Father's Day Drags - written by Peter Lee

Father's Day Drags finally got under way on Sunday 4th OCT. It is always a well patronized event not only for spectators but very much for car and truck owners who get a chance to give their rides a thrash down the quarter mile. The Meremere Drag Strip team do a proper track preparation for the competitors, which is very important for equal lane grip and safety,
Some of the owners of the cars enjoying the open day have put a lot of money and engineering into their rides, with many easily doing the quarter in the 10sec bracket. With the faster ones doing it in the low 9 second  time, we should not forget most of these vehicles are road legal. This year there were no dragsters doing demo runs.
 
It is now possible to buy a late model factory car that will easily do a mid 12sec quarter mile, this being the new Dodge Demon, and if you add the factory Drag Pack, for under USD 100k you have a very fast weekend quarter mile race car that you can drive for the rest of the week. With a factory warranty. Remember the Hertz Shelby 350 Mustang rental cars!
 
 During the lunch break there is the skid pad show. This year only a supercharged Holden 1 ton Ute put on a very smoky show. Bogan heaven for sure.
You are free to wander through the pits and get up close with the people and cars, and It is interesting to get a close up view on how the cars are engineered and wonder about the costs involved.
 
 The day is promoted by the Muscle Car Club and up to 80 of their club members are on duty throughout the day.  If you have never been to a drag racing event, this is one to consider putting in your diary, as it is a very enjoyable day out. The only draw back is that it is rather noisy and the smell of burnt rubber takes a couple of days to get it out of your sinuses.