Forum: HoseHeads Sprint Car General Forum (go)
Moderators: dirtonly  /  dmantx  /  hosehead

When the 305 class was dreamed up,they missed the boat big time.They should have went the other direction with big cubic inches,say 400 or more,if they had this could have been a great class that just may have ran the 360's out of business and gave the racers an affordable class with motors that would actually run.If you made a 400 with rules similar to the 305's,you could have motors that make good hp and torque that wouldn't cost anymore than a 305. Flat topped pistons,cam limit,and a reasonable priced head such as Dart iron eagles on a 400 would be a great class and much more fun to watch and drive than the under powered 305's.

One things that's missing from this thread is a discussion of track configuration. Everyone knows Knoxville's half mile loves high horsepower, high revving engings. Many 305, 360 and 410 competitors there spend ridiculous amounts of money on their engines. I'll bet a 50 horsepower difference in a 305 motor there would be very obvious on the track. That same 50 horsepower might not be as obvious at Eagle's third mile. (I'm not knocking Eagle. I've never been there and would like to go sometime.)

As a lifelong sprint car fan, I love the idea of getting new teams into the sport; regardless of engine size. Some will pack it in after awhile because they can't afford it or can't succeed. But the rest will be hooked and stay around a long time. That's what we need to encourage. If that means they start in the 305 class with a $7K motor, so be it.

I expect most (if not all) sprint care teams lose money. The question is how much they can afford to lose. The bigger the motor the more the loss. Purses can't cover the weekly expense of keeping the pin in these grenades. They're gonna blow or need refreshed. The bigger the horsepower, the more you're gonna spend to keep them fresh.

I will be watching the Iowa State Fairgrounds track in 2014 to see how the new Racesaver 305 class does. If it succeeds, I'll bet we'll see some of those teams move up to the 360 or 410 divisions at Knoxville within a few years. And what's wrong with that? Maybe the Iowa State Fairgounds tracks could even have a 360 division (again) someday.

As the Donnie Schatz engine remains ignored...

If i decided to buy a car and go sprint car racing, being a regular guy on a limited budget, my priorities would be something like this:

1) have fun

2) not spend much money

3) find a track / series that maximizes the above

Whats not on the list?

1) going fast, i.e, i dont care if im racing in the fastest class at the track, i just want to be fast enough in my class to have fun

2) moving "up" - i dont aspire to get a ride, race for a living, make a name for myself, etc. This is a hobby and fun is the only goal.

3) winning. Winning for me would simply be getting enough purse money to cover fuel, towing gas, and pit passes

For having fun, an underpowered winged car on a big track like knoxville wont result in much fun for me. I dont need to win, but if i were outclassed in the motor department, it would be no fun at all helplessely watching everyone pull away. Also. Im pretty wimpy, so i would probably be scared out of my mind running that fast anyway. So, to maximize the fun factor for someone like me, the power advantage of big $$$ needs to be minimized somehow. This is easy, i can choose to run smaller tracks and/or wingless. If it werent for the worry of a bumper hitting my helmet (i.e., i have a family to support) wingless on a small track would be my preference.

The other item that differentiates the low buck guy from the big buck guy is tires. I would have to use the same tire for a few nites, or used tires. I would think a hard tire rule would minimize the advantage of the bigger dollar teams, assuming the harder doesnt lose a lot of grip on its fourth or fifth nite.

So, from a low buck hobby competitor perspective, id want something like an imca sportmod. So why am i looking at a sprint car?  I remember! Because stock cars are ugly. 

I still wish there was some way to put a limit on the $$$$ that is spent on these motors. I know the claim deal doesnt work with other classes but if it was more reasonable maybe like $10 complete that would help slow down the guys spending $20 on them. ?????? Keep it a working mans class.

I don't see them taking over the country - WAY to many different groups wanting to run their own package.

Like I've said before if all the different tracks would get together throw their EGO's out the window and EACH GROUP would be willing to give and take and honestly work for the betterment of the 305's then and ONLY then would they maybe take over the country.

As the Donnie Schatz engine remains ignored...

We ran the 305's wingless last month at Boyd Raceway & had more than 30 cars for the only time we ran them wingless this year... In my opinion 305's are better off wingless as it doesn't matter how much you have in your motor, but how good of a driver & set up you have!  Here's the video from the A main at Boyd!

Right after they pass a regulation of no race tracks over a quarter mile .

As the Donnie Schatz engine remains ignored...

Au contraire, mon frere! 1 second a lap difference under similar track conditions at Eagle Raceway. Not you or anyone else can honestly say the can see that small dissimilarity.