Quote:
Originally Posted by yeleyfan76
Bingo! You nailed it. It makes me feel better to end the boredom. Since people are talking about how it’s been from back in the day, I’d like to share how I grew up. Here in the east we did something real simple. The guy leading the points started the feature (A main) in 16th or 18th depending on the track. We had absolutely no time trials. The fast guys started in the back all nite every nite.
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1500 miles to your west, we did it similarly for a regular points night. We did it from points average, rather than total points, but you got the same effect, fast cars started at the back and had to work their way through the field. If you were a new car, you went to the back until you established a points average. We didn't need a "qualifier" so you could sandbag and save back in heat. You lined up for your heat based on your average and the top 5 finisher from the heats went into the A, next 5 went to the B and if there was anyone left after that, they went to a C. High points average man started 20th in the A. The low points average guy that made it through a heat started on the pole of the A feature. If a hot shoe from out of town rolled in with no points, he lined up in the back in the heat. If he finished top 5, he went to the back of the A.
When we had more than 60 cars showed up, the top 50 in points got to run a heat and everyone below that had to run the consolation race (to try to get on to the back of the C feature). You DIDN'T want to fall into that consolation race or you might never get out alive...
But this worked for
regular track points nights/shows. When the traveling series came to town, it was still set up by time trials with an invert. Time trials meant something "special" was happening, like the State Fair race or a traveling series. Even today, I'm okay with time trials for traveling series. What I DON'T like is time trials for a "regular show" where there are points for a track title. And I don't like all this "getting your time back" from the B. If you fall into the B because you couldn't (or wouldn't) advance through your heat, you start behind the A feature cars. That'll motivate you to get a move on through the heats.
If I wanted to focus on one car on the track racing against a stop watch every week, I'd go watch autocross.