UPDATED: Jan. 23, 2021 GENERAL REGULATIONS & ADMINISTRATIVE PROCEDURES LICENSE REQUIREMENTS NHRA Competition License required at all events unless race is being contested at an IHRA facility, in which case an IHRA or NHRA license will be accepted. INTRODUCTION The general regulations in this document are effective January 1, 2021, and supersede all previous versions. COMPETITION In the interest of keeping competition close, fair and safe, MWDRS reserves the right to make adjustments to the rules of any class at any time. Hopefully, this will not be necessary, but with the wide variety of engine body and power adder combinations presented, it is critical to have a process available to keep competition safe, fair and close, and for all racers to be aware that this process is one that will be fair to all. OFFICIAL NOTIFICATION All changes, additions, deletions, clarifications, or other items of information pertaining to the rules will be published on the MWDRS official website www.midwestdragracingseries.com. If at any time a situation arises that is not covered in our race regulations we will adhere to the rules set forth and published in either the current NHRA rulebook or the NHRA policies and procedures guidelines for the current year. All decisions by the competition director and/or drivers committee are final. REQUIRED DECALS Special MWDRS event decals and sponsor decals will be required for all participating vehicles. Any non-approved decals or signage may be prohibited. No vehicle will be permitted in the staging lanes if there is non-compliance of these requirements. In the event that a vehicle, not in compliance with these requirements, makes a qualifying run, that run may be invalidated. MWDRS, at its discretion, reserves the right to reject any decals, signs, names, advertising, promotion or graphics that it feels is inappropriate or unacceptable, at any MWDRS events. CONTINGENCY DECALS Contingency decals must be the official size, design, and color supplied by the contingency sponsor for that purpose and must be applied so that they are visible from the SIDES of the vehicle. Magnetic decals of any kind applied to the vehicle body are not permitted. It will be the participant’s responsibility to acquire the decals from the MWDRS tech department. Contingency decals may not be added to vehicle after eliminations begin. CONTINGENCIES At the conclusion of the event, the winning vehicles and runner-up vehicles will be inspected for contingency verification. This will include having the correct decals in the approved locations and having the appropriate part on the vehicle and in use. Any attempt by the participant to use fraud or deceit in any way, or to list parts not actually on the vehicle, will result in severe penalties, which may include the forfeiture of all contingencies, points, and payouts. RACING FORMAT Unless otherwise specified by class rules, all competition will be heads up, no breakout, utilizing a Professional (.400) ‘Pro Tree’ starting device and at a distance of one-eighth (1/8th) of a mile. RUN ORDER PROCEDURE FOR ELIMINATIONS: (FC/PM only) For round one, the higher qualified cars will get the option to choose in what order they want to make their eliminations run. For all subsequent rounds, the team with the lowest e.t. from the previous round will choose when they want to run. For example, in round one the #1 qualifier will get to choose when they want to run, #2 qualifier will be given the option of choosing when they want to run based on the remaining choices, then #3 will choose, etc. For rounds two and beyond, the low e.t. from the previous round will choose when they want to run, second lowest e.t. will then choose, etc. It will be your responsibility to be in the lanes on time for your pairings to prevent holding up eliminations. If you do not report to the lanes in a timely manner, MWDRS reserves the right to close the lanes therefore eliminating your attempt to participate. QUALIFYING During an event, there will be specific time scheduled for qualifying attempts, with announcements made accordingly. However, due to weather or other circumstances, MWDRS officials may alter the schedule. During qualifying, any competitor at the head of the staging lanes or the designated ready line preparing to make a run must obey all signals or commands from the starting line or staging personnel. Competitors must fire and move forward within a reasonable amount of time. If they cannot fire, or some other unforeseen problem arises, they will be allowed to move to the end of the qualifying session. Final decisions regarding staging will be up to the Starter and/or the Competition Director. Once a driver enters the water box with the engine running and begins the burnout process it is considered passing the ready line, unless shut off by an MWDRS or starting line official. Once driver passes ready line but cannot make the pass at that time, they will be given an opportunity to go to the rear of the qualifying field in order to make a test pass only. (IT WILL NOT COUNT AS A QUALIFYING PASS and will not show up on the qualifying sheet for that round) Any problems regarding engine starting, burnout procedure, pre-staging, staging and/or any problems or malfunctions with the starting line system will be handled or addressed by the starting line personnel and/or the Competition Director, whose decision will be final. Any questions pertaining to a potential infraction during a run, such as crossing the center line, etc., will be handled or addressed by the starting line personnel and/or the Competition Director. In the unlikely event of a starting