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Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: Hemi_Joel] #2848192
11/18/20 03:08 PM
11/18/20 03:08 PM
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 19,239
north of coder
moparx Offline
"Butt Crack Bob"
moparx  Offline
"Butt Crack Bob"

Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 19,239
north of coder
as the saying goes : "better late than never !"
thanks for the update joel ! up i really enjoyed seeing billy again, and your coupe is an inspiration for me to get back on my [unending] humpback project.
beer

Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: moparx] #2848203
11/18/20 03:22 PM
11/18/20 03:22 PM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 7,471
Minnesota
Hemi_Joel Offline OP
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It takes more time than a guy would think to write this stuff and get the pictures all edited to make a post. But starting up on the story again last night helped rejuvenate my enthusiasm for drag week 2021. It was time well spent, as I need that motivation to prioritize what I'm working on, get busy on the Hemi coupe and put it back together. I'm in the process of freshening up the hemi, and face plating the transmission. I already got the carburetors turned around and the fuel system remodeled. I'm putting in a set of conical valve springs, and I'm going to test an eight carb intake that has short runners instead of this long cross ram, and I'm also going to test the hot heads dual quad intake.


[img]http://i.imgur.com/boeexFms.jpg[/img]
31 Plymouth Coupe, 392 Hemi, T56 magnum
RS23J71
RS27J77
RP23J71
RO23J71
WM21J8A
I don't regret the things I've done. I only regret the things I didn't do.
"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something. ~ Plato"
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: Hemi_Joel] #2848531
11/19/20 10:27 AM
11/19/20 10:27 AM
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Posts: 10,009
MN
J
JERICOGTX Offline
I Live Here
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I Live Here
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Posts: 10,009
MN
I miss Drag Week. Sure hope we can go in 2021...


69 GTX 68 Road Runner
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: JERICOGTX] #2848622
11/19/20 01:15 PM
11/19/20 01:15 PM
Joined: May 2004
Posts: 12,379
Taxes & Virus's R-US, NY
Dragula Offline
I Live Here
Dragula  Offline
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Taxes & Virus's R-US, NY
Thanks for all the pictures and re-cap....I wish I could attend one of these years. Its been a goal of mine for a long time. I have a car capable of running it, just needs the cage finished and a hitch and it could enter it. Never drove my Hemi that far though, so I have no idea if it would hold up, I doubt it and really want to switch to Hellcat power. So I very much enjoy the stories and commentary...Thanks again. And it looks like you picked the wrong car for that year with all that rain...Man , between that and the heat, that looked grueling.


'70 Cuda,...605 EFI Hemi Street Car (6.20 best pass, 1.33 60ft)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WYw6RA-k5Bk (6.25 at 108.75mph from inside car)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zQEb9uxFng (6.25 at 108mph from outside car)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JCvfzsC4NgM (9.9)

'66 Barracuda AWB Stretched nose Blown 440 Car in build stage

'71 Duster Drag Car 400 Low Deck 512 best 6.002 at 115.44mph
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Znuo3jMUXTk
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: Dragula] #2848675
11/19/20 02:49 PM
11/19/20 02:49 PM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,009
MN
J
JERICOGTX Offline
I Live Here
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Joined: Jan 2003
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MN
Originally Posted by Dragula
Thanks for all the pictures and re-cap....I wish I could attend one of these years. Its been a goal of mine for a long time. I have a car capable of running it, just needs the cage finished and a hitch and it could enter it. Never drove my Hemi that far though, so I have no idea if it would hold up, I doubt it and really want to switch to Hellcat power. So I very much enjoy the stories and commentary...Thanks again. And it looks like you picked the wrong car for that year with all that rain...Man , between that and the heat, that looked grueling.


You have to have a Push forward, and Can do attitude at Drag Week. You need the ability to overcome simple things, and react and address the tough stuff. I will also say, if you plan on bringing a Trunk Monkey, the two of you better get along for a long time. It's not just the Week itself, but days leading up to the event, and then add in travel time together. Luckily Joel and I get along great. We laugh at the same stupid stuff, and have taken many road trips together. It's gotten pretty simple when you know the others next move.


