Rat Racing is not Drag racing
Irresponsible Media Feeds Misconception
- by Fred Nelson
I guess I’ll have to do it, then. It woke me up at 2:00 AM, and I couldn’t go back to sleep. After tossing and turning until about 5:00 AM, I got up and took an aspirin. Finally, I dozed off. Then I dreamed I was awake!
Through it all, it became clear that someone has to set the record straight. Forget the “Fast and the Furious.” That’s horsey stuff. And call it what it is - Rat Racing. It has no relation whatsoever to Drag Racing. Rat Racing is the term we’ve used for years to describe those little impromptu contests where someone driving along the same street or highway wants to challenge you. There are no rules. You just wail on it until you win, or common sense kicks in and one of you backs off. Very dangerous stuff, and a couple of high profile, spectacular crashes certainly attest to this. In Vancouver, one such crash left a police officer dead. One, or both, cars racing ran the red light at an intersection.
In another such case, a 60 Minutes-style investigation talked about three cars drag racing, and a spectacular crash that killed several kids. This is irresponsible reporting on the part of the news media. Someone has to set them straight on what Drag Racing is, and what it is not!
Drag Racing is an acceleration contest between TWO vehicles, for a measured distance, usually a quarter-mile (1320 feet). Both vehicles line up at the starting line to assure an even race. When the green light comes on, they race in a straight line for the full quarter mile. Then, the race is OVER. Depending on the horsepower, speed and class, the vehicles will be travelling anywhere between about 80 and 330 miles per hour at the finish line. Then, they have to stop, or at least scrub off enough speed to take the return road, which usually has a speed limit of 25 miles per hour.
Incidentally, the metric system is not used in drag racing. And neither is political correctness. When there are only two vehicles racing, the one that gets to the end of the quarter-mile first (as long as they started evenly) is the winner. The other one is the LOSER. Self-esteem doesn’t enter into it. Gender is not important, either.
There are lots of girls drag racing. They have good reaction times and win a lot of races. Drag racing is the only sport in the world where you can come out of nowhere, without a major sponsor, and go right to the top of the heap. If you run the fastest time, you win the race. Girls, if you really want them to respect you in the morning, kick their butts on the drag strip the night before!
Anyhow, the reason for all this enthusiasm is the announcement of the new Central Alberta Raceways being built at Rimbey, near Red Deer, Alberta. It’s a complete Motorsport Park with a heated concrete drag strip, two race ovals, a motorcycle flat oval, a motocross track, a mud bog, and an area for demolition derbys. And the announcement is from the Rimbey Kinsmen, so it’s not just wishful thinking.
Edmonton, Calgary, Medicine Hat, Rimbey, and Fort McLeod all have drag strips now. That’s a good thing! When top name acts are paid to come and put on a show, it makes more economic sense to run at several tracks.
With the recent ripples at our local track, it was starting to get me down. But everything’s gonna be all right! And, now that you know the difference, go spread the word. Rat Racing is NOT Drag Racing.
Fred Nelson is an accredited local appraiser.
Reach him at 242-3856.
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Spokane Fury
The golden years of Drag Racing was filled with racers that had an abundance of talent but were short of funds. That did not stop their desire to race, and such a person was Greg Fury from Spokane Washington.
Greg fit the low buck criteria to a “T”. When I first saw Greg race in Calgary he was racing a C/FD with an injected Small Block Chevy on 90% nitro. The car was fast , and as was the case with many cars from the Spokane area he had the Chevy sitting in a chassis built by Dixon Engineering. As is the case with many racers the need for more power dictated a change for bigger and better things. Bigger and better meant that the Chevy made way for an early Chrysler hemi with a supercharger and of course a healthy dose of Nitro methane. In 1966 the BB/FD ran under the National record and was always in the money in Super Eliminator.
