Bret Kepner
New Member
- Joined
- Apr 1, 2004
- Messages
- 282
The staff at Gateway Int’l Raceway will be initiating a new Tuesday Night Street Car program beginning
Tuesday, April 6th. The theme of the Tuesday Night Street Drags will center on a new “Street Car
Showdown” which will reward and recognize the quickest cars at the track each week. The entire concept
will not cost the spectators or competitors one extra dime, but it should add quite a bit to the fun and
entertainment of the race.
Most of the changes won’t even be noticable; the basic Tuesday Night format of unlimited runs between
5:00 PM and 10:00 PM will still be in effect. However, beginning April 6th, each Tuesday night competitor
will receive an official Gateway International Raceway Competitor’s Credential. This credential, (which will
look like a membership card), will include a permanent competitor’s number which will stick with the driver
named on the card for the entire year...maybe for life! Upon registration, Gateway officials will issue the
card, laminate it on the spot, and then it’s yours to keep. Each time you enter later events, you’ll simply
show the inspector your CC card and he’ll put your permanent number on the car.
When fill out your technical inspection form, fill in EVERY line...which you should’ve been doing, anyway.
The reason it’s even more important is because your permanent number will also be used to form a
personal profile to be entered into the track’s CompULink computer for the announcers to TALK ABOUT
YOU. The days of “blue car” and “red car” are finally over; If you fill in your age, hometown, school,
sponsors, car body style, engine, transmission, induction, gear ratio, and shoe size, the announcers won’t
be able to GET IT WRONG. If you enter a different car at a later event, simply fill out the tech card with the
new info and mention it to the girls at the armband booth when you turn in the tech card for your armband
and the data entry operators in the tower will add the new information...but your number always remains the
same. You can even skip the shoe polish stuff and get some static-cling permanent numbers to clean up the
car since you’ll always have the same driver’s number.
While you’re making your runs, however, your permanent number and your profile will allow the CompULink
system to do exactly what it does during a major race...it will track your progress against every other car
running during that event. The new Shootout program will actually list every racer and car at the event in
order of elapsed time, same as a qualified field at an NHRA National Event. The new Shootout Program will
be in the form of a 16-car qualified field. Therefore, at any given time during the evening, the “bump spot”,
(the slowest elapsed time of the 16 quickest cars to that point), will always be displayed on the scoreboards
before every run. If you want to be one of the “Super Sixteen”, you and all spectators will always know how
quick you need to go simply by looking up at the scoreboards. At the end of the evening, the 16 quickest
drivers will receive a “Fastest Street Car Qualifier” sticker. You’ll be able to pick it up in the tower or, if you
have to leave early but still grab one of the “Super Sixteen” spots for the night, you can pick up your sticker
the next week by coming to the control room in the timing tower and showing your CC card. After each
event, the entire qualified field of cars--even if there were 300 of ‘em--will be posted on GIR’s website, so
you’ll be able to see how you did...and how everybody else did, for that matter.
At the very end of each Tuesday Street Drags program, the two quickest qualifiers will come back for the
Street Car Showdown...heads-up, first one to the finish line wins. Dwayne Rall, operator of Norton
Automotive in St. Louis for years and sponsor of many race cars, has opened a new high performance shop
at 5616 Gravois in St. Louis called Southside City Speed Shop, (314-481-7500), and Dwyane has agreed to
sponsor the Shootout with trophies. The winner will also get a GIR Event Winner sticker, (don’t
laugh...there’s only one way to get one of those), and I’ll even chip in by giving the two finalists their choice
of photos.
This is a long note, but there’s more. During the GIR Midnight Madness “All-Nighters”, (the first one is
Friday Night, April 23rd), the same rules apply except there won’t be a Shootout at 5:59 AM. However, the
“Super Sixteen” qualifiers will get stickers.
There is a distinct possiblility that the two quickest front-wheel-drive racers may get their own Shootout
each Tuesday, but that’s not official yet. It does, however, look like the two quickest street bikes on
Wednesdays will have a similar Shootout, and if you haven’t seen GIR’s 7-second, 175 mph street bikes,
(small tires with no wheelie bars), they’re pretty spectacular.
If you don’t already know, GIR track manager Reggie Luter has also scheduled heads-up Outlaw 10.5-inch
tire events and Outlaw Pro Modified events on regular Saturday nights this year, complete with a points
championship series for each class. The first Outlaw “Ten-Five” race in on April 24th and the first Pro
Modified event will be on May 22nd. No other track within one hundred miles of GIR has monthly events for
professional cars, so it should be a pretty cool year.
Take the new Tuesday Night Shootout program for what it’s worth to you, but if you see Reggie Luter at the
track, pat him on the back for being the first Gateway manager in a long time to attempt to make things
better for the regulars. Believe me, the whole dragstrip crew is trying hard to give you a decent place to
race.
