Drag Racing Scene Summer 2017

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My Favorite Day: Three Generations

M

y favorite drag racing day came from my family that consists of four generations of drag racers. My grandfather, Russ Silvey, competed in one of the earliest versions of the Factory Experimental class. My father, Butch, ran a string of gassers ranging from B/Gas to AA/Gas with his straight axle Henry J or Anglia race cars. Me, I jumped into the sport right after college and moved to California to be involved with jet cars and movie production vehicles.

Coming back home and marrying my high school sweetheart didn’t stop me from building a moonlight chassis shop and my own 9-second tube chassis Chevette. Laurie and I jumped into the magazine business and took an active role in the implication of junior drag racing. Why? Because of our son, Christopher, the fourth generation Silvey of drag racing.

This culmination of our drag racing family brings us to my favorite day on a December evening at Orlando Speedworld Dragway in Florida, back in 2004.

We decided to take our new dragster for testing near my parents’ home and make a day at the ‘strip a family event.

It was a busy day of new race car maintenance. My father, then on crutches due to his failing health, looked spry, offering an opinion and telling stories of race days past. It all seemed to make his pain disappear. There was a spine-tingling point between our test passes where my sister popped up with a camera and said, “This looks like a Kodak moment.” As I agreed to gather up my father and son, I became overwhelmed on the inside. We gathered around the dragster and, literally, I silently told myself, ‘This is my favorite day.’

What probably drove these memories deeper into my soul was losing my dad not long after that day.

Like an old image, sound, or smell, something can trigger memories in a moment’s notice. This photograph surfaced recently and hit me like a ton of bricks.

One of the memories bringing the biggest smile to my face was the first full pass by my son in the car that signified his graduation from Junior Dragster to the big stuff. I was ready in the pits to high-five him as he stood up out of the cockpit. What made it the most memorable was seeing my dad also poised and ready to place his hand on my shoulder as I congratulated my boy.

As an odd term of endearment, my dad always used the word “attaboy” as a compliment. (You did an attaboy job mowing the yard). At the end of the this day, my dad said: “This was an attaboy day,” with a big smile on his face. Despite my father’s frail body, his adrenaline was evident when he asked to drive my dually and trailer back to his home. He wanted to contribute to the busy day. To make him happy, I responded, “That’s great Dad. Attaboy, I’m tired.” DRS We asked each Drag Racing Scene columnist to remember their “favorite day” in this issue. Each columnist will give their own take on the concept. I hope their stories bring out the feelings mine did for me. The topic is transcending across all Xceleration Media titles, so make sure to check out One Dirt, Street Rod Life and Power and Performance News, as well.

Do you have a favorite day to share? An accomplishment, day with friends, family, or? Go to DragRacingScene.com, search for our “My Favorite Day” page and, share with us.

2 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

Staff Operations Director Shawn Brereton Editorial Director Senior Tech Editor Tech Editor

Todd Silvey Jeff Smith Richard Holdener

Copy Editor

Cindy Bullion

Production

Hailey Douglas

Art Todd Silvey Contributors Lisa Collier Mike Galimi Brandon Flannery Chris Simmons Laurie Silvey Clay Millican Michelle Furr Bryan Epps Roger C. Johnson Patrick Perry Tami Eggleston Mary Lendzion Advertising/Subscriptions Ivan Korda Jon Ertz John Nichols For advertising inquiries call 901.260.5910

.Drag Racing Scene is published quarterly to promote the growth of drag racing as well as recognize the parts and services from participating manufacturers. The magazine consists of dedicated information from partner companies with the mission of disseminating unfiltered editorial on companies, products and services directly to drag racing participants and fans.

Editorial content and advertisements for each issue can originate from partner companies participating in the magazine.

Drag Racing Scene is a hybrid of content that was originally published at DragRacingScene.com and original content that was created for this quarterly print magazine. Magazine distribution occurs through direct distribution from parent company Xceleration Media and partner companies.

Drag Racing Scene is a property of Xceleration Media. No part of this magazine may be reproduced without written consent from Xceleration Media.

All rights reserved. Printed in the USA.

Cover ON THE

Sonee Hall in his “Sunshine Express” Anglia as part of the Southeast Gassers Association - Mike Slade photo.

Jamie Stanton makes his own light show at Lights Out 8 - Bryan Epps photo.

My Favorite Day: A heck of a memorable weekend

W

hen I was in my second year in IHRA Top Fuel, the International Hot Rod Association was huge. Top Fuel had Jim Bailey running the Snap-On dragster, which was the team car to Doug Herbert. Paul Romine was driving the Carquest dragster, and Bruce Litton was in the Lucas Oil car.

The year was 2001, the race was the World Nationals at Norwalk, and we had just won the three previous races. I was completely hyped up going into the event.

We had already won the championship at that point, and I was on fire! It was always a big deal to race Norwalk, but on this particular day, my Uncle, Jimmy Hayes, had come to the event with my nephew, Nathan Williamson, so I was looking forward to the entire weekend.

Both my boys, Cale and Dalton, were also with us. That wasn’t so unusual, since they had been coming with us to the races since before they were born. But, they were staying with Unk and Nathan this time.

Donna and I felt like we were on our own, and that part was unique.

Unk had rented a motorhome, and the boys thought it was cool; they felt like they were camping out. They were having fun playing, and I was worried about them getting into somebody’s way. The motorhome was parked on the opposite side of the track, so I had the Dad thing going: What are they doing? Are they running wild? Of course, they were.

On Friday, Unk took all three boys over to Cedar Point Amusement Park, just a short drive away from Norwalk Raceway Park. I’m a racer, so I was thinking about the race ahead, but they went on nonstop about Unk taking them to Cedar Point.

Dalton was still a little guy at that time, but saw himself as one of the big kids. When the group returned from Cedar Point, Cale and Nathan were on cloud nine, but Dalton was mad as an old wet hen. He was short like his daddy and his mama, but he never saw any difference between himself and someone three to four years older. While at the park, the kids were super excited about a relatively new ride. Dalton couldn’t meet the height requirement, so he had to sit that one out while the big kids

rode. Despite having fun on nearly every other ride, that was the one that stuck in his craw, and he held onto his mad feeling for the entire weekend.

As the race progressed, we beat Jim Head in the final round. He was one of the biggest names in IHRA racing at the time. It was unbelievable to me that “holy crap! We have won four races in a row.” All I had ever thought of was driving one of those beasts. I never once considered winning, and here we were leading the points in just my second year with IHRA. It turned into six consecutive championships, starting with that race season.

What made it my favorite day was not just the win; it was not just the fact that I beat Jim Head.

I kept thinking all day long “how cool is it going to be to win with all three boys here.” The favorite part of that day was having my family in the winner circle.

It was a heck of a memorable weekend with Unk renting the motorhome and staying at the track, and then going out and beating Jim Head. Jim was one of the baddest, most innovative dudes ever in racing, so to have all my family there to see that particular win was special.

The family celebration went on into the evening, but was not of the adult kind. We probably bought a truckload of ice cream at the famous Norwalk ice cream stand at a dollar per pound. I was also super happy that Unk was there, and I never had to stand in that ice cream line myself.

The moment I was asked to write about my favorite day of racing, I knew which photo I was going to be using for the story. It was not just the one day; it was everything that leads up to the moment. DRS

I kept thinking all day long “how cool is it going to be to win with all three boys here.” The favorite part of that day was having my family in the winner circle.

Clay Millican is a 6-Time IHRA World Champion Top Fuel dragster driver who now plies his trade as the driver of the Parts Plus/Great Clips T/F dragster in the NHRA. You can follow Clay’s exploits throughout the season at claymillican.com. @claymillican @claymillican Clay Millican @stringerracing @stringerracing Stringer Performance DragRacingScene.com 3

In This Issue Drag Racing Scene Vol. 3, Issue 2

Features

24 30 CHUCK SEITSINGER 38 IT’S A GAS, GAS, GAS 48 ALAHOUANA PASSION INTO 56 TURNING YOUR CAREER LIGHTS OUT 8

Performance • Pandemonium • Phenomena Exclusive interview with Street Outlaws stand-out A look at the Southeast Gasser Association Hawaiian for Resurrection

Leading industry professionals tell you how

68 SCOTT AND LAURA GARDNER 74 FATHER, SON, AND THE WALL 82 JUST RIGHT 86 DRAGSTRIP DEMON 90 IT’S A LOVE-HATE RELATIONSHIP Continue to rise as leading promoters

Steve and Dallas Wilson photography team Numidia Dragway filling a $$$ purse niche The factory Dodge Demon runs in the 9s Mike Boccella’s Camaro

4 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

20

Running Light

24

Lights Out 8 Performance Pandemonium Phenomena

70

38 INDEX RACING WITH MUSCLE 44 Northeast Index Racers Association Jeff Smith on air/fuel tuning for racing

Vendor Midway

38

It’s a Gas, Gas, Gas!

E6 CD Ignition w/Dual Stage Rev Limiter & E92 Coil FAST ... 62 Dual Rear Brake Kits Aerospace........................................... 63

SR50 Conventional 20W-50 Racing Motor Oil Driven ....... 63 40-150 Spark Plug Wire Set QuickCar Racing Products ..... 64 Exhaust Gas/Cylinder Head Gauges Classic Instruments .. 64 Ultra-Gold ARC Shaft-Mount Rockers COMP Cams ............ 65 Expanded Selection of Metric Bolts ARP ............................. 66 Big Bore Bearing Case for 9-inch Ford Mark Williams ....... 66 Hardline Sealing Tool Koul Tool ........................................... 66 Signature Series Blower Crank Lunati ................................. 67

Tech

20 RUNNING LIGHT 34 TOP OF THE HEAP 44 TUNING FOR RACING 52 ATI’S 4L85E EXPLAINED 70 WHAT’S IN YOUR CRANKCASE? 78 DEFINING TRACTION 88 DIABLO SHIFTER Smaller engine can compete with big dogs

Race-ready junkyard 5.3L and some dyno time Ideal air/fuel ratio for the track

Departments

2

FUEL FOR THOUGHT

Three generations

ON THAT 3 STOMP LOUD PEDAL

A memorable weekend

6 DRAG NEWS

Important happenings in the drag racing world

17 AT THE 18 LIFE DRAGSTRIP

VIDEO REWIND Cool online videos

Taking a risk and following my dream

19 DIGITAL GUIDE

Drag racing apps, sites, and social media

10 TOP ELIMINATOR 94 12 TRACK TESTED IT 95 PUT TO THE TEST 14 IN FOCUS LIFE AT 1320 96 16 BORN TO RACE Daniel Pharris

INSIDE THE HELMET

Elbow grease, effort, and excitement

When the gates just crack open

Featured photography of Carl Skillman

Speed Shield

Names on cars

Perfect storm of victory

An overdrive transmission with brute Turbo 400 pedigree Additives formulate an effective racing oil

Track surface preparation is more of an art than a science The new TCI Diablo Shifter installed

SPECIAL THANKS

The staff of Drag Racing Scene would like to express our sincere gratitude to all the talented photographers that supplied images found in this issue.

Steve Vreatt: cs-motorsports.com Bryan Epps: facebook.com/bryan.epps Mike Galimi: facebook.com/mike.galimi Carl Skillman: facebook.com/carl.skillman Ricky Ritchie: facebook.com/ricky.ritchie.7 Steve Stanley: stevestanleyphotos.com Mike Slade: facebook.com/Mike-Slade-Photography/ Luis Renova: 405photo.smugmug.com Danny Stogner: facebook.com/Danny-Stogner-Photography/ Mike Garland: magic-photos.com Tommy Lee Byrd: facebook.com/byrdphotography DragRacingScene.com 5

Drag News PRESENTED BY

Racer raising cancer awareness Kevin Adams races a ’71 split bumper Camaro set up to help him bring attention to childhood cancer awareness. He’s a leukemia child cancer survivor who wants to give back to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in every possible way.

“Dad used to drive it on the street and then gave me his car when I was 17,” Adams remembers. “That’s when I was diagnosed and unable to race. Now that I’m in remission, anytime we go somewhere, I do what I can to bring attention to childhood Kevin and Candace Adams cancer awareness and raise money for St. Jude.”

The white Camaro is emblazoned with several different St. Jude logos.

Power is provided by a 454 big-block engine, and the car will run 6.70 to 6.80s down the quarter-mile. Adams mainly races at Memphis International Raceway, but enjoys stopping at car

shows and fundraisers too, selling t-shirts to raise money for the children’s hospital.

Adams is an ex-police officer; he shattered his hip on a traffic stop and had to have a total hip replacement done by St. Jude, due to the chemo weakening the bones through the multiple years of treatment. He happily has been in remission from the disease since 2010 after 3 ½ years of treatment for his leukemia. He knows some day he’ll most likely have to have his left hip replaced, as well.

“Years ago, it was around a two percent cure rate,” Adams says. “Now, it’s close to a 98 percent cure rate, so that’s a blessing.”

Adams and his wife, Candace, will continue to spread awareness of childhood leukemia for St. Jude everywhere they race their Camaro.

Exorcist taunts the Demon Dodge’s 840-hp Demon has been receiving a lot of attention these days.

(See the Mike Galimi feature on page 86.) Hennessey Performance is challenging that Hellcat and Demon with their own upgraded Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 aptly named “The Exorcist” (what kills a Demon?). Hennessey boasts a 1000-hp engine at 6,400 rpm and 966 lb-ft of torque at 4,400 rpm.

Upgrades include a larger supercharger, custom induction system, and

6 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

other additions to extract the extra horsepower. There is an optional “drag pack” with drag radial tires, drive shaft upgrade, floor jack, and tool kit.

Purists may say the Dodge Demon is a true “factory” dragstrip supercar, but combining the limited production numbers of the Demon and the fact you can purchase the Camaro Exorcist from any Chevrolet dealership puts these two on an even scale in the factory hot rod wars of today.

The industry loses automotive legend Vic Edelbrock Jr.

The performance industry has lost one of the most iconic innovators, ever. Vic Edelbrock Jr., born in 1936, passed away on June 9, 2017. The 80-year-old icon suffered complications from a recent cold, and a message on the Edelbrock brand Facebook page read: “It’s with deep sadness that we announce the untimely death of our visionary and leader Vic Edelbrock Jr. The Edelbrock Fun Team sends their deepest condolences to his family and will always hold him in our hearts.”

The Edelbrock brand started in 1933 when Vic Edelbrock Sr. opened a repair shop in Beverly Hills. Before too long, Edelbrock cars were racing in Southern California during the golden age of hot rodding.

Vic Jr. started working in his dad’s shop during the summer at the age of 12, making $2 a day. He would go on to attend the University of Southern California, from which he graduated with a degree in business — this led to him working full time at his dad’s growing company.

A 26-year-old Vic Jr. took over the aftermarket performance company after the sudden passing of his dad in 1962. With only 10 employees and a lot of dreams, Vic Jr. turned the modest operation into one of the largest aftermarket parts companies in the world.

Vic Edelbrock Jr. will be sorely missed, and the whole crew at Xceleration Media sends their condolences to his family and friends.

Xceleration Media Group recently announced that all four of its print magazine titles (Power and Performance News, Drag Racing Scene, Street Rod Life, and OneDirt) are now available through Engine and Performance Warehouse, Inc. (EPWI), as well as through Motorstate Distributing.

Xceleration Media Director of Operations Shawn Brereton was pleased to make the announcement.

“These deals fit perfectly with our targeted distribution strategy,” Brereton said.

“Motorstate Distributing and EPWI are highly-respected names with

our target market – the people who are truly involved in the automotive aftermarket.

Having solid brick-andmortar locations, where people know they can always get the magazines, not only allows us to have a solid distribution point, but provides a level of comfort to potential partners that their message will be seen by high-quality enthusiasts. We pride ourselves on making sure every magazine reaches true enthusiasts, and this proves our commitment to this valuable sector of the market.”

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Insurance uses crash video posted online against racers When a racer crashes his street car at the dragstrip, typically it won’t becovered by standard auto insurance.

Recently surfaced videos have outed people who claimed their accidents happened on the street. Those drivers have since been charged with insurance fraud.

Robert Atlas crashed his Corvette at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Chandler, Arizona, totaling the car.

He turned it into GEICO, claiming the wreck had happened on the exit ramp on I-10 at Wild Horse Pass. He received a check for $61,000 from GEICO, but the on-track wreck was caught by a GoPro video and showed up on YouTube, where insurance investigators found it.

Sources: YouTube

Atlas pled guilty to insurance fraud and received two years probation, as well as restitution and court costs.

Another similar case recently surfaced where investigators founs another video on YouTube. Tim Barnum claimed he had a blowout and hit a center barrier while driving his 2015 Mustang near Lexington, Oklahoma.

He filed a claim with Farmers Insurance and received checks totaling $32,000.

Investigators found an Urban Hillbilly video of the crash on YouTube showing it actually occurred at Thunder Valley Raceway Outlaw Armageddon event.

When confronted with the evidence, he admitted he had been drag racing, but said that Farmers Insurance had never asked him if he drag raced the car. He turned himself into the Oklahoma County Jail.

Drag News PRESENTED BY

Racer loses car then trailer on same day

David Hildebrand, a no prep and Pro Modified racer from Colorado, had an extremely bad day at the No Prep Mayhem held at Kansas International Dragway in mid-April.

In the first run down the track that day in a $10,000 grudge race, his “Da Boogeyman” Pro Mod-style Camaro got loose during a pass against Carl Scott’s “Honey Badger” Chevy II. He crossed the centerline in front of Scott and went back into his own lane, striking the guardrail and barrel-rolling several times before landing upside down. Hildeb-

Source: Facebook

rand was luckily uninjured, but the Camaro was destroyed.

He and the track crew then loaded the totaled Camaro into the trailer, and Hildebrand headed home only to have a fire break out in his trailer later that night. The damaged battery in the racecar is thought to be the cause of the fire, which burned out of control and left his trailer and contents, including the Camaro, completely scorched. All that remained was the pickup truck. Hildebrand returned home to begin reconstruction of his operation.

Dragstrips: Bad News, Good News Sacramento Raceway has been listed for sale. The track has increasingly come under fire from the Sacramento County government for noise complaints, so it may be difficult for a new owner to keep it operating as a drag racing facility. Expectations are that a new buyer, who would spend $11 million to acquire the property, would be developing it for residential or commercial purposes. A new 1,300-acre land development project including Sacramento Raceway Park Source: Facebook

plans for hundreds of new homes and businesses has been reported by multiple news outlets in the area. Since the Sacramento Raceway sits smack dab in the middle of that proposed development, it will most likely close forever.

New London Dragstrip in Kentucky, is also being shut down. The track, which has been around for nearly 60 years, has been a tradition for families in the area. Kelly Powell, who operated the track, said that the insurance safety requirements are just too cost-prohibitive to continue.

This photo shows necessary guardrails needed against the race surface. The property is owned by a local university where it serves dual purpose as a pri8 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

New London Dragway Source: Instagram

vate airport, which means guardrails could not be erected.

Kanawha Valley Dragway in Southside, West Virginia, recently announced it will remain closed until further notice. The ‘strip shut down unexpectedly last August with expectations to reopen. Longtime track operator Tim Bell noted various reasons and will no longer operate the track. The track is reportedly for sale.

New facilities In Onawa, Iowa, a new dragstrip has been 15 years in the making, but recently held their groundbreaking ceremony. Onawa Racing and Events

Complex members have spent years raising funds for the $1.3 million facility that will include soccer, beach volleyball, water sports, and a snowmobile track. Drag racing will be the anchor of the complex, which plans to utilize the runway of the old municipal airport just south of the town as a quarter-mile racetrack. The complex will open for activities and racing in spring 2018.

On the other side of the world in Murray Bridge in South Australia, investors are in the construction phase of The Bend Motorsport Park.

The facility is touted as a motorsports theme park, the complex will have a hotel, an international karting track, drift racing facility and rally cross-stadium as well as South Australia’s only 1/4-mile length dragstrip. In addition, plans include a 400-lot community development that will include a gated community of homes and garages for car lovers.

Onawa Racing and Events Complex

PDRA allowing nitromethane in their Pro Extreme class? Not today The Professional Drag Racers Association recently announced nitromethane as an option in its Pro Extreme doorslammer category, but new info has halted the change for the remainder of 2017.

The Department of Homeland Security regulates the use of nitromethane in the United States, so now users must undergo rigorous screening and meet certain regulations.

Since the new nitro rule option was to go into effect immediately during mid-season, the PDRA has halted the new rules, not permanently, but until further notice.

The class rule update was to allow either injected nitro doorslammers at 98 percent nitro or supercharged nitro engines limited to 40 percent nitro.

Stay tuned to dragracingscene.com for any other developments.

Xceleration Media exceeds 3,000 YouTube videos for gearheads Xceleration Media has well over 3,000 professional videos which have been viewed more than three million minutes by its motorsports and performance-oriented audience through its YouTube Channel.

On the Drag Racing Scene playlists, entertainment includes interviews with Top Fuel

racer Clay Millican, trackside racer features, technical videos, and tons of dragstrip action from across the country. See this big video database spanning across Drag Racing Scene, One Dirt, Power and Performance News, and Street Rod Life magazine. Visit: youtube. com/XcelerationMedia

Center Line Wheels Corporation reportedly ceases operations Founded in 1970 by Ray Lipper, Center Line Wheels was the innovator of the rotary forged wheel. Their facility in Santa Fe Springs, California, produced some of the strongest, lightest wheels racers could buy.

In mid-April, grumblings on the internet began spreading the word that Center Line had closed their doors. Confirmation came from major performance product warehouses the business had ceased production between April 17 and 19.

Since the news has unofficially spread (Still no official corporate release), a huge number of reports are circulating the internet of unfulfilled

custom orders by racers and Centerline phone numbers that go answered.

Nothing has been released as to any entity carrying on with any of the Center Line products or the future of the iconic wheels.

Stay up to date with the latest news at DragRacingScene.com.

Daniel Pharris is winning with some of the baddest machines in the land

D

aniel Pharris’ roots began in Mustang Cobra,” he says. “I was already return to the track after an engine fire footbrake bracket racing across having my new Pro Mod built at Larry caused significant front-end damage southeast Missouri, western Jeffers Race Cars in Missouri. At first, a few weeks earlier at South Georgia Tennessee, and western Kentucky we were going to do Radial vs. the Motorsports Park. during his high school and college World with the Mustang, but now since “We work well together,” Pharris years. Today, he is a leading driver for Andrew called, we have a little bit of says. “Andrew and Chase Driskell, the himself and others spanning multiple the best of both worlds. We are going guy who works on the engine, and I classes like X275, Radial vs. the World to focus on Pro Mod stuff with the 2016 make a very good team. Andrew helps competition, and Pro Modified. on my car, and we work on his car.

“I was hitting big bracket events It’s a friendship that happens to go every weekend,” he says. “In colracing, except instead of going to lege, my buddies wanted to party the lake and grilling, we go racing.” every weekend, but I went home In April, Pharris climbed and bracket raced every weekend. behind the wheel of the gorgeous That’s where it all started for me.”

Corvette at the Radial Revenge He soon noticed some of the Tour at Tulsa Raceway Park. During tracks around him were holding the semi-final pass opposite Keith heads-up street races and thought Haney, the ‘Vette pulled a huge he’d like to give that style of racing wheelstand shortly off the line. a try.

