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Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2438486
01/21/18 05:02 PM
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Boone and I made our way to the bleachers as Tom McGilton brought his Larry Larson prepped Camaro up in the same lane Dale had just traversed in the Gremlin. Tom's bucks up build of a brand new 2013 ZL-1 had wowed everyone when it took the Pro Street PA win in 2015 with a 7.85-186 average. A wall scraper at another Street Car race in 2016 had prevented him from defending that win, but the twin turbo beast was as good as new for another shot in 2017. He rolled the beam just a bit before reaching full boost and only went 8.26, but the 189.8 put everyone on notice.
"That's faster than Blasco or Hunter either one", Boone shook his head.
"I think Les Smith went 182 earlier as well", I added, "so that will be a tough class, and you know Tom will be back for another hit in the final session!"

Joe Barry did a burnout through Tom's black track and backed up for the creamsickle 56's first attempt of DW-17. The big Chevy seemed to leave really smooth, and Lohnes backed up that feeling when he said Joe was 1.19 to the sixty foot clocks.
"A little soft, but come on six ninety-nine", Boone whispered.
The board flashed 7.08-200.7, and I was about to say that I expected more speed than that when blue smoke enveloped the car.
"Aw, crap! Did he blow it up?" I shouted as we joined the rest of the crowd rising to their feet.
"I never saw a chute", Boone reasoned, "I think it's tire smoke!"
The smoke cleared enough that we could just make out the orange and cream 210 coupe rolling around the corner to the return road.
"I was afraid we were going to have another incident like last year", I let out a deep breath.
"Better shut down area here", Boone observed.
We caught up on the last forty-five minutes or so as they went to check on the top end.
"Did you see Perkins' Valiant run?"
"No", Boone shook his head. "That's the blue 69 that's from Canada, with Ross, right?"
"Yeah, big block, Indy heads, Dominator, small tires. He went 9.91-135 on his first hit!"
"Impressive", Boone agreed, "good competition for the Ruster!"
"Yeah, except he's NA!"
"Hey", Boone shrugged, "we're all just a bunch of Mopar street cars, so how you get to the number is irrelevant!"
"How 'bout the 'Ratchero'?"
"Shouldn't it be called the 'Hemichero' now?" Boone questioned, "I mean, it's powered by a blown, injected, all aluminum elephant now, so the old name really doesn't apply!"
I nodded in agreement, "Mr. Scott can call it what ever he wants I suppose, after that 8.86-155 pass!"
"Yeah, I noticed he tamed down the launch a bit that run, after it tried to stand up thirty feet out on his first attempt!"

08-Road-Gallery-Monday-Cordova-Drag-Week-2017.jpg21728671_1596545477055473_7775447373467310666_o.jpg226-Day-1-Race-Action-Cordova-Drag-Week-2017.jpg429-Day-1-Race-Action-Cordova-Drag-Week-2017.jpg

"Livin' in a powder keg and givin' off sparks" 4 Street cars, 5 Race engines
Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2439817
01/24/18 12:46 AM
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"Did you see Chenoweth's Road Runner? He had to back off on the top end to stay out of the nines!"
"That big Hemi is quicker every year he brings it", Boone acknowledged, "but he's only made a pass on Friday once in five attempts!"
"Still, 10.06 at only 127, is plenty impressive, and after ten years, I think he knows every part on that car that can break!"

The first session ended with a single for Vinnie Barbone's low nine second Geo Tracker. Two hundred, forty-nine passes had been made in the first two hours and twenty-five minutes, which was just the kind of start we needed with nearly 400 cars in the field. The Cordova staff quickly went over the first sixty feet, and brought up the first pair of Street Machine Eliminator cars seven minutes later.

