cut a perfect light during Sunday eliminations. If it isn't won, it's carried over to the next race weekend. I had a perfect light this year but was during time trials. Most of the time the winner is either a Jr Dragster of a Super Comp/Super Gas car but occasionally a sportsman or Pro car will win.