NHRA Winternationals

This is the beginning and the end for dragster/​funny car racing fans. In February, monster engines come alive and destroy your ears and send thunderous shakes through your body. Inhale the nitrous because you are offically, Baptized by Nitro. Welcome to the first race of any year at the NHRA Winternationals in Pomona.
Last year’s NHRA winner doesn’tt matter, but their Wally Trophy does show they are the person to beat of the year. Everyone starts off fresh on the point system and the Ace of the races can be simply the black sheep of the year. NHRA Winternationals start at the Auto Club Raceway in Pomona. Parking can be a pain and a long wait from the freeway. Parking prices will vary from General to Pitside Parking. If you decide to use Pitside Parking, come early, they tend to be Sold Out early. If you do park in General Parking, you will be walking a long distance.
Admission prices will vary from General Admission to Season Ticket Holders. My girlfriend is a Season Ticket Holder. She loves this stuff! So, she renews every year because she has one of the best seats in the house. You’ll see a lot of regulars coming back. Check out the NHRA Website for pricing as it changes as more people get into drag racing. NHRA Winternationals is like a wakeup call for those who were coming out of hibernation during the brief hiatus. People come in and enjoy the many sponsors, food, and more importantly meeting the stars of NHRA, the drivers.
If you are there all weekend, its going to be home for you. The drivers will basically be an additional family member since you go to church that’s onsite. Well, a mobile church or chapel. Get your autographs from your favorite drivers like: Ron Capps, John Force, Tony Schumaker, and Antron Brown. Meet their crew chiefs and team. You can see how much work it is to put a dragster/​funny cartogether with so many moving parts that at anytime could fall apart.
When it comes to race, you’ll be able to hear the roar of the engines and bright view of the Christmas Tree. If you don’t know what an NHRA Christmas Tree is, where have you been?! These monsters go over 300 mph in a few seconds within a small distance. Your car has nothing on these nitro fueled vehicles. Imagine if they were street legal and the light turned green. No one would be able to hear or sleep at home or breathe easy without crying. Vehicles can explode at anytime. Sometimes our seats are too good and I am waiting to take cover.
This is just day one of NHRA. You will be wanting more, but you won’t be able to see them unless you travel across the nation on their NHRA Tour. When you think of NHRA, you don’t usually think of SoCal as the start and end of this motorsport. You think of one of the Southern states. Glad it will stay in SoCal because we burn the most gas in the nation and we love our vehicles. More importantly, you can chat with other fans and have fun.
Unilocal…My passion is not to write my reviews, but to share my experiences with you. Take that journey and share your story.

I’ve been living in Pomona all my life. I live about 2 miles away from the drag strip, even at that distance you can still hear the raw power of these top fuelers. Mind you, there’s a freeway between my house and the drag strip and it’s perfectly audible from a distance! About two years ago I decided to come and watch these monster cars duke it out on the drap strip for the first time. I remember listening to the roar of the engines from my house, wondering what made that ferocious noise. I soon had my chance to experience the chills once again first hand, but not only were there chills, my whole body shook by the power of these engines jetting down the raceway. Let me start by saying that there’s nothing that comes close to the 10,000 horsepower, 0 – 325 mph in less that 5 seconds experience. I could try to compare this to Nascar and monster trucks, but it’s a long shot, bar none! I’ve been coming ever since and it’s truly a freak of nature seeing these vehicles haul ass! Vrooom!!!

Nitro-​Methane is rocket fuel. You get to watch launch after launch take off with all the explosive noise and rumble that you would get from a well timed visit to the Kennedy Space Center. Only difference is you are close enough for your eyes to water and taste the exhaust. NASCAR might be fun for some but this is explosive speed that amazes. Add a few beers to wash it all down and you have a great day.

A day at the races is always a great day. Especially when the weather is as nice as it was on February 8^th in Pomona. It rained the night before but for the day of final eliminations, God made it a beautiful day. It was clear and sunny with temperatures in the 70s with some breezes. These are the perfect conditions for some crazy speeds on the track. Like a 330 MPH in the first round of Top Fuel Dragsters.
On this opening day of the NHRA season, the many thousands in attendance received their «baptism by nitro» as it was billed. I have experienced this in the past at other tracks but this was a first in Pomona. It is a one of a kind experience to feel the fully immersive event. The nitro methane fuel creates 10,000 HP, one of the loudest sounds on earth that you can feel in your chest, and an exhaust that could just about be weaponized. It burns your eyes, nose, throat and lungs. You love it and hate it at the same time. It gets into your blood and makes you want more. This is baptism by nitro and it is so much more special at Pomona than anywhere else. This is THE race. The first of the season in Southern California where it all began.
This may be the pinacle of NHRA races but this is not the best track I’ve been to. It is older and tightly packed into the Pomona Fairplex. There is only one way in and one way out of the parking lot. A parking lot that is so small that attendees are forced to double park. With no room for expansion this will always be the case. But there are moveable barricades that allow for an easy exit. Inside, the grand stands are confusing. Sections start and end in the middle of a bench. This means seat numbers will go from 12 at the right end of the bench to 1 in the middle. Then next to 1 is 20 and goes to 13 at the left end of the bench. This one bench is in both section 8 and section 9, for example. My dad and I were in the wrong seats at first. We were near the sign for section 9 but were actually sitting in 8. We had to move over a bit. We were not the only ones confused by this. It seems it would make more sense to have each section begin and end at the isles rather than in the middle. If this is the worst part of this track, I guess it isn’t so bad. Afterall, once you find your seat and the engines start, nothing else matters.

the best, watching cars drag down the strip, i like the loud cars kids love it, cant wait wen it comes back this way, love nitro cars

You gotta stand behind the top fueler’s during warm up !!! you will never experience anything else like it. Arrive early if you want to get good parking and if you want to tailgate I would suggest paying extra for the tailgate section so you can really enjoy your beer :-)

Is it inappropriate to leave this review so late after the event?
I was brought here by a family friend. It was my first visit. Let me say, this is not for everyone. Half the time I didn’t even know what was happening because the cars moved so fast. Still, it’s a good experience to try at least once. The cars are powerful and you can get up close and personal to the pit crew, talk to them, and check out the vehicles. Come early otherwise you end up parking a mile away. Stay until nighttime and you get to see flames coming out of the cars.