Another Spokane racer, Joe Baylock, had ended his partnership in the Batcar AA/FD, so he was looking to continue racing. Naturally Greg wanted to move up to AA/FD as the BB/FD had run so well. They started out with the back half of another local car, the Draggin’s Car Club AA/FD. Greg front halved the car with a new set of square tube rails; with a whole bunch of Wheel base to boot. Greg’s cars were functional and not know for their beauty. This prompted the Eagle Electric crew chief to comment,” If this thing breaks 200, it’ll set the sport back 20 years”! At first they struggled to make a decent pass; Joe said the car was too heavy and Greg said the engine didn’t make any power, and so it went through the season. By the end of the season the car had run 204mph with the engine out of the BB/FD, and 208 with Joe’s motor.
On the trip home after the last race of the season Joe and Greg got into rather large disagreement which ended their partnership. After unloading the car Greg proceeded to make it official. He removed Joe’s engine, and cut the chassis into 2 foot sections. Not only did he cut the car up he gathered up all his Hot Rod magazines, poured nitro on them and set them afire, all the while muttering “I’ve read them over and over , and I still don’t know nuthin”! Years later, when Greg had mellowed Joe told him the problem was power as he had the cam in wrong all the time, one can only guess what would the car have done with some real power.
It was a very unique car, built with blood sweat and ingenuity, and it also ended in a unique manner. Greg took a few years off after that, but he did return to Drag Racing with more low dollar interesting race cars; A altered with a blown SB Chevy was run by Greg in the late 70’s and early 80’s, and to my knowledge his last race car was a twin SB Chevy powered Top Comp Dragster.
The golden years of racing was filled with colorful people and stories. Greg fits this profile well. Thanks to Larry Taylor aka,”the Muffler Man”
By: Vern Scholz
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Bitten By The Bug
In the early 60's two young lads, Brent Seaman and Gary Egbert, were drawn together through a common interest in hot cars. Almost finished high school the pair dragged Gary's "T" hot rod to various speed contests around Edmonton. The "T" had a souped Olds engine, a 39 Ford transmission (no first gear)and a set of racy Inglewood drag slicks to put all that power to the pavement.
During the summer of 1963 the duo made a trek down to DeerPark Raceway in Spokane Washington. Featured was a match race between Don Garlits and the Thrifty Auto Supply AA/FD. Although all the other cars were neat, the noise, smell and thunder of the fuel dragsters bit the pair hard.
Since Brent had a 49 Fiat (which he bought for $75) and Fiat altereds were all the rage, the plan was put into motion. The little Fiat was stripped and construction began. With Brent doing a lot of grinding and Gary doing most of the fabrication work, the result was a show quality chassis, All the welds were ground smooth and filled, legal then, but definitely a no-no now. Initially the plan was to use the Olds out of the "T". However as is the case with drag racers the plan, which was to step up gradually, soon turned into a blown fuel altered. Gary scrounged up a 6-71 and wanted to put the blower onto the Olds. Brent thought better of this and persuaded Gary to go with a Chrysler Hemi. At the time Keith Black was making a name for himself with the Greer-Black & Prudhomme dragster, so Brent thought, this was the best person to contact and order parts from. The result was an engine with the best parts available; Forged true rods and pistons, Enderle fuel system, and a Schiefer ignition system.
After countless hours, the little yellow Fiat was ready for it's maiden voyage. Off to Edmonton International Raceway they went. The "Outcast" had a rather inauspicious debut. Gary left the line with the tires hazing, things were looking good, smoke, noise, no parts on the ground, but in typical short wheelbase fuel altered fashion the Fiat made an abrupt turn into the guardrail. Luckily it was early in the pass, and only minor scrapes were incurred. This was just an omen of things to come.
Brent and Gary raced the yellow Fiat all over Alberta and Saskatchewan. Always a crowd favourite, not only for its cackle and pop, but also for it's unpredictability. In short the car was not known for it's straight arrow passes.
This was the only fuel altered, to have been built and raced in Western Canada to date, and perhaps in all of Canada at that time.Thanks to BJ.Brent Seaman...Watch for Part II; The Dragster years, coming soon.