line malfunction, specifically one that may require a rerun, the decision of the Competition Director will be final. To constitute an official qualifying attempt, the vehicle must self-pre-stage, self-stage under its own power and take the start signal for at least one of the qualifying sessions. Under no circumstances will a push start be allowed. LADDERS Once qualifying has concluded and a ladder has been established, pairings will not be changed, unless otherwise directed by the Competition Director. All qualified cars will be listed on the ladder, regardless of their potential difficulty or ability in making the first round of eliminations. In all classes lane choice will be determined by elapsed time. The driver with the better qualifying elapsed time will get first-round lane choice, and in subsequent rounds, lane choice goes to the driver with the lower elapsed time in the previous round. In the event that a qualified car is unable to make the first-round call for eliminations, for any reason, alternates will be inserted into the broken vehicles qualified position and the competitor in the opposite lane will have lane choice. Any errors noted by a competitor as to his position on the ladder must be brought to the attention of the Competition Director in a timely manner after the ladder has been posted. All classes except (F/C) will be run on a 16-car ladder with 9 or more entries and on an 8-car ladder with 8 or less entries. Funny Car will be contested on an 8-car ladder unless there are 13 or more cars, a 16-car ladder will be used. QUALIFYING/ELIMINATIONS Competitors must fire and move forward within a reasonable amount of time. Any problems regarding engine starting, burnout procedure, pre-staging, staging and/or any problems or malfunctions with the starting line system will be handled or addressed by the starting line personnel and/or the Competition Director, whose decision will be final. Any questions pertaining to a potential infraction during a run, such as crossing the center line, etc., will be handled or addressed by the starting line personnel and/or the Competition Director. In the unlikely event of a starting line malfunction, specifically one that may require a rerun, the decision of the Competition Director will be final. In the unlikely event of a malfunction of the starting line or finish line clocks, or an anomaly of the race vehicle, resulting in a non-legitimate or questionable elapsed time, top speed or lane winner signal, the Competition Director at his sole discretion may discount that run for the purposes of qualifying position, elimination round winner or lane choice. If a competitor makes contact with a finish line timing block (et or mph) during qualifying, both runs will be thrown out unless it is determined beyond reasonable doubt that the infraction in no way interfered with the opposing lanes time and or mph, the decision of the competition director will be final. Crossing the center line is grounds for disqualification. BURNOUTS All pre-race burnouts are restricted to designated areas, using water only. After the burnout is completed, the vehicle must back up under its own power to the pre-staging area. If the vehicle is still running and unable to back up, crew members may push it back one time behind the starting line. Under no circumstances can a vehicle be restarted after the burnout if pushed back to starting line. Vehicles are not permitted to turn around on the track and drive back to the starting line. No person is permitted to hold or touch the car during burnouts. STAGING Once a vehicle reaches the front of the staging lanes for a run, it must be prepared to fire and race. All vehicles must self-pre-stage and self-stage under their own power. This rule also applies to single runs. Push starting or push staging is not permitted. Plug in electric starters permitted for super charged vehicles unless otherwise noted. A reasonable amount of time will be permitted for drivers to stage. The time limit will be determined at the discretion of the starter. Failure to stage upon the starter’s instruction is grounds for disqualification. After proper staging and receiving the starters signal to go, re-staging for a second time is prohibited. Any driver leaving the starting line before the start system is activated during qualifying; including a driver on a single run will have their run disqualified. During eliminations if both cars leave before the starting system is activated the vehicle leaving first will be declared the loser. The decision will be made by the starter or from video if possible. If first to leave cannot be determined both vehicles will be disqualified. ELIMINATIONS In order to be a legitimate race winner of a particular round, a competitor’s car must self-pre-stage and self-stage under its own power and take the start signal. Any vehicle unable to self-pre-stage and self-stage under its own power to take the start signal, for any reason, will be declared the loser of that particular round of competition. Crossing the center line is grounds for disqualification. LANE CHOICE Lane choice will be determined by elapsed times (ET). The driver with the better (quicker) qualifying ET will be rewarded with first round lane choice. In subsequent rounds, the lane choice will go to the driver with the lower ET from the previous round. For Sportsman Junior, lane choice will be determined by reaction time from final qualifying for first round and from previous round R/T for subsequent rounds. RACE CLASSES It will be the participant’s responsibility to know, understand and abide by the rules, regulations, requirements