Chased points for over 20 years. It gets old and expensive. Takes it's toll on the rest of your life unless that's all you do is bracket race--which describes what I was doing, spending every dime and every free minute working on either the car or my game. In '07 I quit chasing points and haven't missed it one bit! But on the flip side, locally there isn't much reward for winning points aside from maybe a $5 trophy, $200 maybe if you're lucky, and if you're real lucky a jacket. After winning everything that there was to win, it just got repetitive. Took a lot of the fun out of it. I too still join the program to throw a few $$ into the pot though I don't show up every Sunday like I used to. Even when I do go, I may or may not take the race car. I've raced the tow rig and the daily many times. Just throw some shoe polish on it and run it.

I'm glad I'm not the only one. Things did change when we became parents. He has sports and detasseling during that season. I think at one time the track gave you the best out of so many races to give you one or two missed races not being a big deal. But of course, if you miss them, you are thinking what if that was a won that day? Or what if second place wins today? And as I have aged, the commitment during super hot and humid days I really don't have anymore. When you soak through your driving suit with sweat and that thing will stand up by itself after drying on its own, you end up questioning the wisdom of putting yourself through that. And your family for that matter.

One thing that I think maybe tracks are maybe missing out on, it making it easy and fun on racers and their families. Making electricity available at a reasonable cost makes things easier and quieter, and cooler! Does your facility have a dump station so that racers don't have to go to a park or somewhere way out of the way before heading home? Do you sell ice and not gouge for it? Is there shade in the staging lanes? Do you arrange it so that racers don't have to bake in their cars for 20 minutes before each run? Do you make cold water available in the lanes and even at the turnoff? Do you try to make it a fun and social event? I have been to two day races where they turned the pit lights off minutes after the first day finals.

Most of the tracks around here ran a 24 race schedule for the year and you really had to be there every week. And we had over 100 people at most racks fighting to make top 50 team for bracket finals. On a deal like that it would be nice if there was maybe 2 races that you can not claim points. During a season with that many races there will be a funeral or something with the wife or children that you simply can not miss.
Now most of tracks around here are only running 10 races or so if at all. Bracket racing is not the same as it was.

Points racing is something I know a lot about!! I had planned ahead in my teens to win more races, turn on more win lights, and win more track championships than anybody in the history of drag racing. Points racing is not for everybody. It takes great equipment, health, and a triple dose of "NO QUIT"!! I hammered away at it for five different decades, all classes, all three brand of cars, foot brake, delay box, and spread across multiple states. I was fortunate to win 29 Track championships, spread across all classes, A World Championship, and a Division Championship, I can tell you, that was some of the "BEST" times of my life!! If any of yall were at any races I won at, and you won in another class, you can probably find your name in one of the articles in my trophy room. Just google Chip Horton trophy room. You can email anything in there, that has you or your friends in it right from my site, LETS RACE P.S. I hope all yall live long enough, to see your dreams come true!! Mine Did!!

I've been away from points racing for years, since I started a family and all. It's nice that I have about 5 tracks within a 2 hour drive, so I don't have to stick to just one schedule. Eventually I do want to go back to running points again.

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I still love to chase track points. However, it isn't as easy for me to find places to do it, anymore. Most tracks are now giving points after buying back in, and since I don't b*yback... Take care. Tom Worthington

Tom, I am on the board of directors of our local track and we finally decided to start awarding half points if you buyback. We just had too many asking us to do something. I am like you, I always hated the buyback but a lot of guys like it and it helps keep the track open.

A friend of mine who is an excellent racer asked me once. "If Scotty Richardson was here and he got beat first round do you think he would buyback?" My answer was "of course he would" and his response was "then you need to do it too, because that's how the game is played these days."

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Originally posted by Cashflow:

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I still love to chase track points. However, it isn't as easy for me to find places to do it, anymore. Most tracks are now giving points after buying back in, and since I don't b*yback... Take care. Tom Worthington

Tom, I am on the board of directors of our local track and we finally decided to start awarding half points if you buyback. We just had too many asking us to do something. I am like you, I always hated the buyback but a lot of guys like it and it helps keep the track open.

A friend of mine who is an excellent racer asked me once. "If Scotty Richardson was here and he got beat first round do you think he would buyback?" My answer was "of course he would" and his response was "then you need to do it too, because that's how the game is played these days."

Oh, I get it. I don't know if there is anybody left who doesn't b*yback anymore...other than myself. Getting points for it is just the next step. Take care. Tom Worthington

You should race at a track that gives points for losing a round or a track that allows 3 rounds of buybacks! Or a track that gives 20 points if you join at the banquet and only pays first place.

A good friend of mine (now deceased) and several time track champion got on a guilt trip and sold his entire operation once he realized he was routinely missing family events to chase points.
His wife had pointed out to him that only a handful of drag strip junkies really give a damn about his track championships and his family was wondering about his priorities.

Chased points at my local track maybe 4 years after I started driving. I hated it by the end of the year. Sold that car and took two years off to build the car I have now. Shortly thereafter I discovered big money and .90 racing. I’ll never run for track points again but will always continue to support my local tracks bracket program.

When I lived up in NHRA Div 1 I ran points because tracks ran every week and at first it meant something to just get on the track team. But that got to the point where it was a chore and if you wanted to go you could just jump in with a track that couldn't assemble a team. Danny Bastinelli used to run with a Canada team every year. So I just quit joining. 15 years ago I moved South into IHRA Div 2. Started racing at Pageland, SC and racing and the points program became FUN once more....Yes FUN! I looked forward to making the bracket finals, made friends from as far away as South Florida. We always had a good time at these events. Then IHRA nibbled away at the fun factor and the final nail in the coffin for me was when our track was sold to an owner that thought the locals were just in the way. We obliged him and found other tracks to race at. He has reaped what he deserved, not much happens there anymore. I pretty much stopped regular racing then and now just go when ever I want to a race that suits me. I helped organize the very first NHRA bracket finals at York PA back in the 1960s. Had over 600 cars at the first one. Sad to see what has happened to bracket racing.

I will only chase points if I win at the first race of the year.

I have never won at the first race of the year,so I have yet to chase points.

I've had 2 gold cards and didn't use either one more than half a season....
Gold card curse.