Preparation

The key to success, at least in part, is preparation.

This image shows what's happening back on the starting line after a Funny Car does a burnout. The haze is burned rubber and clutch dust, and the burnout was aided by the puddle of water that you see in the foreground. Behind the water you can see a guy with a broom dispersing the water that the tires carried out of the puddle in preparation for the next car. You also see a tank of propane being pulled by a fella with a blow torch. He's melting rubber and fixing any bald spots that may have happened after the Funny Car did their burnout. Can't have any bald spots on the track, otherwise the tires lose their grip and get out of the groove, which is quite ineffective for a good e.t. (the Elapsed Time it takes to race down the quarter mile drag strip). All the other guys you see in the picture are crew members waiting for the Funny Car to back up from the burnout and get lined up at the starting line, waiting for the lights on the Tree to drop. Ahhhh, such a lovely sport.

Back at the track for the first race of the season (I'm so lucky!).