Pro Street Drag Series
Drag Racing
Drag racing is a competition in which vehicles compete to be the first to cross a set finish line, usually from a standing start, and in a straight line. First gaining popularity in the USA after World War II, the sport steadily grew in popularity and spread across the globe. By 2009, there were hundreds of dragstrips in operation, mainly in developed countries.
Most drag races begin with a standing (stationary) start and are just 1/4 mile long (1320 feet). Races last between 3.9 and 17 seconds, with finishing speeds ranging from 80 to over 330 miles per hour (530 km/h), depending upon the type of vehicle being used.The vehicle then needs a parachute to slow down.
Basics of Drag Racing
Before each drag race (also known as a pass), each driver is allowed to perform a burnout (which heats the tires and lays rubber down at the beginning of the track, improving traction). Each driver then lines up (or stages) at the starting line. Informal drag races can be started by any means, including flag-waving and arm-dropping. These methods are more likely to be seen in an un-professional setting, being most popular with illegal street racing. Professional drag races are started electronically, with a series of vertically-arranged lights known as a "Christmas tree" or just "tree". A "Christmas tree" consists of a column of lights for each driver/lane. In each column, the top two lights are small amber lights connected to light beams on the track, which when broken by the vehicle's front tire(s) indicate that the driver has pre-staged (approximately 7 inches (180 mm) from the starting line) and then staged (at the starting line).
Below the staging lights are three large amber lights, a green light, and a red light. When both drivers are staged, the tree is activated to start the race, which causes the three large amber lights to illuminate, followed by the green light. There are two standard light sequences: either the three amber lights flash simultaneously, followed .4 seconds later by the green light (a pro tree), or the ambers light in sequence from top to bottom, .5 seconds apart, followed .5 seconds later by the green light (a sportsman tree, or full tree). If the driver breaks the starting line beam before the green light illuminates, the red light for that driver's lane illuminates instead, indicating disqualification.
Some cars rely on wheelie bars to keep the front end from lifting off the pavement and wasting energy that would otherwise propel the car forward. On front-wheel-drive cars, these are used not to prevent wheelstanding, but to pre-load more weight onto the front wheels, increasing traction.
Classes of Drag Racing
There are literally hundreds of different classes in drag racing, each with different requirements and restrictions on things such as weight, engine size, body style, modifications, and many others. NHRA and IHRA share some of these classes, but many are solely used by one sanctioning body or the other. The NHRA boasts over 200 classes, while the IHRA has fewer. Some IHRA classes have multiple sub-classes in them to differentiate by engine components and other features. There is even a class for aspiring youngsters, Junior Dragster, which uses an eighth-mile, also favored by VW racers.
In 1997, the FIA (cars) and UEM (bikes) began sanctioning drag racing in Europe with a fully established European Drag Racing Championship, in cooperation (and rules compliance) with NHRA. The major European drag strips include Santa Pod Raceway in Podington, England; Alastaro Circuit, Finland; Mantorp Park, Sweden; Gardermoen Raceway, Norway and the Hockenheimring in Germany. The major difference is the nitro-class distance, which is 300 meters at some tracks, although the NHRA and FIA are likely to discuss the distance change in the future.