One by one, the Pro Stock cars exited the staging lanes at Pacific Raceways, destined for a return 

to their pit areas in protest of a track they allege hadn’t been prepped properly. This transpired on Sunday at the NHRA Northwest Nationals after just two pairs had run in first round.

The Pro Stock drivers alleged the NHRA didn’t put any spray down in the last half of the track. The NHRA contends they did. In Seattle, the issue wasn’t one of declined performances. It was about safety, or as the Pro Stock drivers contend – a difference in opinion of what the cars need for the last 320 feet of the quarter-mile run.  
Safety Should Trump Tradition

One by one, the Pro Stock cars exited the staging lanes at Pacific Raceways, destined for a return  to their pit areas in protest of a track they allege hadn’t been prepped properly. This transpired on Sunday at the NHRA Northwest Nationals after just two pairs had run in first round.

The Pro Stock drivers alleged the NHRA didn’t put any spray down in the last half of the track. The NHRA contends they did. In Seattle, the issue wasn’t one of declined performances. It was about safety, or as the Pro Stock drivers contend – a difference in opinion of what the cars need for the last 320 feet of the quarter-mile run.

The NHRA has enacted a series of rule changes designed to create more downforce on the Pro Stockers, a move which many racers believe has had little or no effect on creating downforce on the car for the last half of the track, the portion the nitro cars don’t run.

Now, in the last 30 days or so, we’ve had two Top Alcohol Racers die as the result of cars either going into or through the containment devices intended to slow the runaway cars.

Seattle’s race made one point clear to me.

It’s time drag racing diehards accept the fact that professional and pro/sportsman racing to the quarter-mile is too dangerous to continue. How many more drivers do we need to kill or put on the roof just to satisfy someone’s selfish desire to stick with an unsafe tradition?

Yes, I said it – selfish.

These are the same fans who long for the days of Wally Parks and his vision and passion he brought to the NHRA. I have news for you -- almost three decades ago Wally wanted to take drag racing to 660 feet.

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I consider myself to be as big of a drag racing fan as any other, I am simply fortunate to make this sport my livelihood. During my tenure, I’ve managed to build some longstanding relationships and in light of the recent deaths of Neal Parker and Mark Niver, I can no longer look at my friends and wonder who will be next.

If we are content to remain 1000 feet with the nitro cars, the NHRA can cease this ludicrous plan for data testing aimed at slowing the cars down. It makes no sense to slow the cars down if the tracks aren’t equipped to handle even the “tamer” cars.

I speak for the silent majority who prefer their nitro cars of the non-watered down type.  Make no mistake, this wouldn’t be the same nitro cars we’ve come to appreciate and respect.

As for Pro Stock running to the 1,000 foot, the Seattle debacle wouldn’t have happened if everyone was running to the 1000, especially since the NHRA hasn’t dropped the hammer on decrepit facilities the likes of Firebird [Phoenix] and Pacific Raceways [Seattle]. I honestly don’t believe the issue at Seattle was anything less than an asphalt issue.

The NHRA is really in a no-win situation when it comes to prepping of the track when it starts getting cooler. The nitro cars run the risk of chunking their tires if you spray beyond the 1000 foot during their deceleration and we know from experience that a tire failure can be fatal. On the same token, if we don’t give the Pro Stock cars the glue they need, then we’re going to have more crashes. We’ve cheated fate four times in this class already.

With the exception of one Pro Stock crash this season, we’ve put three on the roof past 1,000 foot mark, this year.

Beyond the nitro cars and the loose Pro Stockers, how many Top Alcohol racers do we need to send to the morgue before we realize it’s just as unsafe for these guys to run 1320 feet? Let’s face it. The lack of downforce and the “optional” safety requirement attitude make these kinds of cars probably more dangerous than the nitro cars.

For goodness sakes, when a driver the caliber of Bob Tasca III, who was an accomplished Top Alcohol Funny Car racer, says he wouldn’t dare make a run in a car considerably slower than his nitro car, wouldn’t you think there’s an issue?

There is an issue, an issue of safety – not convenience or performance.

The NHRA, an organization built and dedicated to making a dangerous sport safer, needs to get back to its real roots – a dedication to safety, not 1320 foot racing.

I have a direct question to the NHRA’s upper management - who would you rather sacrifice: those fans who despise 1,000 foot racing or the lives of those drivers who dedicate themselves to your show?

I say drag racing needs some new fans to replace those who just don’t get it.

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