69 GTX 68 Road Runner
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: JERICOGTX] #2848696
11/19/20 03:16 PM
11/19/20 03:16 PM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 25,851
United Socialist States of Ame...
T
tboomer Offline
Too Many Posts
tboomer  Offline
Too Many Posts
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Posts: 25,851
United Socialist States of Ame...
Jeff...You get along good with everyone you meet! wave


The end is near.....
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: JERICOGTX] #2848703
11/19/20 03:32 PM
11/19/20 03:32 PM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 8,005
Tulsa OK
Bad340fish Offline
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Tulsa OK
Originally Posted by JERICOGTX
I miss Drag Week. Sure hope we can go in 2021...


That seemed like a sure thing until here recently, no telling what will be going on.


68 Barracuda Formula S 340
87 "Chrysler" Conquest
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: tboomer] #2848710
11/19/20 03:44 PM
11/19/20 03:44 PM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 10,009
MN
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JERICOGTX Offline
I Live Here
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MN
Originally Posted by tboomer
Jeff...You get along good with everyone you meet! wave


You might think that, but I assure you, no I don't. LOL.


69 GTX 68 Road Runner
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: JERICOGTX] #2848735
11/19/20 04:24 PM
11/19/20 04:24 PM
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Posts: 7,471
Minnesota
Hemi_Joel Offline OP
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Hemi_Joel  Offline OP
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Originally Posted by JERICOGTX
Originally Posted by tboomer
Jeff...You get along good with everyone you meet! wave


You might think that, but I assure you, no I don't. LOL.


laugh2 Glad you said it, I wasn't touching that one! laugh2


[img]http://i.imgur.com/boeexFms.jpg[/img]
31 Plymouth Coupe, 392 Hemi, T56 magnum
RS23J71
RS27J77
RP23J71
RO23J71
WM21J8A
I don't regret the things I've done. I only regret the things I didn't do.
"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something. ~ Plato"
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: Hemi_Joel] #2848845
11/19/20 09:53 PM
11/19/20 09:53 PM
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Minnesota
Hemi_Joel Offline OP
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Conspicuously absent from Zmax Dragway was our nitro-junkie hero, Brian Kohlmann. His pass at Darlington Tuesday did not go so well. He ended up blowing a head gasket. Not knowing about the gasket issue at first, he did drive the car to the hotel in Charlotte. After noticing water on the windshield, he pulled over and diagnosed the problem. He made it the rest of the way to the hotel by adding water as needed. A whole gang of helpers converged on the car to fix the ailing hemi. Unfortunately when they got the car apart they found that he had torched the head. There was no way to fix it in time, so Brian bummed a ride with a local back to Atlanta to get his truck and trailer. After spending the night in the trailer waiting for the staff at Atlanta dragway to unlock the gate, he drove back to Charlotte, loaded up the nitro coupe and headed for home. You would think he would be bummed, but Brian doesn’t show it. He just bounces back with fresh determination and optimism about the next shot. It's kinda like this: with our gasoline burning race cars, we know we're going to be changing plugs and changing oil with frequency, may be tearing down the motor to freshen it up every year or 2, or three. So when it's time to do that we don't sweat it. Well, running nitromethane, Brian knows that he's going to be changing out rings, bearings, pistons, rods, welding on the block and heads, etc. on a regular basis. It's just an expected part of the process. So he just jumps in and gets it done without drama, and continues to work on the tune to get the car quicker and more reliable.
Brian figured out that the reason the car laid down at the big end of the track at Atlanta, and the reason that it blew the head gasket at Darlington, was because of his new big fuel pump in the mechanical injection system. He had upped the pump size because of a prior lack of fuel. But when the hemi got to singing its high rpm song, that big pump was pushing more fuel than the bypass could handle, and that made for too much nitro for the amount of air available. Later, to solve the issue, Brian added a second bypass, and increased the blower speed by 25%. That seems to be what the hemi wanted and it has been running very strong.

pushing car in staging lanes.JPGHotel parking lot.jpegtorched head.jpg

[img]http://i.imgur.com/boeexFms.jpg[/img]
31 Plymouth Coupe, 392 Hemi, T56 magnum
RS23J71
RS27J77
RP23J71
RO23J71
WM21J8A
I don't regret the things I've done. I only regret the things I didn't do.
"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something. ~ Plato"
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: JERICOGTX] #2848853
11/19/20 10:26 PM
11/19/20 10:26 PM
Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 3,586
Topeka Kansas
K
ksj Offline
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ksj  Offline
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K

