Desoto Open Sportsman race March 31

[Don Nerone]

"have to deal with heats for no cash at all"....

If it were me, I'd welcome all the racing I can get on race night. How much cash do you get for practice nights? I'd rather run 3 heats for no cash, than 3 practice sessions for the same return.

You do make a good point though on the tires. It seems that with this tire rule, odds are stacked that you will have to buy them from the track, which is a significant amount of cash to layout.

How about a no-buying-tires rule? Bring anything you want, but must have a minimum of 25% wear from original specs? Let everyone use tires they already have, and don't allow ANYONE to use sticker tires. I can see the math here.... mandating these tires, at the cost quoted (which seems pretty accurate), make it a no-win situation for anyone in the field, including the winner.

O come on Jerry how much do you want them to spend. With that rule the in the know cars will buy the trickest tires and take them to....cant say his or there names and get then buffed and cambered then treated. Most of them have the same hoosher now so mandating does not cost most of the cars anything just a few and only one track in florida runs anything else.
Im old but not that old and i rember..the tire rule was to save buying the fastest tire every time some one found something faster than what you had.
I was caller open comp and it sucked. (1978) a goodyear was $190 and if you didnt have them stay home.Gary had a warehouse full of them.
The tires under the spec tire rule was $90 in 1985 and gas on the street was .80 . gas is $4.00 and tires are $116 i think. well talk to obma about gas and leave the tires alone.
the tire factories are dooing great on holding the price.

don62

Don62

[Edm]

I still don't understand why we are not running the hard grooved Good Years.

More racers would show because they didn't have to buy tires near as often.

Is the race tire business that lucrative to tracks?

or are they making more money with less racers buying tires more frequently?

[andre]

gas is $4.00

Here this afternoon it went up to 1.439 a LITER, let's see:

1.439 X 3.76: $5.41 for 1 US Gal.

[Frasson118]

Don... I don't pretend to know the ins-and-outs of the tire business, nor do I know which tracks already use this tire. I just thought if they are trying to get cars from all over, let them run what they already have. If they DON'T have the Hoosier 350's and 450's, then they WOULD have to invest $450 in tires for a $400 to win race. The math doesn't add up for out-of-area racers.

I knew it was a fart in the wind idea, but allowing nothing but used tires would allow ANYONE with a Sportsman a chance to race without a huge tire investment. Since this is an experimental idea anyways, why not get even MORE experimental.

If your tires air-up, bring it on...!!!

[Rick Anges]

Answers:
1.so youre saying that there is no total weight or LS % as long as te right is 1350?

yes

2.side boards, splitters,canards, gills, manual and self adjusting wings, and under body air defusers are all legal too?

yes

3.not gonna throw me out for having on board swaybar and wedge adjustmants?

no adjustments from inside the car this is really for full body cars they need to show up first then we will decide, our teck people ,This is basically so all sportsman cars can run together.This was meant for if one car had headers or a 4link or a different manifold they all could race together thats all.no left side,1350 right side no total weight so all cars meaning Sporstman can race ,it can't be any clearer then that.

4.can i run without a roof? No

[chauney5]

Answers:
1.so youre saying that there is no total weight or LS % as long as te right is 1350?

yes

2.side boards, splitters,canards, gills, manual and self adjusting wings, and under body air defusers are all legal too?

yes

3.not gonna throw me out for having on board swaybar and wedge adjustmants?

no adjustments from inside the car this is really for full body cars they need to show up first then we will decide, our teck people ,This is basically so all sportsman cars can run together.This was meant for if one car had headers or a 4link or a different manifold they all could race together thats all.no left side,1350 right side no total weight so all cars meaning Sporstman can race ,it can't be any clearer then that.

4.can i run without a roof? No

ok so there are more rules then as originally stated.

All Cars must weigh 1350 right side
8'' rims
Hoosier 650 rightside
Hoosier 450 left side
2 barrel carb.

I don't care if you have 5 links, 600 hp motors ,Nasa shocks ,rocket power, fiberglass bodies,cams ect,thats all of the rules above.This will tell who's who about racing at Desoto Super Speedway.

Now we have to show up to get told we can or cannot run? Things are shakey already about how this is going. This makes me nervous. Thank you for trying though.

[Frasson118]

You saw the same things I did. Not sure that I would support an event that said 'bring em out, then Tech will decide if you can run'. These clarifications, that aren't in the original statement, tells me there is not as much leeway as was intended. Desoto didn't think off all the loopholes people would find, and now are trying to close them back up.

This basic idea could be a very good one. But if it's not pulled off successfully on the first shot, there won't be a second shot at it. I believe a re-think is in order here. You can't let guys pull out there only to have the Tech Dept say "that car isn't what we had in mind".

[Frasson118]

By the way Rick, your statement that "it can't get any clearer than that" is mixed into a sentence that contradicts the original post. Now it must be full bodied, with roof, with no internally controlled devices.... None of which were proposed in the original "rulebook".

It's getting more cloudy, than it is getting clearer....!

[Winger]

I believe the original premise was for sportsman cars and John didn't specifically mention that. On board swaybar and wedge adjustments make sense because, in effect, they do change weight percentages and an adjustment just before the race could change the right side weight to below the minimum. Changing it back when the race is finished would make it appear legal.
I think this can still work. Keeping the purse lower should discourage some of the modifications mentioned. I thought of this originally and thought it might be an issue with a late model class, which would pay more, but I guess there's enough interest in this particular race also. So I'd like to see John still try to do this and maybe do something to restrict it to the sportsman type of cars. Definitely don't want to have people coming and then telling them they are not legal though. That will kill it.

The interest in this thread indicates there might be some interest in a few really open "run whatcha brung" type of races. I can see it now, a supermodified, running against a sportsman with big sideboards, running against a retired indy car. LOL

[Rick Anges]

Jerry why not let the people who are thinking about actually running a car in this ask the questions?

[Don Nerone]

Jerry why not let the people who are thinking about actually running a car in this ask the questions?

He only races forklifts..lol
For years once a year we would run a sportsman race that sad bring your track rules. Made a few rules that everyone had to meet. Weight Tires and carb. The first time it was done was at Desoto in 85 and the race was great. top 3 were from miami stpete and tampa. It was a coo;l race.
Hope it works out for John.. it was easy to do back then. There were no online experts back then just fans and racers.
don62

[Osmosis Jones]

That's true....

....but back then the promoters and owners did a 100% better job also.


So I'd say it's kind of a wash.


It's hard to blame the internet while using it to get your point across..........just sayin'....



Ostentacious Jones

[Osmosis Jones]

And......

....if I needed to know the finishing order for the 1987 Forktruck Nationals in Tulsa, Okla........I know that I could ask my friend, Frasson, and get the correct answer. He could also tell me if there was a big stink about the new rules involving the use of a synthetic hydraulic fluid in their drivetrains and finally the venue where the race was run......

....cuz...well.......Jerry's the Man!

[Darren]

lets add up all the racecar drivers in the state of Florida including champkarts (they seem to bring in just as many on a Saturday night as any other class) and then count the number of people that post on here. guess you better let the online experts give their opinions and ask questions or just close this board down.

[Don Nerone]

....but back then the promoters and owners did a 100% better job also.


So I'd say it's kind of a wash.


It's hard to blame the internet while using it to get your point across..........just sayin'....



Ostentacious Jones

You win that one.
If it wasent for this board i would not be able to pick on Jerry and as they say his lugnuts.

don62