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Recently updated on February 27, 2023 at 12:36 am
Drag racing is a particularly exciting and adrenaline-charged motor sport event that began in the first few years after the Second World War. It was around this time that teenagers in the United States became fashionable to compete in street races with tuned cars. At that time, the vehicles drove off simultaneously at a set of traffic lights and accelerated as quickly as possible to their destination. The first drag racing races were of course absolutely illegal, which is why the participants were often in conflict with the law. Later, however, they were moved to airfields and so held in a legal framework. Today's drag races are not that different from then. Here, too, the goal is to cover a 402,34 m long stretch, known as the drag strip, as quickly as possible with a standing start.
Dragster cars
In races in the professional classes and the upper amateur classes, special cars are used that have an enormous output of up to a few thousand horsepower. Dragsters can be roughly divided into three categories based on the fuel they use: gasoline, methanol, and nitromethane. Their design has also changed over the decades. At first it was characterized by the front-engine rail. Then the "Slingshot" was introduced, with the rider between or behind the rear tires. This design was dominant until the mid-1960s.
Then the modern dragster car was introduced in the 1970s. It was three representatives of the dragster that made history - the Dodge Charger, the Plymouth Hemi Cuda and the Chevrolet Camaro Yenko. Don Garlits, a former factory driver at Chevrolet, was the first driver to drive a vehicle designed for drag racing. A woman was there too - Shirley Muldowney became the first woman to compete in a drag racing championship and won four titles.
Drag bikes
Motorcycles also take part in drag races. Here, too, the goal is to cover the 402-meter distance as quickly as possible from a standing start. The fastest motorcycles do this in 5,5 seconds and reach speeds of over 400 km/h. The most well-known form of motorcycle drag racing is the Pro Stock Bike category, followed by Top Fuel and Pro Street. "Top Fuel" motorcycles run on nitromethane and can produce an incredible 1.500 horsepower. Elmer Trett is considered by many to be the greatest motorcycle drag racer of all time. In 1996 in Indianapolis, he managed to cover the drag strip in just 6,06 seconds.
NitrOlympX
NitrOlympX is one of the most famous drag racing events. Until 2002 it was called Nitrolympics, but was renamed NOX. The race has been held in August every year since 1986. The place is world famous - the Hockenheimring. Incidentally, what is probably the best-known dragster race owes its name to the nitromethane fuel used in the “top fuel” classes. But the thrill is not always only to be found on the slopes.
Drag racing - a sport with a future
What began as a pastime for occupation soldiers in Great Britain and Germany in 1950 has now established itself as a popular sport. The first cheap and light pre-war models were replaced by real monsters. The “hot stoves”, as they are affectionately known, have been gaining new fans ever since. There are two driver skills that determine victory or defeat in drag racing. On the one hand, the pilot must have lightning-fast reactions. On the other hand, he must also be able to keep the enormous performance under control. No matter how powerful the dragsters of the future will be, these pilot skills will not change.
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