Joined: Dec 2005
Posts: 3,586
Topeka Kansas
Originally Posted by JERICOGTX
Originally Posted by tboomer
Jeff...You get along good with everyone you meet! wave


You might think that, but I assure you, no I don't. LOL.
LOL

Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: ksj] #2848863
11/19/20 10:58 PM
11/19/20 10:58 PM
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Minnesota
Hemi_Joel Offline OP
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Dale Gephardt had showed up with the new car this year, a tube chassis duster that landed him in the unlimited class. His opening shot at Atlanta had been an 8.76 at 165! He dropped into the low nines at Darlington, but redeemed himself today with an 8.95 at 160.
Mopar Billy was back with his small block powered, Kelvinator white 62 valiant. Unfortunately on Monday he had to take a 20 second default time slip because he didn’t make it up to the starting line before it started raining. He was none too happy about that! But he came back swinging, spraying his way to a 9.83 and a 9.66 at Darlington and Charlotte, respectively.

Tom Bailey with his "Sick Seconds" Camaro was leading unlimited with an astounding string of sixes. 6.73, 6.67, and at Charlotte is 6.65 at 219 mph!

And meanwhile, the fake news talking heads continued to proclaim that we were in dire circumstances, admonishing us to get out while we still had a thread of hope for survival.

Dale duster in shop.jpgDale duster at track.jpgvaliant on Highway.jpg002-Hot-Rod-Drag-Week-Day-3-Tom-Bailey.jpg

[img]http://i.imgur.com/boeexFms.jpg[/img]
31 Plymouth Coupe, 392 Hemi, T56 magnum
RS23J71
RS27J77
RP23J71
RO23J71
WM21J8A
I don't regret the things I've done. I only regret the things I didn't do.
"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something. ~ Plato"
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: Hemi_Joel] #2848869
11/19/20 11:19 PM
11/19/20 11:19 PM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 7,471
Minnesota
Hemi_Joel Offline OP
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Hemi_Joel  Offline OP
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On the road trip between Darlington and Charlotte, Jeff and I had noticed some exhaust noise coming from the left side of the hemi. Before we hit the road for Bristol, we decided we should change out the header gasket on that side. Despite my limited cargo space, I did bring some spare parts, including header gaskets. My hard-working trunk monkey got busy on that task pronto.
Freiburger had announced that we would be free to choose our route to Bristol, but that there would be a mandatory checkpoint at Pat Musi's race shop, about 30 miles from the track. He also informed us that some sponsors had kicked in for food and refreshments and strongly urged us to go in and eat to show support for the sponsors. Well, that all sounded like a lot of fun, but I still felt very uneasy about wasting any time. The forecasted rain blowing in was weighing heavy on me. I just wanted to hightail it out of here and get to Bristol as quick as I could.
Jim Forbes a.k.a. “Hemi Squirrel” and I had a little powwow to contemplate the best route. Hemi Squirrel likes to do everything the old-school way. It’s obvious just by looking at his early funny car re-creation, which he named “Almost Funny”. Everything on it is era correct. He’s running points in the thing, old-fashioned homemade wheelie bars and everything else vintage that he can possibly do. So it wasn’t surprising to me that he shuns GPS, and unfolded a printed map on the slender fender top of Almost Funny. And what an extraordinarily fortunate occurrence that turned out to be!

fixing ehaust gasket.jpgswoopy headers.jpghemi squirrel burnout.JPGhemi squirrel with hemi motor.jpg
Last edited by Hemi_Joel; 11/19/20 11:22 PM.

[img]http://i.imgur.com/boeexFms.jpg[/img]
31 Plymouth Coupe, 392 Hemi, T56 magnum
RS23J71
RS27J77
RP23J71
RO23J71
WM21J8A
I don't regret the things I've done. I only regret the things I didn't do.
"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something. ~ Plato"
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: Hemi_Joel] #2848904
11/20/20 05:48 AM
11/20/20 05:48 AM
Joined: Feb 2014
Posts: 234
Brisvegas, Australia
A
Alchemi Offline
enthusiast
Alchemi  Offline
enthusiast
A

Joined: Feb 2014
Posts: 234
Brisvegas, Australia
Ahh and the subtle art of the cliff hanger......

