Wondering who ever though about making the trek north of the border this year to Canada, the snow does melt here and we do have some good racing. Some of you saw some fo our racers in New Jersey last fall.

Come on out, come see Canada, we do have some amazing race tracks here, including Grand Bend Motorples that host the IHRA Mopar Canadian Nats in June, and Toronto Motorsports PArk which is home to the IHRA AC Delco Nats in August ( i belive )

Here is some events for the NCRA series. Its a good series to race in, the events are top notch, and should be a good season with Jen and Dov bring the Venom civic here, and Paul Bwhan ( sp?) peakin into the 8s. There is alot of other Canadian racers that are doing well too, just cant think to list them all.
Hopefully some of you can make the trek north this summer for some good racing, Canadian style and of course, some good beer!!!

NCRA 2004 Sched.

2004 Event Schedule

May 8 NCRA Media Day, Grand Bend Motorplex, Grand Bend, ON *
June 27 1320 Shakedown, St. Thomas Dragway, Sparta, ON
July 11 Sport Compact Nationals, Grand Bend Motorplex, Grand Bend, ON **
July 25 Summer Nationals, SANAIR Dragway, Montreal, QC
Aug. 2 Sport Compact Fever, Grand Bend Motorplex, Grand Bend, ON
Aug. 29 Sport Compact Shootout, St. Thomas Dragway, Sparta, ON
Sept. 19 Fall Nationals, St. Thomas Dragway, Sparta, ON
Oct. 24 Season Finals, St. Thomas Dragway, Sparta, ON

* test and tune only
** Pro Classes only

 

im gonna try to make it to a couple NCRA events this year... I only made it to one last year, but it was fun.. so Im gonna try.

 

Grand Bend will be great I hope some U.S. Guys can make it up this year!!! There are some sick cars up here and it would be great to see them run some big guys. Oh by the way Grand Bend hooks like E-Town but lower elevation!!!!

http://www.grandbendmotorplex.com/
http://www.ncraspeed.com

 

there is no point for anyone from tye USA to come here for an event look at the ridiculously low prize purses we hand out, Cayuga cant even get a real quick 8 field together, if Americans want to run race cars they will not do it for free and if they are sponsored most of em will not take it off the trailer for a street race anyway. my 0.02 cents, Toronto Motorsports park better have atleast $5000 for every import class except street if they want to fill any stands this year.

 

If you noticed I didn't even mention Toronto Motorsports Park. I said Grand Bend, It is the best surface up here we have a full field in all motor a nd pro street now we need 2-3 more cars to fill quick 8. Some of the sponsors of those cars may want to have coverage here so there market grows to Canada!! Its not all about the pay outs. You think Quick 8 racers rely on there pay out they have a budget set out and if they win all the better.

Just my 2 cents

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by Dov &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">If you noticed I didn't even mention Toronto Motorsports Park. I said Grand Bend, It is the best surface up here we have a full field in all motor a nd pro street now we need 2-3 more cars to fill quick 8. Some of the sponsors of those cars may want to have coverage here so there market grows to Canada!! Its not all about the pay outs. You think Quick 8 racers rely on there pay out they have a budget set out and if they win all the better.

Just my 2 cents</TD></TR></TABLE>
sorry I am a privateer that cant take the car to the track because of payouts, I dont want sponsorship because nobody has touched my car except for me or given me a single free part. running quick 8 out of my own pocket is something I could never consider especially with the crap payouts and lack of contingency coverage in Canada, not to mention the fact that probably 5-6 cars will be needed to make quick 8 this year as many canadian cars from the 8 will be going to street class due to cost.I like racing people not companies. filling quick 8 means adding a couple cars with no chance of winning unless everyone else grenades - not fun to watch cars break at the line, or italian garagesale mid track. grandbend is a mint track/complex but I wanna know who guaranteed to show before I drive my *** down or consider trailering my car down. anyways I wish you good luck this season - is your car still wrenched by ETD or who's shop you based out of now?

