Todays Sled August 04, 2023 03:19AM
Just a topic for discussion. It seems the pulls are more of a drag race. Alot of time and money have been spent in the progress of hosrepower, tires and chassis. It has been very impressive. Sled designs seems not to have changed much over the last decade or two. Im not an engineer, but would a radical change to sled design help pulling? Has anyone ever tried to do that. Not lookingf for a heated argument, just a discussion.
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Re: Todays Sled August 04, 2023 03:22AM
The sleds still stop them, seems like no one wants a pull anymore except antiques. Racing is what the people demand for the most part, not pulling in my opinion, but Life goes on.
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Re: Todays Sled August 04, 2023 04:25AM
IF we want grow the sport it has to be exciting and entertaining, a slow sled is not what the fans want to see. A slow sled does not translate to excitement. A fast sleds that let's the high HP vehicles get up and moving and then brings to a fast safe stop is what sells. And I'm not really sure what you can do to improve todays sleds other than a sensor to monitor box movement related to distance traveled.


Dick Morgan

www.PULLOFF.com
Independent Pulling News



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/04/2023 04:27AM by Dick Morgan.
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Re: Todays Sled August 04, 2023 05:44AM
I respectfully disagree. Pulling multiple weight classes, having pull offs, watching tractors lug it out for every inch. These are the things i enjoy watching most. I still would rather watch a good group of farm tractors battle it out with a true weight transfer sled then watch a bunch of high horsepower tractors that have to start with pulling almost nothing to get going and then be slammed by a drop pan.

If you want to grow the sport you need to make it more relatable to people. 25 different classes of the the same stuff going 30 mph then slamming to a stop around 320 foot is not tractor pulling. Its a glorified tractor show that lasts 10 seconds and then go drink beer and talk about how much money you spent to be there. Nothing innovative or interesting or exciting at all anymore. It just all looks the same and whomever spends the most money is almost all it takes no skill needed.
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Re: Todays Sled August 04, 2023 06:02AM
Quote
Different Opinion
I still would rather watch a good group of farm tractors battle it out with a true weight transfer sled then watch a bunch of high horsepower tractors that have to start with pulling almost nothing to get going and then be slammed by a drop pan.

If you want to grow the sport you need to make it more relatable to people. 25 different classes of the the same stuff going 30 mph then slamming to a stop around 320 foot is not tractor pulling. Its a glorified tractor show that lasts 10 seconds and then go drink beer and talk about how much money you spent to be there.

I can see from video how many people chose to spend $25+ for a highhorsepower Saturday night show at Bowling Green or Ft. Recovery.

Please show us where anyone anywhere paid $25 to watch a 30 second 8 mph farm stock class. The marketplace has spoken on that issue.

If there is both high $ and farm stocks at the same fair, more than likely the farm tractors ran during a weeknight or daytime, and the faster, louder stuff ran during the weekend at night in front of the biggest crowd.
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Re: Todays Sled August 04, 2023 07:05AM
The big pulls like BG get good crowds because its an event. Its the place to be that weekend same way a lot of people watch the super bowl that have no clue or care about football. The same GN tractors run mid week at a pull and most dont care. Tractor pulling for most spectators is a once or twice a year event not a everyday following.
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Re: Todays Sled August 04, 2023 07:39AM
Quote
Different Opinion
The big pulls like BG get good crowds because its an event. Its the place to be that weekend same way a lot of people watch the super bowl that have no clue or care about football. The same GN tractors run mid week at a pull and most dont care. Tractor pulling for most spectators is a once or twice a year event not a everyday following.

Wayne Purser runs at a county fair mld-week? Colin Ross? Blackbourn? Masterson?