Doing great man, keep it up smile

Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: Alchemi] #2848988
11/20/20 11:19 AM
11/20/20 11:19 AM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 7,471
Minnesota
Hemi_Joel Offline OP
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Hemi_Joel  Offline OP
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Originally Posted by Alchemi
Ahh and the subtle art of the cliff hanger......

Doing great man, keep it up smile


The good fortune predicted in this cliff hanger did not reveal itself to us for another 8 hours, so sorry, you'll have to hang for a while! whistling wave


[img]http://i.imgur.com/boeexFms.jpg[/img]
31 Plymouth Coupe, 392 Hemi, T56 magnum
RS23J71
RS27J77
RP23J71
RO23J71
WM21J8A
I don't regret the things I've done. I only regret the things I didn't do.
"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something. ~ Plato"
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: Hemi_Joel] #2849483
11/21/20 11:42 AM
11/21/20 11:42 AM
Joined: Apr 2003
Posts: 3,496
Tulsa, Oklahoma
340Cuda Offline
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340Cuda  Offline
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Tulsa, Oklahoma
I am really enjoying this Joel, please keep it going.

Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: 340Cuda] #2849810
11/22/20 02:08 AM
11/22/20 02:08 AM
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Posts: 7,471
Minnesota
Hemi_Joel Offline OP
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Google maps insisted that it knew the best and shortest way to get from our location to Bristol Tennessee, and it made sense to me. Everybody else I checked with was planning to go that way, the least number of miles. But Hemi Squirrels printed map told a different story. When you look at Google maps, all the roads look about the same, and many of the roads that it is not routing you on disappear altogether. On the printed map, the Google recommended route looked like a little cow path, and parts of it looked like a malaria germ. Squirrel pointed out another way on the map that looked like it was all interstate and four-lane divided highway.

Yesterday, driving from Darlington to Charlotte, we had a lot of stop and go and city/suburb type traffic light stuff. I was tired of that for a couple of reasons. One of them was the heat. The hemi coop has a single layer sheet aluminum floor and firewall, with no padding, insulation, carpet, or anything like that. As long as we were moving down the road with the windows open, it was reasonably comfortable inside. But when we had to sit there lined up in traffic, separated from the hot pavement and the hot exhaust system by just a layer of .032 aluminum, my feet were baking. The other thing is the McLeod soft lock clutch. It has an unsprung hub, and a solid sintered iron disc. When you dump the clutch at high rpm on the race track, it slips a little bit at first to cushion the drive train. But at low rpm leaving a stoplight on the street, it’s kind of like an on/off switch. And something in my throttle linkage slipped on the road trip as well, ramping the idle RPM up to about 1700. I didn’t feel like getting out and fixing it in the middle of the heat, humidity, and busy traffic. I figured I’d do it at the hotel after I’d had a chance to cool off. So anyway, the 1700 RPM idle and the on/off switch clutch made driving in traffic a pain.

All of that considered, Hemi Squirrels suggestion of taking the longer, interstate route rather than the windy little two-lane cow path sounded like the perfect plan!
But first we had to go visit the mandatory checkpoint, Pat Musi racing. I was actually looking forward to that, some free food and refreshments would taste good right about now. Plus I needed to pick up some Valvoline VR-1 racing oil and I figured they would probably have some. After finishing the exhaust gasket swap and getting everything packed up we made the 30 mile trip to the checkpoint.

Greeted by a full parking lot at Musi's, I found a spot along the edge of the property, next to the neighbors retaining wall and parked there hoping that nobody would object. Soon afterward, Billy's Plymouth found a spot right behind me. I decided to make a beeline for the chow line 1st, then decide if we wanted to take any time to tour the shop. Probably not. Eat and run, beat the rain! I went inside and started searching for the food, but unfortunately it didn't exist. It was hard to find any staff to question about it, but finally I found a guy who said the food was long gone, we were too late. And they didn't have any Valvoline VR-1 racing oil that I needed either. Moseying outside, there were tons of other DW cars there, jamming the parking lot. There was a guy using a concrete pad out behind to swap a transmission, there was a couple cars in the shop, and various wrench fests scattered throughout the premises. Including Hemi Squirrel with the valve covers off. Apparently, the Hemi was getting noisy, and he found that the lash had opened up significantly. uh-oh...

