TECH: A Beginners guide to Drag Racing...

[BigWheelinBubba]

A Beginner's Guide to Drag Racing
It’s early February and the new racing season rapidly approaches! About this time every year, my fingers start to twitch in anticipation of the release of a line lock or trans brake. For some of us, drag racing is in our blood. For some, it’s an addiction for which there seems to be no cure. Either way, it’s a “gotta’ go do it” situation. I seem to fall into all the above categories! There are some that haven’t experienced the rush from that “never to quick” pass that initiates the desire to go do it again. The first pass on that 1320 feet of race track is always the one where everything seems to go wrong, whether anything does or not is irrelevant, and is generally viewed as “damn, I’m glad I got that one out of the way”. Even for the well-experienced racer, that first pass can have more anxiety attached to it than asking your first wife to marry you. For the new guy, or gal, that has never experienced this form of adrenalin rush, the biggest problems occur when they’re not prepared for the occasion. Whether this event is just for a few hours, the day, or a whole weekend of activity, how well you prepare can dictate the outcome of the experience as a whole.
If you have never taken your personal pride and joy to the track, there are some things that you will want to consider before leaving home. First timers generally drive their car to the track, make a few passes, and drive back home. Sounds pretty simple, right? Well, maybe not! Like most of us here at StangPro, we own space limited Mustangs so careful thought needs to be applied as to what and what not to carry along. I would like to share my experience with those who will be driving their car to the track.

“What if I break something?” seems to be the first thing on everyone’s mind when contemplating this first adventure. Well, most people don’t break anything on their first trip to the track. Let me explain. First experiences with a racetrack generally occur on street tires, which don’t offer the traction of race specific tires (slicks). The use of street tires generally result in tire spinning thus making the loads on rear ends, axles, drive shafts, and transmissions less than stressful. On occasion something will break regardless of preparation or condition of the parts. These things can’t be anticipated so, on the side of caution, be prepared to deal with such consequences should the need arise. Stuff happens! Best advice, go over your car thoroughly before leaving home, change the oil, check the water and brake fluid, and trany fluid if it’s equipped with an automatic transmission. Check for leaks from ANY fluid source. Anything leaking can prevent you from being allowed to get on the track surface.
You’ll want to take an ice chest and bring along plenty of beverages including water. Racetracks can get quite hot, especially in the summer down south. I live in Florida and am quite familiar with hot!
Food! Unless you want to pay some of the outrages prices they charge at the track, bring your own. Since you’re driving to the track, you probably won’t have room for the grill so take some finger foods to munch on. Sandwich materials are good too and don’t require a lot of space. Bring as much of this stuff as you can because you’ll be surprised at how often you will need to recharge your personal battery. This racetrack stuff can be quite exhausting before the end of the day. If you live in a particularly hot climate, bananas are a good source of potassium, which evaporates as you sweat. I usually take a bunch and eat one every time I think about it.
Another thing, quite often being left behind, is a bottle of white shoe polish. When you get to the track, some official looking person will assign you a number, which will have to be displayed on the car. You simply use the polish to write that number on the glass. Don’t worry, it comes off quite easily.
Quite often racers forget, or just don’t know, about clothing or other things to wear while racing. Our drag racing sport is, for the most part, a warm weather sport. Shorts and light clothes are meant for this kind of environment but some items are simply not allowed on the track. While on the track, most tracks require the operator to have on long pants. Shirts are also required but not long sleeves. What sense this makes, I don’t know! A lot of drivers carry a pair of long sweet pants to put on over other clothing while on the track. This will keep the Gestapo happy! Depending on how fast your car is, there may be other requirements also, such as a helmet or a fire jacket. Most newbies won’t need the jacket but it never hurts to have more safety equipment than you need. You should check with the track you plan to visit for safety requirements. I recommend that a helmet be worn ANYTIME you are in a car on the track, minimum. Remember, you are not on the track alone and the person in the other lane may not drive as well as you.
Something to write with, and on, can be quite useful also. If you plan on doing this racing thing very often, it’s a good idea to make notes about things such as the weather conditions, track preparation, time of day, the phone number for the girl friend of the guy next to you in the pits, and just about anything else you might think of. Just kidding about the phone number for the girl friend part, but you might want to contact the guy next to you sometime to buy that part he has for sale.
That should cover the essentials. Now, let’s go to the track.
Upon arriving at the track, the first thing you’ll have to do is give up some money, just to get in the gate. If this particular trip is just for test and tune (TNT), there will be another wad to give up for the privilege of actually taking your car out onto the track surface. If you intend to race in some particular class, there will likely be an entry fee associated with that class. Money is important, that is if you want to play, so bring some.

You’ll be instructed to park in the pit area somewhere, and it seems that it’s never where you would like to be. I find it beneficial to park as close to the rest rooms as possible, hint hint. You will also be given a “Tech” card, which you will have to fill out and present when you go to get “Teched in”. There’s a use for that writing utensil I mentioned earlier. While at the “Tech” area, some official will examine your car to determine if it is safe enough for you to take it onto the track. They look for things like fluid leaks, make sure the battery is secure, and all the lug nuts are in place. This is a good time to remind you that if your car is equipped with hubcaps, take them off before going to this area. This process is pretty mundane but depending on how many people were there before you, you could be there a while. I’ve set in this line for as long as an hour and a half. Some of that water could be handy right now. Somewhere along the line, before you can proceed to the track, you will probably be issued an armband. This tells everyone else that you have permission to be on or near the track surface, even if you are not in your car. Sometimes I walk out onto the track, especially the starting line area, to examine the surface of the track. For a first timer, you probably won’t need to concern yourself about this, but it never hurts to just go look at what you’ll be driving on.

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