The burnout box is where racers prepare their tires before staging.

Purpose:

• Heat slick tires for improved traction.

• Clean debris from the tires.

• Prepare for a consistent launch.

Street tires typically require only a short cleanup burnout and drive around the water.

The Christmas Tree controls the starting sequence for every race.

The Tree is activated by the Starter once both lanes have pre-staged.

The Christmas Tree Explained

The first 60 feet are often the most important part of a run.

This timer measures:

• Launch consistency

• Tire traction

• Initial acceleration

Small improvements here often produce the biggest gains in overall elapsed time.

The 330-foot timer measures how efficiently your vehicle accelerates through the first third of the track.

Racers frequently use this data to fine-tune:

• Suspension

• Tire pressure

• Launch RPM

• Shift timing

At the eighth-mile mark, the timing system records:

• 1/8-mile Elapsed Time (ET)

• 1/8-mile Speed (MPH)

Many Thunder Valley No-Prep & Junior classes compete over the 1/8 mile, making this their official finish line.

The 1000-foot timer provides an additional performance checkpoint for quarter-mile racers.

While it doesn't determine the winner, it helps evaluate acceleration during the second half of the run.

1320 Feet

The finish line is where your run officially ends.

The timing system records:

• Quarter-mile Elapsed Time (ET)

• Quarter-mile Speed (MPH)

These numbers appear on your official time slip.

While elapsed time measures how quickly you completed the run, trap speed is a strong indicator of your vehicle's horsepower and overall performance.

Cars with similar ETs can have very different trap speeds depending on power, weight, traction, and driving style.

After crossing the finish line:

• Lift off the throttle smoothly.

• Brake in a controlled manner.

• Stay aware of your opponent - left lane has the right-of-way.

• Exit the track safely using the first available return road unless directed otherwise.

Always follow track official instructions and never stop on the racing surface unless instructed to do so.

Roll forward - slowly - until the Pre-Stage bulbs illuminate. This lets the starter know you're approaching the starting line.

Continue rolling forward - slowly - until the Stage bulbs illuminate. 

Once both vehicles are staged, wait for the starting sequence.

Deep staging occurs when a driver rolls farther forward after staging, turning off the Pre-Stage bulbs while leaving the Stage bulbs on. Deep staging is prohibited in many classes, including Thunder Valley Summit ET Series competition.

The green light signals the start of the race. Launch your vehicle and begin your run.

A red light indicates a driver left the starting line too early. The other lane wins unless another disqualifying condition occurs.

A timeout occurs when a driver fails to stage within the allotted time. The red light will illuminate. A timeout results in an automatic round loss.

Sportsman Tree (Full Tree)

Used for Sportsman-style competition. The three amber bulbs illuminate one at a time before the green light.

Pro Tree

Used in most Pro and No-Prep classes. All three amber bulbs illuminate at the same time before the green light.

AutoStart

Thunder Valley uses the NHRA AutoStart system for most classes. Once one driver is fully staged, the other driver has 10 seconds to fully stage. Failure to do so results in a timeout.

Please note:

• Reaction Time (RT) begins when the green light illuminates.

• Elapsed Time (ET) begins when your front tires leave the staging beam—not when the light turns green.

• Remember: A slower reaction time does not make your elapsed time slower. Reaction Time and Elapsed Time are measured independently and tell two different parts of the story.

Every run down the dragstrip generates a time slip—a complete record of your performance from the starting line to the finish line. Each number tells a specific part of the story.

Learning to read your time slip will help you:

• Improve consistency

• Identify strengths and weaknesses

• Better tune your vehicle

• Make smarter decisions between rounds

• Become a more competitive racer

Your Dial-In is the elapsed time (ET) you predict your vehicle will run during bracket racing.

The goal isn't always to run the quickest pass—it's to run as close to your dial-in as possible without running quicker (breaking out).

Reaction Time measures how quickly you react to the green light.

It begins the instant the green light illuminates and ends when your front tires leave the staging beam.

A quicker reaction time gives you an advantage at the starting line, but it does not affect your elapsed time (ET).

Remember:

• Lower is better.

• A slower RT doesn't make your car slower—it simply means you started later.

Pro tip: Leave on the third amber!

This is your official elapsed time at the finish line.

Elapsed Time begins when your front tires leave the staging beam—not when the light turns green.

Your ET reflects how long your vehicle took to travel the length of the track..

INear the bottom of the time slip you'll see information showing the outcome of the race.

• Winner identifies the lane that won.

• First indicates which vehicle crossed the finish line first.

• Status may indicate a win , red light (foul), breakout, timeout, buyback, or other race result.

IOne of the most common misconceptions in drag racing is that a slower reaction time makes your elapsed time slower.

It doesn't.

These two numbers measure completely different things:

• Reaction Time (RT): How quickly you reacted to the green light.

• Elapsed Time (ET): How long your vehicle took to travel from the starting line to the finish line.

Because ET doesn't begin until your vehicle leaves the staging beam, you can have a poor reaction time and still run your quickest ET of the day.

Bracket racing (handicap racing) rewards consistency—not necessarily the fastest vehicle.

Three terms you'll hear often are:

Package
Your package combines your reaction time with how close you ran to your dial-in. Lower packages are better.

Breakout
Running quicker than your dial-in is called a breakout and usually results in a loss unless your opponent also fouls or breaks out by a larger margin.

Win Light
The win light goes to the driver who reaches the finish line first under the rules of bracket racing. The quickest car doesn't always win—the most consistent driver usually does.