Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............

Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 12:14 AM

Too much brake at the finish line...

http://www.dragzine.com/news/video-thomas-fletchers-legendary-360-spin-and-save-at-epping/

Posted By: Deepockets

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 12:39 AM

lucky or good job keeping it off the wall? at least it was a good outcome for both.

Posted By: 69CHARGERMD

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 12:50 AM

Nice job saving the car, and missing the other driver...

Posted By: Quicktree

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 12:52 AM

remember the thread about locking the brakes on the big end?

Posted By: AAR-B4

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 01:46 AM

Glad there are not thousands analyzing my driving skills (or lack of).
He was on the brakes but never did catch or pass the right lane.

Posted By: rickstershemi

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 01:56 AM

Quote:

Glad there are not thousands analyzing my driving skills (or lack of).
He was on the brakes but never did catch or pass the right lane.

Have seen way too many of these that didn't end well....that is all

Rickster

Posted By: therocks

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 02:00 AM

I wonder if he had to change his shorts after that ride.Rocky

Posted By: nss guy

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 02:16 AM

it was thomas fletcher, dan's son.
I'm sure dad had some input.
Dan Fletcher is the greatest sportsman racer period and Peter Biondo ( Camaro in the other lane) probably second best and they are best friends.

Anyone that bracket races has locked up the brakes at the strip, glad he saved it.

Posted By: Thumperdart

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 02:17 AM

This is ONE of the reasons "bracket racing" is goofy cos it looks like he was on the breaks to not "break out"...............

Posted By: slantzilla

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 02:46 AM

Not sure why he was on the brakes so hard anyway, Biondo had him buried. Maybe he thought he was in a double-breakout?

Posted By: Thumperdart

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 02:54 AM

Quote:

Not sure why he was on the brakes so hard anyway, Biondo had him buried. Maybe he thought he was in a double-breakout?

It`s the bracket racers game and I get it I just don`t personally do it.

Posted By: Al_Alguire

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 03:13 AM

Easy to answer..They are both habitual holders and were both on the binders. Fletcher was not going to get there to he did what any successful bracket racer would do. You do not follow through an opponent if you are not going to get there. especially when you now they hold numbers as much as you. Little Fletcher was late on the tree Peter had him by a ton and was on the binders to. Just lack of experience or maybe even a failure on the car. Don't think it will change the way he drives, dad has been VERY successful using the same technique.

Question is what if any action did the NHRA take? There is a rule against excessive braking after all. I am curious what if any action they take. IN the end glad it all ended well and it will be a learning experience for Little Fletcher for sure.

Posted By: 408Dust

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 03:57 AM

I am curious what if any action they take-0

Posted By: Cheatham

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 04:46 AM

back in 92 i had a 340 Duster street strip 11 sec car the girlfriend back then would drive it and onetime on the top end she tried going to neutral but instead went into rverse it was a wild spin but nothing happened thank goodness

Posted By: 1967dartgt

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 05:17 AM

It happened last month at the street car shootout Cecil. A 10.0 index racer thought that slamming on his brakes at the end in a 9.30 car was a good way to race. He lost control of his car and slammed into the wall and flipped his car. He was ok but car was totaled. Stupid way to race.

Posted By: moparacer

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 05:31 AM

Quote:

Not sure why he was on the brakes so hard anyway, Biondo had him buried. Maybe he thought he was in a double-breakout?

Biondo was wearing him out the last 200ft or so.

Your first instinct is to turn a guy loose hard like that but its usually a moot point.

Posted By: theraif

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 05:44 AM

tag me as guilty i have done it many a time and have slid side ways through the finish line once i assume that dew was on the track since it was a oct race

Posted By: gregsdart

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 12:33 PM

It happened to me in 1985 at Interstate Dragways. Left lane, way ahead of a much faster car, hit the brakes as I went over a dip in the track in my lane. I didn't go all the way around, but close. Sometimes unknowns can get you, sometimes you get yourself. Definitely a high pucker factor event

Posted By: gdonovan

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 01:57 PM

Quote:

lucky or good job keeping it off the wall? at least it was a good outcome for both.

Luck.

Not a hell of a lot of correction you can do when you are sliding sideways down a track.

Glad to see that no cars damaged, most of these videos don't have happy endings.

To be fair here is my own "doh!" moment at the stripe.

As a few of you know I race a FWD Reliant, now one of the tricks all FWD racers employ is to get as much weight to the front of the vehicle and as little as possible out back. On the Reliant this equates to having just 150 lbs on the rear wheels with the other 2200 lbs being on the front tires. Gets the crowd going during a burnout if you jam the brakes you can get the rear wheels to pop off the ground from the weight transfer.

You can see where I'm going with this.

I was racing down at Cecil one weekend when a headgasket let go approaching the traps at 130+ mph. The car stopped accelerating rather abruptly and I smoothly applied the brakes using the rest of the track to slow down and puttered back to the pits on 3 cylinders.