and restrictions of the MWDRS. This includes knowledge of the safety rules and requirements contained in the host tracks sanctioning body rulebook. Failure of the participant to know, understand and abide by the rules, regulations, requirements and restrictions of the MWDRS or of the safety rules, will constitute an acceptable reason for MWDRS to disqualify the participant. The rules, regulations, requirements, and restrictions of the MWDRS are contained on the MWDRS website (www.midwestdragracingseries.com). ASSUMPTION OF RISK The participant agrees that by entering an event, the participant acknowledges that the event site is safe and suitable for racing and the participant acknowledges that by participating in the event the participant may suffer bodily injury, death, or loss or damage to property. The participant has voluntarily assumed the risk of such losses and waives any claims for such losses against MWDRS, its officials, the event sponsors, the race track operators and other participants and discharges such persons from responsibility for such losses and agrees not to sue such persons for such losses. All participants shall be required as a condition of participation to sign all required entry forms, including such releases as shall be required by MWDRS and their insurance policies. For purposes of clarification, the term “participant” shall include any person directly or indirectly associated with any vehicle which has been permitted to enter an event site, including, but not limited to owners, drivers, and crew members, guests of participants, spectators or commercial vendors. TECHNICAL INSPECTION Prior to competition, all cars and drivers must pass an initial technical and safety inspection. During the event and at any time, the technical and/or safety inspectors may re-inspect the car or driver to insure compliance with the class and safety rules. If during this inspection it is determined that any noncompliance of the rules or regulations exist, the participant may be disqualified. MWDRS reserves the right at any time during the event to inspect any vehicle for compliance. From time to time, deviations or exceptions to the rules may be permitted, if in the opinion of MWDRS officials, said deviations or exceptions do not constitute a competitive advantage. COMPETITORS Each competitor in any event conducted by the MWDRS must have a valid state driver’s license, a valid Competition License and a current permanent number (as required). All of the above are subject to inspection by MWDRS officials at any time. Each competitor, as well as participant crewmembers, must be properly (as determined by MWDRS officials) attired when present in the staging lanes, starting line area and/or competition areas of the race track. In order to keep with the professionalism of the MWDRS, it is requested that starting line crew members wear matching collared shirts of some type. COMPETITION NUMBERS All participants must have a competition number and class designation (PM/FC) clearly visible in a legible manner displayed on their windshield, side windows and rear window at all times during competition. Under no circumstances will numbers applied with shoe polish be acceptable. Minimum size of letters and numbers is four (4) inches high and one (1) inch wide. Failure to properly display assigned numbers and class designations may be grounds for disqualification or point’s loss. **Competition numbers are assigned to the driver, not the car. If a driver changes vehicle, the previous driver’s number must be removed and a new number applied in the appropriate manner. Top Dragster, Pro Junior, Sportsman Junior are required to have class designation and car number clearly visible on both sides of vehicle. OILDOWN PENALTIES In an effort to eliminate downtime due to clean-up, penalties may be imposed for teams depositing fluids on the racing surface or shutdown area during qualifying or elimination rounds. Flagrant disregard or repeated violation will be subject to disciplinary action as deemed appropriate by the Competition Director. Such action may involve points and/or monetary fines, denial of participation, and/or suspension of competition privileges. The Competition Director’s decision is final in determining oil down violations. DISQUALIFICATION Any contestant disqualified for non-compliance with any of the MWDRS rules, regulations, requirements or restrictions is subject to forfeiture of all or a portion of any points earned or accumulated, including points from previous events and any monetary awards, at the discretion of the Competition Director. USE OF LIKENESS In consideration of being allowed to enter and by being issued credentials to a MWDRS event, the vehicle owner, vehicle driver, all crewmembers, and other holders of event credentials agree as follows: All rights to the use of their likeness and their vehicles entered in the event as well as their activities at the site of the event, before, during and after the event and reasonably related to the event in regards to advertising, promotion, filming, recording, exhibition and other exploitations of the event. RAIN OUT POLICY The MWDRS will make every effort to complete the all events as scheduled. However, if an event cannot be started or completed due to inclement weather or unexpected conditions, it will be postponed, rescheduled, or cancelled at the discretion of the Competition director. All factors will be taken into consideration including those of participants, track operators, as well as the MWDRS Competition director. No refunds will be issued when an event is rescheduled, postponed or considered