COUPE AT MUSI SHOP.jpgcoop and mopar billy car.jpgsquirrel cage at musi shop.jpghemi squirrel engine.jpg

[img]http://i.imgur.com/boeexFms.jpg[/img]
31 Plymouth Coupe, 392 Hemi, T56 magnum
RS23J71
RS27J77
RP23J71
RO23J71
WM21J8A
I don't regret the things I've done. I only regret the things I didn't do.
"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something. ~ Plato"
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: JERICOGTX] #2849987
11/22/20 03:43 PM
11/22/20 03:43 PM
Joined: Nov 2020
Posts: 1
FCDSCS
R
rajputaman04 Offline
member
rajputaman04  Offline
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R

Joined: Nov 2020
Posts: 1
FCDSCS
I heard his name over the p.a., and wondered if that was the Jay Brown I had known. I found him in the pits, we talked about old times, he explained Drag Week to me, I told him what I had been up to in FAST racing. We exchanged numbers and hung out together a bit. He lives about 20 miles away from me. Then the drag week trunk monkey thing started in 07.

Last edited by moparts; 06/22/22 09:35 PM.
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: Hemi_Joel] #3052858
06/24/22 12:57 AM
06/24/22 12:57 AM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 7,471
Minnesota
Hemi_Joel Offline OP
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Hemi_Joel  Offline OP
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"Almost Funny" was Squirrels first Hemi, he was much more familiar with Chevys, so he asked my advice on why the lash would be opening up. I told him, it’s basically the same as any other engine. Could be a lifter or a lobe going away, or pushrod cups, rockers, adjusters, valve tips, etc. I suggested that we pull the oil filter and go into the shop and borrow an oil filter cutter to dissect it, looking for debris. I took the filter in and started asking staff for an oil filter cutter, and after about 20 minutes of searching, they determined that they didn’t have one. Now that surprised me, in a big fancy shop like that. But we did find a guy who cut it open with a band saw. While he was cutting, I was checking out the mountain motors. 9 hundredsomething cubic inches!
Nothing funny was found in the filter media of Almost Funny. The pushrod tips and the rockers were normal color, no sign of bluing from heat. He had a lot of dough in the Hemi, and didn’t want to destroy it, just to try and finish. But the thought of dropping out and the logistics of getting the car back to Atlanta was not appealing, either. Squirrel didn’t know what he should do.
Comradery and helping other racers in need is woven into the fabric of Drag Week. You don’t bail on your friends when they need help. I wanted to stick around and help him dig into it further, so he could make the right decision. BUT, Hurricane Florence was charging in from the east. Heavy rains would be here soon, and I only had the DOT slicks. And I still needed to find oil and drive to Bristol. We had to outrun the rain. If we stuck around for 2 more hours, or even ½ hour, we might not make it to Bristol. So Squirrel was not the only one with a heavy decision to make…

squirrel.jpgjoel w motor.jpgjeff.jpg

[img]http://i.imgur.com/boeexFms.jpg[/img]
31 Plymouth Coupe, 392 Hemi, T56 magnum
RS23J71
RS27J77
RP23J71
RO23J71
WM21J8A
I don't regret the things I've done. I only regret the things I didn't do.
"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something. ~ Plato"
Re: 2018 Drag Week story, Hemi Joel version [Re: Hemi_Joel] #3052864
06/24/22 03:00 AM
06/24/22 03:00 AM
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 7,471
Minnesota
Hemi_Joel Offline OP
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Hemi_Joel  Offline OP
master

Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 7,471
Minnesota
Most of the racers were hitting the road for Bristol by now. I told Hemi Squirrel that if I could do anything to help him stay in the race, I would stay and help. But I explained my situation with no rain tires, and that if he was going to drop out, I needed to hit the road pronto. He said he wanted to think it over for a while. "There is a whole shop full of help and tools right here. I can tap them for help if I need any. You guys just go, I’ll be OK.” I felt like I was abandoning him, but reluctantly we fired up the coupe and hit the road for an O’Reilly’s that I had phoned and found some Valvoline VR1 racing oil.
After that we got on I-77 north, and traffic was heavy and slow. Then turned west on I-81 towards Bristol, were we got jammed up for miles of stop and go traffic. Could this be the hurricane evacuation traffic jam? Would we have 200 miles of this? Would we run out of gas? Since we were expecting to be fed at the checkpoint, we hadn’t eaten lunch and we were both starving. Thankfully, after about 10 miles, the traffic jam ended, the shifter on the T56 Mag-a-num (that’s how they pronounce it in the Carolinas, 3 syllables) found its way into 6th gear, and me, the Trunk Monkey and the HemiCoupe were putting the miles behind us in rapid fashion! The sky was overcast, the air was hot and muggy, but no rain yet. I was thinking about Hemi Squirrel. Did he throw in the towel, or was he going to drive it and see what happened? Should I have stayed to help him longer? I’d find out sooner or later.
Conspicuously absent were all the other Drag Weekers. We hadn't seen anyone at all since Musi's shop. We should have caught up to some of the 55 mph guys by now.
With our starving bellys, we decided to stop at a gas station, top off the tank and grab some snacks to hold us till dinner. I exited the interstate and wheeled the coupe into the nearest gas station. Oh-oh, yellow bags on all the pump handles! They must be out of gas because of the hurricane! We go inside to at least find some snacks and I asked the Mideastern attendant where can I get some gas? “Oh, ve haf gas.” Well how come all the pumps are bagged? “vell, tose are bthoken. Tea vun on ze end still verks” So I drove the coupe over to the one working dispenser and prayed that a station owner who was to cheep to fix his 19 broken handles wasn’t selling something other than good, clean, fresh gasoline.
It was clear sailing the rest of the way to the hotel in Bristol. This was a decent hotel, and in fairly close proximity to the track, so with us being late to leave Charlette, I figured the parking lot would be full of Drag Week cars. But no, we were one of only 2 or 3. I was out in the parking lot, making a trip out to the car for my luggage after checking in, when Jeff comes out and says I need to get into the lobby to see someone. I head in, and Brian Lohnes and David Freiberger are there. So we chatted with them for a bit, and I’m sure the Trunk Monkey cracked a few bathroom jokes at my expense as usual, then we all got back to what we were doing.
There was a bar on the premises with bar food, but I decided to get my work done first. I checked the lash, and changed the oil. Another Drag Weeker, Clark Rosenstangle had arrived with a well equipped trailer, and he kindly lent me a drain pan. Thankfully, the lash was again rock solid, not a change since the beginning. I had a cloth tool bag full of new spark plugs, and my gapping tools and a side cutter, so I decided to bring that into the bar and work on it while I was eating to save time. I went up to the room and cleaned up, and then went downstairs for a beer and some chow. Jeff was at the bar sitting next to a couple guys, and I knew he was on at least his 3rd beer. I can always tell when he gets to number 3, because that’s when his pointer finger comes out, and he points at whoever he is talking to, as his finger bounces up and down in rhythm with what he is saying. It was a conversation I didn’t want to get sucked into at the time, so I walked past them and ordered a beer and some wings. “Sorry, the kitchen closed at ten. Have some peanuts.” Lohnes and Freiberger were at a table by the other end of the bar. I walked past them and said hello, but didn’t want to chance being an interloper so I sat down a few tables away and went to work on my spark plugs. They started asking me questions about the 8 carbs on the HemiCoupe, as they had been speculating about it all week in the tower. Pretty soon they were over at my table, and I gave them the straight scoop about the intake being one of 15 built by Vic Edelbrock SR, and the carbs are Holly 94’s not Stromberg 97’s, etc. And I spilled the beans about the 4.525” stroker crank and fessed up the 468 cubes. They showed some genuine enthusiasm for the car, which means a lot to me considering all the stuff they see.
After a while, I went back to the parking lot to change the plugs and secure the coupe for the night. Drag week cars had been filtering in with horror stories about the strenuous drive on a narrow, twisting goat trail of a road through the mountains in the dark and pouring rain. Most had left Charlotte before us, but here they were, filtering in hours later. It was the route. Not everybody made it, there had been a crash…

tennessee.jpgDale duster at track.jpg

[img]http://i.imgur.com/boeexFms.jpg[/img]
31 Plymouth Coupe, 392 Hemi, T56 magnum
RS23J71
RS27J77
RP23J71
RO23J71
WM21J8A
I don't regret the things I've done. I only regret the things I didn't do.
"Wise men talk because they have something to say; fools because they have to say something. ~ Plato"
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