Jan 13 2009
…quarter mile perspective
… a memo from the Monroe LA. plant, following the demise of “Joseph Q-Ball Wales” whose chutes failed the 4th of July weekend, 1966, prompted a discussion which stands ironic, in light of PRO’s advocacy of shortening fuel courses to a thousand foot strip.
A Dale Ham correspondence seems to have offered a 1000 foot solution to race fuelers safely on Monroe’s strip. Ham, a founder of the Safety Safari school of operations, would have quickly erred on the side of caution, bearing long term further investigation during a year when AAFD machines were turning 210 regularly with chassis built for 185mph. This golden year in the sport could have also marked a shorter course within its’ history, as we now realize. So…why doesn’t blower and mag restrictive engine regulation get the voice it needs. So much about fuel racing is tenuous even in fat budget years.
The jury is still out; Internationalists are still gunning for 1320′. Allowing this discussion to air out fully seems to have precedent, after all.