Kim and Jim's (451Dart, Moparts) flamed "Primal Scream" 72 Satellite was in the second pair up, and prompted Brian Lohnes to immediately question as to why more people didn't just grab their bracket racer and come to Drag Week. Kim was paired with Kathy Hoover who was making her second DW in her slammed, pro street, 69 Camaro. Kim drove the big Plymouth right down the lane to a strong 10.22-131.2.
"Wow", Boone nodded, "that sounded and looked great!"
"Yeah", I agreed, "I think they have it dialed in to the track pretty good, just not sure if they have any street miles on it yet!
"That's the easy part, right?"
"We'll have to ask them tomorrow", I suggested.

Four pairs later a bright red HellCat Charger grabbed air under the front tires and ripped off an incredible 10.09-138!
"Good grief, Boone", I shook my head, "Those cars just continue to amaze me!"
The fortieth SME car to traverse the Cordova quarter mile for an official Drag Week time slip was Cody Walker's 71 Swinger, equipped with what Freiburger proclaimed to be "a homemade mod-top". The 12.19-108 seemed like a very efficient run, and the little green Dodge was one and done for Monday.

21992922_1693967367280654_6138905432080363144_o.jpg21951068_1695754023768655_4061845812133701557_o (2).jpg35-Day-1-Race-Action-Cordova-Drag-Week-2017.jpg

"Livin' in a powder keg and givin' off sparks" 4 Street cars, 5 Race engines
Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2439954
01/24/18 12:18 PM
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I need to stop jumping in your story offtopic , but had around 50 street miles (and not trouble free wrench ) on the car before dragweek started.

Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: Dart451] #2440433
01/25/18 08:32 AM
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Originally Posted By Dart451
I need to stop jumping in your story offtopic , but had around 50 street miles (and not trouble free wrench ) on the car before dragweek started.


Jim,
As I've said before...it's not just my story. I can't possibly bring every perspective or know every car's specific combo. So timely corrections or additions are always welcome, such as Brett's insight into the new horsepower increases on Cornman's Demon. I know you and Kim live somewhat close to Cordova Dragway, so is that why you left the track on Monday with the slicks still on the car? I noticed that the rest of the week you had on street tires.

21950912_1696035733740484_10025074539444768_o.jpgdrag-week-day-2-1284.jpg

"Livin' in a powder keg and givin' off sparks" 4 Street cars, 5 Race engines
Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2440447
01/25/18 10:29 AM
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After three nights with barely any sleep I strapped the street tires on the trailer around 1 am Monday morning. I loaded the car onto my big trailer and a friend pulled the small trailer to Cordova. The trailer left my house Monday morning with street tires on it, they just magically disappeared because I didn't secure them good enough. I called friends that was headed to the track and no one seen them. So we scavenged what ever would work lol

Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2442775
01/29/18 10:55 AM
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Less than halfway through the SME session, Jeff Gallagher's 66 Mustang began a burn out in the lane nearest the bleachers. The 363 cubic inch Windsor was screaming as Jeff released the line lock button and rolled out of the water. We heard an audible pop from the drive line as the tires bit, and a trail of transmission fluid began as he idled forward towards the beams. The starter quickly ran out to stop him, and gave him the cutoff sign, but a large puddle had already formed under the little coupe before they pushed it back from the line.
"All the way from Seattle, and it's over in the first thirty feet", Boone shook his head.
"I tell everyone it's like walking a tightrope...all the best laid plans end with one misstep. He's still got the lovely Ms. Martin as his co-pilot though, and a mid-ten second classic Mustang!

We were contemplating whether to sit out a lengthy cleanup or head back to the lanes when Rachael called to tell us she had lunch waiting for us at my car.
"Sounds great", Boone looked down at his phone, "the breakfast at the motel was light this morning and that was five hours ago, so I'm ready for something!"
We made our way through the lanes to the Valiant, and I realized that all of our group had their cars in staging except for Darren and the Charger.
Rachael was dealing cheeseburgers and brats out of a Powerade cardboard flat, and she had the condiments and cold drinks in a back pack.
"Someone's been slaving over the little grille for a while to make this much food", Boone commented.
"What made you decide to bring it to the lanes", I laughed, "I'm surprised some of these guys didn't tackle you!"
"I fed Pops, Darren and Dale in the pits", she explained, "but decided I'd chase the rest of you down in the lanes rather than let it get cold waiting for everyone to get their runs in."
"We appreciate it!" Boone mumbled after inhaling the first two bites of his brat, "with all that's been going on, I didn't realize how hungry I was!"
"What's going on with the Charger?"
"Not sure", she wrinkled her forehead in thought, "they called Dale over after his first run to mess with the carb, something to do with a needle and gas leaking."

