How did the era of the slingshot dragster serve to help drag racing Essay

How did the era of the slingshot dragster serve to help drag racing evolve from primarily a participant sport to more of a grandstand spectator event - Essay Example The racing grounds were smooth and could accommodate many vehicles at the same time. However, the slingshot experienced considerable transformation with time (Reyes 57). Drag racing in the 1950s was America’s extreme sport and the NHRA Drag Racing Championship was the renowned festival of characters, speed and color. Today, it remains unparalleled by any other automotive sport area. The slingshot had a fair share of its disadvantages that had for the longest time been highlighted by the media. For instance, many of the slingshot drivers in most cases experienced painful burns and at times disfigured faces and hands and to a greater extent they lost their dear lives. The reason for that was because fuel, oil or a mixture of both ignited and as a result blow on them. Notwithstanding the injuries and loss of lives, slingshot still remained a revered king of dragsters. However, there were plans to come up with an engine of a rear design but the inventors wanted to develop something bigger and better than the slingshot and could once and for all erase the slingshot (Reyes 68). Don Garlits one of the greatest dragster legends came up with a design that would put the engine and the fuel motor behind him. Partnering with Connie Swingle, they put their heads together and made a breakthrough in achieving what would later slow down the ratio of steering. While the new vehicle would be a sigh of relief to the drivers, there were still some who claimed that locating the cockpit forward was disorienting. After a series of tests under the belt, the sleek car which had a simple appearance was favored only that it’s motor was situated between the rear wheels and the driver. The building of the chassis of such a vehicle was demanding more so producing a rear engine. The concept of the rear engine proved to be forever more effective and the cars with the rear engine grew in length, size and that epitomized evolution into a colossus of the current top fuel (Reyes