I know you do the points racing at Atco. How do you get into this? How much does it cost to run for a season or do you pay each time you go? I've never done any competitive drag racing but I want to get into it.

 

It's $50 to enter the points competition for the year. That entitles you to more $$$ if you win a points race and the chance of qualifying for the Division 1 bracket finals on Team Atco Raceway. You pay for each race you go to ($65 for Super Pro, $50 for Pro and $35 for Street) so the $50 to enter the points program is additional.

You do not have to make every points race but if you want to qualify for the team, your chances would be slim if you didn't. This past Saturday was the first points race so you have missed one already. They take X amount of drivers for the first 1/2 of the season, X amount for the 2nd half and X amount OVERALL. I don't know which class you plan on running but I highly recommend starting in the Street class if you meet the qualifications.

Here's the form that describes entry fees and payouts for Super Pro, Pro and Street: http://www.atcorace.com/artman/uploa...pro-street.pdf

It also lists the dates for all the points races, the first half and second half, and the number of drivers they're taking for each class to the Division 1 bracket finals.

If your goal is to qualify for the team it's a big commitment. I had planned to miss at least one race this year (for the honeymoon) but if I continue to go 3 rounds every week, I have a pretty good shot at qualifying if I don't miss a race. That rolls off the keyboard quite easily but it is a huge accomplishment for me to have made it to the 3rd round this past Saturday!

I'm sure Jim will chime in - he runs points at the Grove and tried Atco points a few years ago. Brian might jump in too - he also gave Atco points a shot a couple of years ago.

PM me if you have any questions. I love talking about bracket racing!!

 

Thanks for the quick response. I'm actually planning, with a friend, to get a car ready for next season. We are in the process of finding a rolling chassis now to start with, and will be working on building a motor over the course of the year. Right now all I have is my daily driven T/A, so that wont work for this season, by the time I have a car ready it wont be worth it. Basically I'm just trying to get informed on the subject before just jumping into it.

 

soontobeGN, just to let you know running points at Atco is brutal. I don't want you to enter points, become discourged, and quit. You may want to run at Raceway Park in the non points races (Saturday's) to get practice. Events like the EFI shootout, Street Wars, Trophy Marathon. Maple Grove has a Trophy class which is an entry level class. Most people running the Street class are actually running very well prepared race cars set up to fit into the street rules. There comes a point when to become better you have to race against the best and ATCO is the place. If you need any advice give me a yell. I've gotten a ton of help from 5SPDCHK's extended ATCO family.

You don't have to sign up for points to run at any "points" events. Just pay the entey fee and race. The payout for runner up is less if your not a points racer.

I ran Heavy now PRO at Atco a few years back and was able to hold my own. I did loose first round two weeks in a row on the best packages of my life. I somehow mustered a .017 package then the next week a .011 and was beaten both times. That shows how good the competition is at ATCO. I did learn there.

I do perfer to run at ATCO but Maple is much closer. Running points at Maple isn't exactly easy either. It not uncommon for a person to take 4-5 seasons before they can get into the money round in the Pro class. 5SPDCHK has done that in the first race of her second year.

 

Actually, I did get some money last year. One Saturday I was still in when the race was called at 2nd round. I went to 3rd round on a Tuesday night for a few bucks last year too. It's hard though!!!

Speaking of tight races... the MOV for the final in Pro on Saturday night was .0008 - yup, you got it - .0008 !!!!!!

 

If you want to get together for a beer or something and chat about bracket racing and running points, I'd be more than happy to meet up with you - as long as it isn't on a points day.

You could also bring your daily driver down and run it in Street to get an idea of what it's like - just do it for fun!!

 

Yeah I ran points 2 years ago at Atco. Honestly its no joke. The bracket racers there walked all over me but I still had fun. Just as Jax said if you want to be a serious contender at the end of the year you do have to go to every race. That is a HUGE commitment. 20 races is 20 weekend you give up to go racing.

I signed up for points 2 years ago but only managed to make it to 7 or 8 races for the year. Of the 7 or 8 I only won 1 single round the entire time, and its not because I didnt know what I was doing. The racers at Atco are just that good.

You can run in any race without being signed up to accumulate points but the payout is a bit less. If you honestly think you can win 1 race then signing up is worth it. If your not going to make it to all the races to be a contender at the end of the year its better to just go and race.

Its hard to make it to every race. almost everyone misses at least 1 race. but some dont. if you know up front your only going to make 3-4 races then just go and dont worry about signing up.

Just dont get discouraged if you get you butt handed to you for a while. You will get better with experience.

My problem is that I love to go to the EFI events at E-town and things like that. I just cant dedicate the full time needed to be a serious racer 20 times a year but I still plan on going back when my car is running again.

 

I have done pretty well in the few events I have competed in and my r/t's are usually pretty good. I just want to step it up and start competing seriously, I know it will probably take a while to be competitive, I just wanna get my feet wet.

Once I have a car ready, I think I'll just try a few races to see how I fare before I sign up for the points, just to get a feel for how far away I am to being competitive.

 

I usually run my DD with the street cars that show up, not the bracket racers. Only reason I havent tried it yet at Atco is because my car is a 6 speed and I am afraid to put any sticky tires on it because of the stock 10 bolt. It would be so inconsistent I wouldnt know what to dial in at.

 

Whooo hoo, beer at Jax's. And I do promise to keep away from your pit scooter.

 

Haha! The scooter is gone. We sold it and only have the little quad now. I think the goal is eventually a bigger quad. I'd like a golf cart but someone says NO!

 

I thought I had good reaction times too... then I went and raced against guys who cut .00x lights on a regular basis, lol. I quickly found out that a .030-.040 light means you loose!

that scooter was great. Rick took me for a ride on it once when we smashed my bumper at Atco I'll miss that little 2 wheel fire ball;D

 

The best day I have had to date was at SLP day 3 years ago with my '95 Z28. I was cutting .00x lights all day. I made it to the final 20 in the camaro/firebird class out of I think 300+ cars, but most of them were just daily drivers that I was racing against, so it wasnt that big a deal. I did take out one 10 second tubbed camaro, that made me

Usually my r/t's are .020 - .060.

 

No flames intented but SLP day is like kindergarden compaired to going against regular points racers. A .020 is a very consertivative light, a .060 is considered a bad light. On the top end you will get backed into and taken by a wheel or less. The puppies at ATCO can dial-in on 5 numbers. I have seen it. It's not 2 or 3 racers that can do this on a regular basis but about 25-30.

 

I dont disagree at all with any of that. What I was saying is I think I have a good base. I know I need to get A LOT better to compete with the real racers.