OK, so I've brought you seven classic Mopar muscle combos in a row, now for a pair of street freak SUVs.

#19 Greg Huizenga Red 83 Jeep Cherokee
Day 1: 11.54-119.0
Day 2: 11.55-119.7
Day 3: 11.53-120.2
Day 4: 11.72-117.2
Day 5: 11.70-117.9
Final Average: 11.612-118.80

Chevy 10 chassis, 6.1 Gen 3 Hemi with a 6 speed stick, and a small turbo...sure that's a build we've all considered many times! Now, it's a Hot Rod Drag Week proven combo.

#18 Derek Mueller Silver 77 Toyota Land Cruiser
Day 1: 9.95-129.0
Day 2: 12.32-107.5
Day 3: 10.54-117.0
Day 4: 12.39-109.7
Day 5: 11.88-110.4
Final Average: 11.421-114.76

"Let's build a cool 4x4 Land Cruiser for...sand drags, mud pit racing? Back woods off roading, or heck, maybe even drag racing!"
"All of them."
"OK, done! We have a clean sheet of paper, what are we using for power?
"I've got a stroked small block Mopar I'm fond of!"
"Hmm, can we add Nitrous?"

How does a conversation like that even take place?

Hot Rod Drag Week is famous for punching guys straight it the mouth on Day 1. Many crumble and throw in the towel, but if you can overcome that first setback, usually the body blows and jabs later in the week don't seem as bad. After transmission failures, valve train issues bring down competitors faster than anything and Derek dealt with the problem from 1100 feet into his first run until the very end of the week. Hopefully he will get that solved and bring the beast back for another go to show off it's true potential.

Once the first session, the two hour SME qualifying was in the books, the loose plan was to allow the Class cars four hours to slug it out, and determine who would take home all the hardware in the other 17 classes. Keith Turk and Lonnie Grimm were even actively seeking to arrange for side by side races with the current leader and runner-up in each class. Clearly they were trying to put on a good show, for the spectators, and competitors alike, and it was evident very early on that this Friday was going to be a massive upgrade over the ending of DW15.

Drama, and suspense, however are difficult to manage or manufacture. Bryant Goldstone and his Javelin went 6.90-209, Glenn Hunter threw down a 7.61, and Jeff Lutz and his Mad Max pro mod Camaro ran 6.25-235. All three of those runs were their first attempts, and within the first hour of the session. Those runs insured that they would be the top 3 overall, and receive the guitars. They also insured that each would win their respective class, Lutz in A-Unlimited, Goldstone in B-Ultimate Iron, and Hunter in C-Pro Street Power Adder.
Jeff Atkinson also wrapped up the win in D-Pro Street NA with his first pass of the day in the yellow Cars Camaro. The 9.53-142 meant he had nearly eight tenths of a second over second place in the class. Still, with 13 other classes yet to be determined, and many personal accomplishments left to unfold, it didn't mean the final three hours wouldn't be without intrigue, it just required looking a little further down the stat sheet.

One of the craziest moments of the day occurred as Mike Roy started the burnout in his Pro Street Power Adder 71 Monte Carlo, about to complete his tenth Drag Week. A crewman had bent down to record the burnout with his cell phone, when track personnel motioned the next pair in the staging lane out. The car which happened to be next in line was Aussie Harry Haig's 68 Chevelle with the twin turbos hanging out of the hood like a big double fisted middle finger salute. I had wondered all week how he managed to see around them to drive on public roads, and this situation proved he simply can't! Rachael and I, as well as Brian Lohnes on the mic, and Jeff (JERICOGTX, seen in pic behind the Chevelle) saw it all unfolding in front of us, but were powerless to stop it. At the last possible instant the crewman heard the Chevelle approaching and deftly rose and took two steps to avoid the oncoming car, but Harry never braked, swerved or in any way acknowledged how close he was to running the guy down at 4 mph! There was an audible gasp, then murmuring around me, and Brian even acknowledged it on the live feed, it was a very close call!

#17 Paul Castiglione Yellow 72 Dodge Challenger
Day 1: 11.30-121.2
Day 2: 11.61-120.4
Day 3: 11.53-119.5
Day 4: 11.24-121.8
Day 5: 11.29-122.2
Final Average:11.401-121.04

Paul's Challenger is powered by a stroked 383, at 431 inches, and is a legit 10 second car with time slips to prove it before Drag Week 2016, and afterwards. Sometimes Drag Week, like life, doesn't always follow the script and Paul has shown a tenacity to overcome these moments. The car belonged to his late brother Russel, who never finished it, but Paul rebuilt it to honor him, and brought it to Drag Week with his son Paulie, and brother Joseph. We met them on Tuesday, and became fast friends with the New York trio, sharing a love of Family, Mopars, and big rigs that runs through all of us.

