Do slower cars usually win bracket races since theyre usually more consistent?
 

slower cars usually win bracket races since theyre usually more consistent :nod:

That post has to be a joke. Depends on how the car is set up and the skill set of the driver.

Me and jbergan were terribly inconsistent for bracket racers. He ran between 14.3 and 15.5. I ran between 14.3 and 15.0, with several 14.5/14.6.

So HA!

There I fixed your post. :)

I have to agree. There was an article in High Performance magazine awhile back, that had some girl win a HUGE Pontiac Bracket Drag Racing event with a Rent-A-Wreck 90's Pontiac Grand Am with a 4 cylinder motor. My son almost won the High Performance Pontiac Day at Raceway Park with my 1995 Grand Am GT 6 cylinder. He was getting a good reaction time and had the time dialed in around 16.5. He did not have to worry about spinning the tires, just punch it out of the hole and brake at the end if he had to. He only lost in the final because of nerves and a red light. The point is, if you want to take advantage of the situation and the prize money, you can win quite easily. Several years ago there was a top name bracket racer (at Englishtown) that brought his Pontiac Full Size station wagon to race at almost every MONEY bracket event. He said the only reason he did this was to win the cash and put in into his real race car. The car left the line without a bit of wheel spin, he caught a great light (very low .500) and ran within 1/10 of his time. :shock:

Ive seen a guy at atco running a volvo sedan cuts a 17.00 almost every time

haha this is why i never really liked bracket racing

I think its more fun to bracket race a faster car...

Hell, I raced a turbo car and was pretty damn consistant.

There was a guy on NastyZ that won a NOPI event in his wife's bone stock Camry, amongst all the fart cans and huge wings. And I remember reading about an incredibly consistent bracket racer with a '74 Corvette in HMM. He runs a 15.00 on the nose most of the time I think.

My GTO is really consistent even with all the mods done to it. As long as I do a really good burnout. negative DA it runs 11.8x 1000ft DA it runs 12.5x.

Almost every example given here of a slow car running consistant is really seasoned driver dialing very soft and making the car look consistant. Check out Atco or Maple Grove on a Summit ET points day. Lots of 9 and 10 second cars running dead on. There are a number of reasons to run a slow car however being more consistant that a fast car is not one of them. Most of the bracket racers favor a faster car having the advantage. Last time at maple I went against a blue 3rd gen camaro. I was dialed 14.22 to his 9.60. At the 1000' marker I knew I wasn't going to get to the stripe first so I tapped my brakes just before the finish line. Win light went to the camaro. I was .008 and .03 over. If I didn't hit the brakes I would of been .02 over my dial and still lost. Camaro was .008 on the tree and ran a 9.608 on a 9.60 dial. I still have nightmares of a 9.0 s10 pickup at Atco. Pro eliminator in my mid 11's firebird, I was .002 and dead on with a 5. I had a .007 package and lost to a better package. Guy match my .002 tree and went 9.002 on a fast 9.00 dial.

go to wherever has a ''fun drag bracket competition'' 9 times out of 10 the winner of the brackets is a 1500/150 pickup truck

With all due respects the level of competetion of fun brackets isn't close to the points races. Most of the fast cars (fun brackets) have little or no bracket experience. Further the fast cars are set up to go fast not consistant. $$$ are put into forum bragging rights. If suddenly they go .200 quicker they are extatic over a new personal best. If I don't make my dialin by .02 I heading home. 9 times out of 10 the driver of the 1500 pickup and been to more than one dance.

This is quite true for you, but it must have taken a lot of practice to be able to do that. Put a novice in a SUNBIRD with an automatic and in about 3 practice runs you're good to go. I don't agree with winning races this way, but in bracket classes some people just want the win. :nod:

I tried bracket racing an LT Cobalt. I was all excited about not having to worry about doing a proper burn out and launch properly, but the throttle response varies too much so I couldn't cut a good light. The announcer was cracking on me, since first round I was up against a 10 second Vette to my 17 second dial. I red lit since during the warm up runs the car had such a long delay before it realized I hit the gas.

how about an electric golf cart? or a segway?

