Why The Rise In Popularity of "No-Prep" racing?

[Oldschool]

I don't understand why this has become so popular.     It seems to me that the objective is to get down the track as quickly and safely as possible.     No prep makes the higher horsepower cars sketchy at best. I don't get it....     

[4Cruizn]

I guess I haven't been following racing as much as I used to as this is news to me . . . 

[Oldschool]

I guess I haven't been following racing as much as I used to as this is news to me . . . 

Dave, No Prep racing has evolved from the racetracks trying to simulate racing on the street. The track operators do not prep the racing surface making traction difficult for higher horsepower cars. I guess it is better for racers to take the cars to the track than racing on the street - I get that. Maybe the drivers like it because it makes chassis prep a premium. You look on youtube at some of these no prep races and you will see a bunch of racers that stay in the throttle too long and tear up their cars.
I guess I am just Oldschool  --  I like the feel of a solid track underneath me when I am at full throttle going down the track......

[4Cruizn]

Well I have to agree with you . . . safety would have to come first!  What happens when someone oils down the track?  No one cleans it up?  Scary . . . 

[rUNCHARGER]

I don't like it either. I guess it's good for the regular "fans"? I myself hate seeing a guy out of shape or worse tearing a car up.

Sheldon

[HP2]

Offshoot of the popularity of street racing programs and culture, only done in a more controlled environment to step up the safety factor over runnning down a deserted road in an industrial park.

Plus it puts the big dollar, high power cars at a disadvantage, thus pushing the underdog perception.

[HP_Cuda]

Yep its the new street racing culture. If you take a look at youtube there has been numerous races in the LA area which are exactly this way and totally sketchy.

Recent as of a couple of days ago, some kid died in a street race in a new Camero hitting a tree at 110mph. Sad.

You make a good point, that this stuff should be done at the track - tech inspection, crews and all.

[marc70challenger]

Yep its the new street racing culture. If you take a look at youtube there has been numerous races in the LA area which are exactly this way and totally sketchy.

Recent as of a couple of days ago, some kid died in a street race in a new Camero hitting a tree at 110mph. Sad.

You make a good point, that this stuff should be done at the track - tech inspection, crews and all.

 

I don't get it either Oldschool.  Hook and go, to me, is drag racing.  You want to slide all over the place, try circle dirt.

Thing today is cars are crazy fast ... and most "kids" learn to drive on cars with all the nanny options.  Not that I dismiss those - they are great safety advances ... but you see it on Youtube all day long .. some kid (or older person) leaving a car show shuts off TC, stomps it, steers right or left  ... doesn't lift .. and bam.

Then, now, make it a "sport" .. and what do kids want to emulate? 

Go to a track.  Learn on a track.  Learn from all old racers about racing, cars, etc.  And work on the most important "mod" .. the driver.

[burdar]

Drag strips have been suffering low attendance for a long time.  The tracks are trying to pull in more people and this is one way to do it.  Simulate street racing in a more controlled environment.

What safety requirements do the cars need to pass?  Do they have to meet NHRA/IHRA requirements?  I know a lot of people are upset at all the "unfair" regulations put forth by the sanctioning bodies.(seat belt certification exc...)

[RCCDrew]

I believe the biggest reason is the show Street Outlaws.

[Oldschool]

What safety requirements do the cars need to pass?  Do they have to meet NHRA/IHRA requirements?  I know a lot of people are upset at all the "unfair" regulations put forth by the sanctioning bodies.(seat belt certification exc...)

Apparently those grudge racing cars don't have to pass much of any tech. The grudge racing guys that love no prep type racing don't want very much safety equipment for at least a couple of reasons:

1) - It adds weight and thus slows them down 

and

2) - they don't want rollcages, parachutes, certified seat belts, etc....  because it makes the cars look fast. That's the last thing they want when they are trying to take someones money in a drag race.  There are plenty of no prep, grudge racers that run in the low 5's in the 1/8 that don't run helmets. The drag strip operators have them sign a release stating that they understand the risks and that they are running no prep and no tech inspection.   