One of my friends who does track broadcast duties time to time ran up to me in the pits all round eyed and stated a track official posted at the end of the track was rather excited about the headgasket incident.

Evidently from the gasket letting go and me getting on the binders I went sailing through the traps at 130 mph with the rear tires a good 8-12" off the ground.

Be damned if I ever noticed, I was busy at the time.

Posted By: JERICOGTX

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 03:39 PM

Good thing Mickey Thompson just renewed the sponsorship. He's going to need new tires all around.

Posted By: MRMOPAR622

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/23/14 04:43 PM

Quote:

Easy to answer..They are both habitual holders and were both on the binders. Fletcher was not going to get there to he did what any successful bracket racer would do. You do not follow through an opponent if you are not going to get there. especially when you now they hold numbers as much as you. Little Fletcher was late on the tree Peter had him by a ton and was on the binders to. Just lack of experience or maybe even a failure on the car. Don't think it will change the way he drives, dad has been VERY successful using the same technique.

Question is what if any action did the NHRA take? There is a rule against excessive braking after all. I am curious what if any action they take. IN the end glad it all ended well and it will be a learning experience for Little Fletcher for sure.

You along with a lot of others are right,and most times if there is tire smoke from excessive braking you are out!A lot of times what people don't understand if you brake hard at high speed the brakes will lock up.
That is most times the number 1 topic at the track...most of the slower door-car drivers,will say it's no worse than the Fast door-car & dragster guys ripping the throttle causing the car to bounce on the big tires at the big end,so why should we be throwed out when they are not!
The game has changed in the last few years if you want to win in most any class,you will no longer win many if any rounds if all you do is try & cut a light and run it out the big end.

Posted By: RonTheAnnouncer

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/24/14 02:58 AM

Not a fan. That was an idiotic move, period. No congrats for "saving" it, he got lucky, no more. I watched a couple guys get close to balling up two cars ( both not theirs) doing the same thing at the big money bottom bulb race I announced this past weekend, as well as seeing a kid end on the roof at a stock/super stock race last month. I see a bunch of guys at the finish line of most races giggling if they see tire smoke and /or squeal at the stripe. I'll never understand it and don't care to. Maybe if his name wasn't Fletcher he'd be gone for the rest of the season.

Posted By: Thumperdart

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/24/14 03:50 AM

Quote:

Not a fan. That was an idiotic move, period. No congrats for "saving" it, he got lucky, no more. I watched a couple guys get close to balling up two cars ( both not theirs) doing the same thing at the big money bottom bulb race I announced this past weekend, as well as seeing a kid end on the roof at a stock/super stock race last month. I see a bunch of guys at the finish line of most races giggling if they see tire smoke and /or squeal at the stripe. I'll never understand it and don't care to. Maybe if his name wasn't Fletcher he'd be gone for the rest of the season.

Thank you..........a man w/some sense........THIS kind of bracket racing bs is what makes it a JOKE AND dangerous..........flame on..........

Posted By: StealthWedge67

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/24/14 05:54 AM

[quote

Thank you..........a man w/some sense........THIS kind of bracket racing bs is what makes it a JOKE AND dangerous..........flame on..........

....... Said the STREET RACER guy....

Posted By: Thumperdart

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/24/14 06:49 AM

Quote:

[quote
Thank you..........a man w/some sense........THIS kind of bracket racing bs is what makes it a JOKE AND dangerous..........flame on..........

....... Said the STREET RACER guy....

AND.............What`s your point.................

Posted By: 1320Dart

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/24/14 01:46 PM

Quote:

Easy to answer..They are both habitual holders and were both on the binders. Fletcher was not going to get there to he did what any successful bracket racer would do. You do not follow through an opponent if you are not going to get there. especially when you now they hold numbers as much as you. Little Fletcher was late on the tree Peter had him by a ton and was on the binders to. Just lack of experience or maybe even a failure on the car. Don't think it will change the way he drives, dad has been VERY successful using the same technique.

Question is what if any action did the NHRA take? There is a rule against excessive braking after all. I am curious what if any action they take. IN the end glad it all ended well and it will be a learning experience for Little Fletcher for sure.

Yep. There was a guy disqualified this weekend, at Firebird Raceway here in Idaho, for excessive braking at the finish line. He won the round too. But he was disqualified and the other guy was reinstated.

Posted By: Challenger 1

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/24/14 02:04 PM

Quote:

it was thomas fletcher, dan's son.
I'm sure dad had some input.
Dan Fletcher is the greatest sportsman racer period and Peter Biondo ( Camaro in the other lane) probably second best and they are best friends.

Anyone that bracket races has locked up the brakes at the strip, glad he saved it.

Dan Fletcher=greatest sportsman racer ever. And Sam is right there with him. The cars are 2 of the best cars out there also.

Posted By: cudasteve68

Re: Stock Eliminator car loses it at the stripe............ - 06/24/14 03:16 PM

Only thing saved him was the radial tires & more air pressure then a "normal" slick. Had that been a bias ply slick he would have rolled that car.