BG is an event, and there are drunkards who could care less about the pull. On the other hand, one reason why is such an event is the "pro" pullers in the top hp classes are there.
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Re: Todays Sled August 04, 2023 09:16AM
oRIGINAL YEARS AGO WHEN PULLING WAS PULLING WASNNT BOWLING GREEN JAM PACKED THEN ALSO
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Re: Todays Sled August 04, 2023 09:37AM
Lewis even then those vehicles were the best, strongest in the nation. It's always about HP which translates in speed down the track. Bowling Green is and always been bringing the best together in one place. They never built their show on 55HP Super M vs John Deere 720s.
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Re: Todays Sled August 04, 2023 01:56PM
Dick u need to get me logged back in i cant get it done
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Re: Todays Sled August 08, 2023 02:02PM
Sled owners need to invest more for upgrades like the pullers do. To many are way outdated.
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Re: Todays Sled August 08, 2023 02:07PM
What upgrades would you like to see? And what ones do you think are way outdated?
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Re: Todays Sled August 08, 2023 02:14PM
Personally I would just like to see the sleds more well maintained. There are some sleds being pulled that are pretty bent, and bowed- this makes it more rough on vehicles to pull and causes more damage to our vehicles because they have lacked maintenance they need.
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Re: Todays Sled August 04, 2023 07:27AM
I think any innovation in sled design would have to work towards moving away from the heavy reliance on pushdown/grouser bars on the pan to stop the bigger classes. Something that increased drag but is repeatable; gradual and doesn’t tear up the track up like grouser bars. If done right, it may fulfil the need of both camps for speed and having to lug it out at the end of the track.
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1 way to do it... August 04, 2023 08:32AM
No one wants to hear this, but there is a sure fire way to fix this issue: MAKE THE TRACK SUCK!!! 280 feet in a cloud of dust and this conversation doesn't happen. I will say that dust flying absolutely DOES present an image of power on camera and in person. I would encourage pullers further to letter their tires or put a stripe on like they used to in pulling and drag racing in the 90s. Give every visual cue you can of how batshit crazy this is. It hit me this afternoon during 4.1s. I set aside myself and just thought "a 4440 just made that sound... wow."

CP
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Re: 1 way to do it... August 04, 2023 09:18AM
You must not have been to enough pulls where the track sucks or you wouldn't be suggesting such a boneheaded idea. I was at one well known pull several years ago that ran 3 tractors, covered everyone in the grandstand with a dust bath and actually stopped, dug up the track, watered it and restarted. I've also seen the other end of the spectrum where the track was over watered, and when the sun went down, the moisture came up and the surface was slick. A miserable experience for everyone there because there wasn't a damn thing that could be done about it at that point, and very high quality tractors struggled to get to 250' with a very light sled.

Sorry, but you're wrong about that idea. We don't have to relive every aspect of the 70's trying to find the "next level" for pulling 50 years later.
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Re: 1 way to do it... August 05, 2023 01:57AM
For the last few years, no prep drag racing has been The. Freaking. Jam. Why? Huge personalities are a part of it, but lets leave that component off the table. It makes hauling ass look difficult. They have to actually drive and/or set up for conditions. Bring it back to pulling. A killer power track is sorta boring to watch. It doesn't appear to be difficult. There isn't as much driving. Nail the holeshot and otherwise it's big power coasting. A garbage track where competitors are moving the sled around, driving styles differ, they're in and out of the throttle is a much better show of skill than power tracks tend to be.

Sidebar: The starting line launchramps that are the new trend: Drivers are not fans.

CP
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A view August 04, 2023 09:59AM
Why does the sport have to grow?? What is "grow". If you want to watch "pulling", there are countless antique pulls--some even BIG. At our county fair, there is antiques pulling and you can watch for free....can almost count spectators on fingers and toes. But that evening for the NTPA regional pull, the stands are full to capacity and trust me, they didn't get in for free.
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Re: Todays Sled August 04, 2023 10:31AM
There are other designs out there. They just are not as well known or maybe not liked by all. But they are out there.
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Re: Todays Sled August 05, 2023 06:52AM
I'm dreaming of Mods with just one engine only, no matter in size etc, barely almost no fenders, sending dirt 30' in the air on tracks that are far away from perfect. And if they even think that in 2030 we still need the +12000HP drag racing @#$%&, then let them drag a sled with non-linear gear ratio. When they exceed the 20mph threshold, this thing shall increase the box speed by 20% with every additional mph.
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