I don't know RichFox but I'm certain he meant no disrespect. I run a sidecar and bike at El Mirage and Bonneville. Bikes don't have the same requirements as cars. But I have seen a lot of people who get an urge to run Bonneville but have absolutely no idea as to what is required. And I don't mean what class they would run in. Theres an old saying that every SCTA safety rule was written with someones blood. Its very true. The SCTA attempts to ensure all cars are as safe as possible. They cannot guarantee against every contingency but they try. I built my sidecar according to my interpretation of the rules. I was tossed out of tech at the May El Mirage season opener for various "infractions" and what the inspector deemed as unsafe. I went home with my tail between my legs and reworked what was needed. I got more crap in June but was allowed to run. More changes. More crap in July but ran. More changes. I have to wait for the Sept. meet to see what else the tech guys don't like. The cool part is two runs, two records. Makes all the aggro worthwhile! The point is its a lot more involved than grabbing that 30 year old helmet and going racing. BUT if you are determined you will go racing. Just remember its the SCTA's ball and field so you have to play by their rules. And with that many cars at Bonneville the rules aren't insurmountable. Good Luck!
Engine class breakdown: AA.....501.00 ci and over A..... 440.00 to 500.99 ci B..... 373.00 to 439.99 ci C..... 306.00 70 372.00 ci D..... 261.00 to 305.99 ci E..... 184.00 to 260.99 ci F..... 123.00 to 183.99 ci G..... 83.00 to 122.99 ci I won't list them all but the smallest class is K and goes from 0 ci to 30.99 ci. These are as listed in the rule book. Vintage and flathead XF,XO,XXF AND XXO have a full page as to what is and is not allowed for flatheads and pre 1959 engines as far as aftermarket heads and blocks.
I think he answered it twice -- then added on some more relevant info. He's easier to understand than the Rule Book and knows what he's talking about.
I think the question now would be, "How can he borrow the Jim Stevens flathead to put in that truck and go fast?"
The guys that get all wound up and want to go LSR ,In the OLD days - and todays rule I don't know if we can read this ,This is what they want it to be. Ol Deuce
Yeah, in the old days you could pretty much show up and run. That was then, this is now. But the USFRA 130 club in Sept at World of Speed is on the same salt. Only a mile of it. But you can pretty much run anything that is safe to drive on the hiway. And some stuff that's not.
99% of all questions you could possibly think of coming up with are already answered for you in the rule book. buy one, read it, and then ask your questions if there is something you don't understand. follow this in this exact order and you will do well.
Since I bailed from landracing.com I am ready to reply to any questions here about Bonneville and El Mirage that I can. I have 46 years of experience and pretty much know what is required. Rich and Stan Back may have come off a little harsh but, they have the legs. We have knocked heads over the years but understand the rules and the "spirit" of the rules. Please continue with your questions. The SCTA-BNI has no intent to deny anyone from competing at the salt. Effie1950, Please contact me directly with any questions you may have. I would I love to see your Pops back at the salt. I am sure he would have stories that everyone wants to hear. DW
Hey you asked: Hey guys...Where does the stock flathead pu fall? Any one know the record as well? the simple answer is 107.140 mph XF/PP It takes 79 pages of the 2008 rulebook ( the latest i have) to explain everything behind that answer...honestly thats what it takes........... Richfox could hardly explain it in a post. The rule book is produced after the rules meeting in November each year to be used for the next season , which begins in May and ends in November...... so it is little wonder that SCTA has run out of rule books in August...... Hardly likely to reprint this close to the end of the year. Any last years rule book is OK to use for building, rule changes are posted on the Website http://www.scta-bni.org/Rulebook/Rulebook-Intro.html until the new book is produced. The rules are evolutionary ...so the changes are usually small fine tuning rather than huge changes so it shouldn't be any issues. In short I don't think you could have reasonably expected any more info than you got, he told you where , what and buy a rule book! You can always get one at Bonneville at the SCTA caravan or at any El Mirage event, or by mail from the website.......... cheers CC8 As for people going head to head about some subject...that's the nature of Forums...except the hugs and kisses forum.
Nice work Richfox and great you continued to post for the audience. I have always found your responses to be helpful and informative. Well done.
Dan; What harsh? I answered his question and he asked again. So I answered again and said I wouldn't answer it a third time. Most guys would have said "Thanks" He asked "Where's the whipped cream and cherry?" And how did you let them chase you off of the landracing.com? It's mostly about bikes now anyway but you are a very valuble poster there. As here.
he should be more careful with that kind of attitude. his future questions could easily be ignored. one thing i learned from years on this forum is there are one or two people that may be considered experts in their field, whether it be bonneville, flatheads, metal work, t5's, sbc's etc...any newbie would be wise to bite his tongue rather than demand respect from someone who volunteers to share their vast wealth of knowledge on any subject. in turn, i also learned there are people on here who i wouldn't piss on if they were on fire. thanks rich for sharing here on the hamb.
great insight. i'm more than willing to help anyone with anything but when it becomes apparent that they want me to do all their leg work for them i get annoyed. it's been said a billion times before... GET A RULE BOOK!
I have had numerous conversations with Rich and asked him many questions and never had a problem, perhaps he was answering the question while you were writing it and you didnt see his answer, who knows. At any rate, you need to chill out, Rich has been doing this a very long time and is one of the most knowledgeable people on this forum on the subject of landracing. If you cop an attitude no one will help you, just some advise from an old guy. Things writtten can get taken out of context vs face to face. A lot of us old people are grouchy, we hurt all the time, cut us some slack !
Some time between '50-'54 an "H" class was added. H) 0-48 Cubic Inches O) 49-91 Cubic Inches Also. back then classes ran the other way with D, and E, being the biggest and now AA, is the biggest. And if a car was supercharged it was bumped up a class.