- Vern Scholz
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Imports
Been hearing some of the comments about the imports etc., street racing and whathaveyou? ..If some of you can recall, I believe we all, I mean most of YOU did the street thing...Why? Because it was there, and you could...For those who can recall way back then, when you had a car that you thought would run fast, you raced it...street or not....Why????Guess a lot of us forgot that at the age of 16...17...18...your mind was connected to the throttle of your car..(at least for a time) That's where your thought's were...As you got older, the dragstrip was more in-tune to the needs of racing....(At least, that's what I've been told) I recall going out to the old Drags, with my '67 Cuda and ..Removing the Air Filter, Taking off the hubcaps, taking out the seat, removing the fan belt (then wondering why the darn thing was running so hot)...I have had on occasion witnessed an import race (from a distance of course), and saw basically the same thing...Out goes the girlfriend, out comes the seats, off come the hubcaps, and even the doorpanels....Same thing, different generation......and as the announcer keys the mike and says, "Hang on folks" Top Eliminator is coming up...The finals between Joe Dokes's Honda, and Pete Mustards Mazda is something you dont want to miss".......or is it? This may be evolution. You can’t knock it.
It is interesting to see what is happening at the dragstrips and off the track where the import debate rages on.
At the track it is pretty un-gratifying for me to see Mustangs and Camaros getting scorched by some of the more advanced imports. It is more gratifying to see those guys meeting up after the race and going over each other's cars. Yaking it up and learning about what makes each's ride tick.
The import guys aren't the ones with a problem, its the other folks creating the trouble. Believe it or not the import racers do not wish every muscle car dead, in fact most of them love the muscle bound stuff BUT they can't afford it, so in the true essence of hot rodding they make what they have better any way they can. Although there’s always an exeption.
There is no sense in making this an issue. If drag racers had the same attitude trouble in the infancy of the sport of racing, it would have self destructed. Look & listen carefully. Imports are here here now and will be around for quite awhile. Time to start adapting and give them some credit.
Since I’ve worked within the automotive aftermarket industry, this subject comes up quite frequently. I think I heard it put best by a gentleman from Comp Cams, who said that Hondas and Accuras are the '55 Chevys and '65 Mustangs of the 21st century. It is a "generational" type of thing. Does that mean I’m getting old?
Many grandparents didn't approve of the fact that our dad’s felt the need to pull the fenders off a '34 Ford and replace the "perfectly good" flathead with a 500" Cad motor! The guys and girls of today are today's Hot Rodders! Even if we don't much care for the front wheel drive thing, you have to respect the technology and times their running with these cars.
Is it for us "the over 30 group"? No, I don't think so, at least not for most. Am I going to build one? No, like hip hop and rap music, it wasn't intended for me to like it. Is it going to go away? Probably not and I hope it doesn't. Should we offer our support and guidance? Absolutely. These are the future racers, like em or not, lets all get along and enjoy “Motorsports”, they’ve come a long way.
You gotta like some of the inginuity, and respect the speeds.
Everyone started somewhere, always remember that, and respect what it is they have done, you may like it.
Got an interesting import? Ever consider in having it featured here? Contact us at quicktimes@home.com , we’re always interested in what our readers are into. After all, thats what it’s all about. Send us some info and a picture or two, thats all it takes.
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In Perspective
As we pull into the stampede grounds, I feel a little like a tourist not knowing exactly where to go. "We're here for the car show", I ask the gal at the gate. She points and off we go. Everyone we ask keeps motioning us further in, keep in mind we just need a place to park the trailer to get the car out. Next thing we know they are ushering truck and trailer into the building. "Cool, no snow!"