When air got under the car, it lifted “I went to watch some outlaw into the air and flew for several events at Jackson Dragway and feet. Once the nose flew off, the Sikeston Dragstrip and thought it car came back down hard. Pharris would be cool to go 5.20s,” Pharris climbed out of the car quickly and says. “And now, here I am today was thankfully unhurt, but the car going 3.70s.” wasn’t as lucky.

The Sikeston, Missouri, native “We front-halved the car from had recently been competing in Rathe firewall forward, and the whole dial vs. the World competition in his car is being repainted,” he said. “We 1995 Mustang Cobra, and had made also did some carbon fiber work to Daniel Pharris and Kallee Mills stand in the winner’s circle at get a little weight out of it. It’s about a name for himself as a standout. the recent NMCA Bluegrass Nationals at Beech Bend RaceFast forward to 2017. Pharris way Park. A big win for them in the brand new Pro Modified. a month away from being ready started out the year very strong in to hit the track. They’re thrashing his Mustang and then got the call to Mustang and run Radial vs. the World hard on it, and we hope to have it back drive the wild twin-turbo C7 Corvette with Andrew’s Outlaw 10.5 Corvette.” out by June 30 in St. Louis.” belonging to Andrew and Kim Alepa.

Pharris was extremely happy when In addition to driving the Corvette, “When I got the call to drive the he first got the call from Andrew to Pharris also has his 2016 Pro Mod ‘Vette, I had already sold my 1995 drive the Corvette. The car made its Mustang running well.

Pharris’ new 2016 Ford Mustang was recently built by Larry Jeffers Race Cars and sports a twin-turbocharged Hemi within the frame rails.

Photo Courtesy of the NMCA 10 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

Highlighting forerunners of the sport of drag racing whether on or off of the track.

Pharris also shares his driving duties with the wild twin-turbo C7 Corvette belonging to Andrew and Kim Alepa. The Outlaw 10.5 Corvette is currently undergoing reconstruction after a harrowing wheelstand at the Radial Revenge event at Tulsa Raceway Park.

“When you get a Pro Mod and go 3.70 or 3.80 on big tires, you have made it to a professional level of racing,” he says. “In my eyes, whether it is NHRA, PDRA, or NMCA, it is Pro Mod. That is where I wanted to be.

When I was 16 years old running 7.0 in my footbrake car, I said if I could get a toter home, a stacker, and a Pro Mod, I would know I’ve made it. I am very fortunate in my business that it has done well enough that I’ve made it to the point I can buy those things.”

Pharris owns I-74 Auto Parts, a company he started from his college dorm room during 2008. The company is the nation’s largest repairable vehicle dealer; they broker about 2,500 salvageable cars a year from insurance dealers.

Pharris got the new Mustang working quickly and is thrilled with the way things are going with the car.

“The first few races were just figuring things out and tested different things,” he says. “We are fortunate that in just two races, we’ve come as far as we have. We’re slowly working the bugs out and figuring out what it likes and doesn’t like. I’ve got a good team helping me.”

Josh Ledford from Pro Line Race Engines in Georgia is tuning the car for the team.

“He pretty well makes it do what it does,” Pharris says. “Pro Line probably has 15 different clients with Pro Mods, so they know what combination to put in the car. They know what torque

converter and gear ratios to use. They just know. This is what happens when you have all the right people together.

Overall, the car works well. We just need a good track surface and get some good air so that we can really lean on it.”

Pharris’ plans for the Pro Mod for the remainder of 2017 include following the Midwest Pro Mod Series events that Keith Haney has put together at Tulsa Raceway Park, San Antonio Raceway, and Gateway Motorsports Park. Four more races remain in that series this year. He also plans to race the remainder of the NMCA schedule, even though he has missed the start of the season.

“My company is a sponsor of the Midwest Pro Mod Series,” he says.

“We will definitely attend those races.

Between those and the NMCA 1/8 Mile X-Treme Pro Mod series, we will have a good schedule. We missed the first two races with NMCA, but you can drop one race for points. So, we’ve only missed one race, and we’ve won one. My goal is to win the next three NMCA races. We have the hardware and the car to do it. And the people on my team too. We are going to be working hard to figure this thing out and be a frontrunner everywhere we go. That is where I want to be.”

Daniel Pharris is taking his driving record in the Outlaw and Pro Modified worlds and has become a racer to watch in the near and long-term future.” DRS

The Drag Racing Scene website contains images, videos, and racing coverage about Daniel and his racing accomplishements, search “Daniel Pharris” at DragRacingScene.com.

My Favorite Day: When the gates just crack open

I

t is hard to believe, but I’ve recently surpassed 25 years as a drag racing enthusiast and am approaching nearly 20 years as a writer and photographer in the segment. To say I’ve had amazing days and experiences is an understatement; it has been a true dream come true to have my career tied to drag racing.

Through those years, I’ve had the unique experience to be involved in so many different elements of the sport, from testing the latest parts and pieces from manufacturers, to being a witness to many of the biggest moments in street legal drag racing and outlaw history. So, to select a single day of pride and enjoyment is very difficult. Instead, I will describe my favorite day that seems to happen all the time, year in and year out.

I am like a little kid, still. No matter how many events I’ve attended, there is still the thrill and anticipation of what is to come at a major race. Since this is my full-time job, I have the opportunity to travel to an event weekend early, meaning I can get there when the gates are cracked open and the rigs start to roll in. This excitement comes during the early season events like Lights Out or NMRA Spring Break Shootout, or when I roll into a race that I’ve never attended, like Drag Week last year, when I experienced it for the first time. The fun for me is watching the cars get unloaded and rolled into the public view.

Some folks might say social media ruins the surprise, since everyone tends to see new cars before they debut.

Looking at photos is great, but experiencing the cars firsthand is far better.

As a new vehicle rolls out of the trailer, I love to just walk around it and look at the details — the chassis design, how the electronics are installed, and even how the power adder is packaged. You get to talk with the car owners or builders and go over their handiwork.

The feeling goes away as the season wears on, but by then, the thrill of competition takes over. But, for those opening hours of the big events and season kickoffs, I love walking around, enjoying the new cars, looking for changes on the veteran racecars, and just walking andtalking about the latest technologies that are going to be big that season.

12 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

The joy of “setup day” began in the mid-’90s when my brothers and I would travel to the biggest Mustang races. It became front and center in our trip to the first-ever World Ford Challenge in 1998 — before the Internet ruined the surprise — and the Pro 5.0 racers would pull out brand new cars as crowds formed around the trailers. Rumors and small talk of who was building what would come to reality when the door cracked open.

Racers like Don Walsh Jr. would always bring a new car to World Ford Challenge, first in 1999 with his yellow notchback and a wild nitrous-injected small-block Ford that looked more of a science project than a race engine. Then there was “Krazy Jon” Yates and his Radical Racing Pro 5.0 ride. His shtick was to update his paint job every year. But calling it a paint job would be inaccurate; he would hire an artist to paint his car every season. At that time, the technology and chassis designs were very rapidly changing, so the fun was to see the latest and greatest Pro 5.0 rides.

Even as race car advancements have slowed down considerably compared to those early years, my favorite day is always setup day with the anticipation of new cars and the ontrack excitement to come. DRS

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200 motorcycle race. I’d love to go back and do all three events again.

I’m enjoying every moment of shooting for Drag Racing Scene magazine now.

CARL SKILLMAN PHOTOS

How did you start in motorsports photography?

It wasn’t until my best friend, Steve Vreatt, moved back to Pennsylvania from Atlanta that I turned my interests to drag racing.

We scheduled our vacations around racing events. Then, we met Evan Jones, a marketing guy for Maple Grove Raceway, at a local car show. He introduced us to Fave Harris of Speed Channel. Pinks All Out was the first race I covered for Speed Channel.

I’ve been fortunate to attend the Indy Nationals, Bonneville Salt Flats for Speedweek, and Ireland for the Northwest

14 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

How long have you been a photographer?

I started taking pictures when I was in high school, back when cameras used roll film and you went to the local pharmacy to get your pictures developed.

I mostly took photos at family picnics and birthdays. I’ve been a freelance photographer since 2009.

What sets your photography apart from others?

Every racing event is an adventure. I use my smaller lens to take the usual burnout shots and cars launching. I also use

my Sigma 150-600 mm sport lens to get the same shots, but from a more straight-on perspective.

I am always looking for a new vantage point. I like to shoot the finish line to get cars pulling their chutes, and I go into the pits to grab candid shots of drivers working on the cars.

I make it a point to shoot one round of racing from the stands to get side-by-side racing action. I enjoy getting the different angles at each race I attend.

What equipment do you use?

Most of my camera equipment is Canon, except for one Sigma lens. I use a Canon 5d MK II and an IDX camera body. I have a Canon 600 EX/RT Speedlite flash for night shots. For lenses, I use a 24-70 mm f2.8 for

close-up and pit shots, and my Sigma 150-600 mm sport lens is great for burnouts and launch shots. I also have a 70-200 mm f2.8 for side-byside shots.

If you had your choice, what would be the car you would most like to shoot?

I don’t really have a specific car in mind, but it would be capturing an exciting action shot. I would like to get that one shot when a body blows off, or an engine explodes, or a car crosses the center line.

Those are the moments that nobody forgets, like that photo that no other photographer got.

Cs-motorsports.com/ carl.skillman

For even more info and pics, search “Carl Skillman” at DragRacingScene.com.

DragRacingScene.com 15

My Favorite Day: The perfect storm of victory

W

hen I learned each of the columnists would be giving our interpretation of our favorite day, my mind raced. I thought about my children’s first finals, seeing my dad win races, and the day my husband, Rick, won and runner-upped in two classes. The day I won two finals at one national event is another favorite, and then, there’s my favorite year when my daughter, Madi, and I each went to more than 18 final round appearances in the year she was 18.

It is impossible to narrow it down to only one favorite day, but I will share with you one of my first favorite days at the track. It was the weekend of July 17, 2005. We had decided to start throttle stop racing after having only competitively raced at local bracket races.

We began our class racing journey traveling further than we ever had gone to race.

This weekend, we would make our first trip to Milan, Michigan, for the Motor City Nationals, and we were going alone. The kids were just babies, so they stayed with grandparents.

The race started with a first-round win. We went up for the second round, and my heart sank as my win light didn’t come on. I thought of all the work Rick put into us getting there; we traveled so far, and I had let us down. I drove back to the pits and reluctantly got out of the car. As I shut the door, I caught a glimpse of the yellow Camaro from the other lane drive past.

I hesitated as I remembered listening to all the amazing stories of some of the best IHRA racers like Glenn Ferguson, Shannon Waycaster, Steve and John Furr (no relation), waiting to see if their opponent scaled, or being reinstated when opponents couldn’t pass tech. It was way more technical back then, but it was good.

I asked Rick if he saw Tim Shuck go by, and he said yes.

I knew he couldn’t have scaled since the scales were on the other side of the track. The officials had walked through the lanes telling every driver to scale if they won that round. I jumped on the scooter and drove up to ask ‘what if my guy didn’t scale.’ Bob Stinnett radioed into his mic “Tim Shuck is dq’d for failure to scale, car #968 Michelle Furr reinstated.” I raced over to tell Rick.

We had developed a close friendship with Clay Millican and were parked along the fence on the top end when Clay did his blow over. It looked awful. It seemed like for16 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

ever before we heard he was alive and being transported to the hospital.

Rick and I rode up to the entrance and asked Gary Bingham if Clay was going to be okay. I impulsively asked Gary to tell Clay I was going to win the race for him. Gary obliged, and Clay gave me a thumbs-up as the doors closed on the ambulance. I have no doubt they thought I was crazy since I had been racing Hot Rod a few short months and had not even won a divisional race, let alone a national event.

Every round, my win light came on, until I was in the final. It was my 38th birthday and an all-female final.

I will never forget the feeling of watching for my bulb to illuminate in that right lane. When it did, I screamed and screamed. I pulled off the track and tried not to run over the celebratory crowd as I was determined to find those scales. Gary Bingham leaned over the front hood of the car shouting, “Look what you have done!” I got out of the car, and there were many hugs, smiles, and tears.

Rick came flying up, grabbed me, and twirled me through the air! We called the kids, and they repeated “Mommie won, Mommie won!” and my parents were thrilled. We had talked to our family and friends back home. Galen Biggs left the most amazing message for us, screaming his excitement, and letting us know he wouldn’t be able to go to sleep now!

Hank and Shirley Blankenship joined in the celebration, letting me know they heard a loud shrieking noise from the trees at staging and were ready to dispatch rescue when they saw Rick come riding out through there on the scooter, screaming his excitement! I didn’t know Clay had returned to the track and was in the tower as Aaron Polburn announced to everyone I had said I was winning the race that day.

Howie, Hank, Danny, and the others were good sports when I asked them to take a photo with the Iron Man. Clay and Aaron met us in the winner circle for photos.

We went on to finish seventh in the IHRA National points that year, most definitely one of my favorite days in my racing career. DRS See more on the Furr family racing team and supporting parthers on the Furr Racing Facebook page at: FurrRacing

Video Rewind

RACING / PRODUCT / ENTERTAINMENT

To watch all the videos below, head to:

DragRacingScene.com/video-rewind Exclusive interview with Clay Millican Grudge race crash

First pass down the track at the No Prep Mayhem race in Wichita, Kansas saw David Hildebrand destroy his “Da Boogeyman” Camaro in a $10,000 grudge race in this 1320 Video. See Drag News, page 8, for the rest of the story about this unfortunate racer’s nightmare weekend.

Ben Shelton sat down with Clay Millican to talk about his team, his expectations, and his son, Dalton Millican. See the indepth three-part video on Drag Racing Scene’s video channel.

Corvette crash at Tulsa Raceway Park

Daniel Pharris was in Andrew Alepa’s gorgeous Twin Turbo Corvette in a pass during the Radial Revenge event at Tulsa Raceway Park when the car took flight mid-track.

Daniel walked away but the car had a rough landing, with the whole thing caught

by Urban Hillbilly Videos. See more about Daniel Pharris in our Top Eliminator feature on page 10.

For original content, head over to DragRacingScene.com/videos.

EXCLUSIVE CONTENT

Are you four-wide gasser cool?

One of the coolest things we’ve seen in a long time: A group of AA/Gassers lined up four abreast during the NHRA Four-wide Nationals at ZMax Dragway in North Carolina on April 30.

DRS chats with Don Lamana at OSCR IV

Drag Racing Scene talked with several racers about their cars during the Outlaw Street Car Reunion IV in March at Memphis International Raceway. Don Lamana tells us about his racing and plans for the 2017 season.

DragRacingScene.com 17

My Favorite Day: Taking a risk and following my dream

W

hen the editor gave us ideas for our next column, event was ready to kick off on Friday. We managed to get he suggested we go the route of describing our some racing in before the rain came once again and endfavorite day in racing. After 30 years in the business, ed the entire weekend – again. I guess at that point, IHRA it’s obviously a little tough to narrow it down to one, but I hadn’t lost enough money and decided to try it for the will certainly never forget one particular day in 1991. third time.

At the age of 21, it had become very clear to me what I Now came the problem; I started running out of money wanted to do for a living, but at the time I still had a decent and wasn’t going to be able to afford to stay another week in job with full benefits in Ohio. I was already freelancing at a hotel. Additionally, my boss wasn’t going to be happy if I three to four IHRA National events each year, and the secdidn’t show up for work Monday. So, my favorite day in life ond race of the season was coming up in Baton Rouge. It was becoming the biggest dilemma for me. Should I stay and was going to be the longest drive I had ever made for a race, go after my dream or risk getting fired from my real job. I did but I decided to make the 17-hour trip. I don’t recall much what everyone involved in racing does and went for broke. about the drive other than the two uncomfortable nights After hanging out at the track for two weeks, I had started spent sleeping in my Dodge Daytona, lying next to a fold-up getting to know some of the drivers. That was the first time I 6-foot ladder. had met racer Randy Moore, driver of the Pro Mod LamboI arrived for the Cajun Nationals with perfect weather at rghini. One thing led to another, and he offered me to stay that time. What I had failed to look at was the weekend forewith him all week, since his crew had gone back home. cast, since we didn’t yet have phones with weather apps. I arThat began another week of eating Cajun food and ridrived at the track on Thursday to start taking orders. ing around doing displays with one of his crew members Since I was still a freelancer, I had to pay a fee to gain named Crusher. Don’t let the name fool you; he weighs permission to sell photos.

When I went over to pay Billy Cunningham, he told me we had a problem. The first thing that went through my mind was someone made a mistake at the office, and I was going home.

Little did I know I was going to be asked to be the official IHRA photographer for this event because they didn’t have anyone else coming. I do wish someone had taken a picture of my face, because those were the words I was working so hard to hear. That was my favorite day in my life, and no one could do or say anything that would change that, almost no one.

Entering our third week for a rain date, I started running out of money. Randy Moore, driver of the Pro Mod I went back to taking orLamborghini offered me to stay with him all week. Little did I know I was going to be asked to be the official ders and made some phone IHRA photographer for this event because they didn’t have anyone else coming. calls to tell my family and friends the good news. Then, Friday came, and as it hapabout 98 lbs. We survived the week, but since the things we pens so often in my life, so did the rain. It came down hard did may still get us locked up in jail, I can’t elaborate any enough that the event was postponed until the following more on them in this column. week. I had a tough, but fairly easy decision to make: stay or Finally, the third attempt to run the Cajun Nationals go home to work. came back around, and believe it or not, the event was canI ended up using a week of vacation to remain in Baceled on Thursday, once again due to rain. Finally, IHRA ton Rouge because there was no way I was going to let this and I had had enough. We left and went back to reality. So, job opportunity pass. So, back to the Motel 6 I went for the my favorite day had come and gone in a matter of three week. Things were still great. I explored the city with the weeks in Baton Rouge, but I sure ate well!

IHRA staff, and I discovered Cajun food. I also decided CaAll was not lost during this Baton Rouge fiasco: Two races jun seafood buffets were even better than this job offer. later, I was hired full time by IHRA, and I haven’t got off the Eventually, the weekend came back around, and the roller coaster yet. DRS 18 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

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RUNNINGLIGHT Eric Gullett proves smaller engine can compete with big dogs

M

any have heard the old proverb, “Good things come in small packages.” But, few have taken it to heart like Eric Gullett. He set out to extract the most power possible from an engine considered small in his desired class — and not only succeeded, but ended up running faster!

“There’s really something to be said for keeping it simple and getting the most out of what you’ve got,” the 4.50 index competitor says.

What Gullett had was a 565c.i. engine that, in a back-half 1969 Camaro, running alcohol, and equipped with a Zex Nitrous kit, earned him the 2010 ORSCA Outlaw 5.30 Index Class runner-up title, a 5.00 class championship, and four other various class wins.

Hoping to step into 4.70 Index competition, he had friend Paul Baxter perform a host of upgrades to the Farrow Motorsports-built engine, including increasing displacement to 598c.i. with a 13:5:1 compression ratio. The Dart standard-deck block was stuffed with a Lunati Signature Series crankshaft and machined 4340 I-beam connecting rods with Ross pistons, while Dart Pro-2 aluminum cylinder heads were “chamber softened” for nitrous use.

TCI Automotive supplied its Rattler Balancer to absorb cranskshaft vibra20 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

Words: Cindy Bullion Photos: Tommy Lee Byrd, Eric Gullett, and Steve Stanley tion and increase valvetrain stability.

COMP Cams provided the solid roller camshaft offering a .839/.800 lift split, 281/300-degree duration split, 115-degree lsa and 4-7 firing order swap; HiTech Belt Drive System; 7/16-inch HiTech Dual Taper pushrods; Elite Race triple valve springs; titanium valve spring retainers; and valve locks. Jesel shaft rockers round out the valvetrain.

Topping the engine is a Pro-filer Sniper II cast intake manifold with a

single Pro Systems 1050 cfm carburetor and direct-port Induction Solutions fogger kit. Juice comes from Zex Nitrous bottles with hi-flow valves and bottle heater, to keep the nitrous at an optimal pressure regardless of the weather.

“I don’t have anything that’s not off the shelf,” Gullett says of the component choices.

With the mods, which also include a Moroso two-piece oil pan with -8AN returns from the heads, Gullett

A Signature Series crankshaft and machined 4340 I-beam rods from Lunati provide strength without unwanted weight in the Firebird’s power plant.

Evidence of Gullett’s personal best run in his new ride.

COMP Cams’ Hi-Tech Belt Drive system is designed to handle the high rpm Gullett’s Firebird sees on the track.

switched from alcohol to VP’s C-23 racing gasoline. AMSOIL’s synthetic 15W-50 Dominator oil cycles through a K&N Filter.

Gullett first put the upgraded engine to the test in the 4.70 Index in 2014, logging a 4.84 ET. He realized the time was not competitive though, and returned to the drawing board.

“At the time, my competition was running Top Sportsman-style full tube chassis cars, with engine combinations ranging from 632c.i. and up and multiple nitrous kits being the norm,” Gullet says. “My wife and I decided that we had a solid engine combination, but we just ran out of race car with our old Camaro and its dated chassis and suspension.”

Opting for this Strange Ultra Case 3rd Member gear set was one way Gullett shaved weight.

The husband-wife team commissioned a full-tube chassis, 1968 Firebird from GPS Race Cars in Clinton, Tennessee, and then used the year or so of car construction to rethink the drivetrain and other non-engine components.

“I completely revised my combination: gearing, converter, wheels/tires, driveshaft, axles, etc.” Gullett explains.

“Basically from the flywheel back, anything that rotated was lightened in an effort to maximize the power output of the 598c.i. engine.”

For example, he opted for a PST carbon fiber driveshaft, Strange Ultra Case 3rd Member gear set with the back cut gear option, lightweight case-ball support, and 40-spline gun-drilled axles.

A Braille Lithium battery weighing just 7.5 pounds, compared to a regular 40-pounder, and XS lightweight starter were also selected.

Gullett took a different path regarding traction, as well, and picked 13/34R16 Mickey Thompson “little bubba” tires. Each tire alone saves roughly 7 pounds of weight over the more conventional 17/34R16 size tires most often used for this application.

“It provides all the traction we need without the added baggage,” Gullett says of the tire choice.

Feeding power to those slicks is a TCI Automotive PRO-X transmission with 180 planetary gears and a complementary 9.5-inch PRO-X torque converter, with shifting duties handled by an Outlaw Shifter, also from TCI. A fiberglass body and 25.1E certified Chromoly double-rail frame, along with carbon fiber components where applicable, further help to keep the Firebird under 2,000 pounds — 800 fewer than Gullett’s previous Camaro.

DragRacingScene.com 21

“Since it’s a lighter car, it makes enough power,” Gullett comments.

“The clock doesn’t know the difference.

I don’t have to run super high rpm to get the times I need. I just use creativity with lightweight components in a different engine to get where I want.”

Many skeptics greeted Gullett when he returned in the Firebird from a three-year hiatus from racing. They thought he would be hard pressed to consistently run 4.70 ETs, and it turns out they were right.

“In 2016, on my first full pass with a mild tune-up in the new car, we ran a 4.54 ET in 90-degree heat on a 130plus degree track,” he exclaims. “After a couple more test sessions, where we lowered ETs into the 4.40 range, we were convinced this was no fluke and that the engine/chassis combination had the repeatability to be a contender in 4.50 Index competition.”

