HEAD READY FOR DRAG RACING TOWN HALL MEETINGS
Thu, 2010-05-27 19:00
Jim Head isn’t planning to run for government office but he wouldn’t mind holding a town hall meeting or two, maybe three concerning the current state of 1,000 foot racing.
Head, the veteran independent nitro Funny Car racer from Columbus, Ohio, has a simple goal in mind. He would like to reach the purists and diehard drag race fans to explain why he feels racing to 1,000 feet is better for drag racing’s long term survival than slowing down the nitro cars to run the quarter-mile.
“I won’t get physical, just mental,” said Head with a smile. “They have to appreciate what I have to say because, after all, I AM doing it. That has to account for something. I’m not afraid to race. I just believe what we are doing is the best and safest. I’d like the opportunity to explain myself person-to-person, man to man.
Jim Head isn’t planning to run for government office but he wouldn’t mind holding a town hall meeting or two, maybe three concerning the current state of 1,000 foot racing.
Head, the veteran independent nitro Funny Car racer from Columbus, Ohio, has a simple goal in mind. He would like to reach the purists and diehard drag race fans to explain why he feels racing to 1,000 feet is better for drag racing’s long term survival than slowing down the nitro cars to run the quarter-mile.
“I won’t get physical, just mental,” said Head with a smile. “They have to appreciate what I have to say because, after all, I AM doing it. That has to account for something. I’m not afraid to race. I just believe what we are doing is the best and safest. I’d like the opportunity to explain myself person-to-person, man to man.
“I will go anywhere, any place and any time just to reach the fans and explain why this makes sense.”
Head understands there will be some whose mind will not change regardless of how many facts and intelligent points he makes.
“I know we have some noisy fans who don’t like 1,000 feet,” said Head, who pointed out his position as an independent racer allows him to speak freely on the subject. “I wish they would come and listen to me tell why I am so for it. Give me an hour and I believe I could provide enough reasoning that 95-percent of them would understand why I am so for this. Anyone who is against the cars running 1,000 feet [after that], they are ignorant at best.
“We have the best side-by-side racing in Topeka. It was tough out there. The parts carnage is way less than it has been in the past.”
Head believes the new and casual fans really don’t have a beef with the nitro cars running the shorter distance. If drag racing is to grow, Head believes the drag racing community needs to be on the same page regarding this crucial item.
“I told a major media television outlet that my car runs 310 miles per hour in just under a quarter-mile,” said Head. “It didn’t seem to bother them. That’s John Q Public and the demographic and the one the NHRA is trying to market to. You have these diehards, ‘By gosh, drag racing is a quarter-mile and if it isn't -- it's not drag racing.' If they can’t listen to reason, I hope they don’t come to the drag races anymore. I’d rather go out for the new spectator who doesn’t know a lot about our sport.
“We’re not going to rebuild Pomona because it’s the flagship of the NHRA. To go to Pomona with special rules is a mistake. You can’t change a track with the history of Englishtown. I will run the quarter-mile but I will shut off at 1,000 feet. I’ll do most everything but run a quarter-mile on a track that cannot handle quarter-mile racing. I’m not going to kill myself.”
Head suffered one of the most violent explosions in drag racing history during last weekend’s NHRA Summernationals in Topeka, Kan. One of the unfortunate byproducts of the NHRA desire to return to quarter-mile racing will be wholesale changes made to the traditional nitro combination in the name of safety and slowing the cars down.
“To think the NHRA, through a new combination, can make these cars safer or return to the quarter-mile is pretty naïve at best,” Head said. “It could really get bad for us. It could be a bad situation and I’m very concerned about that.”
Head believes the explosion he experienced on Sunday was one of the worst he’s experienced in his career. The fact he walked away with no injuries points to the fact the cars are safer than they’ve ever been. As for the explosions, he believes smaller fuel pumps, smaller engines and restrictor plates won't change anything. Explosions will be the same as long as nitro runs through the engines.
Head and Ed McCulloch have been on the opposite end of debates regarding drag racing rules, but this time he says they are on the same page regarding the NHRA’s desire to have a new set of engine specs in place for 2011 by July. He’s unwavering in his belief the engines will still blow up and the facilities incapable of running 1320 feet will not become safer regardless of how much they are slowed.
In other words, unless the NHRA is willing to take nitro out of the engines, changing the engine spec is both useless and unwarranted.
“It’s nitromethane and when you hang a valve open with a supercharged engine … it’s going to blow up. It will blow the body off and make a big explosion. I broke a cam timing gear. That would have been the same explosion with a smaller fuel pump or blower restrictor … or lower nitro percentage.
“You get plenty of railbirds who have all kinds of ideas,” Head continued. “It’s easy when you don’t own or tune one of these things to come up with some cockamamie scheme that will fix the world. When you own or tune one, you usually know better. I have to applaud Ed McCulloch on his comments earlier in the week. I’m telling you there’s no method short of burning methanol which is going to stop this. They banned nitro in the NHRA during the 1960s and that turned out to be a really bad idea.”
Head understands his proposed town hall meetings, tentatively scheduled for Englishtown and Norwalk, have the potential to be as volatile as the nitro he burns in his Funny Car. But, just like he’s got the necessary safeguards in his flopper, he’s already looking into a few for the meetings.