The Castiglione brothers, like most Drag Weekers, are the nicest people you could meet. They had a smile on all week. I met them one Day One while waiting in line for some great National Trail Raceway food.

Back tracking a little. While at the Warm Candle checkpoint, changing Joel's alternator, we had a perfect view of the cars from DW entering the freeway. While it was impressive seeing The Aussies in the Chevelle, and countless others tearing it up, the most impressive thing I saw that night was Joseph ripping through the gears in his highly detailed silver Peterbilt. The thing was HAULING!

I'm glad to see the brothers are planning on attending again this year.

#16 James Reeves Black 86 Dodge Omni GLH
Day 1: 11.49-131.7
Day 2: 11.66-113.6
Day 3: 11.04-130.2
Day 4: 11.16-121.7
Day 5: 11.37-120.8
Final Average: 11.350-123.64

The little GLH was eighth on this list last year, with an average that was a half-second quicker and ten mph faster. The numbers only tell a small portion of the story though, and James overcame a myriad of issues to finish his third Drag Week in three attempts. The Mopar Turbo Mafia swelled from three cars to six this year, and they managed to get every one of them to complete the event, so I'm betting James will look back at Drag Week 2016 as a win, regardless of the final outcome.

# 15 David Kirwin(Kirwan?) Red 16 Dodge Challenger HellCat
Day 1: 11.32-121.5
Day 2: 11.20-125.4
Day 3: 11.08-124.7
Day 4: 11.34-122.8
Day 5: 11.35-119.8
Final Average: 11.262-122.88

David has ran Drag Week 9 times. In four of those results from Hot Rod, his last name is spelled with an I, and in five it is spelled with an A...so I have no clue! He usually turns up in a Starsky and Hutch Torino, but this year was in a HellCat, rumored to belong to his boss?? Trust me, I know, this story is on shaky ground already! He finished the SME qualifying in a disappointing 34th, or second alternate, despite three runs on Friday. When Jay Williams bowed out he moved up a spot, then Charlie Ogle had to decline because his big block was hurt, so the HellCat was in the show! That's the good news, the bad news was that they dial you a tenth lower than your weekly average, and National Trail was the slowest track of the week for the red Challenger. This meant he would be dialed 11.16 in a car that had ran a best of 11.32 at that facility. At least the sun would be down by the time they started eliminations.

When Dale and I left National Trail on Monday, we were 14th and 16th respectively, out of 19 cars in Modified Power Adder. Rick Prospero had jumped to the early lead in his green RX7, but as I documented before, a bad day at Martin had allowed Dan Saitz and his Orange 88 Mustang to lead by two tenths coming into the final day. Rick and his son must've tested at National Trail, because out of 292 finishers, they were the only ones to run markedly better at that track than the other three. Rick and the RX7 went 7.59-185.3 on his first attempt, while Dan Saitz blew the tires off on the Mustang, so the pressure was back on the orange fox with the 400 inch turbocharged SBF.

Saitz's second pass was a 7.74-180 that was just enough to give him the win in the class. The Mustang smoked noticeably for the last two hundred feet, and I figured he was done for the week, but Dan is a multiple winner in X275 and 8.5 racing, and he's just not wired to leave anything on the table. He couldn't catch Glenn Hunter for third overall, but he was in a tight battle with Mike Roy for fourth overall and he wasn't going to give that up with two hours left on the clock. He would end the day with 7.57-184, and his 7.66 average would indeed be good enough for fourth overall, meaning the top four cars were all from different classes!

Meanwhile, near the bottom of the class, the Valiant and I were battling it out with a pair of wagons. Garry Ross' 63 Falcon had lost narrowly to us in Modified NA competition at DW14, but they had more experience with the nitrous, and made consistent runs all week to cover the Valiant by seventeen hundredths in average even though our best runs were only four thousandths apart. Danny Allen's twin turbo LS powered 65 Nova wagon, ran high 140s all week, which should have put him far ahead of Ross and I, but trans and converter issues kept him in the high nines. He made 4 or 5 ten second runs of Friday, before coming up with a 9.53-151 to take 12th place away from me!

Billy you taking a long weekend? No continuation in a few days.

Billy is in Oklahoma checking on Drag Week projects. Will be back Sunday, hopefully writing more.

Isn't it a little early for you guys?

#14 Terry Keifer Copper 67 Plymouth Barracuda
Day 1: 11.51-117.9
Day 2: 11.22-121.1
Day 3: 11.21-121.2
Day 4: 10.92-122.5
Day 5: 11.34-117.9
Final Average: 11.244-120.17

Terry's stunning Barracuda is moved by a motor home 440 with a power adder. In 2015 it was a turbo with a blow through carb, then in 2016 it was a nitrous plate under the carb. I'd like to see him step up the long block at some point, but if he shows up with a supercharger on the same 440, I wouldn't be surprised.

