Talking about going pro, Tye says, "I would love to go on to the pro circuit. I already have a great EK chassis ready to race, built by some of the industries' great minds, but to do so I would need a lot of sponsor help." [The car is Jensen Oda's old racer, a white Civic with a bunch of Apex stickers all over it.]
"I am very much an enthusiast and I think I will always have a foot in the door of the import scene, we will just have to see if I can ever really push the door open. Right now, it's a matter of dollars."
The Tuner's Take
When Lawrence Ojas flew the coop from Hawaii and invaded the Seattle area in 1997, the import scene in Washington was a little behind the curve. He opened his shop Intec Racing at the urging of a friend. "I was used to the car level and knowledge that was happening during this time in the islands which was a little more in line with the California scene," says Ojas. "However, things have rapidly moved on since then."
"The street racing scene began here with your average enthusiast, having a import car with basic bolt-ons. Most of the cars ran about a 14-second quarter mile with the exception of a few cars. At the time, the local drag strip had no "Import Only" events. So, kids would gather in Chinatown and then roll to the industrial areas to race. I would say about 10-20 cars; not staggering numbers, but a beginning. The police weren't really aware of this and racing would go on until early morning. Soon the numbers grew to 50-60 cars and a crowd of cars like that definitely generates some attention."
Ojas continues, "With the crowds getting bigger, local website forums started to work with the race track to make an 'import' event. Soon, some people started to flock to the race track for a legal way to race. I feel that this grassroots move to the drag strip was what created the urge to make their cars faster. You see, at the street races, as long as you beat the other guy, you think you are fast, but after taking your car and seeing a 14- or 15-second time flash in bright lights, they started to realize that their fast wasn't fast at all. These guys were reading about the times that Cali, Hawaii and some East Coast people were running and had the fire to take it to that level. Locals looked up to racers like Stephan P., David Shih, Eddie B., and other average racers that made their way to big sponsorships, and the Northwest contingent wanted to be them. I feel this time was the most influential period on the growth of the import scene here in Washington. People started buying parts like crazy! Motor swaps, Drag turbo kits, NOS, you name it, it was flying off the shelves. It should be pointed out that theft of Civic Si's and Integra GSR's was at an all-time high. People just wanted to go faster. However, what kept Washington from being a national player was the lack of knowledge on the fine points of drag racing...things like the significance of 60-foot times and a lack of shops that knew what they were doing. What I mean by this is, parts are one thing, but tuning is the big thing and that 'next level' tuning was what we were missing. Installing parts wrong, making poor part combination choices, etc...not to mention simple things like smaller spark gaps on turbocharged engines, A/F ratios, getting rid of check engine lights...I mean at one time, many people thought a check engine light was okay and meant the car was running fast. Many people bought parts from local shops, but were disappointed at their quarter-mile times. Imagine spending large amounts of money and running slower. People started blaming the parts, but I say it was a lack of tuning knowledge."
Tye ended with, "Battle has been a strong influence for us. Not only do we look forward to it, but customers look forward to it too. Having their cars ready keeps us up late at night when Battle comes around. Battle has been a constant influence in the import scene. They cater to more of the grassroots racers and give the guy with the smaller budget a winning chance. Don't get me wrong, I love NOPI and NHRA, but in a customer's eyes, they can never compete at that level. However at a Battle event, there is a chance."
Regardless of the opinions floating around in cyber space, at the street level, drag racing is alive and well. This 'slice of Seattle' look at the local scene translates into most of the regional markets across the country, the names of the players are different, but the circumstances are pretty much the same.
Back in the day, the cycle was: get a Civic, passionately build it, race it, and crank on it more until it makes so much power it transitions into a stand-alone race car. Then buy a beater to drive every day and play with that. Today, the car is the same, the passion is the same, the power tricks are the same. The only component of the cycle that changes is the enthusiast...he'll always be a wide-eyed teenager or twenty-something.
The media and other 'people of influence' should spend more time educating, entertaining and embracing this enthusiast and less time preaching about the virtues or vices of show, drag, drift, car audio...it's all the same...don't hate, celebrate.