Back in the day, I was offered numerous opportunities to work safety at IHRA National drag racing events while working with Professional Track Services (PTS). I steadfastly declined those offers...I just did not see the value of working a race that only lasted a few seconds and did not involve any turns (unless it involved a serious crash or simply turning off the end of the track). I finally relented and agreed to work an IHRA event at Milan Dragway, near Detroit. I was quickly hooked on drag racing.
While my EMS schedule at the time was not really conducive to making the longer road trips required to cover IHRA events further away from home, I had fallen for drag racing. I only worked a handful of events from the safety perspective...and have continued to enjoy the occasional drag race as a spectator with my sons and various other guests. There is no sensation like being near a nitromethane fueled engine when they hit the throttle! Between the sounds, the fragrance of the nitro fuel, and feeling the sounds in your body...it is hard to describe...And we have not even left the pit area yet! Experiencing a car making a 300 mph pass in the 3-4 second range is incredible. 8000 horsepower is impressive at the least.
I you have never been to a professional drag race, especially one with nitro cars, do it soon! While it is not the same as circle tracking, it is worthy of a serious race fan.
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