By the numbers:
His 10.92 best places the Barracuda 26th on the "Quickest single pass by a Mopar finisher" list out of 122 cars, all time. Of the nearly one thousand different finishing cars overall, the 10.92 stands at number 397, the exact same mark his 11.20 average holds on the "Quickest 5-day Average" list. In 2015 the Barracuda was 3rd out of six cars in Super Street Big Block Power Adder, and finished 5th out of eight cars in the same class this year.


#13 Charley Ogle Gold 72 Dodge Challenger
Day 1: 11.14-125.1
Day 2: 11.15-123.4
Day 3: 11.22-120.9
Day 4: 11.26-122.7
Day 5: 11.39-119.0
Final Average: 11.236-122.25

Charley and his Challenger are four for four on finishing Drag Week, but for the second time, they were unable to make the call for the quick 32 bracket race. Clutch issues previously, and engine woes in 2016. From his initial 12.50 average in 2013, Charley has lowered his average by three tenths or more and upped the MPH by two or more every single year, so I think the E-body will be a solid ten second performer when it next hits the street!

I would like to know where Terry got his Chin Spoiler, anyone have any idea?

When the Plymouth engineers dropped their new 273 cubic inch small block between the frame rails of a compact Valiant in 1964, do you think they had any idea they were launching a budget platform that would battle fender to fender with some of the best heavyweight muscle cars Detroit would produce over the next twelve years? Yeah, they probably did, and I'm sure they knew those LA engine powered A-bodies would still be terrorizing streets and strips some fifty-plus years later. The next pair of Mopars on our list are shining examples of what can be done with a stock suspension, small tire, normally aspirated, small block wedge powered A-body Plymouth.

#12 Clark Lamb Blue 68 Plymouth Barracuda
Day 1: 11.21-119.5
Day 2: 11.12-121.0
Day 3: 11.14-122.6
Day 4: 11.13-120.6
Day 5: 11.17-120.1
Final Average: 11.157-120.81

The coil packs and fuel injection weren't on the agenda at Plymouth in '64, but they make Clark's W-2 408 very consistent! He's finished five Drag Weeks in five attempts, and always qualified for the quick 32 bracket race. His Dad, Bill was along to do the heavy lifting once again. Clark was rewarded with the ten second time slip he was searching for on Drag Week, a few weeks later at his home track, Tulsa Raceway Park.


#11 Corey Pant Green 74 Plymouth Duster
Day 1: 10.90-123.1
Day 2: 10.82-124.5
Day 3: 10.86-123.5
Day 4: 10.93-122.7
Day 5: 10.94-122.8
Final Average: 10.898-123.34

A very stout effort for Corey's debut Drag Week! I know he has signed up for 2017, so we will see if he finds more power out of the stroker. He finished eighth out of fourteen cars in the competitive Super Street Small Block Normally Aspirated class. The 10.82 best put the Duster 24th on the "Mopar single quickest pass" list (12th NA), and 379th overall.

Bad340fish, try here. Spoilers by Randy

A couple of sets after the Aussie Chevelle made a radial spinning 9.31-156, Darren and Dale pushed the Ruster Duster under the tower in anticipation of Boone's first run of Friday. Given the condition of the removed oil, he wasn't too keen on making multiple runs, but he also had no intention of towing it back to Oklahoma without his first ever nine second time slip either. He's had a fist full of 10.0 runs in his lifetime, courtesy of several different cars, but the elusive three digit ET has always escaped his grasp.
Darren walked over to where I was standing as Dale gave Boone last minute instructions. I saw Boone nod, then Dale shut the driver's door and the big block fired to life.
"What's the plan?" I asked Darren as we watched the Dust idle into the water box.
"The sure grip is just about shot, so he needs to keep his burnout going after he lets go of the line lock, and hopefully get the tire temps close. Hit the nitrous early, shift early, stay in the groove, and hang on!"
"It took Dale that long to tell him all that", I laughed.
"You know Dale", Darren gave me an elbow, "he likes to repeat himself, and add a few different words each time, just to make sure you are listening!"

The Ruster Duster was beside Matt Grant's red '07 Mustang, which needed an 8.37 or better if he were to hold off Jamie's Silver 10 Challenger for third place in Modified Power Adder. When I dropped that knowledge on Darren, he didn't seem impressed, he just asked me what Boone needed to take third away from David Meyer in SSBBPA.
"Uh...he's nearly 9 tenths down total...so we need Boone to run a low nine, or Meyer's Northern Bel to slow to a high ten."
"We didn't jet it for that!" Darren laughed and shook his head.

