Choosing a competitive class, 200 in a mini truck, etc...

[fissionspeed]

Hi All, first post! I am a mechanical engineer and roadkill-inspired hot rodder looking to get started in a "real" sport, and I've always thought Bonneville looked like the ticket. Cool cars, cool people, and if you're really good, a cool hat. Anyway I've finally found myself at a point in life where I'm going to have a garage, so it's time to get started.

Many people have suggested to me that if you want to be successful without too much suffering, you should shoot for an open class, or at least a class with a "ripe" record that you think you could break. So I flipped through my rule book and found that if I'm reading things correctly, the mini-truck category has a lot of open classes. In fact, it looks like nobody's even run an unblown fuel modified mini-truck before.

Is there any reason why I shouldn't build a modified mini-truck that I'm missing? I also noticed that the minimums for club 200 in the minitruck category are roughly on the same par as sports cars, coupes, and GTs. With a mini-trucks higher Cd, am I shooting myself in the foot if I want to make club 200?

Thanks in advance, sorry if this post is on the wrong board, and hope to see you all on the salt!!

[Stan Back]

Same thing happened years ago in the "new" Rear Engine Modified Roadster classes.  It was easy to get a record -- just be the first one to run in the numerous classes.  But the 2 Club has rules about running 200.  You've got to set the record and break the minimum.

So why not build what you want to.  See how fast it can go.  It might be easy to get a record if the category is still open by the time you get done building it.  But the 2 Club may be a different thing.  When their minimum is over 200, you might use this goal when selecting how you build and equip the vehicle.  It can't hurt.

We rebuilt a car that I'd owned for over 40 years and grown fond of.  We wanted to see how fast we could go.  190 on 2nd run and then a backed-up record.  The next goal was 200.  Not the Club, but the number.

So, what comes first for you?

[fissionspeed]

I suppose the reasonable goal, for a man who's never built a legitimate racecar, would be to just show up and be happy that the car made it both directions in one piece. But I would indeed be lying if I said I didn't crave the hat.

My main concern is that if the minimum is say 210 mph regardless, having a Cd of .4x (Chevy S10) vs .3x (C4 vette) might take it from a difficult task to a heroic one.

[Stainless1]

I'd suggest you attend WoS next week, then WF a couple of weeks after that.  Look at cars, see what folks are doing. 

There are plenty of classes soft records... The guys that hold the gas and fuel G Lakester are in agreement that those records are ripe and soft... Yes there are several people building for that class... including the record holders.... but the object is to be the fastest.
You can easily be first to set a record in an open class... it takes 2 passes... any speed.  But that is why the 2 club has minimums... They also adjust their minimums based on performance.   
So like Stan said, build something you want to build and race... within the rules of course... and then do whatever is required to make it go the speed you need.