One of the big drawcards at the event will be John Neilan, the record holder in the Top Alcohol class. His best elapsed time is now 5.68secs for the quarter mile at 397.4km/h.
"John will be one to watch but also keep an eye on Todd Vincent and young Morrice McMillen in his Top Fuel car," said Tynan.
Drivers at the elite level will break the open road speed limit before they've even covered 19m. That's what happens when 2500-3000 horsepower is unleashed from a standing start, covering a quarter mile in less than six seconds and reaching nearly 400km/h.
The Taupo track has changed a lot over the years and now is one of the longest in the country and FIA certified.
"The only problem is that now it's a FIA track we can't use the high-grip mix to make sure the cars don't spin too much. But it's not too much of a problem because the first part of the track is not part of the circuit," said Tynan.
"The cars only really need to have heaps of grip when they launch. The top cars will go from 0-300km/h about 200m from the lights and the rest of the track they're trying to push through the increased wind resistance.
"By the time the cars are doing 300-plus it's like trying to run with a huge piece of plywood in your hands held out in front of you."
Drag racing in New Zealand started in 1966 when the New Zealand Hot Rod Association (NZHRA) sanctioned a meeting at an open-cut coalmine at Kopuku, south of Auckland. The quickest time was a 17-second pass by Peter Lodge in a 1937 V8 coupe, complete with supercharged flathead motor.
Racing was conducted at Kopuku for three years.
In April 1993, the drag racers split from the NZHRA and formed the New Zealand Drag Racing Association (NZDRA), which now sanctions drag racing in New Zealand. There are now 2090 competitors with a NZDRA licence.
Ready for blast-off
For the uninitiated here's a brief rundown on starting a race. They were initially started with a flag and timed with stopwatches. A telephone was used to allow a finish-line observer to tell the timer when the car reached the finish line. The timer would then stop the watch.
Races are now started by a series of lamps, called a Christmas tree, and controlled by a computer. Laser beams detect each vehicle's location and the computer calculates to the millisecond distances down the track, at half-track and the finish.
Classes in action this weekend include Top Alcohol, Top Door Slammer, Outlaw Superstock, Top Street, Sport Compact, Super Sedan, Super Street, Modified Bike and more. Racing starts 10am on Saturday and Sunday.