#10 Jason Trotter 87 Dodge Daytona Shelby Z
Day 1: 10.92-136.5
Day 2: 10.82-126.4
Day 3: 10.66-141.0
Day 4: 10.87-138.3
Day 5: 10.69-136.2
Final Average 10.797-135.72

Am I the only one who openly wonders what Jason's little Shelby must feel like when it streaks through the beams at a buck forty plus? So much wrong adds up to so much "Heck yeah!!!" For the second year in a row the Daytona qualified for the Street Machine Eliminator quick 32, but if you think making a turbo front drive car fast is hard...you should try bracket racing one!!


#9 Craig Douglas Grey 15 Dodge Charger HellCat
Day 1: 10.46-131.3
Day 2: 10.46-132.0
Day 3: 10.37-132.3
Day 4: 10.45-130.8
Day 5: 10.38-133.7
Final Average: 10.417-132.07

The 67-72 Mopar muscle cars have long held a reverence that lifted them high above the offerings from the late 70's, 80's, 90's, and on into the new century, but the current crop of factory hot rods aren't required to take a back seat to anything. I'm not sure what all Craig has done to bring his SRT into mid ten second at 130 plus territory, but the Charger is a very impressive car in that same vein of "We can take a cop car and make it a brutal hot rod" that Dodge pulled off when they introduced the 69 1/2 440 six pack SuperBee. Craig's 10.41 average placed him 4th in SME qualifying, and brings the HellCat in at 14th all time among Mopars, and 249th overall, or just inside the top 1/4 of all the cars that have completed the event.

Boone started the Duster's burnout in the water box, but barely got a wisp of smoke off the tires before he released the brakes and rolled all the way to the starting line. By rolled, I mean just rolled, no smoke coming off the spinning tires, no spinning tires, just rolled to the line at 4K like a total rookie who's never done a burnout in his life.
"Is that what you were looking for?" I teased Dale as he walked over between Darren and I.
"Exactly!" Dale nodded, "I mean that's one way to get even heat in both tires...just don't burn them!"
"So he has no clue how to do a rolling burnout, he's wearing an open faced helmet, and he want's these guys to think he's a nine second player?"
"What's the old story?" Dale nodded in agreement once again, "Act like you've been there!"
Darren nearly doubled over in laughter with his hand over his mouth, "You guys are brutal!"

Boone stabbed the throttle at the first flash of yellow, and the front tires hung in the air momentarily as we heard the nitrous kick in. The Duster was moving straight down the groove with what appeared to be minimal effort, as both shifts seem to come just as the engine began to pull off the converter. The 511 sounded fine however, and didn't seem to sound labored until the last one hundred feet or so. When the 9.932-135.08 flashed on the board the three of us smiled with what felt like relief more than jubilation. The pass just looked so mundane that we couldn't get past the feeling that there was quite a bit more left in it.
"One more to go", I slapped Dale on the back, "If you can keep it alive for 1320!"
"We've got this!" He winked at me, "she's not going to like it, but the number will be there!"

#8 Brian "Boone" Gebhart Red 76 Plymouth "Ruster Duster"
Day 1: 10.68-126.7
Day 2: 10.13-130.7
Day 3: 10.21-131.5
Day 4: 10.08-133.9
Day 5: 9.93-135.0
Final Average: 10.210-131.62

Boone, Billy, and the Ruster Duster finished 4th in Super Street Big Block Power Adder. The 9.93 places the Duster 12th on the "Mopar Quickest single pass by finishers" list all time, 90th among 2016 finishers and 217th overall all time. Several weeks later it would run 9.82-139.5 to justify our belief that the tune-up was just beginning to come around.

Was that before or after figuring out where all the metal in the oil was coming from?

When faced with metal in the oil, it has been my experience that continuing to run the engine aids greatly in making a proper diagnosis of the problem. Generally you are faced with two outcomes: The engine eventually stops putting metal in the oil, or the engine stops running. In either case, finding the suspect part becomes much easier!

Boone does 3 events a year religiously: Mopar Race at Mokan (March-April), Drag Week, Mopar Race at Tulsa Oct-Nov. After Drag Week, he drove the Ruster to Tulsa, and raced it on the bottle. In March he trailered it to MoKan, and ran it on the motor. When I arrived in Tulsa last week, they had the front end of the car apart, and were about to drop the pan for a look.

Take it the Duster is going to make it this year..... believe the 60 day counter has probably already started.

curious if the Valiant mill is on a better regiment than your big block brethren? Ever give it much thought what you'd do if it started to talk to you?

Looks like it has more parts on it this year then last, so why not???

And yes... less then 60 days until we leave, which means closer to 50 For Billy, and family to start Hell Week. I'm getting excited. Can't wait for it to get here, and see everyone again.