you got a start if you can cut .020's.... that can win you a few races with em but if you line up against a hardcore bracket car and racer... you'll loose on a .020, ask me how I know.


I alwasy did good at those efi events too. Its night and day with them and a real bracket race but you have a decent base to start with. The key is just getting the seat time in and getting to know the car and better your reaction and skill.

 

just an example... I almost messed my shorts last time out. I cut a .008 and ran .004 off my dial... I lost.

 

I'm pretty sure that with enough seat time I will be able to compete as a driver, like you said, a few seasons of practice. I need to start learning more about test/tuning/dialing in stuff like that. That sucks though, the other guy must have had one helluva run.

 

yeah he did, but thats not uncommon down there.

But it can go the other way too. Remember that 1 run I won? Well I got back to my pit and I started talking to the guy next to me. He looked at my slip and started laughing. I said What? he said... the guy you just beat was last years bracket finals runner up

 

You have to block out who is driving the car next to you. Had you known BEFORE the run that it was the previous year's bracket finals runner up, you probably would not have done as well. I think it's good that you didn't know who you were running. Many, many people GIVE races to the guys that have reputations because they change the way they do things to try to win against a "good" driver.

I don't want to know who is in the lane next to me. I want to know if I'm leaving first or if they're leaving first. There are some REALLY good drivers out there that don't need a race handed to them but it happens all the time. Heck, I was thrilled Saturday night when I was lined up against a "black 3rd gen camaro" third round. Unitil I found it it was A. Fetch - one of the greats. I didn't know it was him until someone told me! I'm not saying I would have won that round, but I probably would have done a little better. I didn't completely embarass myself though. I had a .036 light to his .027 light. I guarantee you he didn't hit the tree as hard with me as he would have with someone like Bud. I don't know for sure, but I suspect he was holding a lot in his dial also. He ran a .42 on a .35 dial in. I was on the brakes hard and shaved off 8mph but it wasn't enough - I still broke out. I definitely took him through by WAY too much - but it's all about seat time and learning the game!

Bracket racing is a great time. It's even better when you go rounds. It's very easy to get discouraged though. Brian mentioned that he only won one round in the 8 or so races he attended a couple of years ago. I probably won about 5 rounds out of the 20 races I attended last year. I'm good at beating myself too. I come out red first round a lot. I have to learn how to back off first round because I'm pumped. Saturday night I was red first round... was lucky that I was running a slower car and he went RED first! Second round I ran Phil Fryer - another hitter at Atco. He fell asleep at the tree. The old saying goes "I'd rather be lucky than good." In bracket racing, it's usually half luck and half skill.

I recommend finding an automatic you can jump into and run in the Street class a few times this year. Just get your feet wet. You can run ANYTHING. One of the regulars was running his neon on Saturday. Another was running her Stratus. If you can't get in the seat, at least take some trips down to watch on a Saturday night. Find a seat in the little stands next to the burnout pit and watch what everyone does closely. I know you already know a good deal about bracket racing, but it does help to spend time watching what people do also. Also, spend some time in the stands at the finish line. It's GREAT to watch the finish line racing!

 

The best thing about watching at the finish line is the fact that you can have a cooler with you... I've done that a few time, it is amazing how close most of the cars finish, I couldnt believe it when I saw it.

edit - And I wish I still had my '95 Z, that thing was the most consistent car I have driven. Not as consistent as a 10 second slick car coming off a trans brake, but for a street car on street tires, it would be within .050 most of the time.