It took sixteen minutes to clean up the mess from the Mustang, and start sending cars again. I noticed the Shelby Dodge Auto Club (or the Mopar Turbo Mafia as they like to call themselves) were out in force again, with five machines lined up nose to tail in the same lane. This year, James Reeves' Omni was absent, but they had brought a Mini Van in his place which made for a great vehicle for their command center and hang out spot in the lanes, but it would end up going through more half shafts than any of their other cars combined!

Jeff G.jpg14311277_10154649710088938_1919273977260644057_o.jpgIMG_0425 - Copy.JPGIMG_0419.JPG

"Livin' in a powder keg and givin' off sparks" 4 Street cars, 5 Race engines
Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2442785
01/29/18 11:15 AM
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ahhh the goofy bucket sun hats.... I'd fit right in.

Feel there's a storm brewing... have noted any high end B/RB nitrous piece on FB lately has had the interest of a Gebhart or two....

Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: J_BODY] #2443135
01/29/18 11:53 PM
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Originally Posted By J_BODY
ahhh the goofy bucket sun hats.... I'd fit right in.

Feel there's a storm brewing... have noted any high end B/RB nitrous piece on FB lately has had the interest of a Gebhart or two....


Very perceptive Jay, it's a full on cold war style arms race right now, and I'm losing. Like the cold war though, most of this stuff we seem to be stockpiling may never see the light of day...

The Mopar Turbo Mafia are an eclectic bunch which seem to be woven together only by their love of cubic inch challenged, turbo boosted, wrong wheel drive Pentastars. But they work hard, play hard and are a genuinely likeable group! I think you would fit in just fine.

IMG_0246.JPGIMG_0204.JPG21762679_10155808758567112_390634791375360552_o.jpg

"Livin' in a powder keg and givin' off sparks" 4 Street cars, 5 Race engines
Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2444510
02/01/18 10:01 AM
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By the time we finished up with our lunch and visited with Rick, Michelle, and everyone else patiently waiting in the staging area, the call went out that they were shutting off the back of the SME lanes. I looked down at my phone and noticed it was 12:24, so the SME guys had been at it for an hour and four minutes, but it was explained that they would run out their lanes before the final open session began. I did a quick count back and realized their were only fifteen pairs left before Boone and the Ruster Duster would kick off the last chance for everyone to put down a good opening number. I hadn't even made it back to give that information to Boone when George Messer's new Drag Week ride, an LS turbo powered 2000 step side Sierra fittingly nicknamed "Lumpy", sprayed liquid down the entire length of the track.
"Dang it", Boone groaned, as he stood in front of the Duster with his fire suit pants pulled over his blue jean shorts. He chuckled, then added "do you think they can put "Lumpy" back together again?"
"I see what you did there, Boone! Nice play on the name!"
"I'm here all week", he laughed again.
Luckily for all of us, it turned out to be only water, so the next pair were headed down the track a scant eight minutes later.
Three pairs after that was Mike Grandinetti's 71 Firebird, which was made famous last year by running off in a muddy ditch. This year Mike obviously was looking for more performance, with a roots style street blower poking through the Formula hood. The added pressure was apparently more than the Pontiac 400 could bear however, and the billowing blue smoke that started at about 1000 feet indicated that we were in for another cleanup!