So, I should bracket race eh?

Most of this was said before but I'll add my $.02

It doesnt matter how fast or slow you are, its about how well you can race.
Slower doesnt mean more consistent. It is all about how well your car is set up.
The specialty races are much different than going up against a group of veteran bracket racers.

Are you guys talking about me? Winning a bracket with a 1500!! :rofl:

You are exactly who I was refering to in my post. You won because of you skill level. As a rule stock GM cars and trucks (fast or slow) are very inconsistant. In the fun event that you won, there were only barcket racers driving "slow" cars from the quarter finals on. Good drivers making cars (and truck) look consistant. I want to congrats to you again for handling the hitter dialing 14.0 in the finals with a 12.0 car. Perfect stragety and excuated perfectly.

Thanks! Yeah, I was watching that guy play games with everyone out there all day. We had identical .043 reaction times and he was playing up top, so I let him go through first. Double break out but he was worse for taking the stripe, he shook my hand afterwards but he didnt look too happy about it!

Being consistent is the key to winning. Having a slower car is a definate advantage. The launch, the light and the hangover are the my biggest concerns. Having a faster car lets you "play" at the end. Being able to lift the throttle or coast a little bit and then nose out your competion by half a fender will put you in the money. Faster cars are more competitive and harder to run on the number. Hence the payout is better in the faster classes. I've been racing at Island from the time I got my license, pretty steady until I got married. In the end it's the driver. When you come out of the staging lanes look over and see who your paired up with. Fast car, slow car, If the back window is peppered with class win stickers you're probably gonna lose..............

Slower cars are not an advantage and faster cars or not harder to run a number with.
If you are an experienced driver and know your car it is extremely easy to dial it in.
Those stickers dont really mean anything either. I put one on my truck because I won an Elimintor at Englishtown. It is a gold decal, not that makes it any better, but it is an event winner decal. If you win one round in a bracket competition and bring your ticket to the window they will give you a class winner sticker. So if I go every week for a year and win one round I wont be able to see out of my back window. Does that make someone good? No, not at all. I am not trying to be mean or an a$$ but those opinions are far from truth. I dont know everything there is to know about bracket racing but most of your comments are way off base.

2+ I keep my stickers in an envelope and not on the car. I stopped collecting them 3 years ago. I do keep the gold ones. lol. I intimidate other racers with my little rubber ducky in the back window and beads hanging from the mirror. To be honest most points racers feel the faster car has the advantage. If the slow car goes red the fast car gets the win before his tree comes down. Personally I rather have the slow car. I'm usally the last to stage and the first out (and I deep stage). I don't have to sit and wait long for the tree. I'm also not distracted by the other car launching first and I've gotten very confortable backing in on the top end. That's some advantages to a slow car. No way is my slow ride more consistant than my fast competitor.

Did some quick stats from the last point race (Aug 8) at Maple Grove.

Trophy Class
Faster car won 8 rounds
Slower car won 9 rounds
Final winner went to the faster car.

Street Class
Faster car won 22 rounds
Slower car won 23 rounds
Final winner went to the faster car

Pro Class
Faster car won 44 rounds
Slower car won 46 rounds
Final winner went to the slower car.

Pretty much even to me.

Bracket racing is more about being consistent at both ends of the track, but mostly those with inconsistent launches. And you have to know your car. A "slower" car may appear more consistent, my guess is they are less likely to break out (if you dial hard). And most people who are occational racers are under tired!

Since I drive a stick I perfer being the faster car. I perfer to leave 2nd and short shifting so I keep RPMs (ET/MPH) in the bank, For me it's easier to gauge running down the other the car to the strip then looking back.

If you've never done it, go to a points race at sit at the strip, you might be amazed at how few people run thru the strip (and win!) compared to hearing both cars peddling! And you better cut .030 or less against these racers too or you've given them wait too much room!