Cutting Down The Tree By Ronnie Diaz (Misc. Tech Section)

Ahhhhh! Can you recognize the sweet smell of burning rubber in the air? That can only mean one thing, drag racing season is in full swing. The new season upon us has brought about a change in format to one of the most popular and now competitive classes, the modular motor class. All the major sanctioning organizations have switched to an Open Comp format with a .400 pro-tree. Having just returned from the opening Fun Ford Weekend event at Bradenton Florida, I became well aware that many in the 50 plus car field were not skilled in the art of bracket type racing. Unless you have been seasoned in this arena of racing, a very good driver may not be able to compete on a level playing field without the certain nuances associated within bracket racing. Hopefully, with this quick crash course you will be properly armed with the necessary skills to make an assault on the competition.

The first step is to understand the basics of Open Comp racing. The event begins by you making 3 qualifying passes. The best time of those passes will be used in determining your index or otherwise commonly known as dial-in time. Different organizations use 1/10th or 2/10th break-out cushions. This means that those cushions will be deducted from your original dial-in time. For an example, if your best qualifying pass is 13.55, than with a 1/10th break-out cushion, your official dial-in for the entire event will be 13.45. Now your mission for the event is to run as close as possible to 13.45 without going under that time. If you run faster than your dial-in, that's considered "breaking-out" and you will lose the race provided the other racer doesn't break-out as well. In that scenario, the winner is the driver who came closest to their dial-in. The more successful bracket racers run within 1/10th to 5/100th's of their dial-in. Sounds pretty tough already? Well, it doesn't end there. The next contributing factor for success is your reaction time, which we will tackle next.

The reaction time is the actual time it takes you to cross the starting beams from when the light on the tree turns green. The main reason why it is so important to "cut" a good light is that the actual timing of your pass does not begin until you cross the starting beams. There are two types of starting trees, Pro Tree and Sportsman Tree. In Open Comp format, the Pro Tree is utilized whereas most bracket races at the local tracks use the Sportsman Tree. Most people who only have raced at their local tracks on street nights have very little experience with the Pro Tree and therefore are usually intimidated by it. Once you understand the techniques used for it, you will become more comfortable and realize the certain advantages that are associated with it.

The most important feature of the Pro Tree is the lightning fast flash of the yellow bulbs. Once you are officially staged, the only focus of all your attention should be on the first flash of yellow, as the green bulb will activate immediately thereafter. In order to cut a competitive light, you must react to the first flash of yellow. A major stumbling block for most newbies to this tree, is being TOTALLY prepared and not distracted by the other tasks that need your attention. The main problem for most is trying to get the car up to your launch rpm's and maintaining them before the light. That slight distraction is disastrous, because you must focus all your attention on the tree for that first flash of yellow. One way to combat this problem is to practice getting the feel and sound of your car at your desired launch rpm. A more consistent way is to get a shift light set at your rpm level or get a window switch. It is very important to conquer all the distractions and channel all your mental focus on that tree.

Another way to improve your reaction time is by the method in which you stage. As everyone knows, once you light the second bulb on the staging lights, you are now officially staged. Well, you can also use the "deep" staging technique. After lighting the second bulb, CAREFULLY and SLOWLY creep up until ONLY the second bulb turns off. Now, you are closer to the starting beams and will improve your reaction times. There are two downsides to staging deep, first your total elapsed time will decrease. Since consistency is your goal in Open Comp, you can care less about a quicker time as long as you use this method throughout the entire event. The second drawback is the increased chances of red-lighting, however since your on a Pro Tree, the likely hood of this happening is minuscule compare to it occurring on a Sportsman Tree. To utilize deep staging, make sure you write the word "deep" clearly on both sides of your window by your dial-in time.

This has been a quick overview and is just a intro to help you start practicing the basics of conquering the dreaded Pro Tree. Next month I will do a follow up article on more detailed tricks you can use in your 1320 assault. If you also have any questions or comments, feel free to email me or the staff and I will also address them in the upcoming second part. Now go out there and cut down them trees.......remember...EYE OF THE TIGER!!!