8 John Force Wannabes
Unless you're racing in a top-level professional class such as Pro Stock, Top-Fuel, or Funny Car, don't carry your burnouts across the starting line. In a street car, burnouts should not last more than 10 seconds, and your car shouldn't move more than a foot or so forward. If you can't control your car in that amount of time, then you might need to visit a driving school such as Roy Hill's or Frank Hawley's.
9. Shade-Tree Tech Inspection
Make sure your car is in good running order before you get to the track. Check the fluid levels, lug nuts, tire wear, and battery hold-down before entering the gates. If your modifications have gone hand in hand with the sanctioning-body rulebook, then you should breeze through tech, and the official won't have to give you the Heisman.
10. Practice Makes Perfect
If you're just starting out, the most important thing is to make as many runs as you can to perfect your launch skills and shifting technique. Concentrate on lowering your 60-foot time, and don't worry about cutting a light, as it doesn't make a difference when you leave the starting line when you're going for low elapsed time. With a stick-shift car, you can practice your shifting in the staging lanes while you wait. Just make sure your drivetrain has been warmed up so the synchronizers in the transmission are lubed up when you grab that gear. Once you're fairly good with leaving the starting line, then you can practice your reaction times. Heck, you can do that at home with a practice Tree.
11. Be Professional
Good driving begins with good mental preparation. If you think like a pro driver, you'll act like one, and you might one day drive like one. If you take your driving seriously, you won't show up to the track wearing sandals and a tank top. Wear a helmet, even if your track doesn't require one. Sooner or later it will, and you'll already be used to wearing one. Remember, you'll probably be doing in excess of 90 mph, and there are concrete walls within 10-20 feet of you.
12. Sweating Is Good For The Pores
Don't run the air conditioning while you're at the track. HVAC systems feature a water drain to expel the condensation on the car's evaporator, and this typically drains out beneath the car. If you roll up to the starting line and the track officials see something dripping, they'll back you up and send you to the pits to fix it.
13. Shaft Play
Driveshaft loops are cheap insurance against potentially hazardous situations. Those two little links that join the transmission with the rearend are your U-joints. Most people give them about as much thought as the cigarettes they throw out the window, and yet they're every bit as critical as the engine and suspension. Driveshaft loops cost less than $50, are easy to install, and are an excellent safeguard against pole-vaulting your Pony through the air or kicking out your 8.8 after the U-joint fails.
14. Speed Is For The Strip
Most tracks have a speed limit for the pits. There are lots of spectators, children, and sometimes even animals around, so don't be testing and tuning on your way to the staging lanes or coming back down the return road. You'll look like a moron and you might run someone over. Wouldn't that kill your e.t. in a hurry?
15. Know Your Surroundings
We can't tell you how many times we've seen people stage their cars with the back wheels. If you can't see the clocks, then you probably need to move your seatback up from its summertime cruising lean to an appropriate driving position. There's no drop in e.t. for getting to the starting line first, so take your time, creep up to the line, and watch for the timing equipment and the stage bulbs on the Tree.