[70chall440]

Guess I will be the bad guy here... I like the idea of no prep racing as it is much closer to the roots/origins of drag racing, plus it takes some of the racers off the streets. I have to admit that in my youth I did a lot of street racing and loved it, this was mainly due to the fact that the closest drag strip was 200 miles away. When I eventually did get to the track, I found that a lot of the "fun" was removed due to regulations and politics. On the street, you "run what you brung" and this can result in some very interesting races; slower cars winning because the driver actually knew how to drive his/her car. I agree that the track needs to be maintained (oil spills cleaned up, etc) since everyone is going down that same strip. As to tech inspections, I would think that the officials would take a cursory look at the cars to make sure there isn't anything like gas leaks or other potentially catastrophic issues since everyone is in the same spot.

As was noted, sanctioned drag racing has been losing its audience as the newer generations have grown up with things like grand theft auto (GTA) and other games as well as the TV shows glorifying street racing. When they look at NHRA/IHRA sanctioned races, they are outsiders and I highly suspect intimidated. On the street you can talk all the smack you like and in many cases back it up even with a slower (lower HP) car if you know what you are doing. On the strip, you have to play by their rules, race in classes, etc. I can definitely see why no prep racing has become popular. I am not advocating recklessness, but at the same time if it gets people to race somewhere that has barricades, ambulances, etc, I am all for it.

[marc70challenger]

Guess I will be the bad guy here... I like the idea of no prep racing as it is much closer to the roots/origins of drag racing, plus it takes some of the racers off the streets. I have to admit that in my youth I did a lot of street racing and loved it, this was mainly due to the fact that the closest drag strip was 200 miles away. When I eventually did get to the track, I found that a lot of the "fun" was removed due to regulations and politics. On the street, you "run what you brung" and this can result in some very interesting races; slower cars winning because the driver actually knew how to drive his/her car. I agree that the track needs to be maintained (oil spills cleaned up, etc) since everyone is going down that same strip. As to tech inspections, I would think that the officials would take a cursory look at the cars to make sure there isn't anything like gas leaks or other potentially catastrophic issues since everyone is in the same spot.

As was noted, sanctioned drag racing has been losing its audience as the newer generations have grown up with things like grand theft auto (GTA) and other games as well as the TV shows glorifying street racing. When they look at NHRA/IHRA sanctioned races, they are outsiders and I highly suspect intimidated. On the street you can talk all the smack you like and in many cases back it up even with a slower (lower HP) car if you know what you are doing. On the strip, you have to play by their rules, race in classes, etc. I can definitely see why no prep racing has become popular. I am not advocating recklessness, but at the same time if it gets people to race somewhere that has barricades, ambulances, etc, I am all for it.

Some good points. "Getting back into" drag racing I've realized one thing: it's gonna be just for fun. I've been away too long to be a competitive bracket racer and I don't have the $ or time for any true heads up classes.

You are right. The good ole days of heads up, run what you brung are way over. ... except maybe this No Prep. As you explained.

Only thing, like I said before, is how fast you can go today.   yes. No prep means you need to actually drive it. At least they are getting to the track. Hopefully they'll rejuvenate attention to IHRA or NHRA. 

But I also think the big sanctioning bodies need to figure out some simplification as well.  I've been try to play catch up last few months reading and researching.  There are in the old conundrum - more you try to make it fair, more it becomes a mess of regs and BS.

[Racer57]

Local NHRA Division 3 racer that recently won at Pomana told me that if I were to dump my clutch at local track that either the U joints or tranny would break. May that's why " No prep".

[HP_Cuda]

I believe the allure of no-prep or what I call street racing is the Outlaw nature of it.

I remember when we would go to the track and race that was one thing but once you were on the cruise and found someone willing to race, you met at an undisclosed area very early in the morning and run it. I think this is purely human nature wanting something now without any impediments.

Tech inspections are important for all racers because if say they find you have fuel line snaked a million miles all around your engine bay, it might end up with a 2 vehicle carbeque. I remember grudge night at Sears point wasn't that bad for tech inspection. You could bring a car and tell them that you plan to run high 13's when you really run low 12's and at least you would get one run in.