Top Fuel Dragster
Bryan Hawker is an avid drag racer. Drag racing is a form of motor racing that originated in the United States and in which two contestants race from a standing start side by side on a drag strip—a flat, straight course, most commonly 1/4 mile (0.4 km) long. Both elapsed time (in seconds) and final speed (in miles per hour; mph) are recorded, although for most events the winner is simply the first to cross the finish line.
According to Bryan Hawker, contestants line up in parallel lanes with an electronic starting device known as a Christmas Tree between the lanes. Each driver interrupts a pair of infrared beams on his approach to the starting line; the first turns on the pre-staging light and the second turns on the staging light at the top of the Tree. Typically, when all four lights are lit and both vehicles are stationary, a starter flips a switch and a sequence of lights comes down the Tree at 0.5 second intervals (0.4 for professionals). On each driver’s side three amber lights come on and then a green “go” light—leaving prematurely turns on a disqualifying red light. Each driver’s elapsed time begins when his staging light goes out (after moving away from the starting line)—not when the green lights come on—and ends when he interrupts a beam at the finish line. Another pair of beams, usually 66 or 132 feet before the finish line, are used to calculate final speeds.
Typically, says Bryan Hawker, tournament competitors race in elimination matches by special categories. However, mixed category races, known as bracket racing, exist under a handicap system where slower vehicles get a head start. The introduction of bracket racing reopened the sport to those without great wealth or corporate sponsorship and accounts for much of the present proliferation of the sport.