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by rtype11 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I like racing people not companies. </TD></TR></TABLE>



Personally, i miss the good ol' days when shops battled it out - .. Seems like were getting away from that this season.

 

wow, yet another Canadian basher. yay

Clayton

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by rtype11 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
sorry I am a privateer that cant take the car to the track because of payouts, I dont want sponsorship because nobody has touched my car except for me or given me a single free part. running quick 8 out of my own pocket is something I could never consider especially with the crap payouts and lack of contingency coverage in Canada, not to mention the fact that probably 5-6 cars will be needed to make quick 8 this year as many canadian cars from the 8 will be going to street class due to cost.I like racing people not companies. filling quick 8 means adding a couple cars with no chance of winning unless everyone else grenades - not fun to watch cars break at the line, or italian garagesale mid track. grandbend is a mint track/complex but I wanna know who guaranteed to show before I drive my *** down or consider trailering my car down. anyways I wish you good luck this season - is your car still wrenched by ETD or who's shop you based out of now?</TD></TR></TABLE>

Your a real S.O.B !! and I really mean that!! Sounds like your just a fool who needs to get tooled by someone at the track.

Consider the facts!! Southern ontario has a population of less that 12 million people. (That is less than almost all the states in the usa) We have cars that are competitive even when they go to the states (Wow, what an amazing concept! Did you even know?)

Drivers in the states do not rely on payouts or even contingency money. Also many times more often then not, turn out at big NHRA Import events or even NDRA, IDRC are no bigger than a canadian event. The only exception being E-town. As any of the pro guys running the curcuit about attendance at these events. They for the most part do it for the love and passion and not for the money, Only a handfull of racers make a living off of driving becuase of sponsorship arrangements and contracts. Most drivers work their asses off to make money to pay expenses and many times run line of credits or run credit cards just to make ends meet.

Welcome to the real world!


Canadian tracks such as Grand-bend and Toronto Motorsports park hold IHRA records, they can't be that bad then.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by GTI2lo &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">


Drivers in the states do not rely on payouts or even contingency money. Also many times more often then not, turn out at big NHRA Import events or even NDRA, IDRC are no bigger than a canadian event. The only exception being E-town. As any of the pro guys running the curcuit about attendance at these events. They for the most part do it for the love and passion and not for the money, Only a handfull of racers make a living off of driving becuase of sponsorship arrangements and contracts. Most drivers work their asses off to make money to pay expenses and many times run line of credits or run credit cards just to make ends meet.

Welcome to the real world!


Canadian tracks such as Grand-bend and Toronto Motorsports park hold IHRA records, they can't be that bad then.</TD></TR></TABLE>


First, about the tracks, Cayuga has ALWAYS sucked until it was converted into Toronto Motorsports Park, secondly the track staff are the most ignorant ******** I have seen hands down. I remember a group of 6 racers (myself included) travelled 2-3 hrs to the track to find the gates locked. This was after we called about the weather conditions where they said the track was open. We called at 45 minute intervals asking if the track was still open and they said yes the event is still on. We get to the gates and it's closed.

You are wrong about racers not racing for payouts and contingency. While the majority of us race for the love of the sport, there are people that have truely competitive cars that do need to get some money back for their investment, in most cases if it covers the fuel, transportation, and dinner afterwards they are happy. A small operation like NCRA isn't going to give NHRA or NDRA payouts.

Couple this with the lack of exposure that the local magazines (not naming names) doesn't give the series it makes for a very steep and slow growth. Exposure can only go so far with local and loyal competitors and word of mouth, but if others that aren't within driving distance of the event can't see what happens they will not be interested in coming. Also, you can't expect an independent bracket racer to travel 10hrs to compete when there are events in their area that will provide the same payouts.

The NCRA needs to pull people from Quebec, Michigan, and NJ first before expecting a substantial numbers from the states to frequent the events. In general, Toronto drag racing fans are lethargic and lazy as hell. They bitch about driving 1.5hrs to race. If I had the budget when I lived in Ontario I would rather race at Sanair, Quebec as that track has awesome spectators that have good attitudes.

