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

Are we ready for group qualifying for sprint cars? Speeds up the show and saves the track. Everyone else is going to it.

I agree and its time. Knoxville needs to lead the way.

Knoxville did it last year, quite a bit actually.  They started doing one car for one lap to save time, but ended up doing 3 cars for 2 laps and it worked very well

Single car qualifying is pretty boring,,,and the evaporation at tracks like Eldora is rapid so lets give the fans a better show and speed it up! The smaller tracks might not allow as many cars at one time but more than one car would surely help!

1

Sydney Speedway Led the way along time ago, been doing it for years. Most every Outlaw and a lot of other Americans have experianced it on their visits down under. 3 cars on a 3/8ths for 2 laps rarely gives any trouble and 60 cars gets done in no time.. every track should do it.

I agree. 

5 cars at a time for 2 laps, best of 2.  Average total time for time trials would be around 15 minutes instead of 45

This thread and all the replies have caused me to lose faith in humanity.

Group qualifying is the scourge of the earth.

I don't have to explain why, it explains itself.

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I saw them do it in the non-winged class at Chico during the Gold Cup a few years ago. They had 4 cars at a time on a 1/4 mile track and had no problems, not counting the occasional flip here and there.

Single car qualifying is rarely exciting unless they are threatening the track record.  Beyond that it's a snoozer and I think way too much emphasis is put on qualifying anyway.    I would say that this is a very good idea and the time has come.  Actually, the time came years ago but oh well....

Group qualifying when done correctly can save time, but it's the same # of laps being put on the track, so it in no way helps track conditions (unless you mean it widens it out quicker as there are more cars out there earlier in the night when the sun is still up.

Most group qualifying however doesn't save time as they push the cars off, wait for them to spread out a little bit, then finally throw the green, give them a warm up lap, 2 laps on the clock, and then a cool down lap.  After all those cars finally pull off the track, they send out the next group.

I've seen group qualifying take less time (Knoxville did a great job with it last year), and I've seen it done horribly (Knoxville a few years ago) and take as long or longer than single car qualifying.

 I'd already lost faith in humanity, but I still agree.

Half the lies they tell about me aren't true. 

Get rid of qualifying altogether and go to random draw double heat races.  Better for the fans and the racers.  JMO

+ 1 no qualfing.  Instead of the time wasted qualfiying with the track drying out while the sun is out, instead run pea picke heats, or better yet, two sets of heats, kinda like chilli bowl.

Should they get rid of time trials at Indy also?  Its sprint cars ,we time trial.

They have group qualified the 305 and 360 at Knoxville for a few years.  It works out real well.  I think they use 5 cars at a time.  I have very seldom seen a car pull up on a car in front of them,   but it does happen once in a great while.  At Knoxville the times laps and your practice laps are all in one, you get about 5 laps on the clock.  This works out real well.  With time trials you at least sort of control your own fate.  Drawing a number suchs.  I know of a team who had a average draw of 40 for 2 years in a row.  Then you see the point leader start on pole 3  out of every 5 races.  You would think it would average out over a season but it does not seem to.  

yes, they implemented that about 3 years ago now.  Before that, it was just 5 hotlaps and you drew for position and you'd see some guys that were fast be victims of track conditions.  draw the worst pill possible and then have the track be super heavy and one lane for their heat race.

Group qualifying for the 410's has been a work in progress over the last few years but I will say the 3 cars at a time that they did last season was the best they've come up with.  They push cars, they spread themselves out and get on the gas and take 2 laps of TT, once the last car gets the checker, the next 3 are pushed.  When they tried 6 car groups it was HORRIBLE, actually took LONGER than single car qualifying.

What I was getting at by saving the track is it takes longer to single car qualify so the  track goes away from evaporation due to hot windy summer days.  Each driver gets track conditions more equally than the strung out single car qualifying. If done correctly, group qualifying has to save time.

Exactly...Been trying to tell people that for years. They finally get convinced when they actually time how long it takes. Too many people are always looking to makes cjanges just for the sake of change.

I'm alright with group qualifying, as long as major events Such as the nationals, the open, the royal, ect ect stay single car TT. I actually enjoy watching TT myself, but i know alot of others don't,  but i love it!