IMG_0408.JPGIMG_0351 - Copy.JPG22219650_1701521239858600_4154606515222597470_o.jpg

"Livin' in a powder keg and givin' off sparks" 4 Street cars, 5 Race engines
Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2445078
02/02/18 07:00 AM
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With the two cleanups factored in, it took thirty-five minutes for the last twenty-nine cars to clear the lanes. As soon as that session ended they brought the group the Valiant was parked with in the pre-staging area up to fill the two lanes vacated.
I had just pulled up and shut off as Brian Lohnes explained what was going on while the Cordova crew gave the first 100 feet of the track another quick prep job.
It was just after 1 pm, so he announced that the final session "would be an hour or so". I looked back at the lanes from my position beside Boone in the Duster and laughed. "We'll be running cars for more than an hour if they shut off the back of the lanes right now!"
"Yeah", Boone agreed as he tossed his hands up, "but they have time for Lutz to make another no time, 1/8th mile exhibition pass!"
Boone's frustration was shared by many in the lanes; if you included Sunday's registration, some of us had spent thirteen hours in various lines at and around Cordova Dragway without so much as a sniff at the track, and many were openly questioning whether 400 cars was just too much for this kind of event.
"One and done for you?"
"As long as it throws a nine on the board", Boone agreed as he pulled on his helmet.
I stood behind the Ruster Duster as it jumped up on the super stock springs first, lifted the driver's side front tire second, then drove out of the groove to the right third, all in the first sixty feet.
"Hard to run nines when it leaves like an eleven second car", I thought to myself as Boone brought the A-body back in the middle of his lane at the 1-2 shift. The 512 sounded great until just after a thousand foot then started breaking up a bit as he went into the traps. 10.01-137.2 was not going to make him happy, so I knew he'd be back in line as soon as possible.
25 cars later Scott Abbott's Millenium headed Hemi powered 67 Belvedere made a second pass, and the 10.50-132.7 hit was deemed a good starting point for his 2017 Drag Week. Rick was in the very next pair with his green Swinger, but more oil on the track prompted another twelve minute mop job, and a 12.60 at only 94 meant he would be hustling back around for a third try.

boone 1.jpgboone 2.jpg21728721_10155786408552112_8608973052227074853_o.jpg21728744_10155786250202112_7641615627414280696_o.jpg

"Livin' in a powder keg and givin' off sparks" 4 Street cars, 5 Race engines
Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2445086
02/02/18 08:26 AM
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At 1:35pm Monday afternoon, I finally pulled the Valiant into the right lane water box at Cordova Dragway. I had just watched Terry Keifer make a 10.74-129 mph pass down that lane on his second hit of the day with his 67 Barracuda, and now I was just hoping for a good clean pass as well. I slid the Turbo Action shifter into neutral after a solid burnout and purged the nitrous into the engine twice, it sounded nice and crisp, so I moved the t-handle to low and rested my thumb over the button. Fire-proof gloves and a neck collar are the bane of running under ten flat, and while I'm sure I'd love them if anything ever went wrong, the loss of feel in my hands and less range for head movement increases my nervousness behind the wheel. I was running over my routine in my head as I inched the Valiant into the beams, it had been nine months since I made a nitrous pass in the car, and now I needed it to go perfect if I was to leave here with a representative number.

