The answer: me.
But here's my story anyhow:
I'm not a big drag-racer - in fact, I have a second set of race tires, but they're for road-racing and autocross, I was told they have too stiff a sidewall to use for drag racing, plus I need to save their tread. So anyway, I went out with my street Kumho Supras.

Last time at the track the best I could pull out was a 14.97 in my stock ITR with AEM CAI and PS belt pulled. Last time I had Falken Azenis. This time I returned with JDM 4-1 header and 2.5 cat but instead of Falken Azenis, I had Kumho Supra 712's. Those tires spun all the way through second gear most launches. I was troubled with 15.0's and 15.1's for the first part of the evening, then near the middle of the night (I ran 15 freakin times) I had an awesome launch (well it felt good, but obviously the numbers show differently) and it just felt like first gear was pulling much better, though still spinning all the way into 2nd. I got a 14.90. The Falken Azenis stuck so much better, it's not even funny, but it appears that my 2.4's are nearly the same:

With AEM CAI, PS belt removed and Azenis:
60' .................. 2.4144
330' ................ 6.4344
1/8 ................. 9.7594
1/8 mph .......... 71.86
1000 ............... 12.5587
1/4 ET ............. 14.9739
1/4 MPH .......... 93.22

With AEM CAI, JDM 4-1 header, 2.5 cat, PS belt removed and Kumho:
60' .................. 2.4430
330' ................ 6.4700
1/8 ................. 9.7515
1/8 mph .......... n/a
1000 ............... 12.516
1/4 ET ............. 14.9047
1/4 MPH .......... 94.57

analysis and advice anyone? (besides that I suck at launching obviously)

(and yes, I posted this in drag racing with no replies as of yet. Plus, this post was edited and changed, so it technically does not count as a cross post, so there )

 

your 60's suck.. those tires suck..you could drive better

-Dave, who didn't answer the question. +kumquat

 

Learn to launch better. Your 60' does suck. They are as bad as my 1st time out, and I have a torqueless B16A.

CB

 

Lower your Azenis tire pressures to like 20 psi..maybe even 18. Dont go thru water pit. spin 'em for a sec to clean them off. Hold RPMs at about 4000 or so...then ride out the clutch until it grabs...then once it does slam the gas.

I was hitting 2.1 60' times with mine doing what I just stated.

 

You've got an LSD and you're still getting 2.4s 60' times??

 

I was running those same times with P/S off, no spare, no seats and CAI. I think we just suck at launching. My best 60' was 2.31. and my best time was 14.91.

 

no man - best reply EVER.
haha

Yeah, I know my 60's suck. I tried different things, hell I did like 15 runs. Though half the time I don't get a chance to really try something new because the second the tree lights would go "ready", the guy would hit the button and we'd be off. The one time I was racing Bishop (aka tell) I sat at the line to try feathering the clutch, I ended up with a 15.25

I think I was launching between 3500-4000rpms. I'd watch the tach, and as I was going through first gear I would be working the gas/clutch trying to keep it from redlining and give a "smooth" power delivery. Then as I thought 1st had given about all it could give, which is hard to tell since it's just spinning, I'd shift to second, and usually be right in VTEC. It'd keep spinning for the first part of second and then start taking hold immediately after. Shifting-wise I think I was doing alright. Also, I always eneded up in 4th gear, should I have been in 3rd crossing the line?

wish I didn't have to drive 2 hours to get to a track

 

no. that post was just a big lie. and you fell for it.

 

depends on track conditions also. But u probably just need more practice. RatedR's suggestion usually works well.

 

Which strip did you run at..????

 

I'll try that - the part about holding it at 4 while it spins and then punching it when it grabs, that's kind of what i was doing but had problems bogging in 2nd, so I'm sure I wasn't doing it right. Guess it all takes practice.

I'm still happy with the night, the main thing was wanting to see if I got any "real" gains out of the JDM header and cat. Which I obviously did, I had shittier tires and had no problems running low 14.9's all night, where as the trip before I was barely able to get a 14.97 after an evening of 15's on better tires. This is basically my only motivation for drag racing quite frankly - to see if mods made a difference, kinda like a poor-man's dyno.

someone else asked me that and suggested that the correct sea-level factor wasn't calculated in to the times possibly. Well I dunno anything about that... But anyway, I was at the Tulsa International Speedway in Oklahoma. Why they put the word "International" in the title is a mystery to me, that place is a little hole in ground.

 

Here's the catch... Don't pay attention to the timing lights or rather don't care about cutting a good light, frig .501 . If you can eliminate the worry of cutting a good light and just focus on the launch you will do better right off the bat.

just don't red light, My react times are like .900 and slower who cares I'm in it for the timed run not the compitition besides most of the cars at the track run faster then 14.7 anyway...

 

Well it's gotta be better then our shitty track Rocks Falls Raceway. I mean it appears out of nowhere in a cornfield!!!!!




[Modified by A11MotorR, 1:12 PM 8/9/2002]

 

Tulsa, Oklahoma is 670 ft above sea level. So basically there are no correction factors for you running at that track.

The first 60' is the whole race in drag racing. Improve on that and your times will be alot better. As for shifting, I think only 0.2 seconds can be recovered from a average shifter to a quick shifter.

 

This is what i kept saying to myself - but then the good 'ol "Red Mist" clouds my mind and I'm looking at the competitor and thinking of nothing else but beating them, even when it results in a shitty actual ET. Haha! Next time I'll try and focus.

 

Like everyone else said, the 60' is the most important part unless you miss a shift or something.. you should not be spinning through first and half of second.

 

some IM info from Active Aero (my hero for running 14.0's on a basically stock R):

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1. Tire pressure. You want to find the right balance. To low and you'll have a good launch but your trap speed will be down and vice versa. I'm usually around 20-24psi or so.

2. Do a dry burnout. Don't get in the water box. Pull the ebrake and let'm burn for a good 2-3 seconds.

3. Don't worry about the F'n tree. In fact wait until it goes all the way green and just sit there. Now worry about the launch and nothing else. You can work on RT later.

4. I launch from about 4.5k to about 6k depending on how the track is hooking up.

5. Bog the car on purpose by riding the clutch and not giving it enough gas. Not a bad bog just let it hook up a good ways out of VTEC (around 4k or so). This will give you a good 60' almost everytime (2.2's or so) but your ET won't be that great due to you being so far out of VTEC.

6. Now keep doing this but keep working it until the car is hooking up right on the verge of VTEC. The thing is you have to make yourself really ride the clutch. Don't do it long at most 2 seconds but its harder to do than you think. Thats why I said don't worry about the light. If your focusing on the tree you are going to want to be jerky in hopes of getting a good RT. A good launch will have a lot of traction at the beginning and a little wheelhop once you are all the way off the clutch and on the gas.
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thanks man!

 

i definately need to work on some of that

 

4 year old bump FTMFW!!1!