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Bracket
Racing or what is also known as ET Racing, was started as
an alternative type of racing in the 60's and 70's. This style
of racing allows just about anyone to race in a very competative
field placing more emphasis on the driver rather than the
car alone. Driver reaction times at the start of a race are
a huge factor in winning or losing races. It is also one of
the most difficult aspects of drag racing that most seem to
overlook or not think about at all because it seem so relatively
easy to just punch the gas when you see the green light.
So
now that you sort of know what it is, we'll explain the basic
principles of bracket racing. When you arrive to race at a
track, you are given several time trial opportunities, which
are used as practice runs and to see what times you are running
in your car. In elimination rounds, which are usually done
as single elimination tournament rounds it puts you against
one other racer. Before pulling up to race you must select
a time that you think your car will run, this is called your
dial-in time. The dial-in time is used to calculate the time
difference between the two racers and once you subtract the
slower time from the faster one, this will give the slower
car that much of a head start. The theory behind the method
is that if both drivers were to pull off the line with exact
reaction times and both run their predicted "dial-in" time they will both get to the finish line at the same exact
time making it a tie. In real life, this rarely happens because
driver reaction times will differ and the car being driven
may run faster or slower than predicted.
Now
you might ask " Why can't I just say my dial-in time
is 18 seconds so I can get a big head start?", "Nope,
can't do", is what we would say because if you run faster
than your dial-in, you automatically lose. Running faster
than your predicted time is called a breakout. This just means
that you want to guess exactly what the car is capable of
running. If you guess a quicker time than what your car can
really run, you won't be able to run fast enough against your
opponent making is very easy for them to beat you to the finish
line. There is also a practice called sandbagging, which is
when you guess a slower time for your car that makes it possible
for you to breakout and lose because you were faster than
you anticipated. So now lets say both you and the other driver
both break out, in this particular case the car that runs
the closest to their guessed time wins and the one who basically
ran faster would lose so no matter how much you just got beat
because they got to the finish line first you still win. Because
of the possibility of breaking out, there are actually many
instances where you would have to hit the brakes to win.
ET
racers are given the opportunity to have a lot of freedom
when building their race cars because there are few regulations
pertaining to engine specs. Most of the rules that effect
your car relate to safety. The NHRA is the governing body
that regulates rules and classes for drag racing. Car classes
at tracks depend on the division you are racing in and can
include Super Pro, Heavy, Street, Trophy, Bike and Junior
Dragster.
Bracket
racing has become one of the most competitive forms of drag
racing in the world, with the largest number of competitors.
Bracket racing has even evolved to the point where there are
some drivers who are professional bracket racers, who travel
to all the big money races, and are good enough to actually
make a living at it. For most, bracket racing is more of a
hobby and can easily become an obsession.
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