A certain indoor race this weekend is running an ecotec midget class. Rules have been opened up a bit to allow some low dollar backyard ingenuity to compete with some $12,000 spec engines and such. Great idea right???

Rules have been posted on website for quite awhile. Other than weight, RR tire, and general engine platform rules there is a fairly open rule book.

After hotlaps concluded one of the rules was suddenly changed. The weight rule was reduced by 75 pounds. I have to wonder why.

Now a "sportsman, economy" midget platform which utilizes a production car engine...an engine that weighs significantly more than a national midget engine, suddenly is on the same minimum weight rule as PowrI and USAC.

Was it because the big name cherry pickers were upset that the 10 grand worth of titanium options on their cars meant they would have to add weight? Was it because somebody with a really low dollar car was way too fast in hotlaps? Does anybody know the reason this rule was changed between hotlaps and heat races? And why there was such a drastic change?

I know for a fact that there are guys who put together a very standard car, with no titanium, and light to average size drivers, who were at the minimum weight or 10-20 pounds over it.

Now instead of being a couple gallons of fuel heavy, they are 120# pounds heavier than some of the cars they will be competing against.

I think this is absolutely ridiculous. Don't make such a drastic change during an event. Don't let sportsman, econo type cars be as light as the fastest, highest budgeted midgets in the country. Everybody had every opportunity to read the 2 rules that pertained to the class well ahead of time and make their cars legal. And it has to be much much easier for a high dollar team to add a few pounds to a car than it does for a low dollar team to shave 100 pounds overnight.

I really want to know what IOW readers think about this. Wayne Davis I wonder how you feel about a change like this as passionate as you are about this type of racecar.

this is nothing new. purse&rules were always subject to change due per car count. back in the 70s it was the norm with one off specials, flaky promoters, locations, time of the year!

On the surface, it looks and smells like quite fishy. However, this may be a case of a promoter trying to do something to help the show especially given the weekend that it is racing.

I was quite shocked the first time that I went to my local micro track to see all of the cars doing double/triple duty in one night. Many "A" Cars will start at in the non wing class, then they will throw on a wing and run the "A" winged class, and then a couple will put on a bigger wing and better tires and run in the outlaw class. At first, I thought that they had separate cars until the next weekend when I bought a pit pass and saw the cars transition from class to class in front of my eyes.

For most of us, changing rules at the last moment is something that we don't do. For many more of us, the health of midget racing and "an economy class" is a huge concern. However, given the weekend that it happened I may give it a pass. Of course, if the economy class already had a good car count and this was done as you suggested to help a certain few, then I would agree with everything you said.

OK >>>> so I went to the site. I clicked on EchoTec Rules. I found 3 rules and rule #3 contradicts rule #1. I like short concise rules, BUT this is just a little too short for even me. And I see nothing that is concise anywhere.

These rules take "Well You Didn't Say You Couldn't" To a new level.

Honest Dad himself

Dad....rule number 3 showed up on the website sometime yesterday afternoon/last night... up through noon yesterday it said 1) 1125#, Hoosier RR...2) Drivers must be age 14 or older.... then #3 appeared...1050#, with no change to rule number 1....Oops

A quick comparison of rulebooks for related series shows IMRA requires automotive-powered cars to scale at 1100 pounds; Illini Midgets (dirt tracks under 1/4 mile) 1115; USAC HPD (Focus) Midgets have to scale at 1140, so cars that regularly run in these series wouldn't have too much trouble with the original limit.
Glancing at the entry list, the only real "shoes" are Austin Brown and Cory Kruseman; Cory's probably in one of his School's Foci (along with Dylan Ito; George's kid?), so probably not running anything trick.
There's no discussion of this on the Shootout's Facebook page, so it's puzzling, for sure.

It would be very easy to turn an eco tec into a Mega Bucks tec. New head, piston rods crank and all of a sudden you have a $45,000.00 National Midget beating Beast.

Us liberal types call that being progressive. Of course we would also have to produce a 300 page rule book and hire 5 law firms to enforce the rules. And of course there would be those favored vendors to consider.

Then some old poor boy would invent a 5000 volt leaf motor for cheap Midget racing, then progress would take over again.

Honest Dad himself

Thought I would bring this post back to the top also. Did we ever come up with a reason for changing the weight of the cars? These are neat race cars and have a lot of potential for the budget racers out there if they can get a good engine governor plan put together. If not they will just become a lower cost National program with $20,000.00 motors instead of $60,000.00 motors. Not much help for us budget racers.

Would the winning engine be legal at an IMRA race or the "Gator Dirt Nationals"??

Honest Dad himself

For the Gator "DIRT" Nationals the rules are pretty cut and dry. I have an implementation in there for the 166 older motors after Thursday night we might have to increase tire pressure if they become a dominant car with that pkg. I firmly believe whoever you are the rules are written they've been written for 2 months and are the rules that we are going to go by just as ryan partin was DQ'd for being one pound light in the 1200 class. I'm telling you right now if you're 1 pound, half a pound light you will be DQ'd. You will be allowed 1 roll off and back on.

So anyone that is planning on coming to Florida make sure you read the rules or you call me personally at 904 803 3255 so we can discuss it of course there's not really whole lot to discuss it is pretty cut and dry with what's there,simple to the point. As as far aa me elaborating on what they did at the shoot out that is there baby I have nothing to do with that although I do encourage each and everyone of you with a sportsman/division 2 type of engine to come race. Whenever you allow a racer to dictate or you change a rule mid stream it just causes issues. I ask that you take the responsibility and make sure you know and understand the rules before you make the trip. I'm a hard but fair man and changing rules for 1 is not for the betterment of all. I promise you that if the division 2 midgets becomes a national deal that that will never happen! A lot of people give me grief because I add more money to the back. These guys in the back it cost just as much to come there to race as it does the guy that wins.

The the weight rules are chain drive 1000cc-940 1200cc-1025.... shaft drives 1125... there will be no deviation in weight. I don't care how much money you have or who you are it is what it is that's been written for two months. So make sure you bring weight to add or build you a 3/8 steel floor pan that weight 37 pds.

This is going to be very good for Division II Midgets as we go forward and the only guy that can screw it up is me!!!

I promise each and everyone of you this: You will be treated with respect and dignity if your the guy that comes here with a 20 year old car pulled on an open trailer with a tent to sleep in or if you have a 200,000.00 dollar rig and fly your driver in....your all A RACER TO ME

You the weekend racers are what we are all about...this is why I feel this race is so important. ...GIVEN BACK TO THE WEEKEND WARRIOR!!!!

Wayne

So if I were to get an $8000.00 raised port Esslinger head and put it on my old 166 engine I might have to raise my tire pressure?

Honest Dad himself