I left on the footbrake, presumably so I could get on the nitrous quicker, but I was nearly at the sixty foot clocks before I did so, and when I finally did grab the button, I accidentally shifted to second at the same time. Frustrated with my mistake and what I felt was a terminally slow launch, I hung second gear out too long and tapped the rev limiter a couple of times before the shift. The sound an engine makes when it does that on spray is disconcerting to say the least, and the corresponding nose over put a lump in my throat, but she was pulling hard in drive all the way to the stripe with the shift light on the last two hundred feet so the mph didn't seem to suffer. The ease at which the Plymouth pulled down to make the turn off made me wish I had purchased those new rear discs years ago, definitely an improvement.
I was so disappointed with myself and the driving job I had done that I questioned whether or not it was a nine on the drive up the return road to the time slip shack.
"I'm going to be in the same boat as Boone, heading back to the lanes for another attempt to keep my dreams of an all nine second week alive", I thought to myself. I opened the driver's door as I pulled up to get my time slip, and stuck my gloved hand out, palm up, over the top of the window frame. The attendant stuck the crumpled slip into my palm and I closed my fingers around it as I idled off towards the pits. I held the slip in front of my helmet until I located my ET and MPH at the bottom: 9.602-138.4, the quickest and fastest pass the little Valiant has ever made since it first traversed the quarter mile in the late 80's!
"You bailed the fat guy out again ole girl", I laughed and patted the dash as I rolled into our pit spot to a thumbs up and a smile from Rachael.
"One and done", I told her as I opened the door and handed her the time slip. "Are you ready to go up and make a pass?" I asked her, since we had paid an extra fifty bucks to get her a drivers arm band.
She quickly shook her head, "I'd rather drive it on the street and get used to it that way before I actually make a pass, so I'll wait until later in the week".

21753220_10155782269847112_4440819659669301868_o.jpgVal-c.jpg251-Day-1-Race-Action-Cordova-Drag-Week-2017.jpg20170911_142113_001_1505157698495 (2).jpg

"Livin' in a powder keg and givin' off sparks" 4 Street cars, 5 Race engines
Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2445126
02/02/18 11:53 AM
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I'll be debuting with new rear discs finally.... can't wait (ruined another set of front rotors).

Gloves, a button, and a sloppy TA shifter..... laugh2 you do love a challenge my friend!

Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: J_BODY] #2445184
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Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: J_BODY] #2445648
02/03/18 02:44 PM
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Originally Posted By J_BODY


Gloves, a button, and a sloppy TA shifter..... laugh2 you do love a challenge my friend!



They are a little pricey, but you can't BEAT a PPP shifter!!!

Don

Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2445656
02/03/18 02:58 PM
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"Should we start packing up and get ready to hit the road?" Rachael asked, pointing towards the huge pile of stuff in front of the Valiant.
I looked around our pit spot, quickly realizing that other than Derek's Chevy truck, and Pops crashed out asleep on a folding cot, everyone else was still in the lanes.
"Naw, let's just stand at the fence and watch everyone else run...we'll be ready to roll before the rest of these jokers anyway!"

At 1:49, after we'd only watched a few pairs, Brian Lohnes made the announcement that Lonnie Grimm was going to close the back of the lanes at 2:15 sharp.
"So the gang needs to run in the next twenty minutes if they want the chance for more than one run!"
"You sure you don't want to go back up", Rachael asked, "I'll ride up with you and take more pictures."
"Nope, that was the best pass the Valiant has ever made, so I've got nothing left to prove today...save it for tomorrow."
Tom McGilton was back for a second hit in his Larry Larson prepped 2013 ZL-1. His earlier 8.26 wasn't going to keep him in contention with Hunter's 56 and Blasco's Dirty Dart for Pro Street Power Adder, so he needed a smooth pass. The white fifth gen appeared to roll the tires slightly out of the hole, a suspicion that was confirmed when Lohnes announced a 1.30 short time, but the rest of the pass looked amazing.
"One fifty in the eighth, seven sixty-two at one ninety", Lohnes' voice boomed over the loud speaker.
"That wasn't a killer sixty for a car that fast, was it?"
"No", I smiled at Rachael, happy that she was paying attention, "but forty-two hundred pounds it tough to get moving!"

