First and foremost, this is an opinion piece and not fact. Some of the details in this story are hearsay and may not be true. If you guys like this content let me know and I can make some time to reach out and get the facts.
Over the past few years a new name has emerged as the top chassis manufacturer in Dirt Late Model racing; Longhorn. Many manufacturers have come and gone attempting to dethrone Rocket, but none have been successful, until now. No one is surprised, it has been coming for years. Now, without question, Longhorn is the premier chassis manufacturer, but what is Rocket doing about it and why did they let it happen in the first place?
Rumor has it that Kevin Rumley was working with Rocket on a new chassis design several years ago. For one reason or another, the two parted ways and Rumley took his talents to Longhorn. From that point on, Longhorn was truly on the map. Jonathan Davenport had a year that we all still remember and the Longhorn vs. XR1 battle began.
Since this time, Longhorn has continued to work on and develop their chassis while Rocket appears to remain stagnant. This is evidenced by the fact that the Rocket Chassis house car team runs old XR1 chassis as do some other touring drivers. They do not run their new chassis, so are they producing inferior chassis today? This is concerning on many levels, first of all if the house car is old, who is testing and improving the chassis for customers and figuring out how to get an edge on the competition? Secondly, what is wrong with the new XR1’s, or why aren’t they as good as the earlier chassis?
Growing up, Rocket Chassis was a household name and dominated the space, but from the outside looking in, it feels as if they have given up. Do they not want to modernize, hiring engineers, analyzing data, testing real world events? Are they content they left their mark on the sport and the ride is over? Why employ one of the best drivers in the business if you have given up? Surely making a switch to the Lucas Oil Series and competing with the best of the best would be a step in the right direction. The WoO series is without question the AAA team to the Lucas Oil series and if Rocket has not given up, it is the first step to regaining the crown. Show your customers and fans that you are still committed. Go after a real championship against the best in the business. Put Rocket Chassis back on the map. It won’t be easy, and Longhorn is not going to back down, but it can be done.
I’ll be the first to admit that I’m pulling for Rocket, praying that the NE can regain the crown, but I’m not here to entertain excuses either. Rocket has all of the resources of the other touring teams. They can run the Lucas tour, no excuses, play on a level playing field and show that you can still hang with the new guy. That’s what it feels like, the new kid vs. the seasoned veteran. The new kid has technology, marketing, better merchandise, customer support, and the veteran won’t accept change. Maybe it is about money, clearly the 1 team is the premier attraction of the WoO series, and DirtVision is grossly overpriced compared to the competition. Less talent costs more money so where does it go?
We will see what the upcoming season holds, I don’t expect change, but I yearn for it. I fully expect the Rocket house car to run the WoO series yet again, take the championship by a large margin, and stick in their rut. Afterall, dominating the AAA league is nothing to scoff at, but usually the great players will move up to the big leagues. Sometimes what is good for the player (house car) is not what is best for the whole team (Rocket Chassis & Customers).