Gullett recorded a personal best 4.459 ET at 156.34 mph in advance of an October event at Capitol Raceway, during which he hoped to officially debut the Firebird. That event was rained out, however, so he had to wait through winter for his chance to compete.

His next opportunity came Easter weekend, when he produced a perfect 4.50 ET pass during testing and qualified with a 4.496 ET to face Vonnie Mills, the reigning Bad Boys 4.50 champ, in the first round. The round ended with Gullett one-hundredth of a second behind Mills.

“In hindsight, I made a last minute tuning change that probably cost us the race,” Gullett says of the April performance. “However, we’re very encouraged by our first weekend back racing in three years, and I feel like we will definitely be a championship series contender.”

His confidence comes in knowing he can rely on chosen components and how they’ve been packaged for consistent performance.

“I feel like the engine I have makes excellent power, is reliable, and has enabled me to focus on the more crucial aspects of my game that are required to win races: tuning and driving,” Gullet says.

It appears Gullett is on the right track, as he picked up his first win of the season June 10 during the D.A.D.S. Street Car Shootout at Quaker City Motorsports Park. He was top qualifier with a 4.54 ET in the Big Tire Outlaw class and went on to win with a 4.52 ET. “Conditions were dramatically different than what I’m used to running in Maryland at sea level,” he says. “The air in Ohio was really poor, very tricky track, we really had to work for it.” DRS 22 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

Translating power to torque is TCI Automotive’s PRO-X transmission. The trans is matched with a 9.5-inch PRO-X torque converter.

Search “Eric Gullett” on dragracingscene.com to watch his first full pass in his new Firebird running a 4.54 ET at 156 mph.

Eric Gullett is hands-on in every aspect of his career, including tuning, as he and wife Amber comprise the Gullett Racing team. Their 1968 Firebird weighs in at just under 2,000 lbs, which helps him maximize power from a 598c.i. engine and be competitive in the 4.50 Index class where most of his competitors utilize 700-plus cubic inch engines.

COMP Cams® Leads The Way In Custom Camshaft Technology Building a winning engine is serious business. Top racers and motorsports professionals rely on COMP Cams® to create the best custom camshafts for their applications.

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8

LIGHTS OUT • Performance • Pandemonium • Phenomena

T

he modest town of Cecil, Georgia, becomes overrun by racers twice a year when Donald Long and the Duck X Production team partner with the Moya family’s South Georgia Motorsports Park to hold the No Mercy event in October, or in this case, the springtime Lights Out event.

What makes these events such spectacles? The racers can cite the massive payout in the drag radial classes, such as a cool $50,000 paid to the champion in headline category Radial vs. the World.

Meanwhile, the fans are guaranteed to witness jaw-dropping performances on

The fans on the South Georgia Motorsports Park grounds reached the 30,000 count by the weekend. Let us quickly point out this was just part of the Thursday afternoon grandstands. It just got crazier from there.

Words: Todd Silvey Photos: Bryan Epps and Todd Silvey the scoreboards with eye-popping antics like track-long wheelstands and other acts by these overpowered doorslammers between the start and finish line.

The racers and fans max out the already large-scale ‘strip by flowing over into the circle track portion of the racing facility. The grandstands begin to inflate to full capacity by Thursday and Friday, while Saturday and Sunday convert into pure spectator euphoria with a fan count reaching into the 30,000 range.

This year’s fans enjoyed the parade of ever-increasing performance achieve-

ments in a continuous fashion from Wednesday through Saturday night. As each class competed in their qualifying rounds, the printed sheets of stunning elapsed times stretched ever longer.

In Radial vs. the World qualifying, no less than 22 entrants had laid down a sub-4-second pass on the 1/8th mile.

The top spot was claimed by Steve Jackson, boasting a 3.73 ET. On the extremely tightly packed X275 ladder, the top 10 qualifiers had approximately one-tenth of a second spread, including an incredible 4.38 ET from Rob Goss to give him the No. 1 position going into eliminations.

The Nitrous X class is a heads-up class with cars weighing in at a minimum 2,850 pounds. Power is provided by only small-block-based engines utilizing a maximum 470c.i. with nitrous oxide, the only power adder allowed in the class. Despite these “sportsman” level limitations, Shawn Pevlor from Cincinnati topped the eliminations ladder with a 4.70 ET; he ran a consistent string of passes including a 4.709 at 155 mph in the finals to defeat Jeff Carpenter in an all-Mustang final. The body style is no surprise for a class numerically dominated by Fox-body Fords.

Another class designed to provide affordable competition is Ultimate Street. The category limits body modifications, including the OEM firewall location, aerodynamic alteration to original equipment body panel shapes, stock front suspension, and ladder bar rear suspensions only. There are a variety of engine limits combined with varying power-adders like turbo, superchargers, and nitrous. With many limitations in place, these cars still qualify predominantly in the 4.80 zone.

With a diversity of race car design combinations participating, Tony Alm of Lake Worth, Florida, had the win-

Want to get everyone’s attention at an outlaw event? Pull in with a slick Chevy II powered by a nitrous-fed Cummins diesel engine. Ryan Milliken competed in both X275 and Leaf Spring class competition, knocking on the door of 4-second passes.

DragRacingScene.com 25

Tony Alm was number one in Ultimate Street qualifying with a 4.76 ET at 147 mph and ultimately scored the class win.

ning combo in Ultimate Street. In his ’93 Mustang with a 400c.i. Ford engine sporting a single turbocharger, Alm made his way to the finals, where he lined up against Rodney Ragen. He earned his win through his reaction time, as he turned on the win light first with a 4.78 ET compared to Ragen’s 4.74 ET. A relative newcomer to the radial tire scene is Outlaw 632. The name is simply based around the popular 632c.i. engines mandated by the class. General tube chassis race cars with stock shape and wheelbase bodies are required. Different tire sizes and single stage nitrous kits move around the weight breaks based on a standard 3,000 pounds. The class saw 33 cars entered. In the final, it was whittled down to Dominic Augustine from Mooresville, North Carolina,

The Outlaw 632 class is gaining big popularity. Dominic Augustine with his animalistic ‘65 Chevelle ran consistent 4.40’s to make his way to the Lights Out winner’s circle.

Shawn Pevlor and his ’89 Mustang have seen their lion’s share of wins in a number of different classes the past few years. He showed up the Nitrous X competitors again with a number one qualifier spot and string of bracket racing-like 4.70 ETs. 26 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

We can talk about the week’s amazing performances in Radial vs. the World racing, but what mattered were the win lights on Sunday, and Joe Albrecht scored the most for his $50,000 payday.

Kenny Hubbard - X275

and Kenny Hubbard from Montgomery, Texas. Augustine, with his ’65 Chevelle, became the class champion as he paced through eliminations with a string of 4.40 ETs. The radial tire fans all gathered to watch two insanely popular classes, X275 and Pro 275. When qualifying began for X275, 51 cars were shooting for their spot in the 32-car field.

The popularity of X275 arises from the comparative simplicity of the drag radial class rules. Stock bodied cars retain original appearance, factory firewall must be in the OEM location, and stock chassis and frame rails must be kept. Cars are limited to ladder bar suspension with 588c.i. max displacement and use of a single supercharger, turbo, or nitrous power-adder.

Dean Marinis annihilated the week’s performances of X275 in the final round. He was in the exclusive group of racers who set the top of qualifying in the 4.30 ET range, but pulled off a consistent string of 4.40 ETs to push his way through eliminations. In the Lights Out 8 finals, Marinis turned on the win light against Kenny Hubbard. Marinis’ nitrous-fed 582c.i. big-block Chevy-powered Mustang edged Hubbard’s 1974 Nova, which was similarly propelled by a nitrous-fed 582 Chevy.

Pro 275 competition is also based on the tire size limitation by mandating the Pro 275 tire along with a step up in general rules compared to its X275

Search “Lights Out 8” on dragracingscene.com for full event coverage and photo galleries.

Pro 275 is like X275 on steroids with its similar, but more liberal rules. Pro 275 eliminator saw “Scotty G” Guadagno as the unique nitrous-fed standout among the sea of turbo-boosted racers. Scotty and his 960c.i. monster dominated the eliminations with the low ET of each round.

brother class. Transmission rules are open to any transmission, as opposed to the factory-style trans in X275. Rear suspension rules are wide open, compared to the lScottyadder bar only rules of X275. A wealth of other opened rules makes Pro 275 seem more like X275 on steroids. “Scotty G” Guadagno has the

unique nitrous-fed hot rod among the sea of turbo-boosted racers in the category. Scotty and his 960c.i. monster dominated the eliminations with low ET of each round. In the finals, he met Don Lamana and covered his 4.16 ET with a 4.11 at 186 mph.

Everyone was on their feet in the stands to view the exciting finish of Radial vs. the World. The class never ceased to amaze through every qualifying and elimination round. Qualifying saw two competitors, Stevie “Fast” Jackson and Barry Michell, enter the 3.70 ET zone, along with 10 other entrants in the field with 3.80 ETs. The class is pretty much anything goes, as long as you have a 315 DOT-type tire in the back. There are a wealth of weight specs 28 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

Jeff Sitton - Radial vs. the World

Drag racing traction guru Kurt Johnson looks on as the “hook” at South Georgia Motorsports Park was unparalleled. Note the “wrinkles” on this launch.

“Street Outlaw”racers, including Daddy Dave Comstock, Kye Kelley, and James Goad with the Reaper, came to compete at Lights Out 8. Comstock grabbed everyone’s attention with this fouroff-the-ground wheelstand.

depending on your choice of a supercharger, massive doses of nitrous, or the popular twin-turbo power plant.

Mark “Woody” Woodruff notified the competitors he was there to win by laying down a 3.86 and a 3.84 ET respectively in round two and three of eliminations. Even more impressive, the twin-turbo Corvette’s pass of 212.36 mph set the speed record for a radial tire race car on the South Georgia Motorsports 1/8 mile. “Nova Joe” Albrecht marched his way through eliminations to meet Woodruff in the finals. Since each driver had accomplished a 3.84 ET during eliminations, the announcers were touting the performances, making it a not-to-be-missed final. Albrecht’s amazing roots-supercharged Hemi GTO ripped a consistent 3.85 ET to take the Lights Out 2017 win over Woodruffs’ 4-flat ET. The outlaw competition world has two events all others are judged upon when it comes to packed pits, overly crowded grandstands, and action-packed performance. Both of these races happen in Southern Georgia led by a promoter simply known as “the Duck.” Donald “Duck” Long, who spearheads the Lights Out and No Mercy mega races, just continues to impress. DRS

Words: Todd Silvey Photos: Danny Stogner and Luis Renova

Drag Racing Scene exclusive interview with Street Outlaws television standout:

The opening race scene on the very first episode of Discovery Channel’s Street Outlaws showed Chuck Seitsinger and his famed Mustang. For the past nine seasons of the show, followers have watched Chuck move around the ranks and work and re-work the “Death Trap” Mustang into the number one position, and continue to hold that title.

30 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

CHUCK

SEITSINGER as he prepared for the 10th season of the reality show, as the man currently on top.

How did you get into imports and, ultimately, street racing?

T

he Street Outlaws show began on the Discovery Channel in 2013, it has reached the number one position in cable TV ratings on Monday nights. The latest 2 1/2-hour final episode that just aired for season nine netted 2.51 million viewers. Now, as filming for season 10 begins, Chuch Steitsinger tells about the wild ride Street Outlaws has been.

Simply known as just “Chuck” on show, Chuck Seitsinger comes from a long line of auto mechanics and a racing background. In 2004, he was crowned the NOPI XBOX Cup Champion in the Pro 4 Cylinder category and the NDRA Rookie of the Year.

Seitsinger previously made his living as a technician for Honda and ultimately became a Honda Factory Trained Service Advisor. He achieved his goal of owning a quality Honda maintenance and repair facility as an alternative to a dealership. From there came his business name, Alternative Motorsports.

Though the shop utilized his Honda expertise, his personal interest moved to the Mustang that has been worked and reworked into the famed “Death Trap.”

Followers of the Street Outlaws series have seen the Mustang evolve in technology during the first nine seasons of the show into the No. 1 performer on the “the list.” We visited with Seitsinger

My dad raced and dragged my ass to the dragstrip all the time when I was younger. At the time, I hated it because I didn’t want to get up early on Sundays and go to the track. I griped about it a lot, but look at me now.

When I was old enough to drive, I had street vehicles and played around on the street a lot. Then, World Ford Challenge and NMRA got big, and I started helping my friend, Chris Derek, riding with him to the track and helping work on the car, which ran ironically in the Super Street Outlaw class. We did that for about four years, and after Chris was runner-up at the first event we went to, I was hooked and got the itch for racing.

After Chris had quit racing, I got into racing drag boats for a couple of years; then, the import scene got big. I had been a Honda mechanic for years, and my little brother has worked on Hondas all his life. I opened my own shop working on Hondas, and my brother said ‘the import deal is huge; you should build an import drag car,’ but I just wasn’t a huge fan of it at that point.

Then, I started watching it and noticed how much magazine coverage it received and decided maybe I should get into that. Mike Duffy built my car for me, starting in 2003. I didn’t get the car out until 2004, and between seasons, everybody upgrades. So, I brought a car out in 2004 with basically 2003 components. People were kind of laughing at me; I was a guy from Oklahoma racing with outdated parts. The first race I went DragRacingScene.com 31

to was in Dinwiddie, Virgina. I showed up and was No. 2 qualifier. Then they were like, ‘who is this guy?’

I went to about seven races that first year and won the points championship.

I ran a NOPI-XBOX deal and made a little bit of money. I was hooked, winning two national titles, the one in 2004 and another in 2006. I ran that for a few years, then in 2010, it had started dying off a bit and I was done with it that year.

Tell us about the ‘Death Trap’ Mustang?

I bought the car in 2009 from Shawn Ellington, the “Murder Nova” guy. It was a 6.0 car, just a little nitrous, nothing special. It had a 383 small-block engine with a carburetor on it. It wasn’t fast enough for me, so I made it faster.

I built a 429-inch nitrous engine for it and raced it that way for about three to four years. I ran some 275 racing, and then I decided I wanted a turbo car.

Jeff Lutz and Mike Duffy helped me with that. I got some things sponsored, and I had some money saved up.

I turned it into a turbo car, keeping it a small tire deal.

I bought a 421-inch small-block Chevy engine a buddy, TJ Gaffman. It was already an engine designed for turbochargers, and I’m still using the same engine today, just with some upgrades.

After running a small tire setup for about two seasons, the car had obviously stupid power. The list was get-

32 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

ting faster, and I knew what I needed to do. I made a few changes and made it a big tire car. I back-halved the car, raised the compression, and switched it over to methanol. Once I got the car done, it was a happy combo, and it just worked really good. It came out of the box working good.

The car has a Brodix block, a set of Brodix heads, and intake. I use a Lunati crank, Jesel rockers, TRP aluminum rods, and Diamond pistons. COMP Cams built a custom grind cam for me, and I use all the COMP Cams valvetrain parts: springs, retainers, locks.

I just switched to a COMP cam belt drive system on it. It’s a pretty simple engine with 12:1 compression. The engine sees about 9,200 rpm, and it has seen as much as 53 pounds of boost. I love the small blocks and how they rev.

Just about everything else on the show has mountain motors. What they’re doing each year is making their engine cubic-inches bigger. I love my small blocks, and it’s just a great combination that works very well for me.

In street racing, the rpm are all over the place; you may hook, you may not.

I built the car to make as much horsepower as I can. For the street, we’ll have a looser converter in it. If you run on a not-so-good track, you have to get down the track. That’s what we do; we run a loose Neal Chance converter. It just works, and I try to make it look as smooth as possible.

I use a GM Powerglide built by Dave’s Performance transmission out of Illinois. He does an awesome job. I put way more passes on a transmission than you’re supposed to, but I don’t have any issues with them. I freshen them up when I freshen the engine.

How is chassis tuning for the street between rounds?

Mike Duffy does all my chassis work.

Mike makes all the four link adjustments, and I’ve never changed it at the track. He still aligns it every week after we race; it may need a small tweak, but not much. Since this car was built, I’m pretty sure the four link bars have not been moved. That’s how happy the combination is, and it was just right out of the gate.

How did the television show come into play?

I got interested in the muscle car deal, and that’s when I bought the car I have now. I got it from Shawn Ellington, who owns the Murder Nova. It was his dad’s 6.0 car. They had done some events with it and ran it on the street sometimes. I bought it and started racing it on the street. It was my goal to make it faster every month, so that’s what I did.

I raced and made it on the list with the guys. I also ran some local track stuff with it at Thunder Valley Raceway Park.

A couple of years later, we had been doing the street stuff, and we were

contacted by people who said they wanted to do a TV show about us.

We laughed, “yeah, right, whatever.”

The next thing you know, minivans showed up with cameras, and they filmed us for about a week. Then, we didn’t hear from them for about six months.

When we didn’t hear back, I thought we were all going to go to jail any day. (laughs) Those guys had video coverage of us racing on the street.

They had been to our houses, knew all our names and our personal information. This was going to be one badass police sting.

Then, they called us one day and said, “Check your email.” We’re going to start filming this show and put it on Discovery Channel. I’d never had anybody pay me to do any type of racing, so when they offered money to race on TV, I said, ‘Hell yeah, I’m in.’

We all laughed about it, filmed it, and then figured it would never make it to season two. We thought people were going to laugh us off the TV. And, now here we are filming season 10 in June.

When the filming takes place, it’s a little more involved compared to when I was only racing. When I was just racing for fun, I’d go out once or maybe twice a month. I’d get my car ready working on it at night, and when it was ready, I’d go to the race, then I was done. When we’re filming, we race every single week and sometimes on both Wednesdays and Saturdays. Also, if you break your car during a bracket race, you don’t have to be at the next race, and you can fix

it at your pace. That’s not the deal with the TV show. If I break my car when we’re filming, I have essentially a week to get it ready, tested, and be back at the next weekend of filming. It is a lot of work.

Some weeks aren’t bad when you just have to do standard maintenance on it, but when you hurt something now, your week is full.

Along with the extra work on the car when you break it, it seems like that’s when I get a call to do an interview. They always say it will take about an hour, but once we spend the time to set it up, do the interview and then tear it down, we end up there for about three hours. We film everything at night, so it’s a lot of night time work.

What about the fans?

When I was running my shop full-time, it sometimes got a little bit hectic. I didn’t want to be rude to anybody, but I did get flustered. People dropped by all the time, and I always wanted to take time for them, even when I was pulling my hair out trying to get ready for the next race.

Once we started making more money with the show, I sat out a season and redid the car with everything I should have done five to six seasons ago. Once it was done, I quit my job and concentrated just on filming. I realized it’s a full-time job to run a full-time race team.

I’m not like John Force or those guys who race every week, but have 15 full-time guys on their crew. I have a couple of guys, and they’re my buddies, who have jobs.

My goal was to build a number one car, and I feel like I’ve done that. But to get to number one and be number one on this list, I felt like I needed to put forth 110-percent effort. It has paid off.

You have taken the No. 1 position on the “list” and held onto it through season 9. For the hardcore racers out there, talk about the reality of the show.

The show portrays illegal drag racing, but for Discovery Channel to put Street Outlaws on the air, it can’t be filmed illegally. Simply put, they permit the road to give us a place to race.

The filming company brings lights so that the viewers can see the entire race, because you don’t just want to see taillights disappearing into the darkness. They set up cameras up and down the street, and there are GoPros everywhere. They tell us, “Okay, be here at 8 on Saturday night, and we’ll be ready to film.” But, once they tell us where to be and when to be there, it is our deal.

They stand back, and they film what we do. If there is an argument or fight, they just film it. They don’t step in and say, “I want this shot;” they just film what happens. We all are wired with cordless microphones, and they try to catch everything that happens.

We have a drivers’ meeting, we set up who’s racing, and then we go up to the road and race.

It’s easy to do because it’s almost like we’re not filming. We just go out and race and do our own thing for eight hours. Then, they go back and edit it into a one-hour TV show.

The racing is 100 percent real; the cars are real, nothing is pre-planned or scripted, and the people are real.

I don’t think I would be good enough of an actor to follow a script. (laughs) We’re all just trying to be the fastest guy on the street that night. DRS DragRacingScene.com 33

TOP HEAP OF THE

Words: Richard Holdener

Race-Ready Junkyard 5.3L

S

ometimes you just get lucky, and this hefty heap of 5.3L was another example of what happens when you stumble across a perfectly good motor at a local junkyard. For those unfamiliar with the LS inner circle, the 5.3L truck motor shares every external component with the smaller 4.8L V-8. About the only way to tell them apart is to either measure the stroke and/or rod length, or check the casting numbers. Many an LS fan has purchased a 5.3L only to receive the smaller 4.8L. While the little 4.8L is no slouch in its own right, the lack of displacement does put it at a disadvantage in terms of average power production (meaning torque). Sharing the block, heads, cam, and intake, the 5.3L and 4.8L differ by way of stroke. The smaller 4.8L relies on a 3.267-inch stroke crank compared to a 3.622-inch version shared by the 5.3L, 5.7L, 6.0L, and even 6.2L. The 5.3L and 4.8L even share the same compression height (making pistons interchangeable), but the 4.8L runs a longer connecting rod. Make sure to verify these things when selecting a suitable candidate from your local yard.

Though the upgrades performed on our test motor will certainly cross over to the smaller 4.8L, we wanted the extra 34  Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

cubes offered by the 5.3L. Locating one shouldn’t be a problem, as GM built thousands upon thousands of them as the base motor for most pickup and SUV applications.

After venturing over to a local LKQ Pic-a-Part, we came across a few different options and eventually selected one that was the most complete. Naturally, we made sure to verify the motor spun over freely after removing the plugs. We have been pretty successful using the following motto: If it spins, it wins!

After establishing a baseline for the 5.3L, we removed the stock intake, heads, and camshaft. Note the dished pistons used on the LM7 5.3L (H.O. versions run flat tops).

Nothing fancy here, just factory 706 head castings, stock rockers, and valve springs.

Out came the stock LM7 cam and in went the healthy COMP grind. Originally designed for a rec-port application, the extra exhaust duration allowed the motor to make a little extra peak power.

First on the list of mods was a new cam profile. Plenty healthy for a 5.3L, the COMP 277LRRHR13 offered a .614/.621 lift split, a 227/243-degree duration split, and 113-degree lsa.

Feeding the 102mm throttle opening on the LSXRT intake was the likesized Big Mouth throttle body from FAST.

The right hardware can make your tired, high-mileage 5.3L both fast and furious. Equipped with the stock intake, Accufab (manual) throttle body, and long-tube headers, the 150,000-mile 5.3L produced 341 hp at 5,300 rpm and 367 lb-ft of torque at 4,400 rpm. Torque production exceeded 350 lb-ft from 3,400 rpm to 5,100 rpm.

DragRacingScene.com 35

In addition to the CNC porting, the Gen X 205 heads featured altered valve angles, a 2.0/1.575-inch valve combo, and peak intake flow numbers of 285 cfm.

