New rules, aimed at addressing the performance imbalance between Funny Cars and dragsters have come into force for the '98 season and, thus far, look promising. But the question must be asked, "Is it too late?" For the eliminator as we know it to continue, it needs the Funny Cars. But while there is a plethora of dragsters, just two Funny Cars, those of Steve Harker and the Jim and Steve Reed team, remain.

And recently, it almost came down to one. It's no secret that the Reeds were approached by Victor Bray to run his second car, the '57 Ford Customline, formerly driven by Troy Critchley. Jim and Steve gave it some serious thought but finally declined Bray's offer.

The seeds for Top Alcohol grew out of Group II handicap racing. As the cars became quicker, moving into the low sixes, it became obvious that the breed needed a home of their own, free of the limitations of handicap racing. The main problem was there were two widely different types of cars, with the Funny Cars represented by Gary Phillips, Jim and Steve Reed and later, Jeff Burnett and Steve Harker. The only other competitive car was the WA-based (Western Australia) Gower/Dobson team, who made history as the first alcohol car into the fives at the 1993 Winternationals at Willowbank.

The rules at the time seemed adequate and wins and championships showed a reasonable level of parity between the two breeds. But it all changed a few years ago with the advent of screw blowers. For a variety of reasons the Funny Cars fell behind in the performance chase, the most obvious reason being that long-wheelbase dragsters were able to put the power to the ground more efficiently and consistently.

In the meantime, Gary Phillips had changed to a dragster, after a nasty spill with the Funny Car at Willowbank. Wins from Funny Cars became gradually less and less, to the point that final-round appearances of Funny Cars were a rarity.

With just two competitive Alcohol Funny Cars left in the country, one must wonder as to their future. The rules have now made them competitive with the dragsters, but when one hears of a new Top Alcohol car being built, it is always a dragster. Perhaps a few final-round appearances from the Funny Cars may change the perspective. But when trends become obvious in drag racing, you always need an "if all else fails" fall-back position.

Top Alcohol cars are an important part of ANDRA Championship Drag Racing. They provide a superb back-up show to the sometimes fragile Top Fuelers. If the Funny Cars were to depart the scene, and no one wants that, then the reasons for restrictions on blower overdrives, engine size and weight limits become irrelevant.

Running at the (manufacturers) maximum allowed blower overdrive, along with larger engines and no weight restrictions would provide mid to low five- second performances for the dragsters. It may never come to this, but at least it's an interesting alternative.