In-​freakin-​credible. Still smelling the Nitro a day later. Loud incredibly powerful ground pounders. A surreal experience when 2×10,000 HP top fuelers and funny cars scream close by, at over 300 mph.

Parking a real mess over an hour to park Person in charge should be fired
Makes you want to leave early Can’t stand to think about it

I went to my first Winternationals back in the early 70’s, it was great back then, today there are a lot more changes and improvements to make the experience even better. There’s no greater thrill than standing in the pit area next to your favorite car and the driver starts the motor ready to go. The sound of the motor is unbelievable. But I knew my time has past with the muscle car stuff when I didn’t have that same thrill at the last event. It’s over a $ 100 to attend the finals now, so would I spend that much to go watch drag racing again? probably not and that’s the reason for my three star rating. If you like hgh performance muscle car stuff, the Winternationals is something everyone should go to at least once in a lifetime.

The NHRA Winternationals are worth experiencing at least once in your lifetime. I came here years ago and I didn’t know what to expect. I was more familiar with Nascar but since I have a short attention span, I anticipated being bored. When the funny cars and dragsters actually speed straight down the track, it’s over in less than 5 seconds! That’s my kind of race!
There’s so much anticipation as drivers conduct their burnout and reverse their cars for the inevitable! They ease their way up to the start line and wait for the NHRA Christmas Tree to flash the green light. If their reaction time is too quick, a red light will indicate that the driver has been disqualified. Anyway, as both drivers race down the track at over 300 mph, there is a photo finish. Then, you need to see which side of the score board lights up. That’s your winner for that round!
The first time that I came here, I didn’t have earplugs in and I have never heard such a loud sound in my life! It is intense! Don’t dare try this because you’ll regret it.
The nitro in the air can be intense! It might burn your eyes or irritate your throat but this does not deter hardcore race fans! It comes with the territory. Speaking of nitro, if it is late in the evening you’ll get a nice view of flames being emitted from the dragsters! It happens often during daylight hours but it’s a gorgeous sight when seen at night!
You can walk around and meet all of your favorite drivers. They gladly sign autographs and pose for pictures. It’s pretty neat to see the pit crew working on the dragsters and funny cars while focusing on the overall safety of the drivers and fans.
The Winternationals are held every February so mark your calendars!

NHRA Championship Drag Racing

Been going for years all my boys have gone since they where 10 (i would not recommend under that age And please leave small babies at home last year no joke saw a 2 month old baby. Does anyone know how to get discounted tickets going tomorrow. Thanx Race mom

This is the first place where I found my passion of seeking that feeling of power. When a Top Fuel Dragster launches you can feel the absolute, unadulterated raw power emanating from one of those monster engines. Even when they are just idling you can still feel «IT». I was hooked and I wanted to look for more.
I don’t know if they still let you stand right behind the dragster prior to the launch but if they do, it’s a unique experience. You can feel the powerful rumble from the engines as the ground shakes beneath your feet. Your nose and lungs are stinging from all the unburnt fuel and you can’t breath because the air is choked with nitro-​methane fuel. When the dragsters take off. Well it’s game over from there.

The drag races, what else do I have to say. Dont go with out some money, the beer is 9 bucks a cup. But loads of fun!!!

This event is so much fun for everyone! Great venue, very access ready for a wheelchair which my partner uses. Love this place!

I can hardly believe that no one has ever reviewed the Winternationals? Hey Unilocalers, come on to a once a year party that will blow your socks off (even if you don’t have socks). Now I have to say I have been watching and going to drag races since the late 60’s so I might have a strong opinion. Setting that aside, the races aren’t for everyone. So if it is your first time, come on a Thursday or Friday and see qualifying. The crowds are much smaller and the cost is way less! As the Winternationals is the first race of the NHRA season, all the racers are out to show off their new or updated equipment they have been working on in the off season. And what a show qualifying can be. You will get to see all types of cars and contraptions, but be sure to be in the stands for the Professional racers. If you can get down to the fence in front and feel a Top Fueler or Funny car blast by! Incredible. When you see one good run, you will know if you want to come again! For the people who like big power there is NOTHING like this, nothing. 8,000 horsepower is incredible! It is a must see once and then you will know if you want to see it again! For me I love to take someone who is new to the sport to see their eyes buy out as they then accuse me of trying to make them deaf! So with that thought, be sure to have ear plus, you may need them at any time, even in the pits when they warm up one of the top dogs! Now the pits are all full of all kinds of cars and dragsters, and worthy of an elongated walk through, just be sure to be in the stands for the Professional classes.
For the people who already like racing, Saturday is great day for multiple Professional Racers sessions and Sunday is the Go for the money day when those who have qualified let it all hang out! The extra exhibition runs and other displays sometimes only come on Sundays.
Well that about does for an opinion and I will see you there!