Having been through this junkyard procedure countless times, we were less concerned about the elevated mileage indicated on the odometer (in excess of 150,000) and more interested in the fact the motor appeared to have been maintained. Oil change stickers and the lack of sludge under the valve covers were an indication the previous owner at least serviced the motor on a regular basis. Having made our choice, out it came in complete form, from throttle body to oil pan, including all accessories and flexplate.

Even in bone stock (high-mileage) trim, these 5.3L truck motors are decent performers, but (being racers) we wanted even more. Not wanting to resort to an all-out rebuild or stroker build, we decided instead to go the bolt-on route.

Before running any modifications, we first had to make sure we had a healthy test motor. To do so, we installed the 5.3L on the engine dyno to establish a baseline in stock trim.

For dyno use, we made a few minor mods to the LM7, including removal of the accessories, swapping Hooker headers for the exhaust manifolds, and replacing the (2003-up) drive-bywire throttle body for a mechanical unit from Accufab. The accessories were replaced with a simple Meziere electric water pump, while the stock injectors were ditched in favor of a set of 46-pounders from FAST. The modified version of this motor would require more fuel flow than the stock truck injectors were capable of, so we performed the preemptive swap.

Tuning for the FAST injectors came from a Holley HP management system.

We installed the LSXRT intake and Big Mouth throttle body onto the awaiting 5.3L. We also included a billet FAST fuel rail to feed the 46-pound injectors. Tuning for the top-end test was provided by this Holley HP EFI management system.

36  Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

Hooker supplied a set of 1-7/8-inch, long-tube, LS swap headers. The headers were run with a short set of collector extensions.

Naturally, the stock 5.3L was run with the production (early) truck intake manifold and fuel rail. We replaced the factory injectors with a set of 46-pounders from FAST.

Once we dialed in the air/fuel (13.0:1) and timing (30-degrees total), the 5.3L responded with peak numbers of 341 hp at 5,300 rpm and 367 lb-ft of torque at 4,400 rpm. Looks like we had a healthy customer. Now it was time for some mods!

With the motor still warm from the previous dyno run, off came the stock intake and 706 head castings and out came the wimpy LM7 cam (mildest of the LS family). Since cam swaps

Replacing the stock 706 LM7 heads was a set of TFS Gen X 205 heads.

The Gen X 205 heads featured full CNC porting and were designed specifically for small-bore, 4.8-5.7L applications.

offer the most power on an LS application, we replaced the stock stick with a grind from COMP Cams. With a .614/.621 lift split, a 227/243-degree duration split, and 113-degree lsa, the 277LRRHR13 was plenty healthy, especially for a 5.3L. Originally designed for a rectangle-port (LS3) application, we liked the effect the extra exhaust duration had on top-end power production for this cathedral-port application.

The cam was combined with a set of Gen X 205 heads from Trick Flow Specialties. The Gen X heads were designed specifically for small-bore applications (meaning 4.8L-5.7L), making them ideal for our 5.3L. The TFS heads featured full CNC porting, altered valve angles (from 15-13.5 degrees), and relocated spark plug positions in the CNC-profiled combustion chambers. The heads also featured 205cc intake ports, 80cc exhaust ports, and 56cc combustion chambers to maintain the all-important static compression ratio. The heads came equipped with a spring package that allowed us to take full advantage of the lift and rpm potential of our COMP cam.

After securing the TFS Gen X 205 heads to the awaiting short block, the modified long block was topped with a serious induction system in the form of a FAST LSXRT intake and matching 102mm Big-Mouth throttle body. The last thing you want to do is restrict the power potential of the combination with a substandard induction system. The LSXRT was equipped with a set of billet fuel rails, but we retained the FAST 46-pound injectors. Given sufficient hood clearance, the LSXRT is tough to beat, but for the clearance-impaired, there is always the standard LSXR. After tuning our heap, the power output topped out at an impressive 492 hp at 7,100 rpm and 419 lb-ft at 4,800 rpm.

With the exception of a slight loss down near 3,000 rpm, the wilder combo offered more power everywhere, with peak numbers jumping by more than 150 hp. Had we elected to rev the stock combo higher than 6,000 rpm, the gains would exceed 200 hp. For now, we were plenty satisfied that our crusty, junkyard 5.3L was now sitting at the top of the heap. DRS Sources: COMP Cams, compcams.com; FAST, fuelairspark.com; Holley/Hooker, holley.com; Trick Flow Specialties, trickflow.com

The TFS Gen X 205 heads were installed using Fel Pro MLS head gaskets, ARP head studs, and hardened pushrods from COMP Cams.

The Gen X heads also featured dual valve springs to allow for the rpm potential of our high-lift cam.

The final upgrade to the 5.3L was a FAST LSXRT intake. Though the T stood for truck, this intake was designed with power production in mind for any LS application with appropriate hood clearance.

After topping our heap, the power output of the modified 5.3L jumped from 341 hp and 367 lb-ft to 492 hp at 7,100 rpm and 419 lb-ft at 4,800 rpm. That represents a gain of more than 150 hp on the high-mileage 5.3L!

, S A a It’s G !

S , A G S GA Words: Todd Silvey Photos: Mike Slade

Strict rules make this gasser group just like the good ol’ days

T

The Southeast Gasser Association founded by Quain Stott came about after many years of dreaming of running Pro Stock.

Stott started as a bracket racer at 15 years old, and as the years passed, he kept that goal in his mind, but could not afford it. When Pro Modified came into existence, he decided to give it a try.

“Pro Mod at the time was way cheaper than Pro Stock,” Stott says. “I wanted to run heads-up, no breakout. There was no place for a young kid to run heads-up at that time because it was so expensive to get into Pro Stock. I think that is what turned a lot of people away from racing at the time.

“I opted to bracket race and did well and enjoyed it, but when Pro Mod came along, I decided I could afford to do that,” he continues. “I found out real quick I couldn’t, but went on anyway and struggled with it. I was bullheaded and kept on with it, and I made it and made a lot of money doing it.

Jerry Birch found the Freebird when former Top Fuel racer Virgil Hartman decided to sell it after learning he’d have to cut the backs off new racing seats to fit in with the rules. Birch removed the modern graphics, and the outline of Freebird was already on the side of the car. They taped it off, spray painted Freebird back on, and were ready to race.

I can look back on a career that most people only dream to have, and I’m thankful for it.”

As the years passed, Stott got aggravated with Pro Mod racing.

“It became cookie cutter, and technology overtook the talent of tuning and driving,” he says. “My 40 years of experience meant nothing anymore. I still love Pro Mod, but didn’t like the thought that technology could make someone a better driver, rather than practice and hard work. I made it in Pro Mods by being bullheaded and determined.”

Stott had loved gassers since he was a little kid. He started thinking about a 15-year-old kid today as he had been in 1975.

“I didn’t have anywhere to turn except for bracket racing when I started drags at 15,” he says. “I loved the gassers in the old days and started thinking about building a class to race heads up, no breakout. I didn’t want racers to have to be millionaires to participate.

There is all of the 10.5 stuff and the radial cars, but those are still a $200,000 investment by the time you get everything you need.”

Stott put together his rules for his Southeast Gasser Association, keeping in mind the old school days of racing.

“Southeast Gassers is the only gasser group in the whole wide world that requires the cars to use gasoline,” he says.

“They were called gassers because they had to use gasoline. So that being said,

it cannot be a gasser if it doesn’t have gas in the tank.”

The first set of rules Stott put together was about two pages long. It was mostly regarding wheels, no electronics, suspension regulations, and paint jobs.

“We may have had something about gauges,” Stott says. “But, there was no

Derrick Napier in the Atomic City Sheriff takes on Dale Wilson’s Bad Penny in a D/Gas match-up at Shadyside Dragway.

DragRacingScene.com 39

kind of engine rules and no four-speed rule at the time.”

In their first year, the SE Gassers had gathered about seven or eight cars to participate. Four of the cars had automatic transmissions and were winning every race.

“The automatic cars went right down the track and handled much easier,” Stott says. “The four-speed cars couldn’t outrun them. That winter, all of my fourspeed drivers were going to switch to automatics because they were tired of being beat up by them. I knew that would make us just like every other gasser group out there if that happened. I didn’t want my group to die a slow death.”

Stott changed the rules to outlaw automatic transmissions and grandfathered in the four members. If they built a new car, they would need to use a four-speed.

“We have one left today with an automatic,” Stott says. “It’s 84-year-old Gene Crawford. People think he’s grandfathered in due to being 84, but it’s because he was a part of the group before we had the rule in place that it has to be a four-speed. That rule and no two steps make the cars sound so cool and run so right.”

Donovan Stott, Quain’s son, is racing an Anglia in the A/Gas class with the group.

“It’s not bracket racing; it’s not the newest technology race, it’s just good old racing,” Donovan says. “It’s true. It’s pure, no big sponsorship deals; it’s all ‘your wallet’ kind of racing. It’s real racing, and that’s what the big draw is for me. It’s not fake. It’s not big companies

Gene Cromer, 84, is one of the original members of the group, running the same ‘41 Willys he built in 1965. It was restored and rebuilt by Quain Stott and friends in 2013. Crew member Melvin Craft has been with him since 1965.

Jimmy Finley runs his 1966 Mustang in A/Gas. He says it’s all original except the lightweight seats.

Quain Stott chose his ‘41 Willys due to his childhood hero, Gene Cromer, who raced his own Willys gasser throughout the ‘60s and ‘70s.

40 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

The Southeast Gasser Association is Quain Stott’s labor of love. He’s built the group up from just two cars to its current 61 members.

Josh Pruitt got a recent win at the Steel in Motion event at Union Dragway in May. He is just one example of the younger racers who are joining the group. He enjoys the old school feeling of no electronics, no nitrous and no turbos in the cars. Cars are built to meet the rules and the first one down the track wins.

racing each other; it’s individuals racing each other.”

Jerry Birch, who runs in C/Gas with his Freebird tribute car agrees.

“I remember my dad racing in the early days,” he says. “When he ran at Shadyside, they flagged the cars. They sprinkled rosin and burnout fluid on the track, and that was the only sticky they had. This is getting back to drag racing roots. Everyone is four-speed, and it’s great to get back to how it used to be.”

Josh Pruitt runs a ’63 Ford Fairlane in D/Gas. He worked on it with his dad and uncle with some help from a friend.

“We did it all ourselves, except for some machine work on the engine,” he says. “We went at it piece by piece, and it was a family affair. My grandpa painted the Fairlane for me, so my family all

had a little part in it, and that is very important to me.”

Stott is a huge purist at keeping the cars as period-correct as possible. The first item on the rule sheets is no cars newer than 1967 in production model.

The only modern equipment allowed on the cars is safety equipment.

The group started slowly, with only two cars match racing at first. When they had four cars, they ran Chicago-style match racing, meaning everybody ran

Dean Harris - C/Gas

For even more info and photos, search “Southeast Gassers” at DragRacingScene.com.

Sonny Clayton’s ‘56 Chevy is named One Gone Dog. The name came about from their family business selling hotdogs for the past 50 years at Boots and Sonny’s Drive In in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

Donovan Stott’s car came from GK Bernard from Pennsylvania. People often come up and ask the history; it’s the exact body Bernard raced in the ‘60s.

randomly, and the two quickest cars would come back to race for the win. As the years passed, they were up to eight cars and still Chicago-style match racing.

“We had been doing well, bringing in 1,200 to 1,500 spectators,” Stott says.

“We started noticing that our spectator counts were dropping a little bit.

Me being a perfectionist, I wanted to know why and started asking the fans.

We had about 12-14 cars at this point.

People said they thought we had buybacks; one guy pointed at a racer in the water box and said ‘that guy has lost twice, why is he back again?’ It was confusing for the spectators.’”

Fans wanted drama when they watched the racing. So, the group started racing elimination style, and when a driver lost, he was on the trailer. Spectator counts started to increase again.

The Southeast Gasser Association is the only gasser group which classifies their cars the way they did in the

’60s, by cubic inch. If a driver wants to run in D/Gas, he will take a nice solid old body and put a rollbar in it, a set of ladder bars, and a straight axle. If you’re running A/Gas, it’s six pounds per cubic inch.

“In A/Gas, at 6 pounds per cubic inch, with a 300c.i. engine, the car can’t weigh less than 1,800 pounds,” Stott says. “It’s expensive to build a lightweight car. Our A/Gassers are just like they were in the ’60s, but it was easier then with no safety rules. We have to have a full roll cage in there, not just one piece of rollbar, so that’s more weight.”

After watching the group from the grandstands for several years, Tony Turner found this ‘39 Dodge, saved a 392 Hemi from the crusher, and finished the car this year. He is having a blast in his first year out with the Southeast Gassers.

42 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

Stott says the most overlooked part of a period correct gasser is the wheelie bars.

“The wheelie bar was really distinctive back in the old days,” he says. “They were usually mounted straight off the bumper and were just a piece of tubing with a wheel on them. Somewhere around the late ’70s, the back of the car started getting lower when the tracks got better. When they started doing that, the upper strut of the wheelie bars started running into the lower valance panel under the taillights. Someone suggested moving the wheel up behind the aluminum plate to gain four inches.

To me, a gasser with that wheel behind the aluminum plate instead of under it looks like a run in the middle of a perfect paint job.”

The rule for the SE Gassers is 44 inches long from the center of the rear end housing to the center of the wheel on the wheelie bar. That gives the car a totally different personality on the starting line.

“A driver has to find his window to leave in,” Stott says. “The wheelie bar is so short that if you hit it too hard, it picks the back tires off the ground. It makes the racing better.”

The group continues to grow and now has about 61 members. Racers who had previously refused to make their cars period correct are calling now to join.

“A racer will say he just has to change a gauge or the wheelie bars to fit our rules,” Stott says. “They tell me they know that if they join us, they will feel appreciated. One guy who didn’t like racing next to a car with a snorkel hood scoop and Pro Mod wheelie bars on a ’52 Henry J called me. He said he had fixed his car to be like a gasser should be. When he comes to race with us, he knows every car there is under the strict guidelines.

We are surrounded by people who care about preserving the history. They know they are appreciated.” DRS

Scott Sabin

Chassis shops, engine builders, fab shops and performance parts retailers around the world rely on Motor State for all their performance parts needs.

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800.772.2678

TUNING

R

FOR

CING

Applying a little science to search for the ideal air/fuel ratio on the track

Words & Photos: Jeff Smith tencil this on a sheet of paper, laminate it so it won’t succumb to greasy fingerprints, and stick it prominently on the inside lid of your tool box: All fuels do NOT tune the same.

That might seem like a simple statement, like “not all people are the same.” Of course they’re not. But, once we start burrowing down the rabbit hole of complex hydrocarbons and begin to toss in variables like oxygenates, ethanol, E85, methanol fuels, and a host of other chemical vagaries, the knowledge required to accurately tune around these fuels isn’t difficult — especially if you know a couple of simple tuning tricks.

Since covering the broad world of engine tuning with different fuels would require a book-length adventure, we’ll focus this story on just two important tuning parameters: the specific gravity of fuel and its stoichiometric air/fuel ratio.

First, let’s talk about specific gravity and gasoline. Specific gravity (SG) is the fractional equivalent of the weight of gasoline compared to the weight of water. Since gasoline is lighter than water, a gasoline’s specific gravity will be a fraction of the number one. The SG of pump gasoline ranges between 0.70 and 0.77. With race gasoline, the story becomes even more complex. This is important because SG directly affects power tuning.

S

Race engine tuning is as much an art form as it is a science. Our approach is to remove as many variables and unknowns from the tuning process as possible.

44 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

Here’s where we should refer back to that toolbox memo.

Specific gravity has a direct affect on the amount of fuel metered through a carburetor or fuel injector. You can think of a fuel with a larger specific gravity number as being a “heavier” fuel — or one that is denser.

As an example, let’s switch from VP’s Q-16, which has a SG of 0.716, to a higher density fuel like C45 that has a SG of 0.738.

This is a density change of 0.022. In their technical description of C45, VP recommends a 4- to 6-percent increase in jetting.

In researching this story, we also spoke with Rockett Racing Brand’s Tim Wusz, who suggests that a change in specific gravity of 0.010 can be matched to roughly one jet size in a Holley carburetor. Holley’s data suggests one jet size is worth roughly a 2-percent change in fuel flow. So, Wusz’s recommendation essentially calls for a 2-percent change in fuel flow with a 0.010 change in SG. To restate this a little more simply, changing from a light to a heavier SG will require leaning the mixture. Conversely, moving from a heavy to a lighter SG fuel will require richening the jetting. Both these statements assume, of course, that the jetting was close to ideal with the base fuel. In the case of a move from a 0.695 fuel to a 0.735 SG fuel, this results in a difference of 0.040, which would call for leaning the jetting by four jet sizes.

With this much of a change, it would probably be wise to start by only reducing the metering by half that much and evaluating the difference perhaps with a wide-band oxygen sensor (WBO2), or at least with an intimate inspection of the spark plugs, along with trap speed judgment. In other words, if the trap speed improved, you are moving in the right di-

E85 offers a lot of excellent opportunities for both normally aspirated and especially for supercharged or turbocharged engines. If you’re considering a carbureted application, your best bet is a dedicated carburetor like this Holley 850 E85 carb. Essentially, this is a slightly leaned out methanol carburetor.

rection. Jetting changes should be approached with caution, especially when moving from rich to lean.

A significant change in SG will also call for close inspection of the carburetor float settings. Specific gravity directly affects the buoyancy of the float as it sits in the fuel. A higher specific gravity fuel will push the float higher in the carburetor float bowl. This effectively lowers the fuel level in the bowl, and this can have a direct effect on the air/fuel ratio.

Now, let’s assume you’re running an EFI system. The change in specific gravity in the previous example (0.695 to 0.735) equates to a 5.7 percent change in density, so you could start by changing the pulse width by half of that 5 percent in the base fuel map and then evaluate the change. If it resulted in more power, then you could carefully approach the rest of that reduction in fuel flow.

We referenced WBO2 sensors earlier, it is obviously a great tuning tool for racers in search of capturing as much data as possible. The world of air/fuel ratio meters has made the task of fuel tuning a little bit easier, but at the same time, they are in themselves not as simplistic as they appear.

For example, let’s say you’ve made a change from a heavier SG fuel to a lighter one and with no other changes, the engine made more power. The clue is the tuner made no other changes. As we’ve seen, moving to a lighter SG fuel will require a richer jet. With no other changes, it’s possible the real reason the lighter fuel made more power is because the lighter fuel leaned out the overall

Using a WBO2 gauge like this from Innovate makes tuning for different fuel easier using Lambda instead of air/fuel ratios — especially if the custom race fuel uses a different stoich ratio. This illustrates a Lambda of 0.8, which would certainly be on the rich side for any fuel, although alcohols might not be too far off.

air/fuel ratio. Of course, this could easily go the other way, as well. The point is you will not know unless you compensate. With no standardized base line, there’s no way to tell if the fuel helped, or the ratio change was the reason for the increased power.

In order to understand what’s going on here, let’s start with a look at the wide band oxygen sensor and how it works.

When you hook this amazing little device into the exhaust, its output may tempt you to think it is actually measuring the relationship of oxygen to fuel. It does not.

Before we get to that, let’s first make sure everybody is on the same page. While for most tuners, this is rookie stuff, some may not be familiar with the term and what it means.

Stoichiometry is not the max-power air/fuel ratio.

When we talk about a given fuel’s stoichiometric air/fuel ratio, this is the ratio where the fuel burns the most completely, but it is not the air/fuel ratio for best power. Using non-oxygenated gasoline as our reference point, 14.7:1 is the correct stoich number while the generally-accepted best power air/ fuel ratio is usually between 12.5:1 and 12.8:1.

The number displayed on the screen of all WBO2 sensors is expressed as a simple air/fuel ratio. This is a calculated number based on the amount of free oxygen in the exhaust. All WBO2 sensors use something called Lambda as a reference point. Lambda is the chemically ideal stoichiometric air/fuel ratio for a given fuel, so the stoichiometric air/ fuel ratio for pure gasoline (not mixed with an oxygenate) is 14.7:1. That number is also Lambda, or 1.0.

Because all WBO2 sensors use Lambda as their true reference point, all fuels will revert to 1.0 at stoichiometric. Lambda for gasoline is 1.0, but Lambda E85, E50, or even straight

Stoichiometry of selected VP Racing gasolines and Power Enrichment FUEL C-16 C10 C12 C14 C15 C16 C20 C23 C25 C45 Q16 VP113 X16 Q16

STOICH 0.85 0.89 SG 14.82:1 12.62:1 13.19:1 0.735 14.56:1 12.37:1 12.95:1 0.766 14.87:1 12.64:1 13.23:1 0.717 15.08:1 12.81:1 13.42:1 0.696 14.95:1 12.70:1 13.30:1 0.713 14.82:1 12.62:1 13.12:1 0.735 13.91:1 11.81:1 12.38:1 0.817 14.95:1 12.70:1 13.30:1 0.709 15.07:1 12.81:1 13.41:1 0.695 13.12:1 11.15:1 11.67:1 0.738 13.60:1 11.56:1 12.10:1 0.716 14.24:1 12.10:1 12.67:1 0.721 14.96:1 12.71:1 13.31:1 0.710 13.6:1 11.56:1 12.10:1 0.716

Ethanol-based Fuels FUEL STOICH 0.85 SG E10 14.13:1 12.01:1 0.70

– 0.77 E30 12.99:1 11.04:1 N.A. E85 9.76:1 8.30:1 0.789 E98 9.00:1 7.65:1 0.787 C85 (E85) 9.66:1 8.21:1 0.793 X85 (E85-) 9.81:1 8.34:1 0.780 Leaner (greater than 0.85) A/F ratios generally do not help with ethanol or methanol fuels — we’ve gone the other way with an enrichment number of 0.82

Specific Gravity of Rockett Brand Racing gasoline FUEL SG 100E 0.717 110 0.710 112L 0.721 112 (E85) 0.789 114L 0.727 118L 0.701 DragRacingScene.com 45

methanol is also 1.0. So, if an engine is running right at a givcomponent of the fuel. This is especially true with alcohols en fuel’s stoich ratio, a WBO2 sensor will read 1.0 or Lambda. like ethanol (C2H6O) or methanol (CH3OH). In each of these If the engine is running richer than stoich (at WOT for examchemical formulas, that “O” is oxygen. Gasoline is a complex ple), the Lambda number would be chain of hydrocarbons that does less than 1.0, such as 0.85, while an not include oxygen. Adding oxygen engine running leaner than stoich Air/Fuel Ratios equivalents of to gasoline changes both its specific would produce a Lambda number Lambda with Different Fuels gravity and its stoichiometric ratio, like 1.05. This would be five percent LAMBDA GASOLINE ETHANOL E85 METHANOL making the fuel leaner.

0.70 10.3:1 6.3:1 6.8:1 4.5:1 leaner than stoich.

