WOW! That 422 story got turned around pretty good! I was at the race that Chris was talking about. I was pitted right next to him. It was the first race the 422 group ran, and was at E-Town. Originally 422 had 16 cars "booked in". Alex Cortezzo Sr. was one of the cars. Alex could not make the race (with his lettered car)and Chris filled in for him. When Chris arived, 422 told him he could not run. I know Chris is still irked with me that I did not come to his defense. Truth be told, all 16 cars booked were chosen due to the fact that they were lettered. It was made blatantly clear when we were asked to come. I guess the communication got fuzzy between Chris and Alex on the lettering, but what happened was Chris could not run. I agree it was not the best way to handle it, but I didn't feel it was my obligation to be a go-between.

As far as the format for the 422 group...They do run a typical bracket race. The catch is they run a .400 full tree, and you have to dial on one tenth increments. You cannot change the dial for the duration of the race. The old NSCA and NMCA ran their races the same way. They used to have .25 second increments. This made you have to tune your car, add/lose weight, or figure out a driving technique to be competative. 422 simply made the dial in's on .10 second increments to allow cars to hit closer to their dial in's.

As far as the nose-in-the air attitudes...I take exception. I tow my 11.00 second '63 on a rusty, open trailer behind my dad's truck to attend their races. I am typically one of the slowest cars racing with them. They treat me fine. Their cars are always some of the fastest machines at the event. They bring a tractor trailer rig with as many as five killer N/SS cars inside. They set up a tent to advertise our race. They provide a pig roast/barbecue at every event. The food is for anyone associated with the race...including crew, friends...etc. They do off-season marketing and promotion so that the purses, and sometimes tow money, is in hand before the event. They host and run a website that is focussed on the entire series. They keep track of points, and award a champion with a jacket and check at the end of year banquet.

As for fixing the arangements to fit their cars...They did not win one race this year. Cliff Sebring won more than his share of races (which paid $1000 to win) this year. Yes, when viewed alone, the $75-100 entry seemed steep. If you go a round of two, you got your money back. Unfortunately I was a donor to the program this year and was not very successful.

To any members not sure which side of the fence your on...the group is having it's end of year banquet in February. I'm sure Dink would love to have you at the event as he is always looking for new members. The new schedule is out as we speak. Come join us.

PS. I posted a pic of my car so as not to hide behind an e-mail. I'm the tall bald guy that drives Frustration. Have a nice day.