Like a car tuned for a particular kind of race, the airplanes that compete in STOL Drag events need an extra touch—whether their pilots take the starting line at Reno, High Sierra, or any of the local meets in between.
At the top of the competition, in the gold class, a stock aircraft is officially a thing of the past. While a stock—albeit stripped—aircraft could potentially capture a podium position in the bronze class, the gold class requires much more modification to be competitive.