Two pairs later, Tom Bailey brought his Steve Morris powered Skinny Kid built Pro Mod Camaro around in the right lane with it's "Beast Mode" grille blocker in place.
"I told you he wasn't going to leave here two tenths behind Schroeder", Rachael pointed out.
"Well, with the amount of time it takes to turn those cars around for another hit, this will be his last attempt today!"
The stretched and narrowed 69 left extremely hard, but tried to rattle the tires at 200ft out, so Tom quickly peddled it once to calm it down. He'd have likely blown the tires off and wasted the run a few years ago, but time spent racing the Skinny Kid shop Pro Mod over the last year has clearly given him the experience and feel to make the quick and timely correction seem effortless.
"Six fifty-one at two thirty-eight...wow, that's not good for the Nitrous Corvette", I groaned.
"It's only a couple of hundredths", Rachael shrugged.
"It's not the ET, dear, it's the twenty mph! When you've got that much speed over someone, you have a much larger margin for error."

tomzl1.jpgBailey cord.jpg

"Livin' in a powder keg and givin' off sparks" 4 Street cars, 5 Race engines
Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2445665
02/03/18 03:10 PM
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Great story as usual Billy!
I wasn't able to make it last year. Work prevailed.

Don

Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2447308
02/06/18 10:57 AM
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At 2:03 pm, John Faraone rolled his 72 Valiant Charger into the right lane water box. This would be the Aussie's 6th attempt at Drag Week in his Predator headed, twin turbo, big block wedge powered right hand drive A-body.
For the amount of money, effort, and time John has invested into the Charger and Hot Rod Drag Week, the event has not been kind, and results have been sporadic at best. Despite all the setbacks his enthusiasm hasn't waned, as I found out first hand when I spent a good three hours side by side in the tech line with him on Sunday, and enjoyed every second of our marathon bench racing session.
At the instant the 3950lb monster came off the brake and launched it was clear this was a killer run. I've seen it blow the tires off or shake them hard many times. I've seen it black track and push out of the groove, or lift the front end so hard it unloads on the wheelie bars. I've also watched the big wedge blow out so much soot and black smoke you'd think it had a cummins under the hood.

This pass was a thing of beauty, with an arrow straight, controlled leave, and a smooth run all the way down. The 7.37-194.2 mph pass (1.28 60') was the quickest and fastest pass ever made on Drag Week by a Mopar, and moved the Aussie Valiant up the standings to the third quickest car of the day!




22179915_1702122329798491_2455156023749620928_o.jpgDrag-Week-Charger.jpg21731689_10155782280052112_7534941929805547330_o.jpg21731769_10155783812472112_8023669748172867279_o.jpg

"Livin' in a powder keg and givin' off sparks" 4 Street cars, 5 Race engines
Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2447904
02/07/18 08:53 AM
02/07/18 08:53 AM
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Phoenix, AZ
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MoparBilly Offline OP
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Five pairs later, Darren finally brought the Charger up in the left lane for his first attempt, but was quickly waved off when fuel leaked out of the tank as he came out of the burnout. Dale, Billy, and Dylan came out to help him push it back into the lanes as Lohnes announced that the cutoff was just nine minutes away.

Boone brought the Duster up towards the right lane water box 6 pairs later, but stopped short, opened the door, and was motioning for help. They sent the Camaro beside him on a single, and he backed into the lanes as well.

Rachael and I had been discussing what we thought went wrong on Hemi Joel's 12.10-78 after he clearly pushed the clutch in and coasted from the eighth mile on, when the call went out that the lanes were closed. As if on cue, Dale in the Gremlin along with Rick in the Swinger, were the next pair to start burnouts.
"Was our whole group just sitting back there waiting on the lanes to close?" She asked with a laugh.
"I guess so", I nodded, "afraid they'd be tempted to hot lap back around I guess, but the pressure to make a good run is on now!"

Dale did a strong burnout to 30 feet out, backed up in his own tracks, revved the engine a couple of times in neutral, then pulled forward and lit the top bulb. The starter walked out and backed both of them off the line and cut them off as he communicated with the top end. He waved them back up a minute later, and the Gremlin clearly suffered for the delay spinning pretty good. Both cars looked great to the eighth mile, but then it sounded like Dale hit neutral momentarily, and the Swinger leveled off considerably. 9.85-136 for Dale, 11.71-102 for Rick.

I gave a small "Yes" and a fist pump when the numbers hit the board, and Rachael gave me an incredulous look.
"That's slower than his first run, so why are you happy about it?"
"It means I'll be turning in the quickest pass of the day among our group", I smiled.
"You're such a jerk", She laughed.

