Matt put it better than I did....
September 13, 2004
National Hot Rod Association
2035 Financial Way
Glendora, CA 91741
(626) 914-4761
(6260 963-5360 (fax)
To whom it may concern:
I would like to convey my experiences at National Trail Raceway on Sunday September 12, 2004. I do so in an effort to express the serious safety concerns that I have about the facility.
I volunteer my time to act as a crewmember for a friend who races at this facility, primarily, and at other tracks on occasion. I have been fortunate enough to do this for two years now, and occasionally enter my own vehicle in the Sportsman class as well. I have been a drag racing fan for as long as I can remember, and participate because of my love for the sport and the enjoyment of the experience found at the track and in the racing community. I believe this to be the same for the rest of my teammates. For us, it isn’t so much about winning, but more about just being there.
My friend’s open-wheel car competes in the Super Pro and Quick 32 classes, and generally runs in the 7.70’s around 170 mph. He is usually one of the faster cars at the track on any given weekend, and is very consistent as well. Sunday, his ET’s varied by about .03 seconds (on completed passes), and this mirrored the changes in temperature during the day.
About mid-day, a competitor ran into problems and dropped oil on the track from around the 1/8th mile mark through the end of the track and partially into the return lane. Track staff spent about 40 minutes cleaning up the oil and continued racing. A few minutes after racing restarted, another competitor rolled his dragster several times after the finish line. As a result of this accident, there was an alcohol fire, and he was eventually transported to the hospital via helicopter. This accident began in the lane with the oil down, near the finish line. It then continued into both lanes nearing the end of the track. One of the drivers from the previous race, also in a dragster, witnessed the incident as he was driving down the return lane. He was able to stop his car, get out and run to the accident before the safety crew could get there. The driver in the return lane was nearly as far away as the safety crew, and it was that driver who extinguished the driver that was on fire. This is the first of my concerns.
During the cleanup of this serious accident, I walked the track to see if there were any parts or fluids on the track. The tire marks from the dragster that rolled were pretty clear. The inside rear tire was locked up as he crossed the finish line, leaving a dark skid mark on the track. There was no mark from the outside rear tire. As I walked further down the track, I could then see where the outside rear tire had left a skid mark, curving towards the center of the track. Further down, there was an even darker mark from the inside rear tire again, curving towards the wall. This mark passed through the oil dry from the previous oil down, and was a dark skid mark on one side of the oil dry, then no rubber on top of the oil dry, and then dark again on the other side of the oil dry. The last skid mark was from the outside tire again, and had diagonal stripes along the edge. I am guessing that is when the sidewall rolled under the dragster, and where it began to roll.
Can anyone say, without a doubt, that the previous oil down caused or played a part in this accident? My guess is that it at least played a part, but we will won’t anything definite. Should a track official investigate that possibility before sending anyone else down the track? I think so, but cleanup was kept to the area where the dragster burned. This brings me to my second concern, which is track prep.
I don’t know if the problem lies in a lack of experience, if the track is short-staffed, or if it is a financial limitation, but track prep at NTR is (and has been) very poor. I have been to National events at NTR, and other tracks, and, in comparison, the way the track surface is managed day-to-day at NTR is unacceptable. On one of our time trials, the right land was so poor that the car lost traction around 60 feet, and it caused the car to cross the center line. After looking at the track, I found a spot 2 feet wide by 4 feet long where there was no rubber on the track at all (just bare concrete). On the other side of the lane, the rubber was rolling up. During eliminations, another competitor dropped fluids on the track. This was at dusk. After cleaning the track with oil dry, the track staff decided to put down VHT for the entire quarter mile (both lanes). Less than a minute after applying traction compound, they had cars running on the track. The track was not dragged at all, just sprayed. From what I have seen and heard, VHT needs to be dragged with rubber before it is truly effective. Also, I believe that it takes several minutes for VHT to dry and react with the rubber on the track. We were the in the first pair of Quick 32, and the second set of cars to go after the application of traction compound. My friend shook the tires during the launch (very unusual), and had to get completely out of the throttle. A few minutes later, we were called up for Super Pro. You could still smell VHT in the burnout box. This launch the car hooked up well, and lost traction about 600 feet out. It veered towards the center line, and then went up on two tires as my friend steered it back into the lane. The track staff watched this happen, and then waved in two more cars. Another team member through up his hands in disgust, and one of the track staff ran over and asked him what his problem was. He went on to say that it had to be the driver’s fault, as it happened after the transition, and because the 8.90 car (using a throttle stop) that went down our lane before us didn’t have any problems. It was dark by this point, and there is no way to know whether that 8.90 car dropped anything on the track or not (at least from staging). Considering the day’s events, I would think that the track’s staff would want to stop and check why the car got that far out of shape.
That car has hundreds of passes on it, and had never crossed the center line before. That day, it did it twice (once from each lane). My friend has been racing for 15 years, and has never crossed the center line before. In my mind, the NHRA exists because of safety. It was brought into existence in order to get people off of the streets so that they could race in a safe, controlled environment. While there certainly is money involved in drag racing these days, it still seems that safety is, and should be, the primary function of the NHRA governing body. When you look at the new batch of street racers out there, the NHRA needs to exist today more than ever.
I am sure that most people involved in amateur drag racing would agree that safety is more important than the extra few minutes it takes to do the job correct. I would ask that the NHRA address this issue with all its owned and sanctioned tracks. I understand that not every track can afford a street sweeper and the latest cutting edge equipment, but I know that they can afford a torch and a broom. I have to believe that the NHRA can create a “best practices” document that covers the proper use of traction compound (VHT TRACKBITE), powdered resin traction compound (VHT TRACKSPOT), and the cleanup of an oil down.
I can’t express how important I believe it is for you to address this problem. Until today, I have never taken time out of my busy day to write a letter over a product or service. This, however, involves the well being of many people. If National Trail Raceway can send 7000 horsepower dragsters down the track reliably on one weekend per year, they should easily be able to send a 1000 horsepower car down the track on the rest.
There are plenty of good reasons to address this. As I am sure you know, amateur racing creates and educates pro racing’s future drivers. Amateur racing strengthens and broadens pro racing’s fan base. If the thousands of amateur racing’s drivers, family, and friends feel that it can’t be done without serious risk to life and limb, they will no longer do it. Without the support of the NHRA, racers will stop supporting the NHRA. Will the NHRA wait until someone dies on the track before the problem is addressed? How many people do you suppose were standing around the flatbed truck when the twisted and burned dragster was dragged off of it and placed in the racer’s trailer? There are young children at the track, and some of them are racing. The Coughlin family (ever heard of Jeg’s?) and friends were at their home track that day. Children and adults alike were affected by the sight of the broken and melted car and medical helicopter. Without the grass roots support of amateur racing, there will be no money or future in drag racing. I believe this could have all been avoided by taking a few minutes between rounds to sweep, spray, and drag the lanes, and taking a little more care in the cleanup of an oil down.
I would like to thank you for taking the time to read this long and technical letter. I would also like to hear your plans for addressing the issue. I am not looking to see an individual get into trouble. I am not looking for restitution, free money, or patronization. I would encourage you to think this one through. If it is a staffing issue, I am sure that racers could assist, or wait the extra time. We are talking about people who run towards a fire to help out a competitor. I would like to see a plan to make this track safe to drive on. I can assure you that how you respond will play a part in my future plans and dealings with the NHRA.
Sincerely,
Matthew