The bottom line is that the NCRA needs more local exposure from Canadian media or it won't grow. I think the NCRA is a great series and it was my series of choice even when it was ISDS. While the dude was a tad brash he did raise a few valid points regardless of the delivery.

 

Have no fear.. Marc is here to stir it up... Actually, I'm in a good mood today...

Sanair was a great race the first 2 years it was held, but I think many teams are questioning making the drive this year; especially when CSCS is having a night event the same weekend and after the experience last year (Weather etc).

I also agree that we need the coverage from Canadian media; TV, Newspapers and Magazines. Without this we are not going to see any corporate sponsorship and therefore a slower growth.

rtype11 - I understand your frustration. .. I don't think I have seen an 8 car field in Pro Compact or Pro Street in a couple of years. Nevermind the fact that the cars are quite spread out and we don't really get to see very many close, nail biter races like you dow when your at E-Town.

Toronto Motorsports Park has a great track now.. The officials are still losers, but I like the track and I find in 2003 my best ETs with each setup I ran were always at TMP. MPH was higher at St. Thomas, but that is because I was drift'n not drag racing..

Both are good.. I just find it hard competing with a Shop or Corporate Car when I have to take a very small portion of my salary to invest into my Race Car. I wanted to build a Pro-Compact Miata for a long time and even had the Florida Rust Free Car purchased to do it.. But, alas.. I could not compete as I did not have the budget to spend like the other Pro-Compact guys were..

I agree with Rtype and Sean.. Payouts and $$ are important. Every $$ I ever won was put into my car or my pitcrew. Without the money I would of had less parts for my car and less lap dances for my pitcrew (Yeah, I even promised my crew that if I won the CSCS Championship that the money would be blown on just that for them (Girls, girls, girls...) Guess what.. They assisted me and worked hard.. We won CSCS and only had a running built engine for the last event, every other event was raced on Old faithful.. My $100 JunkYard engine with 240,000kms.

Yeah.. I thank my crew for the CSCS championship.. I could not of done it without them..

Your right passion is important, but as a qualified a Financial Advisor, I start having a hard time jacking up Credit Cards and Line of Credits for no return. I spent the last 3 years getting myself out of Automotive related debt and don't wish to get back in it..

Overall.. We need coverage in Canada from Canadian Media and Large Corporations. Once we get it .. NCRA and CSCS should go far and we may get a national series.

As for the US events.. When I see pics on Modified.com, it always looks like tons of Race cars and Fans.. A lot more than in Canada.. Nevermind when I go to E-Town like you mentioned.. I am going to Moroso as a spectator in April.. Should give me an idea of another NHRA event turnout..

But as a side note.. I would love to see some US cars, especially North NY and MI cars. They have no excuse It is cheap here and we have hot chicks and strong beer

 

Again, the media is very influential in what is potrayed to the enthusiast. Certain sanctioning bodies get more exposure than others for different reasons- it's the nature of the business. But since we are talking about Canada here the Canadian magazines such as Performance Auto & Sound, Modified, and Sport Compact National need to step it up especially if they want to potray a high-performance publication. Mind you, each one of those magazines have different readerships and stakes in the market but being Canadian they should try and encourage some form of growth on the home front as it will eventually pay dividends in the future as import drag racing is still in its infancy in Canada. If something isn't done soon pro Canadian racers will end up travelling stateside when the sanctioning bodies go belly up.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by rtype11 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">
is your car still wrenched by ETD or who's shop you based out of now?</TD></TR></TABLE>

No Jen and I have our own shop space we are in now and we are doing everything in house.