complete by the Competition Director. Regardless of the situation or circumstances, the decision of the Competition Director will be final. Participants who have qualified and are on the ladder for a particular class, but are unable to return to a rescheduled event on the rescheduled date, will be awarded points and payouts earned as the loser or no show of the following round of competition. PAYOUT POLICY Payouts will be determined by MWDRS and will be made upon completion of each event. Any payout, contingency, gift certificate or other awards presented by any sponsor is not the responsibility of MWDRS. The MWDRS will not, under any circumstances, be responsible for any sponsor non-payment or bad checks. Should this occur, any action legal or otherwise shall be between the participant and the sponsor. Due to sponsor contingencies and contracts, it may be necessary to mandate sponsor decal location placement on vehicles prior to participation. It is the driver’s responsibility to procure and place all contingency decals on his/her vehicle. Decals must be in place for the entire event. This includes time runs, qualifying and eliminations. Any paperwork or information required by MWDRS or any sponsor must be properly submitted prior to the issuance of any payouts or awards. All payouts will be made directly to drivers unless alternate arrangements with MWDRS officials are made prior to eliminations. Any participant experiencing irreparable damage and is unable to make the next round call will be paid (if applicable) only through the last round of competition won. COMPLIANCE OF RULES Each participant expressly agrees that by entering an MWDRS event, the participant will be bound by all of the decisions, rules and regulations of MWDRS, including all procedures provided for in the MWDRS rules and by the decisions, rules and regulations which are applicable to a particular event, including those of the host track and the host track’s sanctioning body. The participant agrees to be bound by and abide by the decisions of the Competition Director, its designee and all other MWDRS officials at all events. The participant also agrees that all decisions made before, during or after an event are final and may not be appealed or made part of, or the basis of, litigation and hereby agrees to release and waive from liability and not to bring any action against the Competition Director, their designees, MWDRS, the race track operator, track safety equipment, event sponsors and all other event officials for any loss, damage or injury caused by malfunctioning electronic or mechanical equipment whether caused by negligence or otherwise. The participant further agrees that any dispute concerning any event, the rules, and regulations of MWDRS or any decisions rendered by MWDRS or MWDRS officials, shall be resolved pursuant to the procedures provided for in this General Regulations and Administration Procedures section. The participant agrees to indemnify and to hold MWDRS harmless for any costs or loss incurred as a result of the failure of the participant to comply with the rules, regulations and procedures provided for herein. Upon the discovery of any irregular component not specifically addressed by MWDRS, it will be considered non-allowable, unless otherwise authorized by a MWDRS official. In some instances, a “one-race waiver” for a specific rule infraction may be given to a participant by an MWDRS official, if in his judgment, the infraction does not create a competitive advantage in the participant’s favor. Any competitor found not to be in compliance with the rules, regulations, restrictions and procedures as set forth by the MWDRS will be or could be disqualified. Disqualification may lead to forfeiture of all or a portion of points and monetary awards – to be determined at the discretion of the Competition Director. SFI SPECIFICATIONS Specific SFI Specifications, whether so stated or not, are the minimum mandatory specifications for the item discussed. All competitors are required to pay meticulous attention to the SFI Specs including (re)certification periods, as rigorous adherence will be compulsory. TOW VEHICLES AND PIT SAFETY Any misuse, reckless driving, speeding or unacceptable behavior in the pit area or anywhere on the racetrack facility, by anyone operating a 2, 3 or 4-wheeled motorized or non-motorized vehicle is strictly prohibited and are grounds for disqualification and may lead to confiscation of vehicles and ejection of the owner and operator from the facility. COMPETITORS WILL BE HELD RESPONSIBLE AND MAY BE DISQUALIFIED IF ANYONE ON THEIR TEAM MISUSES A SUPPORT VEHICLE. Minors under the age of 16 are prohibited from operating any type of self-powered vehicle on the race facility. NITROUS OXIDE All nitrous oxide systems used must be commercially available. Nitrous bottle(s) in driver’s compartment must be equipped with a relief valve and vented outside of driver’s compartment. Bottle(s) must be stamped with a DOT-1800-pound rating and be permanently mounted (no hose clamps or tie wraps permitted). All bottles in use must be pressure certified and marked/dated by the manufacturer or test facility. Bottles need to be recertified at a minimum every 5 year. Hoses used to connect bottle(s) to solenoid must be high pressure steel braided hoses. MWDRS accepted, commercially available, thermostatically controlled bottle warmers are permitted. All other external heating methods or ignitable heating sources are prohibited and may be grounds for disqualification. All high-pressure bottles must remain secured in the race vehicle or hauler during the entire event. TAIL