Why a FED or Nostalgia racing

[H.G. Wells]

Started to reply 3-4 times and never really had a good answer.
I always liked old cars because they have soul.
Dad raced a boat, I had a hot rod pick up in high school and had two older brother who were more into muscle cars. I got in trouble street racing with a Chevelle and a V8 Vega. Grew out of and could not afford to street race anymore.

Fast forward to a muscle care restoration that drove me nuts trying to find that one last NOS piece, and finally a job that included selling racing fuel as a key component.
One of the teams that I chose to sponsor was a JR fuel car. That was the team that I spent more time with and learned about the whole nostalgia racing, dare I say "Life Style"  Nostalgia racers were more friendly, more willing to offer help, parts, and waaay more laid back than any of the other racers I spent time with. (Second only to drag boats, but that is another story). I was hooked, traveled to some great historic tracks. Indy, Bakersfield, Bowling Green, Cordova, and my favorite Ardmore Ok.

Happened to be visiting a guy with a FED at a Super Chevy Race in 99? and he had a roller for sale. Since selling fuel was part of my job and I knew the FED would get more attention at the track than anything else I could possibly drive, and the fact that I would never drive a FED on the street and get thrown in jail again. I bought it, built it and played with some local groups, had a blast. Bent that one and just ordered some new pipe about a week ago so I can start over.

Nostalgia racers tend to play well together and FED racers have more opportunities to race. You can run index classes, brackets, and many organized nostalgia events.
I suppose the same could be said for Altereds or Funnys. I just don't have enough friends to lift a funny car body all the time.

[wideopen231]

Forgot one. My wife reminded me   about a story of me pedaling my little car half a block. Swipping a bunch of candy and when asked how I paid for it I said"Momma if you don't have money you don't have to pay"(my liberal stage I guess). The toy car was a frontengine dragster.Bet that would be worth some cash now. Point wife says just going back for another childhood.

[masracingtd1167]

Forgot one. My wife reminded me   about a story of me pedaling my little car half a block. Swipping a bunch of candy and when asked how I paid for it I said"Momma if you don't have money you don't have to pay"(my liberal stage I guess). The toy car was a frontengine dragster.Bet that would be worth some cash now. Point wife says just going back for another childhood.

    Did your mother spank you !!!!

[wideopen231]

Don't think so. It was one of those want to spank them but it was so funny hard not to laugh.

[up in smoke]

raced local in the early 70's,,loved when they staged,always loved old hilborn with the crazy stacks, ,,,,,forward 36 years ,,,I got both on the same ride. havin the time of my life

[dreracecar]

I got into this nostalgia/Front engine dragster scene in 1990 because I missed it in the begining and when I could get into Drag racing the Rear motors took over. From the early days as a kid buying magazines to fantasize of what it would be like was my only choice.

HOWEVER----
  Right now the shine has been taken off the apple. For the most part the swing has turned from the glory days of Form over Function to newstalgia front engine dragsters. We have people building oil derrects-narrow front track A-arm front ends, bodies built with a sheet metal brake, billet this and that, computers/data recorders and all these go fast engine componants and wild fuel systems-- Please someone tell me why it is nessasary to have a Big & Ugly mounted to a set back high helix 10/71 and a 44amp MSD to run 7 flat? Why do dragsters need 30" of overhang with cannards??? . This is what happens when the Racer mentality overuns the vintage aspect-- all for a couple bux and  $25 trophy. A lot of people are racing front engine dragsters, and thats great--Enjoy, but please dont call it a vintage/nostalgia dragster if you cant show me a picture of the way yours is built in a 60's car magazine. and dont say yours was built to be safer then the old cars--- BS, Kidney bars and an extra roll bar hoop on my car is the only visable difference as far as the chassie goes and is legal to 6.00

[JeffV8]

I do not like the looks of the new nostalga dragsters. Get rid of electronics in ALL the classes in dragracing and you will see dragracing increase again

[masracingtd1167]

Bruce I think the racer mentality has been around since the beginning of this sport ! The guy's who hopped up there flat head Fords were the high tech racers of the fifty's . I don't think it is any different today ! I really admire those early racers because they set the pace for future racers to never settle and always look for ways to go quicker ! I guess you could say that my car is one of those oil derrick's with a arms and a 6 point cage but that's the way I wanted it and I didn't build it to be a vintage car ! I really like the cars from the sixty's some of the body work and paint were works of art I guess that is something we lost ! 

[dreracecar]

We did not "LOSE" anything, racers took the easy road for a percieved edge over another racer. Tony Nancy in the mid sixtys had a rear motor dragster with a wing on the back, so for that reason I should be able to build a oil derrick R/E dragsters with a wing and call it vintage nostalgia

[wideopen231]

Hey love the  60's cars. IMO advancing the design is just that. I think looking for ways to make it quciker and/or better is keeping with the inovative side of the sport. The guys who built the 60's style cars where always looking to go faster and make the cars better. That is exactly what brought some of the new designs to a classic piece.
  I knew going in to my build that most purest would not be crazy about some of my design. The so called high chair is one part that I have gotten negative comments on from the start. IMO its helpful in the main intent of my car bracket racing.Got to see my front and other guys front at stripe for top end driving. The 30 front nose piece I see as a have to if you run headsup,other wise you are giving up et that others are not.

  As far as I am concerned any car built for dragracing is a bennifit to the sport. If it happens to be frontengine dragster requardless of design thats even better.

[dreracecar]

There was no "advancement" in design to make the car better, In fact the older design holds up better long term. The only reason for the design change is that the builders of the new crop of cars already were tooled up from their rear motor design and unwilling to re-tool to a conventional dragster design. Its just dumb tubing and either design can be made to work equally well.

 Vintage/Nostalgia drag racing is the only series out there where modern designs & exposed components are acceptable. Am I starting a crusade to banish them--- NO, build your car and buy every electronic gizmo as you see fit and enjoy. The topic at hand was "Why a FED or Nostalgia racing" and on a previous post I had answered that question but also gave my reason for leaving it too.

[wideopen231]

Actually the thread is about what made you decide to race a FED or nostalgia style race car. Its not about is the  definition of a Vintage nostalgia car. As first line of OP states its meant to be a fun thread.Point was to get folks point reason and what draws them to their choice of race car.  To each their own as long as they drag race I'm good with it.

[dreracecar]

To which I did answer to when it started for me and for the changes I have seen over the last 25 years of being involved to the point of them becoming "cookie cutter"

I'm done

[masracingtd1167]

We did not "LOSE" anything, racers took the easy road for a percieved edge over another racer. Tony Nancy in the mid sixtys had a rear motor dragster with a wing on the back, so for that reason I should be able to build a oil derrick R/E dragsters with a wing and call it vintage nostalgia

     Bruce what I meant by loosing something is you don'see as much of the hand made pieces and custom paint jobs like you did in the seventy's ! Lots of chrome and polished alluminum too! You do see more of it at the nostalgia races . You and I might have different idea's on the way that things should be done but I think we both have the same love affair with FED'S ! When I was 12 years old some friends of mine took me to Dover Drag Strip IN Wingdale NY and I saw the dragster Hallzapoppin run I knew right then that I was going to race a dragster !   

[janjon]

I wanted one from the first time I saw a FED at Laplace Dragway in the New Orleans area in the very late 70s. Still have pictures of the one I saw. I was still in high school at that point. It took me till Y2K to find the one I traded for the Chevelle I had built in the meantime. Much more fun to drive.