“I might have to bring in Ed McCulloch as the head of security, between the two of us, I don’t think they’d hurt us,” Head said with a laugh.
Head, the veteran independent nitro Funny Car racer from Columbus, Ohio, has a simple goal in mind. He would like to reach the purists and diehard drag race fans to explain why he feels racing to 1,000 feet is better for drag racing’s long term survival than slowing down the nitro cars to run the quarter-mile.
“I won’t get physical, just mental,” said Head with a smile. “They have to appreciate what I have to say because, after all, I AM doing it. That has to account for something. I’m not afraid to race. I just believe what we are doing is the best and safest. I’d like the opportunity to explain myself person-to-person, man to man.
Veteran Funny car Racer Believes Speaking To Race Fans Directly Is Key To Winning Support for 1,000 Foot Racing …
Despite this violent explosion in Topeka, Jim Head believes nitro racing is safer than its ever been and thanks to 1,000 feets it's been closer as well. [espn2]
Head, the veteran independent nitro Funny Car racer from Columbus, Ohio, has a simple goal in mind. He would like to reach the purists and diehard drag race fans to explain why he feels racing to 1,000 feet is better for drag racing’s long term survival than slowing down the nitro cars to run the quarter-mile.
“I won’t get physical, just mental,” said Head with a smile. “They have to appreciate what I have to say because, after all, I AM doing it. That has to account for something. I’m not afraid to race. I just believe what we are doing is the best and safest. I’d like the opportunity to explain myself person-to-person, man to man.
“I will go anywhere, any place and any time just to reach the fans and explain why this makes sense.”
Head understands there will be some whose mind will not change regardless of how many facts and intelligent points he makes.
“I know we have some noisy fans who don’t like 1,000 feet,” said Head, who pointed out his position as an independent racer allows him to speak freely on the subject. “I wish they would come and listen to me tell why I am so for it. Give me an hour and I believe I could provide enough reasoning that 95-percent of them would understand why I am so for this. Anyone who is against the cars running 1,000 feet [after that], they are ignorant at best.
“We have the best side-by-side racing in Topeka. It was tough out there. The parts carnage is way less than it has been in the past.”
Head believes the new and casual fans really don’t have a beef with the nitro cars running the shorter distance. If drag racing is to grow, Head believes the drag racing community needs to be on the same page regarding this crucial item.
“I told a major media television outlet that my car runs 310 miles per hour in just under a quarter-mile,” said Head. “It didn’t seem to bother them. That’s John Q Public and the demographic and the one the NHRA is trying to market to. You have these diehards, ‘By gosh, drag racing is a quarter-mile and if it isn't -- it's not drag racing.' If they can’t listen to reason, I hope they don’t come to the drag races anymore. I’d rather go out for the new spectator who doesn’t know a lot about our sport.
“We’re not going to rebuild Pomona because it’s the flagship of the NHRA. To go to Pomona with special rules is a mistake. You can’t change a track with the history of Englishtown. I will run the quarter-mile but I will shut off at 1,000 feet. I’ll do most everything but run a quarter-mile on a track that cannot handle quarter-mile racing. I’m not going to kill myself.”
Head suffered one of the most violent explosions in drag racing history during last weekend’s NHRA Summernationals in Topeka, Kan. One of the unfortunate byproducts of the NHRA desire to return to quarter-mile racing will be wholesale changes made to the traditional nitro combination in the name of safety and slowing the cars down.
“To think the NHRA, through a new combination, can make these cars safer or return to the quarter-mile is pretty naïve at best,” Head said. “It could really get bad for us. It could be a bad situation and I’m very concerned about that.”
Head believes the explosion he experienced on Sunday was one of the worst he’s experienced in his career. The fact he walked away with no injuries points to the fact the cars are safer than they’ve ever been. As for the explosions, he believes smaller fuel pumps, smaller engines and restrictor plates won't change anything. Explosions will be the same as long as nitro runs through the engines.
Head and Ed McCulloch have been on the opposite end of debates regarding drag racing rules, but this time he says they are on the same page regarding the NHRA’s desire to have a new set of engine specs in place for 2011 by July. He’s unwavering in his belief the engines will still blow up and the facilities incapable of running 1320 feet will not become safer regardless of how much they are slowed.
In other words, unless the NHRA is willing to take nitro out of the engines, changing the engine spec is both useless and unwarranted.
“It’s nitromethane and when you hang a valve open with a supercharged engine … it’s going to blow up. It will blow the body off and make a big explosion. I broke a cam timing gear. That would have been the same explosion with a smaller fuel pump or blower restrictor … or lower nitro percentage.
“You get plenty of railbirds who have all kinds of ideas,” Head continued. “It’s easy when you don’t own or tune one of these things to come up with some cockamamie scheme that will fix the world. When you own or tune one, you usually know better. I have to applaud Ed McCulloch on his comments earlier in the week. I’m telling you there’s no method short of burning methanol which is going to stop this. They banned nitro in the NHRA during the 1960s and that turned out to be a really bad idea.”
Head understands his proposed town hall meetings, tentatively scheduled for Englishtown and Norwalk, have the potential to be as volatile as the nitro he burns in his Funny Car. But, just like he’s got the necessary safeguards in his flopper, he’s already looking into a few for the meetings.
“I might have to bring in Ed McCulloch as the head of security, between the two of us, I don’t think they’d hurt us,” Head said with a laugh.
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