LIGHTS Working tail light is required on all vehicles competing in MWDRS events. Tail light must be on anytime the track lights are operating. Tail light must be on prior to entering the staging beams and must remain on until the vehicle exits the shutdown area. Tail light must be visible from race control for the full length of the racing surface. Tail light must be controlled from inside the driver’s compartment (exception Pro Jr & Sportsman Jr.). CHASSIS CERTIFICATION All vehicles competing must have a chassis that meets the guidelines set by S.F.I. specifications before being allowed to compete. Chassis certification must be performed by an NHRA certified chassis inspector and will be good for a period of three (3) years for (BLUE) Sportsman and one (1) year for (RED) Pro chassis tags . The signing of the Tech Card at each event acknowledges that the chassis still meets the standards that were set to receive the Chassis Certification and have not been altered. Any alterations or repairs that are performed to the chassis in an area of the chassis that is covered by the NHRA guidelines and/or S.F.I. Will require the chassis to be re-certified. Please direct any questions concerning Chassis Certification to the MWDRS Technical Services Department. GENERAL GUIDELINES MWDRS, at its discretion, reserves the right to change, modify, add, or eliminate specific class rules, regulations, procedures, restrictions, payouts, awards or entry fees at any time and without advance notice and at the discretion of the Competition Director. MWDRS, at its discretion, reserves the right to prohibit or deny participation at any MWDRS event to anyone, in any capacity, at any time and for any reason. Remember, you are responsible for following the Rules and Regulations set forth by MWDRS as they pertain to you, your crew, as well as your vehicles. RESTRICTED AREA ACCESS Each driver, as well as participant crew members, must be properly (as determined by MWDRS officials) attired when present in the staging lanes, starting line area and/or competition areas of the race track. Drivers, crew members and sponsors may receive non-transferable, restricted-area arm bands. A MAXIMUM of five (5) crewmembers will be allowed starting line access. All starting line crew members are requested to wear matching collared shirts. Any additional crew members and/or sponsors with restricted area arm bands will have access to a dedicated viewing area adjacent to the track. Only crew members of the vehicles that are signaled to fire by the race master will be permitted to cross the ready line and proceed to the starting line area. After their car has made its run the crew must exit the starting line area immediately. Nobody is allowed access to the starter’s box at any time or for any reason. Anytime the red lights on the tree are flashing EVERYONE must exit the starting line area and return to the designated viewing area or behind the ready line. LIVE FEED All racers will be expected to give requested interviews and can speak freely. RULES BOARD The board will consist of 5 MWDRS racers/officials and 2 outsiders. CHAMPIONSHIP TIE BREAK (If needed) In the unlikely event, a tie should occur, the following procedure would be used to determine a champion. 1) Most event wins. 2) Most event runners-up. 3) Most number of events entered. 4) Most event round wins. Should a tie still exist after the above procedures are implemented, the tied competitors will be declared co-champions and all awards (where possible) will be shared equally between the co-champions. DRIVER AND/OR VEHICLE CHANGES Under certain circumstances, in the sole and absolute discretion of the event director, the event director has the option of permitting a driver change or a vehicle change. The spirit of the driver change policy is to accommodate those rare cases where a driver experiences an unforeseen circumstance preventing him/her from continuing competition in an event (i.e., medical problem, personal tragedy, etc.). Only one action per event is permitted - a driver change plus a vehicle change is NOT permitted. Changes may be considered only under the following conditions: REPLACEMENT DRIVER 1. The original entered driver must have been in attendance and successfully passed tech inspection at the event. 2. Replacement driver must have proper credentials. 3. The original driver is withdrawn from competition and cannot be reinstated. 4. All previous event times are voided for the vehicles and drivers involved. 5. Changes must be made and driver must re-qualify during the normal schedule, as posted, for the event. No changes are permitted after qualifying has been completed. 6. Teams are limited to one replacement driver action per event. 7. Replacement driver must drive the vehicle originally entered as described on the entry form. REPLACEMENT VEHICLES 1. The original vehicle is withdrawn from competition and cannot be reinstated. 2. Replacement vehicle cannot have been utilized by any other contestant at the same event. 3. Replacement vehicle must be fully certified and must pass technical inspection prior to continuation of competition. 4. Driver must stay within original class entered. 5. Driver retains qualifying times and standings as posted while driving the original entered vehicle. Replacement vehicles may be utilized at any time during an event (including eliminations) 6. Checkout runs for replacement vehicles are not available. 7. Teams are limited to one replacement vehicle action per event. ****RULES ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE AT ANYTIME**** - Points Calculated Method (Points Clarification)