hobby cars

[mudslinger21]

Anyone have any thoughts on the lack of a hobby class next year? I know mine doesn't matter but I sure think its a mistake, not just from my standpoint but I sure think it will create problems on the track as well. But thats just my two cents worth, anyone else?

[pitlizard]

I agree all year there seem to be more hobbies than thunder. I say get rid of the thunder class and run hobbies. If erase the hobby class I dont think you are going to have the turnout you need. You cant expect a stock suspension metric or camaro to be able to transform into a enclosed cockpit, 3 link suspension car overnight not to mention motor. I dont think anyone can really step up there car right now the way the economy is. It would not be right to the pure street guys to drop down a class. I think the only way to do it right is to have a tech man who will enforce rules and not by just shining a flashlight on the tires or engine. The name of the class is HOBBY not limited late model. This is just my opinion

[dirttracker02]

I AGREE, THATS WHY I DONT RACE THERE ANY MORE, THAT PLACE IS NOTHING BUT A JOKE. ONLY THERE TO HELP THEIR SELF AND MAKE IT HARD ON THE WORKING CLASS MAN, NEVER HAS BEEN A TRUE HOBBY CLASS CAUSE THEY WONT ENFORCE RULES.

DOESNT MATTER IF YOU COMPLAIN,
NEVER GONNA CHANGE.
NO WHERE ELSE TO RUN CLOSE UNLESS U GO TO DEGA.

[rathole7]

I agree the owners have a real oportunity this next year, 2 tracks closing within 50 miles of here, if they would get thier act together it has potiential to draw large car counts I hope they can pull it off I really like racing there but no tech and no scales is just gonna be another year of run what ya brung

[psfb33]

which 2 tracks are closing ?

Dan

[mudslinger21]

clanton and childersburg, they're already closed but the point is there are no tracks closer than 'dega and they have a real opportunity to draw some large crowds but I feel they are only going to make it worse. I am not trying to bash lakeside but I was a LEGAL hobby car last year and got blown away.Granted I do not have the experience of the other guys and my car may not handle as well but SOMEONE needs to TECH the cars!!!

[rathole7]

Arkadelphia also is a closed track that was bringing in a good car count I just want some type of tech it doesnt have to be perfect anything is better than nothing just try and Ill be happy we can improve on it as we go also safety is a concern there needs to be some one that can get to a car quick after an accident with apropiate gear to help a driver if they are
god forbid "upside down and on fire"

[mudslider]

james' logic was based on end of year shows where slow thunders were all that was running and some fast hobbies showed up. i have to agree that hobbies are always having more cars than thunder and usually a better race(closer and more competetive). i firmly believe teching cars would create a better class but doubt that will ever happen unless james hires and allows a crew of men to do their assigned jobs without intervention(they never last long). moving up to thunder against the current cars there would be no problem for most hobbies but as soon as that happened, then you would see thunders like dawsons and hutchisons and others running to the limits of the rules and beyond that would simply outclass all the other cars and ruin it for all. this decision was not well thought out and will cause a mulitiude of problems. as for safety I dont know what it will take, probably a lawsuit. theres not an extinguisher that works/no jaws or saws to cut a driver out/no equipped 4 wheelers to get to a driver quickly/no safety checks of welds-cells-padding-etc. before at least mike-or scott could scoot down out of the tower and run to a car, guess who aint gonna do that now? and while im on my stump whats up with the flagman showing obvious favoratism to a particular driver(have you seen any black flag disquals except when 1 particular car gets tapped) and when did we start this racing before the only safetyequipment(ambulance) gets there. hot laps or not thats just crazy. the hobby class rules were simple and separate from other classes and very easy to enforce and not expensive to build but even at that james allowed obvious infractions to persist and overruled protest that didnt even involve teardowns just a visual. I vote to leave the hobbies alone and open up the rules between the thunders and so called outlaws to become one class(they never seem to have more than 4 to 6 cars at a time anyway) If you keep the hobbies affordable then pure streeters are going to and do move up(eg prices/howells/spradlins) finally I saw several good hobby races earlier on in the year and the drivers drifted away because of poor rules enforcement and rough driving on the track by some cars that was allowed to continue. thank you and good nite all.

[cbkart11]

I am one of the slower thunder cars but i too agree that they should leave Hobby like it is. I think if they left the rules like they are and get a decent tech guy and a set of scales they would have it about right. Also I think that they should have left the thunder cars rules like they were at the beginning of the year and they would be with Dega abd the other surrounding tracks rules thast it would be alot better. I don't have a 3 link car mine is a leaf spring stock camero frame tied together and still has stock body but am in the process of puting a different body on, but back to my point in order to run anywhere else that is what the rules are so why not go back to that.
CODY BROWNING

[inthegroove]

seeing as I am not gonna be running there in 2009, my opinion may not make a d**n difference...BUT.....I am gonna make it anyways. The Thunders should have never been changed to begin with, and all this controversy would never be in place. If I could stay within a straightaway or less from a tube framed car...I was happy. I didnt care whether they ran with us or not. I have been off in the middle of 25 cars of WIDE variety of builds at Talladega, and held my ground. Leave the hobbys where they are..and leave the thunders where they are...end of story, and the world will be a better place, and the hellraisin wont be that bad. I hate to see the attrition rate of cars over there next year.......I will have just as much fun holding my ground and staying competitive with a 25 car field at Talladega. I would rather do that than go run there and listen to a bunch of hellraisin over nothin but BS!!!! Cody, I agree on the techman part. If they had someone worth a crap.....problems wouldnt arise for any class over there. Thats how you have a productive racing facility....ENFORCE THE RULES!!!!

oh, and mudslider.....is that favoritism quote directed at the driver of the 4 car?

