You've gone cross eyed from all your terminology! lol
A .000 is a perfect light. NHRA and IHRA stopped using the old way to determine RT. A .400 is no longer a perfect light. That is why my .287 isn't a redlight. A couple years ago, they changed the way they calculated a RT. I am only talking about a .400 pro tree. I am not talking about a .500 sportsman tree.
And yes, you meant shallow staging. I always do that when I bracket race in order to get the lowest ET possible. Staging a tad deeper will allow you to get a jump start on your opponent. In theory, you'll have a slower ET. But keep in mind that it isn't the ET that wins the race. In heads up racing, it's who cross that finish line first. So if I shallow stage and you stage several inches deeper without tripping the first staging light off, then you will have several inches of a head start on me before the race begins. This is legal in heads up racing as long as the first staging light doesn't go out, which is the true meaning of "Deep" staging.
When I try to set a new ET record, I stage as shallow as possible. I always like to see the second staging bulb flicker on. That way, I know I'm getting as much roll out as possible. I also do the same exact thing when I bracket race on a 5 tenths sportsman tree. I do that so I know I'm staged at the EXACT same spot every single time in order to get consistent RTs. If I stage several inches deep every time, I won't know for sure where I am in the staging area. I stage shallow so I can stage at the same spot every single time so I can learn from my RTs.
But in bracket racing, some races will allow you to mark "DEEP" on your windshield and they will allow you an extra second to deep stage to the point that the 1st staging bulb goes out. People may do this in order to make their opponent a little confused or to get a quicker RT according to their launching method. But, in bracket racing, it's about consistency and getting a quick RT that wins a race. For me on a 5 tenths sportsman tree, I am able to cut much better RTs and stay a lot more consistent with my car if I stage as shallow as possible everytime. But on a pro tree, I need to stage as deep as I legally can to reduce my RT as much as possible since I'm not driving a 6000hp dragster. My car, my brain, and my foot reacts a lot slower than an NHRA drag racer. That is why I was only doing high 200 and low 300 RTs on the 4 hundreds pro tree.
Jime, for instance, has a much better setup. He is able to launch his car by releasing a button with his hand. That gives him the ability to cut a much better RT and stay MUCH more consistent while bracket racing. Whenever you have to push the pedal with your foot, your RTs will get more inconsistent. I'm not sure if he had his line lock switch connected during our races, but it's a great thing for anybody to do to improve their RTs.
I may have just explained myself cross eyed as well.
