Yeah,
I know.

Everyone always asks why I don't write for magazines, or do blogs. Well this is why. Overcoming "The Wall" in a Marathon is way easier than tackling a bad case of writer's block. I like to do things in chronological order, but that is tough when I'm trying to catch up with ten months of automotive treachery.

One of the things that have lead to my overwhelming frustration is that I have misplaced the Log Books I started for both the Belvedere and the Valiant at last years Drag Week, and half the time slips were still in them.

Anyway, since Rachael had all the seat time in the Belvedere, I decided I needed to test it some on my own, and see why we had failed to run the consistent 11.50s I felt it should be capable of, I decided the best way to test it would be to drive to MATS, race, and drive home.

I drove it back and forth to work for a week, leading up to the trip, just to make sure it was ready, and of course, once again, my resolve to be a law abiding citizen was tested.

The drive is 17 miles, on city surface streets, with three lanes in one direction, arrow straight, and stop lights every mile section, speed limit varies from 40 to 45. Four miles into the drive I pick up an admirer. It's a 30 something couple in a new SS Camaro, they have the windows down and are listening to the pipes, and their daughter keeps scooting forward in her booster seat to peer out the quarter glass at me. I start hanging on to first till about 3500 with the RMVB, while he would row through the gears. 6 miles later, we pull up to the next light, at the front of the traffic...and a cop come off a side street and pulls in behind me. 2 miles later the cop hangs a right and is out of the picture. I've only got 1 mile section left by the time we catch another light, but I have one car in front of me in the middle lane. The right lane driver appears to be ready to turn however, so I may have an opening. When the light changes we start our established routine of accelerating away at normal speed, and sure enough the right lane opens up, and I move over, still in low, and ease up even with the Camaro, as the tach needle swung past 3500, and they didn't hear me shift, they both looked over, and the nose of the Camaro lifted up...The dirty dog got the jump on me!! By the time the 440 was at full song, the SS was 3/4 of a car on me. When the tach hit 6K, I had made that up, and the bottom of second put the Belvedere out as much, then stretched it to a car by the time I shifted to third and let out of it, realizing we were about a quarter of a mile ahead of the traffic we left the light with! I made a right at the next light, and he made a left, the last thing I saw was his wife and Daughter smiling at me, with their thumbs up...I love this country!