Michelle was up next in the Duster, and went 11.33-121.9 with a much better launch than before.
Rachael gave me look and commented, "I need to get in the Tens before she does this week".
"Ha! Now who's being a jerk?"
"Nope", she smiled, "just competitive!"

To confirm our theory that they had all conspired to wait until the end of the session to run, Darren and Boone were the next pair in the water after Michelle ran. After the first hundred feet, I was wondering if the Charger was on a good run, or the Duster was on a bad one as they were nearly even. The Ruster began to pull away substantially after that and the Charger started tailing a plume of smoke after the eighth mile. 10.04-138 for the Duster, and 11.18-121 for Darren and the Charger.
"That's not going to make either of them happy", I shook my head.
"Yep, Boone didn't get his nine to start the trip, so it's going to get ugly", Pops agreed. He had awoken from his nap just in time to watch them run.



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"Livin' in a powder keg and givin' off sparks" 4 Street cars, 5 Race engines
Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2450433
02/12/18 12:31 AM
02/12/18 12:31 AM
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Phoenix, AZ
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MoparBilly Offline OP
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The staging lanes went from being a hive of activity to a ghost town, and our pit area did exactly the opposite. Everyone wanted to stand around and compare time slips, relax a bit, drink something cool, and just enjoy a moment of accomplishment. A little respite before the next step is always important, but as experienced Drag Week participants we knew we had to turn our time slips in to Tonya Turk and get our route sheets before it got much later, as the Hot Rod and Drag Week staffs were just as interested in beginning the next journey as we were.

Considering how sparsely populated the pits seemed to be as we walked down the hill to the building Tonya and Tara were hanging out in, we were surprised by the line of racers yet to turn theirs in. While we were in our pit area Boone had been sullen, and clearly upset with the performance of the Duster, so I gave him space, but now we had others around us so I finally questioned him about what happened.
"Why were you waving for help before you entered the water the first time?"
He let out a long breath, looked at the floor and shook his head before he answered. "I forgot to turn on the bottle, and I can't reach it once the belts are on. I popped the belts loose, and opened the bottle, but then I couldn't get the belts back on with my helmet, neck collar and gloves in place!"
"Mph looked good, was it spinning?"
He gave me a quick jerk of his head and the blue eyes were on fire, so I knew I was pushing the right buttons(or the wrong ones depending on your perspective).
"Sure, the sixty is a bit off...I've got a good third member this year so I'm going on the spray earlier, maybe too soon, but it's still popping on the big end!" He paused and looked around before he continued, "I told Dale that Demon is junk, I've tried to get him to rebuild it, or tune it correctly, but he'll never spend more than five minutes on it!"
I bit the inside of my lip to keep from laughing, because a chuckle from me would put him over the edge. "Boone, I rebuilt that carb right before I gave it to you, and Dale's jetted it every which way...you should be re-jetting the plate, it runs fine on motor!"
"Neither of you are going to convince me that Barry Grant isn't the problem", he fired back.
"I've got a brand new thousand HP in the box that I never had time to test on the Valiant", I explained. "If we bolt that on and it runs the same will that change your mind?"
"I wouldn't be opposed to giving it a try", he quipped dryly, but his mood brightened considerably.

I moved up next to Dale to give him a hard time.
"Spotting a nitrous car sixteen hundredths on day one when you're running NA?" You might not catch that Valiant the rest of the week", I laughed.
He shook his head, "Typical Monday for me, but I'm not worried, that 580's got plenty to cover a small block on sneeze!"
"We'll see I guess, what happened today?"
"Just blew the tires clean off on the first hit, so we came back around and adjusted all four shocks. The launch was better the second pass, but I got distracted and didn't hear the electric shifter, so I thought it was still in low, and boxed it into neutral at half track. The rpm was up, that 580 along with those 3.73 gears...the convertor is over matched, it's just blowing right through it!"
"Which one do you have in it?"
"The JW 9" billet that I bought back when we were Super Street racing."
"Good grief, that was twenty years ago! How many times have you had if freshened or rebuilt?"
He blushed noticeably and shook his head before he answered. "Never have, only glide converter I've had the last decade at least!"
"You're crazy! Glide convertors take a beating! Most people send them in every two or three years."
"Well, that's where we are at right now, but it'll still outrun that little Plymouth, you'll see tomorrow!

