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Street racing with a permit?

9K views 31 replies 13 participants last post by  4 Jaw Chuck 
#1 ·
#3 ·
Street Permit Racing

Back before there were drag strips within driving distance from a large portion of the population there may have been more need for racing on street surfaces. But a street surface is a far cry from a professionally prepared and seasoned drag strip launch pad. Really no comparison, IMO- even if the street surface is prepped it will not be anywhere near as good as at a decent strip.

Add to that the lack of timing equipment in most cases, and no 'tree, it just doesn't seem to be a viable alternative, unless the vehicles involved were in no way traction challenged. Otherwise, it would be an exercise in pedaling to see who could manage to get to the big end w/o flipping the car. My opinion- YMMV.
 
#4 ·
real street racing.

Rigby Idaho, has a car show and street race every summer. The total "track " is only 1/4 mile long. The street in front of the courthouse and sherrif's office is blocked off, They have a christmas tree and set of timing lights. The course is about 200 ft long. burn outs, rubber smoke and nitro smell in the air. " run what you brung. " The car show is in the park a couple blocks away. If brakes fail there is a dirt field at the end of the street.
 
#7 ·
Gymkhana style time trials are a better accepted style of "racing" that's not actually on a race track, per se. It only requires a largish parking lot and cones to lay out the track and someone to time/score it. The SCCA used to (and may still) organize this type of deal. The emphasis is on cornering, acceleration and stopping, but is kept to lower speeds due to the way the courses are laid out. Might not be for everyone, but better than nothing and much more likely to be allowed by municipalities than "street drags".
 
#9 ·
This is like comparing apples to oranges, when someone says they are a "street racer" that congers up visions of a bunch of idiots with absolutely no regard for anyone's safety. They race anywhere they think they can get away with it...for fun or money.

Impalexss, you're talking about a "LEGAL" street race with the blessings of the city, Police and Fire depts on scene. BIG difference between the two, when a new guy comes on this forum and mentions he's a street racer he gets jumped on because it's Illegal, Dangerous and Stupid!
 
#10 ·
Seems the tone and timbre changed once the no street racing policy was mentioned, but maybe this was what he was talking about all along. But "street racing" does almost always mean the illegal type, IMO.

When the "Safety Safari" was first formed, they went to towns and asked the powers-that-be for permission to do an exhibition-type race deal where the kids would be invited out to race, 'legally'. That (along w/the tireless work of guys like the late Wally Parks) led to tracks being built and the rest is history, as they say.
 
#11 ·
cobalt327 said:
Back before there were drag strips within driving distance from a large portion of the population there may have been more need for racing on street surfaces. But a street surface is a far cry from a professionally prepared and seasoned drag strip launch pad. Really no comparison, IMO- even if the street surface is prepped it will not be anywhere near as good as at a decent strip.

Add to that the lack of timing equipment in most cases, and no 'tree, it just doesn't seem to be a viable alternative, unless the vehicles involved were in no way traction challenged. Otherwise, it would be an exercise in pedaling to see who could manage to get to the big end w/o flipping the car. My opinion- YMMV.
My mileage does vary...I prefer racing on a street surface, don't need no prep. But I did get a 1.43 60' with a street legal radial on a prepped street surface last friday nite, actually just street drags held on the front straightaway of a local 5/8mi paved oval track. Pretty rough surface, probably not been paved in 30 years or so. Not enough room for a full 1/8mi, so we ran 540'.
 
#12 ·
cobalt327 said:
Back before there were drag strips within driving distance from a large portion of the population there may have been more need for racing on street surfaces. But a street surface is a far cry from a professionally prepared and seasoned drag strip launch pad. Really no comparison, IMO- even if the street surface is prepped it will not be anywhere near as good as at a decent strip.

Add to that the lack of timing equipment in most cases, and no 'tree, it just doesn't seem to be a viable alternative, unless the vehicles involved were in no way traction challenged. Otherwise, it would be an exercise in pedaling to see who could manage to get to the big end w/o flipping the car. My opinion- YMMV.
Much too serious, Cobalt... from what I see that street racing is for fun and giggles... oh and did I say FUN ?
 
#13 ·
user151 said:
Much too serious, Cobalt... from what I see that street racing is for fun and giggles... oh and did I say FUN ?
Oh, it's exciting, no doubt about it. But it's just not worth the chance of maiming or killing yourself or God forbid someone else. Not to mention the tickets involved. I heard that in some places the law was even confiscating the cars!

Wait- are we talking permit street racing, or street racing on the sly? Obviously my comments are aimed at illegal street racing. If you're talking about sanctioned racing, then no problem other than it seems like it would be a pedal-fest.
 