[pitlizard]

I dont think mudslider was pointing just the 4 car out for favortism but there are a few others as well. I still think this whole problem be resolved if there was a tech man I agree there. The reason I say that is because the 4 car in thunder was getting outrun by hobby cars there for a few weeks in a row when they combined classes. The only reason he won the races he did is because he was either the last one left on the track,someone had a mechanical problem or wrecked out, or someone was black flagged for agressive driving. One of his so called wins he came by the flagstand on the hook with a busted up front end. I think he was running like 7th when he wrecked and it was the hobby class. I never saw him outrun any thunder cars like Mike Smith, Cody Browning, Sandy Dawson, Jaye Hutchison, or hobby cars Wayne Spradlin, Bob Sapp, Wade Carlee, Chris Howell. unless they had a mechanical issue.

[inthegroove]

look.....
I BASICALLY AM A HOBBY CAR. Cody Browning is basically a hobby car. We just have a little more horsepower under the hood. The race I got credit for the win when I left the track on the hook is 1) I was the only thunder car running, and i chose to just ride around in the back because I KNEW A WRECK WAS GONNA HAPPEN, AND I DIDNT WANNA GET TIED UP, BUT I WAS IN THE WRONG PLACE AT THE WRONG TIME. It was about a 3-3 tie between me and Cody Browning on who outrun who on what weekend. Mike Smith had some troubles with his car that he couldnt control, because I parked by him EVERY WEEK and I knew what happened to that car alot. I only ran against Sandy Dawson 1 time. I have ran Jaye only 3 times in my career and I have respectfully held my ground and not gotten emnbarassed. The only 2 times I have raced Chris Howell is 1) he had a mechanical failure and the other he was black flagged. I have never raced Wade Carlee, and Bob I have raced only once. (He couldnt outrun me, so he had to wreck me, therefore getting him a DQ) and its a 1-1 split on Mr Spradlin. a few wins I got I admit, I was the last man standing....but I think 4 of my 7 wins I EARNED. THERE WERE 4 OR 5 OTHERS ON THE TRACK WITH ME WHEN I EARNED THEM. SO STAY BRUSHED UP ON YOUR STATS THERE BUDDY. DONT BASH A STILL ROOKIE DRIVER THAT IS STILL LEARNING THE ROPES AND AT THE SAME TIME BEING RESPECTFUL TO HIS FELLOW "VETERAN" DRIVERS. This was my first FULL year IN RACING. My main objective is to be respectful on the racetrack, and race my fellow competitors clean...AND AT THE END OF THE DAY HAVE THEIR RESPECT AS A FELLOW COMPETITOR. As long as my car is in one piece, and I have gained respect from fellow drivers....I COULD CARELESS IF I WIN OR FINISH LAST. This is the reason I am racing at Talladega in 2009, I AM SICK OF THE CRITICISM, CONTROVERSY, AND NONSENSE THAT TAKES PLACE AT THIS TRACK. YOU DONT SEE THAT AT TST. They race and race hard...and dont put up with B.S.!!!! AND RULES GET ENFORCED..........THEREFORE KEEPING CONTROVERSY LOW, NEARLY TO NONE.

(FYI.....the classes only got combined ONE TIME)

[inthegroove]

AND TOO REMEMBER.......ya know that old saying "you take 'em like you can get em"??

[dirtdevil33]

I dont know why all you boys on here indirectly arguing with each other. Talking about each other in code and stuff. If you guys have so much crap to say about each other, then be a MAN and dont type it behind the computer, talk to their face about it. What I can gather from these conversations is pure jealosy. Sounds like someone is blaming things one other drivers because they wish they were out there with the hobbies/thunders/crates/hogs/pony's or whatever they want to drive that week!!! All yall stop whinning about whatevery one else is doing. Oh and if there was a tech man that actually did his job and stuck to the rules NOONE could run at Wilsonville because every car over there is illegal in some way or another. Sounds like the pitlizard has the right name. sneaking around in the pits starting stuff. crawl back under your rock or go buy a new car and bring it. Obviously some of yall didnt watch the same racing that i did this year. P.S. You run what you brung, if you didnt bring enough, better get some more!!!

[mudslinger21]

Dirtdevill33, huh? well as far as anyone talking in code or hiding behind their computer , thats just not true ,heck I know who everyone is thats posted on this subject ... except you! And as far as your "run what ya brung and hope ya brought enough" mentality well hell lets just forget all the RULES, and run the hogs and crate lates together!!! The rules are set forth by the owners of the track and the powers that be and they SHOULD be enforced as such! As far as every car out there being illegal , If they truly enforced the rules then it would only take a short time for several things to happen: 1 the cars would be legal , or they don't race . 2 it would cut out almost all the cussing, screaming, hollering, back-biting and allegations because EVERYONE WOULD BE TECHED AND HELD TO THE SAME STANDARDS!!! You are certainly entitled to your opinion on the matter as we are all entitled to ours and so far it seems like alot of the drivers are all saying the same thing: leave the hobbies and TECH THE CARS!!! thanks, Shain miller driver of the #21 hobby car ( for those that did not know!)