I just what to know what we are letting run with this class. I am bringing a 600 cc MINI SPRINT. Running with 1000cc and some stock block low budget midgets should be fine. But if you are letting $15000 dollar motor midgets I am staying home. I am not driving from indy to get run over. Hell I have less than $15000 in my whole car. Was also thinking about bringing a sidewinder too. Please let me know asap so I can figure out what I am doing.

Okay, I race strictly non-wing, and primarily with the Montpelier Midget series. I have a chain-drive, motorcyle-powered car that is dimensionally identical to a Midget, and in the hands of a more capable driver could probably finish mid-pack. My best feature finish last year was 11th, 3 laps off the pace; my goal this year is to finish a Main on the lead lap. If I were in a Focus or Ecotec powered car I may have ended up 2 laps down once or twice. A Gaerte or Pontiac, probably not much better. An Esslinger or Fontana, I probably would have put up in Harold's shiny new catch fence.
Point is, where do you draw the line? Are just the Esslingers, Fontanas or TRDs Midgets? Do you include the Gaerte's and Pontiacs, even though they probably would be back markers at a POWRi or USAC show? Are Foci and Ecotecs Midgets, or something inferior? There are certainly those among us who can tell the difference between the varieties of power in the field at MMS, but from sitting in the stands there I can assure you there are more who cannot, and I would hope the ones who can could appreciate the effort being put forth on the track regardless of what is motivating the vehicle. And the variety has combined to produce one heck of a show; come up and see for yourselves.
Take another class of race car; Modifieds. Are the guys who run the big-block, aero-bodied East Coast mud busses upset that UMP and IMCA have "Modified" classes? Then you have B-Mods, E-Mods (what happened to C & D?). Mod Lites are rightly called "Lites" because they are physically smaller, nothing to do with power choice, but there's plenty for the "casual" modified fan to be "confused" about; is anyone calling for the heads of IMCA and UMP to be put on a pike because they sully the sacred name "Modified"?

I think wingless mini and echotec times are nearly the same. Winged mini's run as fast as midgets on most tracks. More skill needed to keep the midgets right side up.

We have already posted the rules for this event and there will not be any $15,000 dollar motors at this event. I know this did not sit well with everyone but we just wanted to have a race for non National Midgets and the Lightning Sprints to run together this winter.

Now as far as the million dollar question what should be call this. We know that this is not a USAC or POWRI Midget show. But then what do you call them? One group of people are upset with calling them Division II or Sportsman Midgets. Then we have another group upset that we are calling them midgets. This is something that we do need to get together on and come up with a name that the majority of people can live with. I do agree there needs to be some kind of distinction between the different cars. Bottom line is I know this race will be just as good of a race that took place back in December with POWRI and I hope that everyone can come out and see this event.

Amen Jay, amen.

Thanks. That's all I needed to know. I just didn't want to come run with high dollar midgets in a 600 cc upright. I would be way to under powered. See you guys there.

Avon,
"Now as far as the million dollar question what should we call this you ask?"
N.O.E.M.M.? National Original Equipment from Manufacturer Midget Series, relating to stock engines.

Factory Midget?

Stock Midget?

P.B.M. Production Based Midget
P.B. Midget Series

What's everybody think about those?

Danny Williams, JR.

It is a start maybe we need to start a facebook page and see what the drivers and fans suggest. Would be no different than a new sports team having a contest to name the team.

Jay

Steve has the race advertised as a Lightning Sprint Race at the DuQuoin Center.http://stevenaceracing.com/Mini%20Sprints.htm

With his permission we agreed to allow the stock block Midgets run with us also in hopes of a better car count. Promoters love car count to a degree. So hopefully the Mini Sprint Racers + the other Midget sized race cars should provide a car count and maybe help out the purse also. Mud if you have a Sidewinder bring it down they are on the card also.

This has been a great debate with very few threats of reprival the question is still in the air. What do we call a chain drive Motorcycle powered Midget framed race car. It is plain we share nothing with Sprint Cars and an awful lot with the Midget racer.

Why is Midget such a sacred name that it can not be divided into classes. We have 1/4 Midgets since changed to .25 Midget probably for PC reasons, they have many classes under this umbrella. We have 1/2 Midgets, I guess they are obsolete now, we have Micro Midgets they morphed into Jr. Sprints and now Mini Sprint each of these divisions having many sub divisions, we have 3/4 Midgets with variations all over the USA, we have Echo tec Midgets, Focus Midgets, and Kenyon Midgets. Then we have Mini Sprints who relinquished their name to the Micro Midgets racers and who performance wise probably have more in common with Midgets than any of the other classes named and they get stuck with a name like Lightning Sprint that has no resemblance what so ever to what they are. Talk about truth in advertising? and Politically Correct? How would you like to pay out your hard earned money to watch a Lightning Sprint Race and get to the race track only to find a bunch of Midgets.

Honest Dad himself

Personally, I like D-II of all the suggestions trotted out, although putting any kind of qualifier in front of Midget seems to upset one camp, and calling those guys anything with Midget in the name at all tweeks another.
There is one compound name already out there that sort of makes all this fuss a little funny; it's a Motorcycle-powered car, but it has a shaft drive; where the heck does THAT fit into the argument? The name; Kenyon Midget. If it's good enough for Mel...