Tuesday, April 6th. The theme of the Tuesday Night Street Drags will center on a new “Street Car
Showdown” which will reward and recognize the quickest cars at the track each week. The entire concept
will not cost the spectators or competitors one extra dime, but it should add quite a bit to the fun and
entertainment of the race.
Most of the changes won’t even be noticable; the basic Tuesday Night format of unlimited runs between
5:00 PM and 10:00 PM will still be in effect. However, beginning April 6th, each Tuesday night competitor
will receive an official Gateway International Raceway Competitor’s Credential. This credential, (which will
look like a membership card), will include a permanent competitor’s number which will stick with the driver
named on the card for the entire year...maybe for life! Upon registration, Gateway officials will issue the
card, laminate it on the spot, and then it’s yours to keep. Each time you enter later events, you’ll simply
show the inspector your CC card and he’ll put your permanent number on the car.
When fill out your technical inspection form, fill in EVERY line...which you should’ve been doing, anyway.
The reason it’s even more important is because your permanent number will also be used to form a
personal profile to be entered into the track’s CompULink computer for the announcers to TALK ABOUT
YOU. The days of “blue car” and “red car” are finally over; If you fill in your age, hometown, school,
sponsors, car body style, engine, transmission, induction, gear ratio, and shoe size, the announcers won’t
be able to GET IT WRONG. If you enter a different car at a later event, simply fill out the tech card with the
new info and mention it to the girls at the armband booth when you turn in the tech card for your armband
and the data entry operators in the tower will add the new information...but your number always remains the
same. You can even skip the shoe polish stuff and get some static-cling permanent numbers to clean up the
car since you’ll always have the same driver’s number.
While you’re making your runs, however, your permanent number and your profile will allow the CompULink
system to do exactly what it does during a major race...it will track your progress against every other car
running during that event. The new Shootout program will actually list every racer and car at the event in
order of elapsed time, same as a qualified field at an NHRA National Event. The new Shootout Program will
be in the form of a 16-car qualified field. Therefore, at any given time during the evening, the “bump spot”,
(the slowest elapsed time of the 16 quickest cars to that point), will always be displayed on the scoreboards
before every run. If you want to be one of the “Super Sixteen”, you and all spectators will always know how
quick you need to go simply by looking up at the scoreboards. At the end of the evening, the 16 quickest
drivers will receive a “Fastest Street Car Qualifier” sticker. You’ll be able to pick it up in the tower or, if you
have to leave early but still grab one of the “Super Sixteen” spots for the night, you can pick up your sticker
the next week by coming to the control room in the timing tower and showing your CC card. After each
event, the entire qualified field of cars--even if there were 300 of ‘em--will be posted on GIR’s website, so
you’ll be able to see how you did...and how everybody else did, for that matter.
At the very end of each Tuesday Street Drags program, the two quickest qualifiers will come back for the
Street Car Showdown...heads-up, first one to the finish line wins. Dwayne Rall, operator of Norton
Automotive in St. Louis for years and sponsor of many race cars, has opened a new high performance shop
at 5616 Gravois in St. Louis called Southside City Speed Shop, (314-481-7500), and Dwyane has agreed to
sponsor the Shootout with trophies. The winner will also get a GIR Event Winner sticker, (don’t
laugh...there’s only one way to get one of those), and I’ll even chip in by giving the two finalists their choice
of photos.
This is a long note, but there’s more. During the GIR Midnight Madness “All-Nighters”, (the first one is
Friday Night, April 23rd), the same rules apply except there won’t be a Shootout at 5:59 AM. However, the
“Super Sixteen” qualifiers will get stickers.
There is a distinct possiblility that the two quickest front-wheel-drive racers may get their own Shootout
each Tuesday, but that’s not official yet. It does, however, look like the two quickest street bikes on
Wednesdays will have a similar Shootout, and if you haven’t seen GIR’s 7-second, 175 mph street bikes,
(small tires with no wheelie bars), they’re pretty spectacular.
If you don’t already know, GIR track manager Reggie Luter has also scheduled heads-up Outlaw 10.5-inch
tire events and Outlaw Pro Modified events on regular Saturday nights this year, complete with a points
championship series for each class. The first Outlaw “Ten-Five” race in on April 24th and the first Pro
Modified event will be on May 22nd. No other track within one hundred miles of GIR has monthly events for
professional cars, so it should be a pretty cool year.
Take the new Tuesday Night Shootout program for what it’s worth to you, but if you see Reggie Luter at the
track, pat him on the back for being the first Gateway manager in a long time to attempt to make things
better for the regulars. Believe me, the whole dragstrip crew is trying hard to give you a decent place to
race.
. Should definately add an extra level of excitment and fun. More people will hang around till the end just to see the outcome. 
