Mike Kaleel and Brenda Soussan have planned another Friday Night at the Drags.  A lane has been reserved at the New England Dragway in Epping, NH, on Friday, August 24th.

For those who missed the JANE Drag Night in 2006, the report from that event (found here) will give you some indication of how much fun was had by all who participated, and by doing it in August we will avoid the cold that detracted from the October event.

While this is a JANE-sponsored event, you need not be a member of the club to participate.  All you need is an interest in the sport and a Jaguar. The Dragway gives us a dedicated lane for the exclusive use of our club, and we invite all Jaguar owners to come show us their lead foot and pride in their Cat.  Our club's last drag event included antique and late model supercharged Jags that all reached amazing speeds.

Last year the Dragway also reserved  a staging area for the club, which was directly across from the drag lineup.

For those seeking an explanation of a modern-day drag race click here.

For those participating in this JANE event,  New England Dragway will use a handicap starting system to equalize competition in certain categories.  This system is designed to enable vehicles of varying performance potentials to compete on an equal basis.

Each car/driver combination is given two trial runs to assess their potential as measured by their elapsed time over the quarter mile.   Based on these trial runs each driver specifies his base elapsed time (the Dial).  For any two cars competing against each other, their respective Dials are compared, and the car with the largest Dial (the slowest car) is given a handicap head start equal to the difference of the two Dials. By using this system, virtually any two vehicles can be paired in a competitive drag race.  Here's how it works. If car A has a Dial of 16.00 seconds and the corresponding figure for car B is 14.50 seconds, car A will get a 1.5-second head start.  If both vehicles cover the quarter-mile in exactly their own Dial, the win goes to the driver with the best reaction time to the starting lights, because the elapsed time is measured from when each car crosses the starting line, not when the lights go green.

So why not pick a Dial that will give you a big head start?  Simple, because if your elapsed time is below your Dial (called "breaking out"), you are disqualified.  If you pick a high Dial for your car and get a head start, you would be forced to wait for the other driver anyway to avoid disqualification.

In order for the races to start quickly after we arrive at the track, we will need your model and year before you arrive so the track can start setting up the handicap system before we arrive.

Gates open at 5 P.M., with races starting at 6 P.M. JANE will have a secured area at the track where we can gather and discuss (sometimes heatedly) who will drag whom, and where we will be able to regroup after each run and grab a snack.  Brenda and Mike will provide refreshments at the gathering area.  After the races, all are invited to join in a casual meal at a nearby restaurant to be determined.

The Dragway's rules in effect for street programs can be found here.

A summary of some of the more important rules is below:

Please address any questions to Brenda or Mike and let them know of your intentions to race as early as possible. They can be reached directly by phone or email (check your JANE Membership Directory) or by emailing the JANE webmaster below. 

Click here for a map to the track or see the instructions below.

New England Dragway is located just off Route 101's Exit 8 in Epping, New Hampshire.
Here are the general directions to the racetrack:
From I-95:
Take Exit 2 in New Hampshire. Follow Route 101 West to Exit 8.
Turn right at the end of the ramp and you're here!
From I-93:
Take Exit 7 in New Hampshire. Follow Route 101 East to Exit 8.
Turn left and we're straight ahead!
From I-495:
Take Exit 51-B to Route 125 North. Get on Route 101 East to Exit 8.
Turn left