Ethanol has a ridiculously low 11.0:1 6.7:1 7.3:1 4.8:1 stoich air/fuel ratio of 9.00:1. Most This is important for a couple of 0.75 reasons and offers an explanation 0.80 11.8:1 7.2:1 7.8:1 5.1:1 pump gasoline sold in this country 12.5:1 7.6:1 8.3:1 5.4:1 today is mixed with 10 percent ethafor why many racers might think 0.85 13.2:1 8.1:1 8.8:1 5.8:1 nol, giving the gasoline a stoich not their WBO2 sensor is not always 0.90 0.95 14.0:1 8.5:1 9.3:1 6.1:1 of 14.7:1, but instead a much lower accurate. WBO2 sensors don’t nor14.7:1 9.0:1 9.7:1 6.4:1 14.13:1. This change in pump gasomally read out in Lambda because 1.00 1.05 15.4:1 9.4:1 10.2:1 6.7:1 few racers know what that repline’s stoich ratio accounts for the 1.10 16.2:1 9.9:1 10.7:1 7.0:1 resents. Most understand air/fuel oxygen present in the ethanol. ratios, so all the WBO2 sensors calThat little revelation might not culate the air/fuel ratio based on the assumption your engine seem like a big deal — you probably don’t care because you is burning straight gasoline with a stoich of 14.7:1. probably burn race gasoline. But, even small changes like this So, if our WBO2 sensor sniffs the exhaust and calculates directly affect your WBO2 sensor. This becomes important a Lambda of 0.89, it will display an air/fuel ratio of 14.7 x when attempting to tune a race gasoline like C14 while data 0.89 = 13.08:1. Assuming our WBO2 sensor is accurate, evlogging using a WBO2 sensor that is calibrated to a gasoline erybody should be happy and all should be right with the Lambda of 14.7:1. world, correct?

The issue revolves around the fact VP Fuels’ published The answer is no, if you are using a custom race fuel with C14’s stoich number is 15.08:1. Perhaps we’re making too a different stoich number. much of this, but that’s an air/fuel ratio difference of 0.33, At first, this seems counterintuitive. If gasoline’s stoich rawhich is a touch more than 2 percent. So, instead of using tio is 14.7:1, then what’s the problem? That 14.7:1 ratio was 12.5:1 as gasoline’s typical max power reference air fuel ratio true before refineries began mixing oxygenates into gasoline.

(0.85 Lambda x 14.7:1 = 12.5:1), we must use C14’s 15.08 x They learned that mixing a percentage of ethanol (sippin’ 0.85 = 12.81:1, which is one third of a ratio leaner. whisky or white lightning if you live south of the Mason-DixWe first learned about Lambda from engine builder guru on Line) with gasoline raises the fuel’s octane rating. But, if Ken Duttweiler. We were attempting to muddle our way you look at the included charts, adding ethanol also changes through the art of tuning for E85 (85-percent ethanol and the fuel’s SG, as well as its stoich air/fuel ratio. This occurs 15-percent gasoline), and we were having difficulty remembecause many of these aromatic additives are oxygenates. bering this new fuel’s max power air/fuel ratio. Duttweiler An oxygenate is a fuel additive that includes oxygen as a just smiled and said, “Just use 0.85 Lambda for a starting

Fuel Air Spark Technology’s (FAST) David Henninger showed us this simple approach to tuning with Lambda. Let’s say the reading changes from 0.88 to 0.93. This is a 0.05 Lambda change. It’s also a 5-percent change from rich to lean. The solution is to richen the mixture by 5 percent to return to the original Lambda. In this VE graph, we’ve highlighted the upper-right-hand WOT portion of the graph. We make this area richer by 5 percent.

46 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

For open exhaust systems, the standard recommendation is to position the WBO2 sensor upstream from the opening no less than 3½ times the diameter. So for a 4-inch collector, the WBO2 sensor needs to be 14 inches upstream from the end of the collector extension.

point for best-power.” After we did the math, that simple statement made sense.

We will mention this again. Lambda is always 1.0 for all fuels. Regardless of which fuel we’re using or any mix of different fuels like 30 percent ethanol and 70 percent gasoline, the Lambda number will still always be 1.0. So, tuning with Lambda is easy since we can use 0.85 as our baseline to begin tuning. If you want to switch from a fuel like C10 (14.56:1 stoich) to perhaps Q16 (13.6:1 stoich), your initial tuning effort is still aimed at 0.85 Lambda. This is moving from a heavy fuel to a light one, which means you will need to add jet. This is a substantial change, by the way, with a difference of 0.05 SG and nearly one full air/fuel ratio.

Armed with this knowledge, you don’t have to go buy a new WBO2 sensor or gauge. All the WBO2 sensors we’ve used will also display in Lambda. All it takes is a simple configuration change on the meter.

The reason this is important is some racers get a stoich number from the fuel company and assume that’s the air/ fuel ratio they should achieve as their WOT max power goal.

But from this discussion, you can see this is just the chemically correct reference number – not the best power number. The best power number would be closer to 0.85 times the stoich number. So, using C10’s stoich of 14.56 x 0.85 = 12.37:1 max power initial tuning goal.

All of this merely gives you more information on how fuel works and how an engine will respond to tuning, based on the right assumptions. While we’ve referenced VP’s numbers as examples, the information holds true for any gasoline from any manufacturer or refinery.

Mixing or Blending Ratios Here’s the question: “I want to mix 30-percent E85 with 70-percent pump gasoline, but I need to know the A/F ratio for that mixing ratio.”

The blending math below makes an important assumption that the E85 fuel really is 85-percent ethanol and 15-percent gasoline. The only way to know would be to perform a specific gravity or water separation test. Quick Fuel sells a simple little tool that can perform this test. Or, you can purchase dedicated E85 race fuel from either Rockett or VP that will be a known quantity.

We will use pump gas stoich A/F ratio of E10: 14.1:1 Blend Stoich = (0.30 x E85 A/F) + (0.70 x Gasoline A/F) Blend Stoich = (0.30 x 9.76) + (0.70 x 14.13) Blend Stoich = 2.93 + 9.87 Blend Stoich = 12.8:1 (Note this is really closer to E40)

Henninger also suggested the ideal way to tune is to look at each cylinder individually and essentially tune the leanest cylinder to keep it out of trouble by placing sensor bungs roughly 12 to 14 inches from the port. He says it’s not unusual to see the collector one full ratio leaner than ratios in the primary pipes.

As a quick review, this Lambda technique works very well with ethanol fuels like E85. The numbers get a bit more confusing because ethanol has a very high specific gravity (E98 or pure ethanol’s SG = 0.787), substantially higher than gasoline. But, because ethanol’s BTU heat output per pound of fuel is roughly 30 percent less than gasoline, its stoichiometric number is much lower at 9.00:1. This means we must use more fuel to make the same amount of heat possible with gasoline.

The two major advantages for E85 are its high octane rating combined with the alcohol’s excellent latent heat characteristics. E85 pump fuel is essentially a 100+ octane fuel, but it will require a substantial increase in volume. In the case of a carbureted application, you will need a dedicated carburetor that has been modified to flow the roughly 30 percent more fuel to prevent running the engine lean.

Unlike gasoline, ethanol can be run on the rich side of the 0.85 Lambda number, causing a loss of power. In Specific gravity is the fractional fact, it is often recommended weight of fuels compared to the to start your WOT tuning at weight of water. A hydrometer cona Lambda number of perhaps sists of a graduated tube weighted to float upright and be measured.

0.82 and then experiment with leaner mixtures. Details on tuning for E85 could easily consume an entire story, but these first suggestions will be enough for a baseline.

Once you understand and become familiar with the combination of specific gravity and working with Lambda, tuning success using these tools should overcome the learning curve. And if you fancy yourself a tuner, you can talk Lambda to the guy next to you in the pits, and he will either walk away shaking his head, or he’ll be impressed. Or, maybe he’ll still just walk away.

Either way, you’ll be confident that your tune is righteous. DRS Source: Fuel Air Spark Technology, fuelairspark.com; Innovate Motorsports, innovatemotorsports; Rockett Brand Racing Fuel, rockettbrand.com; VP Racing Fuels, vpracingfuels.com

DragRacingScene.com 47

Bringing back a revolutionary Top Fuel Dragster

J

ohn Dearmore and Frank Heinig set out to achieve one of the holy grails of historic drag racing: to find a specific drag car of significance and bring it back to the perfect restoration of its glory days. In this case, their object of keen interest was the Roland Leong Top/Fuel dragster, circa 1967.

The original car was on the cover of the 1967 Hot Rod magazine combined with a story noting the beginning of the revolutionary era of lightweight front-engine Top Fuelers.

The original car was a Don Long Chassis, Tom Hanna-bodied roller that was significant in its day. The car weighed in at a then featherweight 1,250 pounds race-ready with a Leong 392 HEMI and 35 pounds of ballast.

John Dearmore bemoaned the unfortunate part of their search for this Hawaiian.

“Every lead that we received ended in a dead end,” Dearmore says.

“The last trace we had of the car was just about 20 miles from my home.

I tried to follow up on numerous occasions, but all stories about the car brought us to the same conclusion— that the car was totally destroyed and scrapped.”

When Heinig and Dearmore located the “sister car” that came off of the Don 48 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

Long chassis jig in 1967, things began to fall into place.

“Don Long was very helpful,” Heinig says. “He gave us the location of an original chassis that came off of the chassis jig right after the Hawaiian did. This car was constructed identically in every tube and dimension to the Hawaiian. It was located in Canada and was for sale.”

The pair thought they were onto something but had one more hurdle to cross. They wanted Roland Leong to give his blessing for them to reproduce the car from this identical chassis.

“We’re not claiming it is the original car,” Dearmore explains. “We’re just claiming we reproduced as close as physically possible, with an original Don Long chassis.”

Heinig and Dearmore agreed there was no sense continuing until they met with Roland Leong to gain his approval.

The pair traveled to an event in Bakersfield, California to meet with the namesake to the Hawaiian.

“I said there is no sense of us going any further on this project until we talk to Roland because I don’t want to get into this deal and get a desist letter saying we can’t do this.,” Heinig explains.

Dearmore adds, “We caught up with Roland in his trailer, and he agreed to the Hawaiian project since he knew me

Words: Todd Silvey Interview and Photos: Patrick Perry

For even more photos and video of of the Hawaiian dragster’s first start up, search “Hawaiian” at DragRacingScene.com.

The original Roland Leong Hawaiian was featured on the August 1967 Hot Rod magazine cover with a feature story that noted the beginning of the revolutionary era of lightweight front-engine Top Fuelers.

and knew my business, DRE Racing, for many years. He also knew about our search to find an exact sister to the original chassis.”

Leong signed an agreement in 2015, and the project began to move forward.

The pairing of John Dearmore and Frank Heinig is a long distance partnership and friendship. The pair has restored two vintage fuelers, the Gingrass & Dearmore dragster that currently is in California, and Dearmore’s original SPE chassis Top Fueler restored to its 1969 status. The friendship thrives with Heinig located in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he has been an aviation mechanic for US Air/American Airlines for 17 years. Dearmore is located in Alba, Texas.

“We are on the phone for at least an hour every other day plus daily emails, Heinig says. “For the last six months, we’ve been talking every day during the Hawaiian build by either email or telephone call.”

Heinigflew out for long stretches to build the car and hopes to travel often to be with the Hawaiian’s every outing.

“Driving the rig to events will be on John and crew.” he jokes.

Dearmore has another resurrection project in motion, as the owner of DRE Racing, which formerly manufactured racing rocker arms and components, most notably HEMI rocker arms and early HEMI racing components. A massive fire leveled the entire business in 2014, turning his shop filled with CNC and machining/welding equipment into exactly 37 tons of scrap metal.

“I’m not sure I’ll ever get back to the massive shop I once had, but I’ve learned never to say never,” Dearmore says.

“We’re going to try our damnedest to get back to building good racing products and pay for the new manufacturing equipment,” Heinig says. “I want to do this for as long as I can do it and enjoy it and physically able to do it.”

Dearmore notes that he has been working with fuelers and manufacturing his related racing engine components for 60 years, “So if I can do it for another ten, I’ll be a happy camper.”

The project of restoring the car fullsteam, began in earnest in April 2016.

Heinig and Dearmore invested about six months to have different modifications cut out and the chassis restored to period correct.

“We saved the original roll cage and as much original hardware as possible,” Dearmore explains. “We restored every bracket and mount that existed and duplicated anything else to exact details.”

50 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

John Dearmore looks on as Frank Heinig spins the wrenches of the monumental day the new Hawaiian fired for the first time. The pairing of Dearmore and Heinig is a long-distance partnership and friendship over the dragster build. Heinig flew out for long stretches to build the car and hopes to travel often to be with the Hawaiian’s every outing.

The pair chose Corey Conyers to restore and recreate the body skin to exact Hawaiian shape and design. ”Corey did a really good job with both the body and paint reproduction,” Dearmore says. “He took pride in it because it is the Hawaiian. The information was very, very shallow when it came to reproducing colors and custom pattern details. We had as many old magazines we could get our hands on and as much information as we could secure.

New paint technology has eliminated a lot of the old style paint practices that made up these great old paints. Corey had to reinvent new techniques for old paint effects.”

“50 years ago, this car was on the cover of Hot Rod Magazine, Heinig says, referring to the significance.”

Many are going to compare this restoration to that rich history. We hope that photos a half-century later will be indiscernible from the originals.”

The Hawaiian sports an original iron 392 Chrysler Hemi block and heads.

Topping the combination is a Mooneyham blower utilizing an original style Hilborn injector with the tall upright design.

“The fuel system consists of a Hilborn 175 pump putting out about 12.5 to 12.9 gallons of fuel per minute,”

Dearmore continues. “To keep the reproduction as accurate as possible, we saved the original ’67 fuel tank and are running an era-correct set of Hilborn injector nozzles. We spin the blower about 20 percent over crankshaft RPM. As an example of our exacting efforts, Roland still has the very set of injectors once used on that car, and we are trying to negotiate with him to get them for this dragster.”

The components within the engine are a combination of original and late model hardware depending on reliability while cackling the nitromethane flames. The pistons are Venolia along with Brooks connecting rods which are current hardware made to original specifications. An example of the new and old choices can be seen in the valvetrain.

“We found an original Engle cam with the exact grind specs used in 1967, but in contrast, we opted for new lifters, pushrods and our DRE rockers arms for the sake of not hurting anything,” Dearmore explains.

“The original rockers and related pieces from 1967 had a tendency to break back in the day. We just wanted to be as original as possible without risking any engine damage to the rare parts we do use on the Hemi.”

Some of the restored drivetrain components include a Hayes twin-disc clutch, an in-and-out style transmission required by the current nostalgia competition rules, and a pair of Goodyear Blue Streak slicks mounted on Halibrand Engineering wheels.

With the Hawaiian restoration completed, the car began its 2017 tour, debuting at the Tucson Dragway Reunion and the Beech Bend Hot Rod Reunion.

“We don’t know what we’re going to do after that, but we do want to take a break.” Dearmore explains, “ We’ve worked on this project 10-12 hours a day, seven days a week for over a year.

We were excited about the first fire-up at Tucson of course. I think there will be lots of people once they see the car and will understand how proud of how it turned out.”

Dearmore notes that he and Heinig have talked about the next couple of cars they have in mind to rekindle.

“I learned right from the get-go not to start a project like reproducing a historical dragster until you have everybody on board,” Dearmore continues.

“There are some famous cars needing to be re-popped because more than likely the original cars of significance are long gone.” DRS

ATI’s 4L85E EXPLAINED

An overdrive transmission with brute Turbo 400 pedigree

T

he 4L85E is the transmission JC Beattie and the crew at ATI Performance have been working on developing for many reasons.

The 4L85E is internally a Turbo 400 when it comes to first through third gears. Add in the ATI Max Duty level of components from their proven Turbo 400 platform, and it’s a match made in a hot rod, street/strip, and even drag racing heaven.

“Our max duty transmissions are our highest horsepower capable units; we wanted to do this with a four-speed overdrive transmission boasting the highest capabilities,” Beattie adds. “We patiently waited until we had the components carefully designed and produced to take on performance and racing torque numbers. We can now rate our highest 4L85E to handle 1,500 horses.”

A stock 4L85E is conventionally rated in its OEM form to handle a respectable 450 lb-ft of torque. In stock form, their reliability is becoming the obvious 52 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

Words: Todd Silvey

ATI Performance offers lock-up torque converters in both welded and bolt-together units. Both converters feature five-axis machined billet aluminum back cover, dual O-ring sealing, and multiple stator designs. A bronze pilot option is also available.

Some of the perormance engineered internals for the 4L85E include: 2-piece output shafts, drum and clutch components, roller tailshaft housing, lightweight sheet aluminum transmission pan, and more.

choice for a hot rod or muscle car application. This baseline of durability from the factory is what incited ATI to take the transmission to higher levels.

ATI currently offers three designs of its trans packages. Their street rod package is rated at 700 hp and comes with a high performance 10-inch lockup converter. Their high horsepower package includes a 10-inch billet cover single disc torque converter, 300M input and main shaft, billet clutch hub, extra third gear clutches, high energy clutch material, and deep cast pan. This combination is rated at 1000 hp.

The Max Duty trans is the highest horsepower-handling 4L85E combination they make.

“Our ATI Max Duty trans, includes our SFI 30.1 bellhousing, a 10-inch bil-

let cover triple friction torque converter, Vasco input and main shaft, billet clutch hub, billet aluminum pistons, rear case bearing, 300M output, and either our deep cast finned pan or the optional Moroso lightweight sheet metal pan,” Beattie says.

“We have something nobody else has. We actually modified the case, and there is a bearing and a retainer pressed in. That is one less point of friction. This unit can

take 1,500 hp and still give you the overdrive feature for driving. Our top lines of Turbo 400 transmissions will handle over 3,000 hp; the 4L85, with all of the additional overdrive components, can’t get close to that, but is close to that durability with the additional overdrive gear and lockup torque converter.”

“We know all of those Turbo 400 products we manufacture will take the horsepower,” Beattie says. “From the

ATI Performance Products created its own cast aluminum deep pan for 4L85E and 4L80E transmissions.

Benefits include extra fluid capacity and increased case rigidity in the extra heavy-duty unit.

DragRacingScene.com 53

With an ATI-designed adapter, this trans is adaptable to many applications going beyond the General Motors platform. The 4L85E will readily mate to many power plants like small-block and big-block MOPAR engines, as well as small-block and big-block Fords. The adapter and bellhousing combination will even bolt the 4L85E to the Nissan GTR with the VR38 engine, the Toyota Supra application, the mod-motor Ford, and the third-generation Hemi.”

rear of the trans working forward, we start with a 300M output shaft supported by a roller bearing tail shaft housing and a roller bearing support at the end of the internal transmission case. This is a big step up from a factory case design.”

ATI has a cutaway transmission which has been on display at many popular gearhead events. The transmission allows them to show the internals of the

unit. When discussing the unit, Beattieexpounds upon the rear of the transmission forward to the direct drum or mid-area inside the transmission.

“The low gear set we show is a 6-pinion, 2.10 ratio straight cut gear set,” Beattie says. “The intermediate shaft is available in Vasco or 300M material which connects to the intermediate clutches and our direct clutches.”

From the factory, the 4L85E is equipped with a steep 2:48 first gear ratio, far too sharp for high horsepower at the track.

The 6-pinion 2.10 ratio gearset from the ATI drawing board provides a first gear to control wheel

The 4L85E output shafts are designed in two lengths, standards OEM case length and a shorter output shaft and tail housing that can put the overall trans length within an inch of a Turbo 400 length.

54 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

speed and get the car moving down the dragstrip.

Special attention is paid to the design of the direct drum, due to second gear engine braking. The direct drum is spinning 1.8 times of engine rpm when the transmission is accelerating in first gear.

“When you shift into second gear, the drum stops dead, which can be very harmful to the sprag,” Beattie describes.

“An OEM drum weighs in four pounds heavier than the ATI aluminum design.

Our severe-duty direct drum is manufactured with an outer steel sleeve which is drilled and machined in place. That outer band will handle engine braking during a downshift situation on the street without damage to an aluminum drum surface.”

Along with the steel outer liner on the direct drum, a special steel sleeve is also pressed into the unit for use with Teflon seal rings. Just like every ATI competition transmission, their 4L85E design utilizes 17 assorted Teflon rings including two types designed for center supports.

The forward section of the 4L85E rotating assembly contains the overdrive components. The trans is available with ATI billet pistons and increased line pressures to handle the overdrive, but the original GM five pinion gearset can be used because of its inherent sturdiness.

“We’re not going to be going into overdrive with a wide-open-throttle situation, so redesign is not needed,” Beattie says. “We also added a Teflon coating on the transmission pump gears just as we do for all of our performance and racing transmissions.

“There is a full complement of valve body options available ranging from

Special attention is paid to the design of a lightweight direct drum due to second gear engine braking. The ATI unit weighs in four pounds lighter than OEM and is manufactured with an outer steel band tht will handle engine braking during a downshift situation.

trans brake to fully electronic to an entirely manual shift function,” he continues. “We also have developed a new cast aluminum deep pan for 4L85E and 4L80E transmissions.

This is one of the best investments you can make; it gives extra fluid capacity while also adding transmission case strength.”

There is a wide assortment of electronic shift controllers available from ATI for the electronic performance valve bodies.

The full manual and trans brake valve bodies do not require a full electronic controller.

The ATI converter designed as a mate to the 4L85E is a 10.5-inch billet aluminum cover model with either a single or triple friction lockup assembly. Each unit comes with a billet aluminum rear cover, stator, brazed turbine, and pump along with double O-ring seals. The torque converters are available in Just like their Turbo 400 brothers, the 4L85E input shafts are precision machined from a choice of 300M or Vasco materials.

sizes ranging from 245, 258, and 265 mm for multiple applications. Billet cases are available in a single and triple disc. Pretty straightforward.

ATI is the forerunner in making this trans adaptable to many applications going beyond the General Motors platform. With a simple adapter, the 4L85E will readily mate to many powerplants other than the General Motors engine bolt pattern. They also manufacture the same adapter for the 4L65E for use with lower horsepower engines.

“By adapting our variety of ATI SuperCase bellhousings, we can now mate this trans to a small-block and big-block MOPAR engines as well as small-block and big-block Fords,” Beattie adds. “We can even bolt the 4L85E to the Nissan GTR with the VR38 engine along with the Toyota Supra application. It also works for the mod-motor Ford and the third-generation Hemi.”

Some may wonder how they will be able to fit a largely sized overdrive transmission into their current muscle or race car body application. The “girth” of the trans is notably smaller than some earlier model overdrive transmissions. A muscle car or hot rod that has hosted a Turbo 400

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trans in the past will see minimal if any, modifications necessary in the trans tunnel department. The above-mentioned roller tail shaft designed by ATI also features a shorter length. Combined with the Chevrolet bellhousing, the 4L85E with their shortened tail shaft is only one inch longer than a standard GM Turbo 400 transmission. DRS Source: ATI Performance Products Inc., atiracing.com

A roller bearing tail shaft housing and a roller bearing support at the end of the internal transmission case are a big step up from a factory case design.

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TURNING YOUR PASSION

Rich Barsamian and Advanced Clutch Technology utilize multiple methods, such as the SEMA job board and social media, when looking for help. He credits a referral from a friend for launching his career and when hiring new staff, gives high priority to word of mouth from people in the industry.

P

assion: a desirable trait separating a good employee from a great one, but not always easy to find. It was also a topic during this year’s Motorsports Parts Manufacturers Council (MPMC) conference — one of the most influential gatherings of hot rod and racing manufacturers to “talk shop.” One luncheon conversation centered on how to find employees who care about motorsports and, subsequently, their work.