 

thanks, I wish I was on your pit crew cause I was at whiskey a couple weesk back so were you and I ran out of VIP cash. Ill be swinging by your shop to pick up another fuel pump in a week or so. cheers, Vadim

 

Sean, you make some really valid points. It would be nice to see the Canadian scene explode. Speaking for myself, as someone who busted their *** trying to make it happen for 5 years, it's tough. I spent half of my time educating people on the "safe" way to build cars, and trying to get them to the track, and the other half of the time trying to promote the series. During my tenure with the NCRA we worked very hard to offer a good race, and at the end of the day, I think we did offer a good race. The staff was knowledgeable, and worked hartd, every last one of them. I resigned my official position within the NCRA this year to spend more time with my family, but I am still going to try to make it out to as many events as I can, and I will continue to try to help the "scene" grow here in Canada. The thing I find funny, is that when people do come up from the states, to one of the canadian events, they always have great things to say about it. I just wish we could get more exposure from some of the US magazines. The Canadian magazines to me did a great job in 2003 of trying to help, the articles were always there after the events, and offered much needed exposure. Maybe 2004 will see an upswing in attendance, but I don't think anyone will see the numbers we saw 3-5 years ago.

Clayton

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by rtype11 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">thanks, I wish I was on your pit crew cause I was at whiskey a couple weesk back so were you and I ran out of VIP cash. Ill be swinging by your shop to pick up another fuel pump in a week or so. cheers, Vadim</TD></TR></TABLE>

We were at Wiskey for John (Owner of ETD) Stag.. We had a great time.. Not sure if I know you.. Probably do, but screen names make it hard..

 

Clayton,

You are correct about the American racers that attend the NCRA events and enjoying themselves. I disagree with your opinion on event coverage from Canadian publications. NCRA events still recieve way less exposure than the other series, also their presence at your events are sparse at best. I can remember attending events and shooting photos only to never see them run. Whoever handles the marketing needs to get these publications on the ball and ensure that NCRA gets the coverage it deserves. One page of coverage won't cut it.

It's too bad the staff at TMP weren't like the staff at St. Thomas as the location of TMP is great.

Question.. how come you never busted that dude with the white Escort that ran in ET1 with no muffler?

 

Holy Cow Sean, that was 3 or 4 years ago now. I have to remember but I believe the situation that day mandated the exception to the rule of no mufflers as a whole bunch of cars in his class had no mufflers early on in the day, and you know we always try not to have to send anyone home for such a small infraction, added to the fact that, that we're talking about bracket racing, where we know it didn't make any difference. That was a long time ago, and has long been resolved. Also as far as the coverage, I'm going to make sure that the NCRA gets the coverage it deserves this year. It's kind of a personal thing. I may no longer hold an official position with the company, but I left on good terms, and want to see it succeed.

Clayton

 

yeah, I was with Lucky and LEO (liborVR6), I got the CR rad - super deal! and I got the wrecked bike too.

 

Hay Vadim it was me you were talking to at the side near the bar when we were watching the .... ohh better not get into that here.

I think drag racing in Canada will be pretty good this year. All motor should be a friggin blast to watch with so many cars. I think Pro will be good too, a lot of the guys have their cars together and we could even possibly see a full field for once. Marco alone should have the talons done and jeffrey's car plus the other regulars so it should be good.

I'm gonna race pro-street this year more instead of bracket (I need to give somebody else a chance to win hhahhhahah) and hopefully just get my car to a solid 12.0 on street tires pump gas. Either way its gonan be fun as long as we get good weather this year

 

Jim,

it would be nice to see the "Tanklon" rip 12.0s or 11s not sure that will happen without your "crew chief" j/k I still think you should have kept the GTI with the direct port I'm sure it would've went 12s easy. I'm going to have the Rabbit shipped out here at some point so I can run some V8s.

I agree that the Pro class will be hot. Marco will have his work cut out for him since Paul is running pretty fast already. I think Jefferlito should run in the street class.

Clayton, that dude was running last year with no mufflers.. ****, if I would've known that I wouldn't have run an exhaust when I was in ET2

I think that US racers should attend the NCRA just to see DSMJims dad run his 13-second Maxima (full interior and A/C, automatic). That was the best, maybe I can get my dad to run his 5-series BMW LOL!! "Battle of the Parents"