#15 ·
cobalt327 said:
If you're talking about sanctioned racing, then no problem other than it seems like it would be a pedal-fest.
You are still competing against the guy in the other lane. Remember this is supposed to be legal street racing. Running on an unprepped surface helps keep the dedicated drag cars from showing up.
 
#16 ·
aisr said:
You are still competing against the guy in the other lane. Remember this is supposed to be legal street racing. Running on an unprepped surface helps keep the dedicated drag cars from showing up.
In a way this reminds me of the pro class drag racers that say "I don't race who's next to me as much as I race the track". But it would tend to be an equalizer.

In the case of an unprepared surface, you're racing the track, so to speak, as much or more than the guy next to you. At least at the track, I know when I look over and see someone's ahead, I want to shove the pedal through the firewall- even though it's already wide open! :D If I did that on a street surface, I bet I'd lose. :(
 
#18 ·
Street racing

Who is paying for the insurance on these city permit drag races. I guess no one as seen a car,(before barriers back in the day) on a legal strip break an axle and go 8 rows up into the seats. lucky the cars were just testing and no one was there, but if it would have been the next day the stands would have been full of people.

The first video two guys racing, going up that hill and a truck pulls out in front of them. The same video, barriers on one side, that's good. The other side nothing, oh except a big ditch or hill going down to a bunch of people. Not to good.

The one dinger showed they put up barriers on both sides, one side had buildings along it so no people could be over on the one side, and they are controlled on the other. It is almost like a legal drag strip.

Street racing is illegal, and on two of the video's, if the city gave out a permit or not they are far from safe. When some one gets hurt then the legal stuff starts, it's just not worth it.

Bob
 
#22 ·
35terraplane said:
Who is paying for the insurance on these city permit drag races. I guess no one as seen a car,(before barriers back in the day) on a legal strip break an axle and go 8 rows up into the seats. lucky the cars were just testing and no one was there, but if it would have been the next day the stands would have been full of people.

Bob
No prep tracks are much less likely to break an axle. The only cars likely to end up in the stands as a result are the ones with slicks/lockers/spools/ladder bars/etc.

These races are intended for guys with street legal cars to have a legal place to race others like themselves, actual street cars that use their plates, for fun. Going to the "dragstrip" often involves long waits in line, only a few runs, and getting treated like 2nd class 'cause their car is "slow". Sportsman guys often don't like national events for this same reason. They pay big money to run, but are treated like "filler" and are subject to IMO stupid/expensive rules like unreasonable expiration dates on their helmet, belts, or trans shield. Where's the fun in that?
 
#23 ·
Street racing

aisr said:
No prep tracks are much less likely to break an axle. The only cars likely to end up in the stands as a result are the ones with slicks/lockers/spools/ladder bars/etc.

These races are intended for guys with street legal cars to have a legal place to race others like themselves, actual street cars that use their plates, for fun. Going to the "dragstrip" often involves long waits in line, only a few runs, and getting treated like 2nd class 'cause their car is "slow". Sportsman guys often don't like national events for this same reason. They pay big money to run, but are treated like "filler" and are subject to IMO stupid/expensive rules like unreasonable expiration dates on their helmet, belts, or trans shield. Where's the fun in that?
With an answer like that, you will get no reply from me, as you would not get it anyway. :nono: :nono:

Bob
 
#25 ·
aisr said:
Spoken like a guy that looks down on legal street racing.

Heres the thing..........A local government condoning a race on their streets is one thing....Street racing is another......Its not the same thing....Call it what you like, but illegal street racing is dangerous and stupid.

In that video, there is no protection for the people on the right side of that street........A car could veer over there very quickly and people could be hurt or killed......Remember the story a couple of years ago when a pro stock driver veered out of control doing a burnout on a city street....That was condoned by town council too, until something went wrong....Plain stupidity.......and, I feel the "legal" street racing in that video in this thread is too.
 
#26 ·
poncho62 said:
Heres the thing..........A local government condoning a race on their streets is one thing....Street racing is another......Its not the same thing....Call it what you like, but illegal street racing is dangerous and stupid.

In that video, there is no protection for the people on the right side of that street........A car could veer over there very quickly and people could be hurt or killed......Remember the story a couple of years ago when a pro stock driver veered out of control doing a burnout on a city street....That was condoned by town council too, until something went wrong....Plain stupidity.......and, I feel the "legal" street racing in that video in this thread is too.
I thought this thread was about "legal" street racing.

Turning a full-on racecar loose on the street might not be a wise choice, but it sounds like it might have been legal. Instead of an idiot streetracer giving drag racing a bad name, that might be a case of an idiot drag racer giving legal street racing a bad name.
 
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