Rich Barsamian, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Advanced Clutch Technology, is very pleased when he finds good people who weren’t necessarily gearheads when they started, but have since become enthusiasts.

“We are really proud that we have employees who have really stepped up their game,” Barsamian said. “When you find a person who sincerely wants to have a career in performance, it makes a huge difference. For example, when a computer guy has taken the time to research information about questions and usability, you can respect that self-education. It gives you an incentive to nurture them and help them along the way. That’s the kind of person you want working on your team. They’re self-motivated and want to improve.”

56 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

Steve Whipple, Vice President of Sales and Marketing for Edelbrock, knows experience can come in several different ways. The company has more than 640 employees in various positions from manufacturing to engineering, the foundry, and general administrative work, so they have a vast cross-section of requirements for the job, but being an enthusiast is high on the list.

“One thing that is very important for our company is ‘do you have a passion for this business?’” Whipple said. “If you don’t like cars, honestly, you shouldn’t apply to work with us. That is one thing we look at very closely.”

Vic Wood is the Senior Director of Sales at Weld Racing and also looks for passion in their employees. He remembers when he was a teenager who want-

Steve Whipple stressed Edelbrock is looking for employees who have enthusiasm for motorsports, an asset even more important than experience in many of their positions.

INTO YOUR CAREER ed to be a hot rodder and a drag racer, and how that drive helped him to get into the industry.

“So many times, I meet young people just out of high school, and they just seem like they have no fire; they just go through the motions,” Wood said. “I started out as a teenager wanting to get into motorsports, and I associated with people who were doing what I wanted to do. I asked a lot of dumb questions, but I hung out with a lot of drag racers and soon, over time, I became one of them.”

Chris Douglas, Chief Operating Officer for COMP Performance Group, finds the blue-collar side of the industry is hurting for good employees. He notes it is truly difficult to find qualified people who are committed to a high level of work ethic.

“I hear a lot from others in the industry that people don’t want to work hard these days,” he said. “That is a common struggle. We look for a common thread of love of cars or love for motorsports.

Words: Todd Silvey

Since 2008, the Hot Rodders of Tomorrow Challenge has been contested. The competitions have grown into 11 qualifying events across the country, culminating in a dual championship at the SEMA and PRI shows. More than $4.55 million in scholarships were awarded in 2016.

It’s so important to bring young blood into the performance industry. Chris Douglas enjoys taking his son, Caden, to the races, the first step in nurturing that enthusiasm for motorsports.

For motorsports industry veteran Vic Wood, the next generation is his 9-year-old grandson, Jack Weatherbie.

DragRacingScene.com 57

When the going gets tough, that’s what will determine if a person sticks with it, or if they will throw their hands up in the air and hop off to the next job that pays $1 more per hour.”

One problem that was repeatedly mentioned is the lack of appeal to the next generation.

“People generally end up in this industry because they got a taste of it as an enthusiast early on, and that’s what leads them to want to make their career in this line of work,” Douglas notes.

“We hear talk of where is the next generation of racer and customer going to come from. I don’t think we ever hear how those problems are linked with the employee side.”

Wood also lamented the loss of auto shop in high schools and fewer young people getting into performance and motorsports.

“If your uncle raced a car, if your buddy’s dad had a hot rod, then you have that understanding,” he said. “So many times, though, young people have lost that opportunity. It’s a great shame that auto shop has gone out of high schools, in many cases without a whimper from our industry. The Hot Rodders of Tomorrow program is helping to overcome that problem. And, SEMA has their Action Network, a fantastic outreach for young people. We have to do a better job of putting that spark into the next generation, so they want to work in motorsports.”

In past years, companies found their employees through newspaper advertising or word of mouth. Though a good referral from a friend is still

“Presentation is everything,” Vic Wood says. “If a young person comes in and presents well at the interview and shows enthusiasm, I’m more likely to hire them than a more experienced person who is just going through the motions.”

a great way to find a good employee, these days, much of the search is done through the internet.

Douglas finds there doesn’t seem to be a consistent source for finding the best employees. COMP Performance Group often uses LinkedIn, Monster, and Indeed online, just as the rest of the world does.

“For us, we find that most of our long-term employees come into a ground level position,” he said. “If an employee works hard and sticks with the company over the years, they grow into different skill sets and earn promotions. I’m sure it isn’t the same for every company, but it seems to be the way we do things here. We promote a lot from within and sprinkle in some

‘At COMP Performance Group, we want to hire ex-racers because both work and racing consume your life; be it the company every day or the racing at the track. We keep an eye on that guy who is ready to turn his competitiveness to our business.’ - Chris Douglas 58 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

‘Edelbrock has a stand-alone warehouse, which usually would have a fast turnover,’Steve Whipple says. ‘Most companies put in youngsters, don’t pay them well, and they don’t stick around. We run with fewer people, but pay them over scale. This practice costs us less because we keep them much longer.’

ACT has hired people with no background in racing, but finds those with high levels of motivation and drive to learn will always do well.

Edelbrock wants their employees to stay with them for a long time. It’s much more cost-effective to pay someone well for the long haul than to continuously train new workers.

When Advanced Clutch Technology finds a good candidate, it’s well worth time and effort to train them if they have the enthusiasm for the job and the industry.

fresh talent along the way, and we end up with a pretty good mixture.”

“The hardest thing to do is to find a person with the spirit, the desire, and the motivation to want to do this,” Wood said. “We often go through the interview process for a position at Weld, and it’s disheartening to talk to people who have no desire other than to get health insurance and get paid.

They ask no questions about the job expectations or the industry. They’re not the one who will be the spark plug in your business, and it’s the spark plugs that we need.”

Once the resumé is received and the interview is scheduled, passion becomes even more important.

“That is one thing we look at really hard,” Edelbrock’s Whipple said. “We have a lot of people who have been here a long time, and we have grandfathers, fathers, and sons who have all worked here. Next year is going to be our 80th year in business — so there’s a lot of time here. We have many people who have worked here for over 30 years. It’s neat to see a spring in their step when they walk in every morning.”

Barsamian noted enthusiasm could go far in gauging a good prospect.“We have one guy in customer service who had no background in racing when he

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NATE VAN ZUIDEN

A DRIVE TO WORK IN MOTORSPORTS SINCE HIS TEENS Nate Van Zuiden knew he wanted a career in motorsports from an early age. He was hired at Cordova Dragway Park when he first got his driver’s license. After working in the food stand, he moved to the front gate. He worked in the gas and tech area and was named tech official, where he remained for five years.

“Before I worked at the track, I had attended a couple of races, but didn’t know what went on behind the scenes,” he said. “The longer I worked and the more opportunities they gave me, I learned about how everything operated. It motivated me to learn more about that side of it.”

Van Zuiden also worked in the offices during the off-season, selling tickets, entering tech card information into the database, and more.

“That was a big learning curve for me,” Van Zuiden said. “I learned a lot about how to run a very good racetrack.”

After high school, he attended Wyotech in Pennsylvania. Pittsburgh Raceway Park was close, so he worked there doing tech, prep, and starting.

“I knew a lot from Scott and Laura Gardner, but I learned from Greg Miller too,” Van Zuiden said. “I offered suggestions that ended up working well.”

Van Zuiden was making a name for himself with his experience. After college, he received a call from Scott Gardner, who had just been hired as President of IHRA. 60 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

started,” he said. “He learned quickly and has continued to dig deep to pick up more and more. He has really come a long way in training himself to know what to ask, and he’s been a great success story. He’s just one example of how giving a guy a chance to prove himself can be a boon to your business.”

Blue collar, white collar or racing t-shirt, the majority of the leaders we interviewed have led by example with their love of the sport. The person who displays a deep desire to develop their skills and exhibits a passion for drag racing will not go unnoticed by these individuals. If you get out there, network with those already doing the job, show a willingness to learn, and exhibit a “can-do attitude,” you can put yourself well above the average job seeker in a stack of resumes. Who knows, you could convert your passion into a career. DRS

“I couldn’t pass it up because I wanted to work with Scott again,” he said. “I moved to Norwalk, Ohio, and joined IHRA as partnership services manager, in charge of the Summit Super Series program.”

He worked at IHRA until he had a great opportunity to join the Force Racing team.

“Steve Cole [Force public relations] was a big help getting my foot in the door, and I knew a couple of kids who worked there who put in a good word for me,” Van Zuiden said. “When I talked to the general manager, he wanted to know my background, if I had a CDL, etc. I explained my experience, and within a couple of days, I was moving to Brownsburg to work hospitality with John Force Racing.”

After one season in hospitality, he received a promotion. He is now the left-hand cylinder head man for Brittany Force’s team and works on short blocks in the shop during the week. With another feather in Nate’s career, he just won his first NHRA national event with the Brittany Force team at the New England Nationals.

Van Zuiden knows he’s been lucky in his career trajectory.

“It’s a people sport for all ages,” he said. “I’ve learned so much, and I continue to learn every day. I would tell someone who is looking for a job in motorsports to form as many relationships with people in the sport as you can. Not just business relationships, because personal relationships are important too. I’ve worked hard to get where I’m at, but I had great connections along the way who have helped me get here.”

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Drag Racing Scene has compiled a list of some of the hottest new products to hit the drag racing market. On the following pages of our Vendor Midway, be sure to check out the variety of racing products offered. Product and company contact information is provided should you see something you wish to purchase — and we know you will.

Two-timing allowed FAST, E6 CD Ignition with Dual Stage Rev Limiter You really can have an ignition that works on the street and the strip. FAST designed its E6 CD Ignition with Dual Stage Rev Limiter to give you the best of both worlds. The high-voltage, multi-strike ignition improves overall performance, plus offers one rev limiter for over-rev protection during daily operation and another that can be activated on the starting line for launch rpm.

The rev limiters are easily adjusted, using rotary dials, in 100 rpm increments. Digitally controlled, the limiters sequentially drop spark to one cylinder at a time for engine balance. This eliminates the “bang and pop” seen with some rev limiters, due to one cylinder being cancelled multiple times in a row. FAST’s technology produces rev limiting accurate within 30 rpm and timing accurate to within a half degree. Couple it with an E92 coil for maximum performance. fuelairspark.com 877.334.8355

62 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

For even more new products, head to

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Pocket-friendly protection Double Driven Racing Oil, SR50 Conventional 20W-50 your Motor Oil calipers Racing Sportsman racing is hard on oil, requiring Aerospace Components, Dual Rear Brake Kits

Aerospace Components has a dual brake kit option for almost any application.

The compact and lightweight four-piston calipers and proven durability of Aerospace’s two-piece hat and rotor provide the perfect combination of stopping power and repeatability needed for the growing number of fast and heavy drag cars. Kits are available for most every rear differential housing end.

Best of all, Aerospace’s Low Profile option allows mounting the heavy duty kits inside even the hard-to-fit double-bead lock and small barrel-size wheels. Aerospace develops brake kits that allow the car to leave harder, straighter and run confidently out the back door, all while keeping rolling resistance and rotating mass to a minimum. Make sure you have enough brake to hold your turbo car at the line, while building boost, and stop your car at the end of the track without brake fade. aerospacecomponents.com 727.347.9915

frequent changes to eliminate fuel dilution. Driven has recognized that can get expensive and developed its new SR50 oil as an economical race oil option that still provides maximum performance.

The conventional 20W-50 oil utilizes a proprietary anti-wear and friction-reducing additive package. It’s ideal for flat tappet engines and prevents lifter skidding in aggressive roller cam valvetrains using both needle and bushing lifters.

Driven recommends against use in engines with stamped steel rockers, suggesting its XP9 or XP6 instead. drivenracingoil.com 866.611.1820

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Get energized QuickCar Racing Products, 40-150 - Spark Plug Wire Set QuickCar has the answer to more spark energy! Its new wire features an 8mm wire with heat sleeve, for a 11.5mm total diameter, and is under 40 ohm/ft. resistance. QuickCar Sleeved Race Wire has a very quick spark energy transfer while also providing a high Electro Magnetic (EMI) and Radio Frequency Interference (RFI) suppression. Constructed using two layers of the purest silicone available, the Kevlar core center and nickel-copper alloy wound conductor provides a very flexible, high-tensile strength spark plug wire.

The QuickCar competition sleeve is made of a silicone-impregnated fiberglass braid, tightly fitted over the entire wire lengt,h adding more than 1400 degrees of total heat resistance and 24,000 volts of insulation. Double insulated shrink sleeves at each boot end seals, protects, and secures the boot to the wire.

The wires are numerically numbered at both ends for quick reference of the firing order. High-temperature silicone boots provide ultimate heat protection, resisting temperatures to 600 degrees, and the posi-snap lock stainless steel spring clip terminals provide a vibration-free connection. The QuickCar Race Sleeved Race Wire works with most ignition systems, ignition controls, computers, and most other electronic devices. Coil Wire must be purchased separately. Available in competition red and race black for the quickest level of racing power! Additional coil wire lengths are available separately. quickcar.com 800.997.7333

Gauge your success Classic Instruments, Exhaust Gas and Cylinder Head Temp Gauges Classic Instruments now offers full-sweep electric exhaust gas temperature and cylinder head temperature gauges, both available in the 2 1/8- and 2 5/8-inch sizes across all series. The new instruments include all of the great features offered on their other full-sweep instruments, such as the rugged air-core movement, integrated red warning light that illuminates the gauge when the set point is reached, .54.5VDC analog data-logging output, and programmable LED lighting. The gauges arrive complete with wiring harness, installation hardware, and thermocouple. These temperature gauges will help drivers perfect their engine tuning for more efficient performance as well as monitor for safe EGT and cylinder head temperature to prevent damage to the engine. All instruments are packaged individually and are available through any authorized Classic Instruments’ dealer or direct. classicinstruments.com 800.575.0461 64 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

For the FE lover COMP Cams, Ultra-Gold ARC Shaft-Mount Aluminum Rockers for Ford FE

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More to choose from ARP, Expanded Selection of Metric Bolts Industry-leading high-performance fastener manufacturer ARP has expanded its selection of “bulk” metric bolts to cover sizes from tiny M6 with a 12mm underhead length to a big M12 x 100mmn UHL offering. The M6 bolts are made with a 1.00 pitch count, the M8 fasteners have a 1.25 count, M10s come in both 1.25 and 1.50 pitch, and M12 bolts are available with 1.50 and 1.75 pitch counts.

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Less drag, longer life Mark Williams Enterprises, 9-inch Ford “big bore” case Mark Williams Enterprises has developed a 4.000-inch bore case for 9-inch Ford rear end applications that employs angular contact ball bearings that significantly reduces friction. A companion angular contact dual ball bearing pinion support also reduces drag.

The new M-W case is clearanced to accommodate up to 10inch ring gears and the big 4.00 inch angular contact ball bearings provide better race strength.

Manufactured from an aircraft aluminum alloy that’s 30 percent stronger than commonly used 6061, the case is precision CNC machined to assure exact component alignment. Featuring the M-W developed Thru-Bolt design, the case is available with either steel or aluminum bearing caps. The pinion support can accommodate 28-tooth and 35-tooth pinion splines. markwilliams.com 800.525.1963

Seal the deal Koul Tool, Hardline Sealing Tool Now there’s an easy way to ensure optimum sealing with flared hard lines employed in crucial brake and fuel system applications. The innovative new Surseat tool removes irregularities in the flare and prevents surface risers. In addition to perfecting newly-flared stainless steel, aluminum, or copper lines, the Surseat can also rejuvenate the seal on existing brake and fuel lines for restoration projects. The Surseat operates on the same premise as the ages-old process of lapping engine valves. A precision diamond dust coated lapping head (in either 37- or 45-degree configuration) literally polishes the flare smooth to perfection.

It comes with collets for 3/16- to 1/2-inch tubing, and collets to accommodate 3/16and 1/4-inch threaded brake lines. A custom carrying case is also included. The Surseat P-51 kit is a valuable asset for car builders, automotive repair facilities, and serious do-ityourselfers. koultools.com 928.854.6706 66 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

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Keep on spinning Lunati, Signature Series Blower Crank While supercharged engines make more power, they also increase stress on the crankshaft. Lunati’s Signature Series Blower Crankshafts are designed to withstand the extreme pressures in small-and big-block Chevy and LS applications using a Roots-type supercharger. Gun-drilled mains, lightened rod journals (except the first, where added strength is needed), micropolished journals, and a windage-reducing contoured wing counterweight profile are features carried over from Lunati’s Signature Series. But, the blower cranks also have 0.125-inch radii on the rods and mains, dual keyways, and larger bolt (3/4-inch) and flexplate flange (1/2-inch) threads. Constructed from 4340 forged steel, the blower cranks are pulsed plasma nitride heat treated for increased strength and durability. lunatipower.com 662.892.1500

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Talented couple have continued to rise as leading track and event promoters

Scott & Laura Words: Todd Silvey

GARDNER

Scott and Laura Gardner feel they are treated like partners with Chris Payne, owner of Shelby Development LLC. They put their hearts into everything they do for the facilities, just as if they were owners.

L

aura and Scott Gardner have been on their drag racing career journey since the early 1990’s, beginning with the United Drag Racers Association, Great Lakes Dragaway, and as owners/operators of Cordova Dragway Park. The pair also co-owned Cedar Falls and Eddyville Dragway in an effort to further the sport in the region.

Just this part of their journey spanned almost 20 years with even more interesting times to come.

They were given a huge opportunity for a change in their lives when Scott was named President of the International Hot Rod Association (IHRA) and Laura as Director of Human Resourc-

es and Training for the IRG Sports + Entertainment (IRG), the ownership group of the IHRA. “We were at a point in our lives that we were ready for something different,” Scott says. “The original group from IRG came to me asking for vision and an idea how to change the IHRA. That progressed into the purchase of Cordova Dragway Park and my appointment as president of the IHRA. We thought we were making a positive transfer of Cordova Dragway Park while moving forward with this opportunity. It was a chance to bring IHRA back to the spirit of when Bill Bader and family ran the association.”

Improvements started at National Trail Raceway immediately upon purchase of the track. Repaving of the track, staging lanes and other areas of the facility has just been completed.

68 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

At first, things were positive with the IHRA, but influences came down directly from the IRG ownership that didn’t work out. Personnel changed, the board changed, and the vision changed quickly.

“It was specified how many events per year to have, especially in markets I wouldn’t have recommended going into,” Scott says. “We had a formula to make IHRA profitable, and weather had a significant effect on it. If the weather had been good, there might have been more cash flow.

It was a learning experience and an opportunity, and it just didn’t work out,” he continues. “My heart was in it completely and if we had a little more time, more control, and a little better weather (80 percent of the national events were affected by rain in the 2014 season), maybe it would have turned out differently. I just had to go for a ride, and hope for a positive outcome.”

Scott was let go from IHRA and sat out of the sport for a short while, looking for the right opportunity to move on. He and Laura have landed at Heartland Park Topeka. He is currently President and General Manager, and Laura is Director of Business Operations.

“The good aspect of managing Heartland Park Topeka is the shared vision for this company including taking on the track management role again,” Scott says. “We have five different venues at Heartland Park Topeka. We had to learn very quickly about other types of racing. The facility had its share of big problems, and it was a rescue for us.

Thanks to joint efforts from staff, sponsorships have grown.”

The facility has also undergone a physical transformation since Scott walked in during March 2016.

“I walked in 45 days before the NHRA national event in 2016,” Scott remembers. “We were so pleased to get the place to look very nice and so quickly and have received so much great customer response.”

The track at Topeka had to overcome bad feelings in the community.

Government and tax money were involved, and residents weren’t sure what to think when Chris Payne and Shelby Development LLC stepped in to buy the facility from the city.

Racers at Heartland Park Topeka have welcomed Scott and Laura with open arms, recognizing that they are sportsman racers too, and have their best interests at heart.

“Topeka got beat up hard,” Scott says. “Those people didn’t know what to believe. We’ve been able to put our best foot forward, and I’ve gone out and talked to groups like the Rotary clubs and the Chamber of Commerce.

We’ve shared our vision for the facility, and that we’re not involved with the city monetarily, we’re an independent business. People have embraced us. It also helps that my roots are in sportsman racing and I can see the whole vision of what the track needs to be.

“It’s awesome to have the Menards Nationals,” Scott says. “But you also need a sportsman series as a base, and it needs to be a good one. It’s very challenging when you have five venues sharing 750 acres, but there is a way to make it work, and we have niched that out without looking like we don’t care.

Because we do care about all of the other people who race and all of the other classes and venues. It also helps that we have a good group of directors working hard.”

Recently, Shelby Development, LLC, the parent company that owns Heartland Park Topeka, purchased National Trail Raceway from the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA). It’s a lot to take on, but Scott and Laura know they can handle it.

“I am now the Chief Operations Officer for the company,” Scott says. “Overseeing not only the five venues at Heartland Park Topeka and now National Trail is a lot happening in a short period. So much work remains to be done that my head is spinning, but we’ll bring it together and keep it going.”

National Trail Raceway is very different than Heartland Park Topeka, and that’s the way it will be treated. Plans are to do research to be sure the right decisions are made before jumping into adding additional racing venues and activities at National Trail Raceway.

“National Trail will never have five venues, but we will have more than one,” Scott says. “We have 400 acres there, and that’s a lot of room to do other stuff. We will take our time to be sure that we choose the right venues to produce profits and advance us to the next stair step there as well.”

National Trail Raceway has a great relationship with their local community already, thanks to the team who has been there for many years.

“Mike Fornataro, who is currently general manager there, has great ties to the community,” Scott says. “He’s been there for a long time and is involved on local boards; everybody knows him in the area. The track has a lot of people very interested in its success who are just chomping at the bit for the good old days. It’s been just left there for awhile without a lot of attention or activity. The crew has had to pick themselves up and keep moving forward without a whole lot of direction. We are that shot of adrenaline coming in and saying we’re going to put a million dollars in improvements in it very quickly.”

Physical improvements are one side of the equation, but plans are also in place to improve the events. Scott praises the great foundation, but also looks forward to helping events grow and add more to the schedules.

“I feel, for lack of a better term, like a partner in this,” Scott says. “I am treated and respected very well by Chris Payne (owner of Shelby Development LLC) and the company. He has done so well in taking areas and fixing them up and either selling them or continuing to do business in those areas.”

But, this is different for him. This track is a passion for him and he’s not looking at it as something to build up and then sell for a profit. Chris really wanted to buy Heartland Park Topeka and make something out of it because he loves mo-

As president of IHRA, Scott was hands-on at all events, and took every rain-out personally.

torsports. He is the person who saved that whole territory when it comes to real championship racing on multiple levels.

Scott admits it was difficult going from being the guy who called all of his own shots for over 20 years. He has taken away some great life lessons from his experiences.

“When I had partners at Cedar Falls and Eddyville, we thought almost 90 percent alike, so we got along very well,” Scott says. “Then going to work for IHRA and having an immediate mesh with Jason Rittenberry was good.

We had similar visions and were going in the right direction, but we couldn’t control a board of directors.

“The biggest life lesson in that experience was it’s different calling the shots and working for yourself than working for someone else,” Scott says. “This case where Laura and I are now isn’t really working for ourselves again, but it feels like it, in that we make a lot of the decisions. Chris gives us a lot of latitude, and we work very well together.

“Any profits or losses or anything that happens at the racetrack, it affects me like anybody else,” he continues.

