In the stock classes, after years of Detroit perpetually under-rating their engines to gain advantage on the track and with insurance companies, no doubt the NHRA develops their own horsepower figures. In the Factory Experimental division, making power was not the problem… hooking up on the crappy slicks of the day was an issue. Engineers tweaked suspensions to solve the problem: altered wheelbases, solid front axles, nose-in-the-air stances… all designed to put more weight on those rear tires, encouraging them to hook up rather than go up in smoke.
Art Chrisman's '66 Comet funny car source: Chevy Hardcore. They survive to this day. Also, drag racing is re-democratized with the birth of bracket racing. Credited to Ron Leek of Byron Dragway in Illinois, it was designed to pump up grassroots racing, which had fallen into a slump. With rapidly advancing technology and a shaky economy, many weekend racers found themselves priced out. Whoever is closest to their prediction, without going quicker, wins; consistentcy is rewarded over all-out speed.
Slow drivers could compete against pro machinery with an equal shot of winning. Advertise a cash prize, and suddenly cars are flooding the staging lanes, angling for a shot.
It worked; bracket racing today is a track staple nationwide. Eddie Hill hits mph source: Tom Margie. Larger changes would soon be in effect. On June 21, Funny Car pilot Scott Kalitta was killed when his engine exploded near the finish line, his parachutes did not deploy, and he smashed into a heavy crane that ESPN was using for filming.
As a result, Top Fuel and Funny Car categories now run a 1,foot track, with additional safety measures enacted. Sign up for more restomod content to add horsepower to your inbox. You will see his name again in this story. Early s: The dry lakebeds of Southern California were wide-open and available to hot rodders to drive as fast as they dared. Parks starts the Road Runners Club in Where speed and testosterone is involved, competition will naturally ensue, and with the dry lakes far from civilization, thrifty tinkerers kept their exploits closer to home.
Professional racing event would be great to watch like Formula One racing and the most awaited on this events are the customized cars! I least expect that Ford is the one responsible for the introduction of drag racing. Well, its great to know the humble beginnings of this activities. I would say that even though I am really a big drag racing, I never knew the history that well. Which is why I am really amazed at the things that you have listed here. It makes me understand the true meaning of drag racing.
Hopefully, one of this days, I may have the chance to try this sport. That one is def8initely an interesting read. I never really knew that drag racing actually has quite a history. Imagine that, there are already a lot of speed demons even. If California is the hometown of drag racing,are there also drag racers there?
Anyway, thanks to NHRA, it finally become a spur. So, California is the home town of drag racing. Its great to know the history of drag racing! Getting back to the past gives me so a hint on where all this exciting and jaw dropping racing started.
It really makes me appreciate more the racing events! The History of Drag Racing. Origins of the Term. Matt McDonald. Read full bio.
What do you think? Following a serious accident, many changes took place that became staples of the genre. In March of , drag racer by the name Don Garlits considered by many to be the father of drag racing found himself in a terrifying situation. His front-engined slingshot rail dragster suffered from a transmission explosion which cut the car in half and cost him his right foot. Although he survived, he vowed to make a race car as powerful as the one that had exploded, but with an engine at the back.
Not only did he succeed in making the car, but the car was also able to win a championship, to many people's surprise. Fast forward to two years later, and almost every major drag race car manufacturer was now making cars with engines behind the driver. Drag racing experienced a renaissance during the s, a time when all major car manufacturers were participating in drag races around the world, and different companies started investing in it.
Teams were paid for their services, trailers were turned into mobile workshops, and prize money got a whole lot bigger. The fundamentals of drag racing remain the same even today, and anyone who has done it or witnessed it knows what a whiteknuckle moment is! Close menu. Log in Create account. Blog Menu. The Birth of Drag Racing Drag racing as you have come to know today came into being after decades of experimentation, and it all started in the dry lake beds of the California desert.
Organized drag racing As the 50s rolled in, soon came the time of organized drag racing. The aggressive upgrading of facilities to stadium quality, with fan amenities, VIP towers, and tall grandstands, was the passion of NHRA President Dallas Gardner, who took the reins in when Parks became board chairman. Six years later, as the Nationals hopscotched around the country to showcase the growing sport before settling in Indianapolis in , the Winternationals became NHRA's second event.
Incredible success and growth With 70, members and more than 40, licensed competitors; NHRA is a thriving leader in the world of motorsports.
Parks, who died in at the age of 94, initially started NHRA as a means of getting hot rodders off the streets and on to legal drag strips. Since those early days, NHRA has evolved into the largest promoter of professional drag racing in the world. While Top Fuel dragsters routinely cover the race distance at more than mph, NHRA is moving just as fast in popularity with auto racing fans.
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