We filed out with our route sheets and official time slips, but Jeff caught us on the way back to our pit and let us know that He and Hemi Joel were done for the week. Sobering, but from a quick glance around they probably wouldn't be the only ones out after the first day on the track.

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"Livin' in a powder keg and givin' off sparks" 4 Street cars, 5 Race engines
Re: Hot Rod Drag Week 2017: The Experience. [Re: MoparBilly] #2457374
02/25/18 04:56 PM
02/25/18 04:56 PM
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Phoenix, AZ
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MoparBilly Offline OP
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We gave the route sheet a quick perusal once we got back to our cars. The first drive was to be 267 miles, first checkpoint was 62 miles away.
"We'll be approaching St.Louis on the Il-255 south, which is one of the roads that cross the I-70 at Collinsville", I pointed out, "so the route takes us right to our motel!"
"We going to try and have Rachael's birthday supper tonight?" Boone asked, then turned to Rachael and added, "congrats on the big three Oh!"
"Twenty-eight, Jerk!" She quipped back with a laugh.
I pointed at Darren, still under the hood of the Charger, with Dale's small generator running and the battery charger hooked up for what seemed like the fourth hour in the last two days.
"With our track record on first drives, we better put that off for Tuesday or Wednesday night!"
"So...where are we at on being ready to roll out of here?" Dale asked, looking around our pits, "Will and Michelle went to get a tire fixed, Rick and Sharma are trying to figure out how to load all their stuff for the first time, while Dylan and I have at least an hour of work before the Gremlin is ready for the highway!"
"Rachael and I have already re-set the timing on the Valiant, and put the exhaust back on", I explained, "but we have to figure out where all our stuff is going to fit as well!"
"I want to bolt Dave's carb on", Boone pointed at the Holley box in my pile of stuff, "and I have to change plugs, then time it...probably wouldn't hurt to top off the batteries either, if the alternator doesn't keep up any better than last year."
"Look guys", I shook my head, "I have no intention of hanging out at the opening track until ten-thirty at night before the first drive like last year, so let's get this wrapped up and on the road!"

For the next hour, Rachael and I went at the Valiant like it was a jigsaw puzzle, trying to figure out how to get all of our junk on board. The trunk isn't the biggest among A-body Mopars due to the radically sloped off deck, and it already houses two batteries , the fuel cell, a nitrous bottle, and wider than stock wheel tubs, so precision packing of small items is about it. The area behind the front seats is cavernous however, and we stuffed it to the point that we had junk above the window line, and it was blocking part of my view in the tiny stock rear view mirror.

It took considerable effort to convince Will, Michelle, and Derek to leave without us, then we went through the same conversation with Rick and Sharma about another hour later. I explained that with a group this large, a straight caravan doesn't work, because people are waiting too much and they might be the next ones to have a problem.
"The leapfrog style works better...if you're ready to roll, go, and stay in touch...we'll most likely catch up."
"Almost everyone has a smart phone," Rachael explained, "So this year we'll set up on a group text for all of us, that way we can keep track of everyone's progress."

After they said their goodbyes and we watched the green Dart roll out onto Il-84 South, Rachael gave me a long look, and made a sweeping gesture back towards my brothers still working feverishly on their respective cars.
"Maybe you should follow your own advice and we should get moving!"
"Yeah, I know...let me see if I can make myself useful to one of these guys before we just bail."

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"Livin' in a powder keg and givin' off sparks" 4 Street cars, 5 Race engines
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