“When it rains, it hurts. I feel that passion and that interest in what we’re doing here that deeply. Thankfully, Chris is a man of means who has been in business a long time. He has worked hard every day of his life and isn’t a pencil pusher; he completely understands how this stuff works.” DRS DragRacingScene.com 69

WHAT’S IN YOUR CRANKCASE?

Words & Photos: Todd Silvey

It’s the additives that formulate an effective racing oil

I

Where other brands hold the lubricating additive packages as top secret, Extreme Brand Products list exact details of their additives on their literature. Each bottle of their Synthetic Blend Racing Oils provide their ZDDP makeup that totals 2200 ppm of zinc. ZDDP (zinc dialkyl dithiophosphate) is a zinc and phosphorus agent that work together for lubrication and detergent benefits.

70 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

In a basic explanation of all motor oils big and small, creating what fills every bottle begins with a base oil composition; various lubricating additives are then added for a total package. As a general description, the base oil makes up 70 to 85 percent of each quart. That is not a bad thing, as the additives package comprising the remaining percentage is the critical formula to protect against extreme friction and temperature within a racing engine.

The biggest choice you must make is if you trust what a manufacturer places in their secretive oil formulas, or appreciate those who put their compound right on the label.

One of the interesting aspects of putting together these additive packages is the lengths to which many manufacturers go to protect their super-secret base oils and additive formulas. The additives are classified as “proprietary” by many companies, or they are creatively entitled as something comparable to a superhero title. Example: “Our racing

oil now features the Zoltar blend of additive technology.” These secretive oil formulas are guarded as heavily as the Coca-Cola recipe. In contrast, Larry Jeffers of Extreme Brand Products prominently lists the formula for each of his oils on specification sheets, and visibly on the back of each container.

Detergent chemicals in oil are widely known to prevent buildup of crankcase gunk and sludge in your family sedan. In motorsports, the detergent also helps to handle fuel dilution of the oil in high compression, high RPM applications.

When the Environmental Protection Agency limited the use of zinc in oils a few years ago, it illustrated the critical use of the chemical in high performance and racing oil applications. Motorsports oils are without EPA regulations due to their off-highway only use.

In oil technology, standard base oils typically contain traditional mineral base oils; other blends utilize PAO (a synthetic polyalphaoefin) and ester synthetics (glycol-based), and some are a blend of conventional and synthetic base oils. The Extreme Brand oils utilize a mixture of synthetic and conventional base stocks to provide extra performance, as well as protection from oxidation that causes engine deposits.

The base oil for the Extreme Brand Products SJ Synthetic Blend Racing Oil is described as containing quality paraffinic/synthetic base oils ideal for protecting an engine under extreme conditions. The additive game within the formula of the many other brand oils out there often focuses more on claims than providing the exact additives.

A look at the Extreme Brand Products lines of racing oil reveals their spread of 50 and 70 straight weight oils, along with their multi-weight 15W-40 and 20W-50 oil. Charts for each type provide the formula they stand behind for a good racing oil. The charts note abbreviations such as Zn (the chemical element for zinc), Ca (calcium), and P (phosphorus).

Zinc and phosphorus chemically work together; the zinc functions as an anti-wear agent in the oil only when combined with the phosphorus. The Extreme Oils label also lists an additional boost of the chemical makeup of ZDDP (zinc dialkyl dithiophosphate), which is described as the final formulation for the Extreme Racing Oil’s 2200 parts per million (ppm) of zinc.

A layperson may think of calcium as a chemical found in the human body and considered a part of our food intake. Calcium is also the key ingredient in the detergents that make up a racing oil. The detergents in engine oil combat excessive engine deposits inside of the engine.

The astute racer may say, “I don’t need detergents in my racing oil, the

oil is not used for highway miles that cause build up or sludge.” Detergent has another purpose within its chemical property that does have a positive effect on a racing engine — to help handle fuel dilution of the oil in the crankcase. The fuel dilution of oils in a racing application is due to extreme compression pressures forcing fuel past the pistons and rings, especially in any supercharged, turbocharged, or nitrous applications.

This causes the need to change oil in a racing application more often.

One rule of thumb is that if you can smell fuel in the oil, or see that it is turning dark because of the fuel contamination, it’s time to change it.

Several years ago, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) severely restricted the use of zinc and phosphorous in oil designated for highway vehicle use.

These chemicals are limited by the EPA to a maximum of 800 ppm. When you see the American Petroleum Institute (API) blend classification on a department store quart of oil, you now know its performance limitations.

When you look at the properties chart for the Extreme Brand Racing Oil lines, they show the zinc, phosphorous, and calcium contents totaling up to over 6,000 ppm. Racing oil is not regulated by the EPA due to its non-highway, shortuse application. Performance oils containing highly-concentrated additive packages can also negatively (possibly

The Extreme Racing Oil labels describe some of the chemical makeup, along with listing the low volatility of the base oils used. The advantage of low volatility base oils is their ability to help prevent oil blow-by out of the crankcase.

Providing chemical contents are unheard of by traditional oil companies. Extreme Brand Oil literature provides the parts per million compounds of its additive packages.

DragRacingScene.com 71

severely) affect any catalytic converters and EGR systems.

For years, following the influx of the EPA regulations of automotive oil, diesel engine oil was the answer for some performance enthusiasts. Diesel oil was legally allowed to contain much higher doses of zinc and other additives. Along came 2007, and the EPA placed limitations on diesel oil, as well.

Oils designed for diesel applications are another example of an oil additive package and their effectiveness.

With the EPA limits now in place, finding the most effective additive package is critical. Extreme Fleet Diesel 15W-40 Engine Oils implement advanced additive technology to provide the most abundant diesel engine protecting properties. Once again, the Extreme Oil label specifically lists the zinc levels; in this case, their diesel formula lists 1300 ppm of zinc.

Extreme Brand has also developed Extreme Street Performance oils intended for high-performance street use. These oils range from 5W-30, 10W30, and 10W-40 SAE grades meeting or exceeding OEM warranty requirements. They also fall within the EPA regulations for street/highway use. The additive chemistry permits superior pump-ability and lubrication to all moving parts during cold weather start up.

The oil also has increased capabilities to prevent wear in a performance engine, and prevents rust and corrosion, sludge, oxidation, and varnish build up.

At high temperatures, these oils maintain their lubricity and thermal

stability to provide a highly-efficient lubricating film for engine parts.

Choosing a particular multi-weight or straight weight oil for your racing application depends on the design parameters of tolerances between components in your engine. Other factors also play a role, such as engine rpm and how much heat the oil is exposed to in your type of racing.

We could triple the size of this article by debating oil weight vs. bearing and piston clearances, along with the thickness of oils and how it affects valvetrain components. Your best bet is to talk to the manufacturer of the components you use and consider the clearances

Your diesel tow rig has entirely different needs from your oil. Problems like soot-induced oil thickening and piston cleanliness have been factored into the makeup of the Extreme brand 15W-40 diesel oil.

Extreme Brand Racing Oils is the brainchild of Larry Jeffers. You know the name from his well known LJRC Race Cars and Components. His display can be seen around the country with his oils, racing fuels, spray lubricants and degreasers, and automotive care products.

72  Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

Zinc is regulated in quantity in oils sold for highway use. Extreme Street Performance engine oils concentrate their formulas around solvent-refined, high viscosity index, paraffinic base stocks.

of your engine; get their recommendations and reasoning.

Now that we have explained the EPA-mandated oil limitations and how they are related to the zinc, calcium, and phosphorus content, you know it is far below the protective properties needed in racing engine oil. Many experts have claimed that 1,500 ppm of that zinc/calcium combination is required to protect cam lobes, flat-tappet, and roller bearing lifters in extreme performance use. Any formula containing less is a recipe for disaster. So it asks the question, what oil additives are in your crankcase? DRS Source: Extreme Brand Products, extremebrandproducts.com

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DragRacingScene.com 73

Father, Son, and the Wall

Life is good for the pair who share their passion for drag racing photography

Words: Todd Silvey Lead Photo: Ricky Ritchie

D

rag racing is an activity that attracts a lot of families.

Going to the racetrack together as a family is enjoyable, and in many cases, two or more generations of racers may travel together and compete. It’s much more unusual to see a father and son photographer team on the starting line. Steve and Dallas Wilson have been shooting pictures at the strip for years and made a name for themselves in the sport.

Steve has been going to the racetrack since a very young age; his parents first took him to Kansas City International Raceway at 2 weeks old.

“I’ve been at it for 20-plus years,” Steve says. “Back in the old days, you could run wild in the pits, and they didn’t care.

They didn’t have credentials. I got really serious into photography right after high school. I’d take my old 120 film camera out and go for it.”

Steve dabbles in traditional photography outside of drag racing, as well.

“I have a lot of older friends who have been drag racing since

the 1960s, and they’ve always told me, don’t just shoot drag racing,” he says. “They said that sticking with just one subject would burn me out. So, I do a lot of senior photos, nature photography, air shows, and I enjoy the World of Outlaws. By expanding that way, I’ve found it makes me a better photographer.”

Steve always knew he wanted to share his photography skills with his son. In 2006, Dallas was just 2 years old when his mother passed away from cancer.

“I took a leave of absence from shooting photos at that time,” Steve remembers. “I was a single dad caring for a young child, and it just wasn’t feasible for me at that point. The first time I ever took Dallas to the track was an NHRA race at St. Louis when he was 3. I was shooting NHRA that entire weekend, so my parents brought him up on Sunday.

“I sat Dallas in Scott Palmer’s top fueler, and we also went and stood in the pits with Ron Capps warming his funny car,” Steve says. “I told my parents, he’ll either love it or hate it, no gray area. If he hates it, I’ll hang it up and be done. If he loves it, we’ll see if we can’t get this show on the road.”

‘I always have a favorite shot out of each event I go to,’ Steve says. ‘From a photographer’s standpoint, you know when you pull that trigger, it’s a killer shot. I’ve been blessed to be able to do what I do with my son by my side.’

‘We spend hours sitting by the computer, editing photos, and talking about them,’ Dallas says. ‘What we wish we would have done and what we could have done better to improve for the next race.’

At Dallas’ young age, he’s shot many venues and all different types of racing from Radial tires to bracket racing and the pros.

‘I’ve always said, ‘no risk, no reward,’ Steve says. ‘You can’t just stand in one place and get the great photos. You have to separate yourself from the pack and move around to try to be in the right place at the right time for the right shot.’

Drag racing got into Dallas’ blood early. He picked up his skills with Dad’s help, but Steve is the first to admit Dallas has learned a lot on his own.

Steve taught him the basics and let Dallas hone his craft through hours on the wall.

DragRacingScene.com 75

Drag racing was an instant hit with Dallas. When Capps shut his funny car off, Dallas wanted him to start it up again.

“I knew right then I had a gearhead on my hands,” Steve says. “I waited until he was 7 years old before I started taking him to the track to shoot. I snuck him into a local track and told him ‘don’t say anything, just stand next to me and pull the trigger on the camera, and let’s see what you get.’”

Dallas very quickly took to photography.

“Dad gave me the rundown of the camera from the very beginning, but teaching something to somebody and having them learn it are two very different things,” Dallas says. “He let me figure it out as I went, and I gained a good understanding of it by learning like that.”

Very soon, Dallas was taking some amazing photos and impressing even his own Dad. “We were at a track shooting a Pro Street class,” Steve says.

“Dallas was panning with the camera and keeping up with the car, even shortly after the first event. In 10 years now, he’s come a long way, and I have also learned quite a bit from him.”

“It was a great feeling getting perfect shots that made Dad jealous,” Dallas says. “I don’t remember too much from the first years of starting out. I wish I could remember what it was like at the moment, but I know it felt really good and I knew this was something I wanted to do.”

At 14, Dallas is often unable to get into places to shoot, despite his experience.

“My age is a huge factor in shooting drag racing,” he says.

“I’ve been turned down a lot for credentials, due to my age.

Starting out at a very young age is something not many people

Dallas loves to get an amazing shot that makes Dad proud.

At his age, it’s sometimes difficult for Dallas to get into races. He’s earned the respect of racers where he does get on the line.

‘We were once at a track, and a car flew through the air, parts, and pieces going over my head,’ Steve says. ‘No sooner had it landed when one of my publishers called my cell phone to ask if I had gotten that shot. Catching photography like that is skill, but luck plays a big hand in it.’

76 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

get to do, and it is difficult. I just wish sometimes that I was old enough that I could shoot certain races from the starting line.”

He’s made a name for himself, so once he gets to be 16, he knows it will be easier.

“I’ve received a lot of support from racers,” Dallas says.

“These people have become my friends and are supporting me. They show me a lot of respect. I don’t look at them as friends; they are my family, someone I could go to in my life if I needed help.”

Steve knows that every time they shoot at a dragstrip, they both need to be aware and careful, and Steve has taught Dallas to pay attention.

“He’s experienced with a camera and knows where to be on the guardrail and when to back up,” Steve says. “I’ve taught him where to go, what to do if a car gets out of hand. He knows not to run if a car gets crazy.”

“We’ve shot the finish line together, and people think it’s the coolest thing that father and son were at the top end shooting photos,” he says. “We’re a full quarter mile past the finish line. If something goes wrong, we have plenty of time to get to a safe spot. I’m never going to put Dallas in harm’s way.”

Dallas is a young professional who has learned a lot from his dad and plans to keep taking photos for a long time though he’s not sure if it will be his career.

“I didn’t have access to a nice camera at his age,” Steve jokes. “I had a 110 Kodak and thought I was in tall cotton. I spent a lot of money on my equipment, and Dallas has full access to it. If he wants to pick up a 600mm lens and shoot from 300 feet out to get a tight shot, I’m like ‘go for it.’ We’re above just being a novelty out there with Dallas shooting with one of Dad’s cameras. He’s the real thing.” DRS

Steve has taught Dallas the love of getting different angles of each car he shoots. They are all over the track during an event.

Steve has been shooting for more than 20 years and has a favorite photo image from every race he’s attended.

Dallas is known on the line by the other photographers. They have no qualms about shooting next to him as they know he is capable and professional in what he does.

DragRacingScene.com 77

Traction

[trak-shuh n] noun 1.the adhesive friction of a body on some surface.

Words: Todd Silvey

As hot rods with monster horsepower become the norm, track surface preparation is an expanding art

E

xcellent traction at the dragstrip doesn’t just happen. A lot of research time and effort has gone into figuring out just how to make a track hook well. Jason Rueckert of VP Racing Fuels travels to events across the country working to give a track as much traction as possible.

“When we walk into a green track that is a week old, the first thing we check is how clean it is,” Rueckert says.

“Cleanliness is next to godliness. It depends on what the sun has done all week and if it has rained at all. We look at the rubber and decide if we need to scrape it. In 99 percent of the cases, we’ll have to scrape it.”

If the sun has been beating down on a track surface for a week, the oils 78 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

and the soft, moist parts of the rubber are basically baked out of it. Traction compound and rubber mix, and it turns to plastic.

“Especially in warm conditions such as in Florida, it will bake and make it a hard, brittle surface,” Rueckert says.

“If you get rain during the week, water gets into it. No surface is completely sealed where the rubber is completely adhered to the concrete or asphalt.

So, you have to scrape it.”

The rubber is generally thicker in the first 60 to 100 feet of the track, depending on the type of cars running down it.

“When it’s something like the Million race when many dragsters are doing burnouts across the starting line, that will build rubber quicker than any-

thing else,” Rueckert says. “If it’s a radial race, your rubber is generally thin because radials don’t put down rubber. So, if it’s a radial race, you’ll have a huge base of glue that needs to come off. You’re scraping glue in that case.”

Jason Rueckert is the ‘go-to guy’ when it comes to the VP Racing Fuels line of traction products for motorsports.

Once the surface has been scraped, the next step is to wash the entire track with a solvent such as Tide or Purple Power.

“In a perfect world, we’ll have a power washer to use,” Rueckert says. “Then, the track needs to dry. The track will already have been scraped, so only a thin bit of rubber remains.”

The team then puts down a starting line resin, which is a replacement for the old gold dust.

“When I was working with R&D, I got tired of working with all the powder because it’s so messy, especially in the wind,” he says. “I had the chemist liquefy it. I’ll go out there to the first 60 feet and spray it really good with a couple of gallons in each lane.”

The Starting Line Resin (SLR) is a fast-drying compound that contains no adhesive. It is a resin to help cause friction to bring rubber to the surface.

“It works great for bald spots on the track,” Rueckert says. “When there is a bald spot, we spray a little SLR on it, and it dries quickly. The next car can just launch off it without burning out through it. The old procedure was to put down some gold dust powder, spray some traction compound on it, then the next guy had to burn out through it. Once we spray our SLR, the next car that launches will start putting rubber down.”

After giving the resin a few minutes to dry, it’s time to drag the track and build up the base.

“It doesn’t really matter what type of drag you have, rotor or a flat drag, you’re really just trying to build the base,” Rueckert says. “The traction compound needs to adhere to something.”

The rotating tire drag is an ominous piece of equipment that combines pressure with used slicks rotating in the opposite direction of tractor’s motion. This is the most deliberate way of placing a layer of rubber on the track surface.

VP has two products: Lane Choice 5 (LC5) and Lane Choice 7 (LC7). LC5 is a concentrate to be cut with methanol.

It is used more often with bracket racing when drivers want the rubber to be more supple and soft.

“When we’re doing a radial race, I use the Lane Choice 7 (LC7), which is a firmer compound,” Rueckert says. “It’s ready to spray right out of the drum.

If you want to put down less glue, you go faster, and if you want more on the track, you spray it slower.”

Both use the same type of adhesive, but the LC7 has more of a resin base.

“The LC 7 works better for radial stuff,” Rueckert said. “That’s where we got our claim to fame with the LC 7. I was traveling all over the country with the Lane Choice. We started doing radial prep, which primarily consisted of spraying the track every round and just putting a lot more glue out there.

“With a radial tire, you don’t want to get any sort of wheel speed,” Rueckert says. “You just want to stick the tire and drive on out.”

The type of racing changes the prep procedure required to make the cars hook well.

For even more info, pics, and interesting video search “VP traction" at DragRacingScene.com

A standard tire drag simply pulls strips of racing tire evenly across the track surface to apply rubber. Each version of the drag can be used with different pressures and speed to achieve slightly different results.

DragRacingScene.com 79

Available in one-, five-, and 54-gallon containers, VP Lane Choice is available in two very different compounds. Lane Choice 5 is an ‘original’ formula that is concentrated and cut with methanol for verying degrees of traction. Lane Choice 7 works across a wide range of track temperature and provides the highest grip on surfaces.

Jason is not a fan of the track surface analyzer when it comes to outlaw radial racing, which he claims will give false readings on top of a glued surface. ‘Put down the largest part of your foot and twist it on the surface. Trust your gut to see if anything is moving under your foot.’

“For a bracket race, you can do a bunch of dragging, go out there and spray a light mist of Lane Choice 5 (LC5),” Rueckert says. “We cut it – 75 glue with 25 methanol – and spray a nice light mist. We’ll drag it for 25 minutes and then put a nice coat on, like you’re painting a car and hitting it with another quick drag. You can do that at noon and then bracket race until 6 or 7 p.m. without having to touch the track.

“For a radial tire deal, you’re going to need a lot more prep,” he continues. “We will be doing a lot more spraying in between rounds to keep that track as tight, yet adhesive as possible. That’s where the Lane Choice 7 (LC 7) performs.”

LC7 is VP’s premium traction compound and works well for track temperatures varying from 30 degrees to 150-plus degrees.

Once the track is ready to race, it’s a matter of watching the surface and how the cars react.

“If you are at a big bracket race and the guys are starting to run off by a number or two, we’ll talk to the racers,” Rueckert says. “If they are losing it in the first 60 feet, we’ll look at the rubber. If the rubber has a little ripple to it, we know there is too much rubber built up, and it’s too soft. We won’t do anything until a round is complete. Every one of those guys in bracket racing – Su-

If you watch carefully, you can see a surface sprayed with varying amounts of components and at varying speeds, depending on what the prep-guy deems necessary.

80 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

per Comp, Super Gas – is so in tune to their cars, that if you go out and make a physical change like scraping the track and re-prepping it, it’s like starting over.

“Heads-up radial racers are begging for track prep every round, even to the point where it’s just a mental thing,” Rueckert says. “Starting out the day with 32 cars trying to qualify, you run them once, then you prep for the next round. But, once it’s down to eight cars in eliminations, it may not need prep in between rounds. If they don’t see you prep, they absolutely freak out because they think it needs to be prepped every time. Even though at the beginning of the day, one prep was good for 32 cars.

It becomes a mind deal, and it fights you as a prep guy.

“I was in Memphis a couple of years ago, and I ended up over spraying the track,” Rueckert says. “I kept listening to these guys telling me I needed to

prep. I should have stood my ground.

I should have said you need to trust in the prep guy.”

If too much chemical is added to the track, it will become greasy. The only option at that point is to drag the track and firm it back up. Unfortunately, if it is hot, the car tires will then pull the glue up, and that causes a new set of problems. It is a balancing act for the track preparation team.

Often, you will see a racer out on the track putting his foot on the track to check for rubber.

“The first thing you are going to need to do is check for rubber, the gooeyness of the track and the greasiness of the surface,” Jason says. “You take your foot, put it down flat and twist at your ankle and try to move it like that, never your toe. You want to put down the largest part of your foot and try to move it from side to side and see if anything is moving. If you just try to spin your toe, I guarantee you will be able to spin it.”

Jason is not a big believer in the track meter, a track surface analyzer.

“It will tell you what the rubber is like, and that is great for a Pro Mod, a Top Fuel car,” Rueckert says. “But for a radial car, because we spray all that glue out there, the track meter will spin on that glue and give you a false reading. If we paid attention to the meter and not our gut, we would over treat the track.”

Technology continues to step up in every aspect of drag racing. VP Racing Fuels and their track preparation team are right there to handle the power and the changes as they come. DRS Source: VP Racing Fuels, vpracingfuels.com

There are so many factors when preparing a dragstrip surface for competition. Is it sunny or cloudy? What is the air temperature? Outlaw radials or bracket racing that day? How long has the track sat idle between events? The duties of properly preparing a race track is more of an art than a science.

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Numidia Dragway fills niche for racers seeking moderate entry, payout Words: Laurie Silvey Photos:: Steve Vreatt and Carl Skillman

S

uper big bucks racing scares many competitors off, while some racers still wish for bigger than weekly purses. Then there are tracks like Numidia Dragway in eastern Pennsylvania which have occasional events that are just right.

Big-dollar bracket races are abundant across the country. A driver who is willing to travel could race for 20 to 50 grand every weekend, while local tracks have their usual payouts for faithful racers. Numidia Raceway has found a

middle-of-the-road niche by offering $5,000- or $10,000-to-win races four times a year.

The family-operated facility is owned by the DiMinos. Vinny DiMino and his dad, Bob, run the track, along with Johnny B, who operates the computer and does track prep.

“We have found a balance for our racers,” Vinny says. “Not too many people can afford to race for a 20-grander weekend at $1,000 entry fee at the gate.

They can maybe justify it once or twice

a year, but no more. We keep the entry fee down a bit, and we always guarantee our purses. No matter how many racers show up, they know what they’re running for. We don’t believe in small print or asterisks; if we say we’re paying 10 grand, we’re paying 10 grand.”

The money races are on the schedule at the Pennsylvania track every year for Memorial Day weekend and Labor Day weekend. In October, the schedule touts Octoberbucks on three weekends, which is a hedge against the fall weather. On a good weekend, they can count on about 30 percent more cars to show

The DiMino family have brought the track back to life during their 12 years of ownership. A concrete track surface, new building structures, top-ofthe-line PA system and timing equipment are among their investments.

82 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

up to compete for the bigger payouts.

“It’s hit or miss,” Vinny says. “Weather plays a big part in the races, as we found out this year on Memorial Day weekend (Laughs). But when the weather is good, whichever weekend in October has the best weather ends up being our biggest car count for the year when it comes to the big money events.”

Numidia Raceway is located in a “weird weather pattern” and can’t ever rule anything out.

“The weather sometimes comes in a little rough in October,” Vinny says. “On our last race day in October 2015, we were battling snow flurries. That’s the type of thing we deal with, but when the weather is good, the racers support us.”

The money races have been held at the track for the past 12 years, so their racers know what to expect. They draw from all over the northeast region, seeing entrants from Scranton, Wilkes-Barre, New Jersey, and New York.

They pull a lot from upstate New York and also from Maryland. They’ve also had racers travel in from the Northeast and Canada, though the main core has been built from people who race at the track every weekend.

New York racer and another member of the DiMino family, Vinny DiMino, ran consistently all day long, working his way through a field of strong competitors to earn the $3,000 check in Footbrake on Saturday.

Numidia Dragway is a bracket racing track catering to their local racers. The money races are a way of letting racers know they care and that they will always pay out what they’ve advertised.

Vinny DiMino runs the track with his dad, Bob, and other family members. They want the track to be there for their racers and work hard to put together a good program for them every week.

Randy Krause worked his way into the final round of Super Pro, where he ended the day with a runner-up finish. His S&W dragster broke out by four-hundredths.

DragRacingScene.com 83

“When we first started doing them, we didn’t get a lot of our locals to show up for them,” Vinny says. “It’s been 12 years now, so a lot of them have bought into the idea. They understand now that you’re paying just a little more entry fee to run for a lot more money. Especially in Super Pro lately, all of our local points guys show up for the money. In Footbrake, it’s somewhat fewer of our locals, but more than when we first took over the track.”

When the DiMino family took over the track 12 years ago, it was in bad shape. They have invested work into bringing it back to life, including redoing the track surface with concrete, building nice buildings, and investing in new top-of-the-line equipment.

“We basically just run our program the same every year,” Vinny says. “It is a side business for us, as we operate school buses in New York as our main company. The track is good to us. We’re not trying to make a living from it, so if it breaks even, we’re really happy, and if we lose money one weekend, we’re not going to give up. It’s a good sideline for us.”

The philosophy that makes the money races a success for Numidia Raceway is simple. They guarantee their purses at 100 percent and “suck it up” as Vinny puts it, if the car count is down one weekend.

Brent Novitsky of Slattingtown, Pennsylvania, was having a great time in his ‘38 Dodge roadster. He made it to the quarter-finals in Super Pro on Saturday.

84 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

Bob Kolibsky went home $5,000 richer with his win in the Super Pro class on Saturday.

“The number one thing when you’re putting on any bracket race is guaranteeing the purse,” Vinny says. “If 10 guys show up, you pay the money you advertised. That’s how it is. You may take a beating, but the word will get out there and the racers will show up. Our locals have learned not to worry about the traveling pros coming in, though some of them do. It’s only a handful of guys in the country who travel to all of these big money races. That’s what I would tell other tracks who are trying to start their own big money series.” DRS

Peter Biondo is a good friend of the DiMino clan and often runs at Numidia Dragway. This weekend, he finished as a quarter-finalist in the Super Pro class.

Jay Ralston lost to the eventual winner, Bob Kolibsky, in the semi-final round of Saturday’s Super Pro class.

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Drag Strip Demon

Words: Michael Galimi Photos: FCA/Dodge

The

Banned by the NHRA, factory Dodge Challenger SRT Demon runs in the 9s

or four months, the marketing folks at Dodge masterfully teased the world with its latest SRT vehicle, fueling speculation and building an enormous amount of hype. Videos and information slowly leaked out as Dodge sent the rumor mill into overdrive before unveiling the 2018 Challenger SRT Demon during the opening hours of the New York Auto Show press day in mid-April.

The automotive enthusiast world hasn’t been the same since the specs and performance data were revealed — 840 hp, 9.65 seconds at 140 mph on the drag strip, and all for under $100,000, with the ability to be registered for street use.

The Demon comes standard with 808 hp, and the optional Demon Crate is required to turn it into the beast the world has come to know and love. And while many will balk at the $84,995 base price, it is hard to argue with the crate’s MSRP of $1. That is right, a crisp one-dollar bill will turn the Demon into a legit 9-second car, and for a dollar more you can even have a passenger seat.

For those feeling even more generous, throw another buck at it and your Demon can enjoy a backseat. Dodge does offer several options like leather interior and other fancy amenities, but even with all the upgrade boxes checked off, the price tag still comes in under $100,000. Though, we would be surprised if a dealership let one of these animals loose without some sort of mark-up.

The under-priced Demon Crate features a few goodies that are required to enable the car to run 9.65 at 140 mph.

It includes skinny front wheels (tires not included), Demon-branded track tools, a Direct Connection Performance Parts powertrain control module to unlock the engine’s potential and other driveline capabilities, and a highflow air filter, among some other odds and ends. Opting to have the dealer install the parts will ensure that Dodge’s three-year/30,000 mile vehicle and fiveyear/60,000 mile powertrain warranties are honored.

The brightest highlight of the Demon Crate is the new ECU that allows the driver to toggle between Street and Drag modes, which includes the choice of running on 91-octane gasoline or 100-octane race gas with the flip of the switch. There is, however, an octane sensor to prevent the ECU from cranking up the power

Dodge is selling the Demon Crate, which includes all of these parts and pieces, for $1. It turns the Demon from an 808 hp street beast into an 840 hp combination capable of going 9.65 at 140 mph with 100-octane gasoline.

86 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

without the proper gasoline. It is an insurance policy to prevent engine failure when the high-octane switch is activated, but the fuel mixture isn’t correct.

Turning a 10-year-old platform into a 9-second player definitely wasn’t just throwing the latest speed part of the week at the Hellcat. The SRT engineers worked on the Demon for two years to develop the quickest street-legal muscle car in history. The first requirement was horsepower, and the 808 hp package is, to put it simply, a robust version of the Hellcat 6.2L Hemi power plant featuring stronger internals and a larger Eaton TVS 2.7L supercharger. Throw in 100-octane fuel, and using the red key fob will enable the Demon to crank out 840 hp. Even on pump gas, the Demon is no slouch, having recorded 9.90 performances with 91-octane and the street wheel/tire package up front, instead of the skinnies.

The factory has equipped the Demon with Nitto NT05 drag radials that check in at 315/40R18, putting more than 12 inches of rubber on the ground to hook up the big power under the hood.

Dodge knew that in order to keep the Demon running hard, it would need to upgrade the driveline. In anticipation of drag strip action with the increased traction from the drag radials, two-step launch control, and transbrake functions, the engineers added beefier halfshafts, stronger differential housing, and a better prop shaft (driveshaft).

The 4,280-pound drag strip stormer can cover the first 60 feet in just 1.36 seconds. Additionally, Dodge has recorded a 0-60 mph jump in a mere 2.3 seconds, besting any legit production vehicle — including supercars with their light weights and twin turbo engines. The Demon will get to 100 mph in just 5.1 seconds, again putting daylight between its back bumper and any other factory-produced street car.

There is the matter of the NHRA “banning” the Demon based on the manufacturer’s testing and drag racing officials certifying the results. The Demon has to be in full drag trim with the new ECU installed, running 100-octane fuel, and skinny front wheels bolted on in order for it to, technically, be illegal for use on NHRA-sanctioned drag strips. Theoretically, the car can lack just one of those mods and go slower than 10.00 to remain in the good graces of an NHRA technical inspector.

Like the factory drag car programs with Dodge taking on Ford and Chevy in Stock Eliminator, one can only hope the Demon has paved the way to bring a new muscle car war to the street legal drags at tracks across the country. DRS

The factory set up the trunk to fit all of the parts and pieces from Demon Crate, making it easy to go racing.

The 6.2L Hemi engine features a revised rotating assembly and a larger Eaton TVS 2.7L supercharger that produces 14.5 psi of boost. In drag mode, the supercharger is kept cool using the A/C system, allowing up to a 45-degree drop in inlet air temps.

A roll cage is required if an enthusiast is serious about running the Demon all-out at an NHRA-sanctioned drag strip with the Demon Crate installed and in optimum conditions.

DragRacingScene.com 87

The new TCI Diablo Shifter Installed

W

Words and Photos: Brandon Flannery This Monte Carlo is ready to race with its new TCI Diablo Shifter.

Before you begin, move the gate plates to the correct position for your application. For the Loophole’s 200R4 with a forward shift pattern, theirs looked like this. For a reverse pattern the Allen bolt would be placed in the last hole on the right.

hen we heard a few of the tech guys at the COMP Performance Group were pooling their resources to race a car in their spare time, we just had to check it out. They are building the “Loophole Monte Carlo,” so named because they are hoping to use the horsepower-to-weight ratio of a V6 to their advantage.

The class is NHRA Stock Eliminator – V/Stock to be specific – and is designed for low-buck, thought-provoking fun.

The rules make for a brand of racing that is as much fun to build for, as it is to race. Cars in this particular class must “get on the board” with at least a 15.50 index and then run heads up within the rules. Their current local record holder is in the 13-second range. Creative use of weight elimination and redistribution combines with a tight set of rules to keep the car very close to stock. This also explains the bench seat and full carpeting.

While the challenge of the rules is fun, it turns out column shifting is not.

The day we showed up, they were preparing to install the new TCI Automotive Diablo Shifter for better shifting control than the factory column, so we

The shifter comes with an assortment of gear indicator labels that cover most transmissions, both forward and reverse shift patterns.

Both ends of the cable are the same, so thread one into the shifter and attach it to the handle with the C-clip.

The Loophole’s 200R4 is a four-speed automatic, so the correct indicator looks like this.

88 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

Moving under the car, the original column shifter works through a ’Z-bar’ linkage that anchors to the chassis on the left and twists the gear selector bracket. On some cars, header clearance can be an issue. A shifter cable simplifies all of this. The factory lever selector bracket is attached with a nut at the selector shaft. With years of use, these brackets can acquire a fair amount of slop.

The slack is adjusted out of the cable, and the jamb nuts are tightened against the housing.

The mounting portion of the cable is anchored to the trans bracket with two jamb nuts. Notice the two spacers on the pan rail. These are included in the hardware package, along with the matching longer bolts. The cable is set by putting both the transmission and shifter in neutral, and adjusting the cable and eyelet until the eyelet slides easily in and out of the selector lever.

Once that is done, it is secured with a cotter pin.

For this particular application, they installed this bracket on the selector shaft and routed the cable end into the correct hole.

thought we’d shoot some pictures instead of just standing around. The Diablo shifter was able to be mounted in a more driver-friendly position to ensure there were no reverse-gear surprises when shifting on the track.

Out of the box, we were impressed with the versatility of the Diablo. Options are included for front or rear cable exiting to solve even the trickiest of mounting problems. Switching from a forward shift pattern to a reverse one is as easy as moving an Allen screw, and there are mounting packages included for just about any automatic transmission: GM three- and four-speed, Powerglide, Ford C4/C6, and Chrysler 904/727. We really liked that it has optional handle buttons that can be used for anything such as line lock, transbrakes, nitrous, or even lasers… well, maybe not lasers. Those aren’t within the class rules.

All in all, it was a pretty straightforward install and it went quite easily. Because of the bench seat, they did space theirs up on a bracket carved from a piece of square tubing to allow for a more comfortable position, but that wouldn’t be necessary with buckets (or

The wiring for the Neutral safety switch, reverse lights, and the optional trigger switches route through the bottom plate. There is a grommeted hole near each corner for correctly routing the wires for different applications.

Additionally, there is a channel milled in the bottom to run the wires out of the bottom without pinching in a flush-mount situation.

Note the trick bracket they whittled out of a piece of square tubing.

The cable exited in the front, they drilled a hole that allowed it to gradually flow from the shifter to the transmission, avoiding any odd angles or harsh bends that might cause binding.

if they had longer arms). By the way, if you do have buckets with a console, the shifter is also available without the exterior housing. Their advice was just to pay attention to the cable routing and read the instructions before you begin.

The guys finished in an afternoon, and we have to say the TCI Diablo shifter looks pretty killer in there, and we like the added bonus that the matte-black matches their wheels!

Good luck guys. DRS Source: TCI Automotive, tciauto.com

From the driver’s view, it’s easy to see how the Diablo will be a big help in shifting. The handle is within reach and shifts firmly. If they ever change transmissions or decide to reverse the pattern, there is nothing else to buy.

The V/Stock Eliminator is proving to be a lot of fun both on and off the track!

DragRacingScene.com 89

Mike Boccella competes all around the eastern U.S. in outlaw categories, as well as 8.50 index racing. The ‘complete’ Camaro he purchased and the car you see now are two completely different race cars due to its constant state of being upgraded.

Words: Todd Silvey Photos: Steve Vreatt

R E L AT I

When sitting in his ultra-carbon seats, Boccella has access to the Induction Solutions nitrous system, along with a combination of Racepak Logger Dash Extreme and Autometer gauges.

M

Mike Boccella bought this ’69 Camaro sight unseen.

Unfortunately, it took a top to bottom rebuild to achieve what he wanted

ike Boccella had been racing in X275 when he received an offer he couldn’t refuse on his car. He sold it on the spot and went on the hunt for something new.

“I saw this car online, and it was pretty, so I bought it sight unseen,” Boccella says. “When I got the ’69 Camaro, it was a complete and total disaster. I basically had to rebuild the entire car to get it to where I wanted it.”

Boccella rebuilt the engine twice and also did the transmission twice. He rebuilt the rear end, and also painted the car twice before he was satisfied.

“Just about everything on the Camaro is completely new again,” he says. “The car was pretty when I got it, but I wanted to change it and make it my own. It kind of snowballed into what it is now. From top to bottom, it has been redone.”

The chassis work was done by Bob Overdorf at Ed Quay Race Cars. The car is certified to 7.00, has a moly round-tube back half, and Kim Smith moly bolt-in sub-frame. He used a new fabricated 9-inch rear end with Ultra

O N S H I P

Case 4.30 pro gears, and 40-spline gundrilled shafts. It is a Pro Mod style fourlink car, and he used Santhuff shocks.

“My car has spent more time at Ed Quay’s than at my house, and that’s no joke,” Boccella says. “The last time, it was there was for 10 grand worth of chassis work. It is basically a 10.5 car now and has been redone from top to bottom.”

The body has ultra-carbon doors, front end, and bumper, as well as carbon fiber wheel tubs. Boccella used Optic Armor windows. Paint and body work was done by Dennis Moyer, a good friend who owns DM Paint and Body.

“Dennis painted the car probably four times,” Boccella says. “He has helped me immensely and really came through with what I wanted to do with the Camaro.”

He installed ultra-carbon seats and custom nitrous bottle brackets. Nitrous was done by Steve Johnson at Induction Solutions and includes a two-stage direct port system with carbon nitrous DragRacingScene.com 91

The latest version of Boccella’s Camaro switches easily from a 10.5-inch to a 16x33 tire, depending on where he wants to compete. The Camaro weighs in at 2,600 pounds and has been as quick as 6.90 at 190 mph.

92  Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

bottles flowed and tuned by Gary Rossi.

Power is provided by an all-aluminum 632 built by Shafiroff Racing Engines with Dart Big ‘M’ tall deck block, four-bolt splayed caps, and Brodix heads. Inside are a Manley 4340 4.750inch stroke forged steel crank, Molnar severe-duty steel rods, Wiseco pistons, and SSRE billet roller cam. An Edelbrock 632 Super Victor Dominator intake manifold sits on top.

Justin Slavin at Trans Specialties built the transmission, with all the car’s wiring done by Racewires.

Weld wheels are on small or big tires, depending on the event.

“It goes from big tire to small tire, depending on what type of racing I’m doing,” Boccella says. “I’ll use 10.5inch tires, or I’ll use 16x33 tires for bracket racing.”

Boccella has found the car has helped him learn who his true friends are.

“It has made me friends, and I have lost friends because of this car,” he says.

“When you are the fastest in town, the jealousy can come out. My tuner, Gary Rossi, has stood by me. Others don’t want to be friends because I’m faster than them. They smile to your face, but will stab you in the back quicker than anything. That’s where the love-hate relationship comes from with the car. Personally, I love this car. Everybody who has seen it has called it a show car that I race.”

Boccella floats around to different tracks, but concentrates his efforts at Maple Grove Raceway in Pennsylvania.

“I run the 8.50 index class at Maple Grove,” he says. “I have to slow the car down to run that index. They treat us like kings, and it is close to me. They have a great program there, so we’ve run there a lot.”

The Camaro weighs 2,600 pounds and has been as fast as 6.90 at 190 mph.

“That 6.90 was run when the car weighed 3,400 pounds,” Boccella says.

“Now, it is lightened up, and it’s just a mean, nasty car. Once it hits second gear, it just goes. I am a guy who likes to go down to the racetrack and just enjoy myself. I am happy if I go to the finals or just one round. I just like to hang out.”

Racing gives Boccella an opportunity to hang out with his closest friends, but family is also important to him.

“Of all the things the car has brought me, my kids love it, and that’s important,” he says. “I think I enjoy grilling at the track as much as the racing. I bring the grill and ask everybody what they want for lunch. I cook, and we all race together. Don’t get me wrong; the speed is great, but I like the fact that I’m hanging out with everybody too.” DRS DragRacingScene.com 93

My Favorite Day: Elbow grease, effort, and excitement

A

s a sports psychology consultant, I always tell athletes thought was, “how can an engine blow up when it isn’t to savor every win, success, and goal completed. even running?!?!”

Sports are hard, and life is hard, so we need to celeAlso, we had a diaper on the car, yet oil was pouring brate our accomplishments. Nearly every day I have been out. We quickly learned our oil accumulator had malable to spend at the races with my husband, Mike, my functioned and exploded. We got help from other racers, dad and mom, and our racing friends has been awesome. cleaned up the oil, and disconnected the accumulator. BeTo try and pick ONE favorite day when I have been raccause the lines were so long, we had time to fix the draging for more than 30 years with my dad and my husband ster, but I could see people fighting to get in line next to is hard to do. In 2012, we won a Super Comp National us to race us. event at Gateway, which was awesome, but it wasn’t over We got the dragster ready to race; Mike had just just one day, enough time to and everyone is clean the oil off probably tired of his hands, take a me talking about deep breath, and winning a Wally! it was time to go.

So, my favorWe won the first ite day — with a round, and I felt few embedded nothing but resport psychology lief. We started lessons — would to roll through be in 2014 gomore rounds ing to Bowling with success. The Green, Kentucky, car was laying for the Tenndown some conTuck. sistent runs, and We have Mike’s reaction owned four Dantimes were great.

Tami’s favorite day is based around a large silver trophy that proudly sits on her and Mike’s fireny Nelson RaceOne of my place mantle. It reminds her of the elbow grease it took to turn a brand new car into a $10,000 Craft Chassis favorite things winner in just 15 passes.

Dragsters in the about racing and last 20 years. We doing well is pullhad a good dragster, and my dad, who has raced his whole ing into staging and only having a few cars there. The odd life, wanted to buy one more dragster, so he ordered a thing is when nine cars are left, it is four more rounds, but new RaceCraft with all the bells and whistles. Then, Dad it sure makes you feel excited. realized he didn’t have the time or energy to finish the car Before we knew it, there were only three of us left in the and wanted to sell it to us. lanes. We didn’t get the bye in the semi-finals, and it was Suddenly, we had a new RaceCraft complete with the probably the most important round. Our opponent was grid, Racepak, etc. we knew nothing about. We spent the a very good driver, and he didn’t even look at us when we entire winter of 2014 working on the car and learning rolled up into the lanes. So, Mike won in the semis, and we about the new parts. were going into the finals.

Dad made several trips from Iowa to St. Louis to help When the win light came on in the finals, I could not us with the grid and Racepak. The car had more wiring believe it. than I could imagine. We also built a new engine, transThe whole day felt magical (even the oil pouring out of mission, etc. We had zero runs on the brand new car and the car!). This was the FIRST time the brand new car had decided to head down to Bowling Green for the Tenngone racing! We put about 15 runs on the car, and it had Tuck race — because what better way to test than at a big just won $10,000 and a big silver trophy. That trophy sits bucks race with outstanding competition, right? proudly on our fireplace mantle and reminds me of the We were able to get in a few test runs the day before the elbow grease to get the car ready, the effort made by dad, race, and I was thrilled when the dragster ran and shifted, Mike, and me to get the car done, and the excitement of and all the settings on the grid and Racepak worked with a big win. minor adjustments. Day one of the race rolled around, and I love this day because it ended with the big win, but I we were more focused on the car, how it was running, and am more proud of the fact that we could build a quality downloading Racepak runs than anything else. Winning car capable of winning on day one. Even three years latthe race was not on our radar screen. er, I can look at the trophy and feel the emotions of winAs soon as we started to pull into the long lanes of racning, the pride of the effort to make that day happen, ers, Mike shut the engine off, and it sounded like a gun and the excitement of experiencing my favorite day with shot went off! I saw oil coming from our dragster. My first Mike and my dad. DRS 94 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2

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DRIVEN

SPEED SHIELD

Driven Racing Oil’s Speed Shield is designed as a protectant that sheds dirt, dust, and mud, while providing a glossy, protective film for a variety of surfaces. We put Speed Shield to the test in the place where drag racers could get the most visible benefit of preventing dirt and debris from sticking to surfaces, right behind the rear slicks to prevent rubber build up on a race car paint job.

FEATURES

Jim cleans the existing rubber residue from his rear quarter panels with Driven’s Speed Clean.

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He then applies a good coating of Speed Shield over the area.

IN THE FIELD

We asked Jim Hughes, a racer at Eddyville Dragway Park, to try out Speed Shield on his ’67 Camaro rear quarter panels during a day of racing. He first cleaned his lower body panels with Driven Racing Oil Speed Clean (see Drag Racing Scene Winter 2016) then applied Speed Shield, which is safe for his paint job, chrome, lettering, etc.

After a day of racing, Jim simply wiped away the day’s racing grime from his rear quarter panels and applied another coat for his next day of racing. He was wowed to learn the product can be used for all suspension components, inner fender wells, shocks, and much more.

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After the day racing, Jim simply wiped away the grime and burnout residue from his panels and applied a fresh coat of the protectant for the next day at the track.

JOHN SAYS:

“Where do you get this! My friends will be wanting this stuff once I show it to them.”

DragRacingScene.com 95

LIFE AT

Cars with names - a fun trend that’s coming back

Names on cars were prevalent in early days of drag racing. That trend is returning as multiple associations currently “suggest” the drivers who run with their groups emblazon a nickname on the side of their vehicles.

96 Drag Racing Scene / Vol. 3, Issue 2 1

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