One of the officials takes us over to where we are to set up the car and the display and I find myself lagging behind looking at some of the other awesome cars already on here. Now, neither the ol'man or myself have ever seen another '68 Acadian Super Sport, so we figure we've got something a little different. Over the last 2 years we've been to plenty of small outdoor shows, but to us, this is the big time. As we get to our spot, sitting right in front of us is, ready for this, another '68 Acadian Super Sport! We couldn't believe it! All this time, never seeing another, and here was on right in front of us! Almost the same color blue, white vinyl top, 350 automatic, nice original car.
I thought that the 3 or 4 weeks of cleaning were way overdoing it, but as I had a chance to walk around and take a look at the level of detail that everyone there had gone to, I knew it was going to be a busy night. We have never gone to such extremes at the outdoor shows, I mean, the cars aren't expected to be spotless; the emphasis was on driving the car there and having fun. This was almost like work!
We left work around noon on Friday so we would have more time for a final buff and polish of all the cracks and crevices we knew would have to be cleaned. As the crowds started to filter in, it was time to "check out the competition".
I was a little surprised at how quickly the building filled with people. Apparently we weren't the only ones with a little case of spring fever. The crowds were even thicker on Saturday and Sunday, I even heard one of the officials say there was a new attendance record set.
I think one of the best things I liked about the show was that there wasn't too much of one type of car. There was a good mix of racecars, trucks, hotrods, classics, and a surprisingly large showing of import vehicles. Lots and lots of motorcycles, a few vendors scattered all around and the auction sale was pretty cool too. I was amazed at the amount of time and money people put into their dream cars. The show cars that made the trip north we just amazing! The level of detail and the displays were great. I was sure glad I wasn't a judge, it took me all weekend just to get a short look at most of the cars let alone all of them.
We met a lot of good people and met some I hadn't seen since one or two of the outdoor shows from last summer. I enjoyed the interest that people genuinely showed in the cars, and everyone had a cool story of their own to tell. For the most part, everybody showed a lot of respect, but for some reason there are always the people that figure they can lean on the car. How many of you have had this happen to you, only to get a disgusted look when you ask them politely to not touch or lean on the car?
We both learned a lot about how the cars get judged, what they look for and how to hide a few things. We made a few friends and even some business contacts, but most of all we had fun. Isn't that the way it's supposed to be? We even came home with a plaque, which made the whole weekend that much better! See you all in Edmonton at the end of April, but be forewarned, this time we're goin for the gold!
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Ken Sitko's Tad Tales
I drove my dad's Pro Comp dragster from 1978 to the end of 1982; I believe that is when Speedway closed down. We were fairly successful, as I gained valuable experience behind the wheel, and we were even able to win the 1981 NHRA Canadian Division championship.
At the end of '82, I was approached by local dragster owner Brad Ennis to drive, wrench and tune his car. Brad had competed at various NHRA events with former World Champion Brent Bramley, but had a falling out after a disastrous (but not fatal) end over end crash at the 1/8 mile strip in Calgary. The car was a very nice piece; original builder Sherm Gunn repaired the chassis after the crash and fitted it with a mag body. The Keith Black hemi was nearly new; we just had to figure out how to run it on our own.
My dad had allowed me to participate in the tuning decisions over the years, so running the car was not completely new to me, but it's pretty scary when there's no one looking over your shoulder to check for mistakes. I was still only 22 years old, and probably a little too cocky, but I was willing to give it a shot. Brad and I tore everything apart to make sure there were no surprises, and towed down to Spokane in the spring of '83 to make some test laps. We unloaded the car in the Ramada Inn parking lot, and fired it just after lunch on a Saturday afternoon. Most of the hotel guests were quite impressed.
Next we towed 2 miles to the track for the first checkout pass. Since I had never driven the car before, we planned on clicking it at half track. Oops, I guess the tire shake screwed up my timing, so I made it to the 1000 foot mark. Even with the tire shake, a pedal, and the early shutoff, we ran 6.80 at 175 mph; the track record at that time was only a 6.55. Everything looked safe, so I made a few adjustments, and lowered the rpm a little on the launch, resulting in a track record 6.52 at 212 mph. Mission accomplished, so we loaded up and headed for home.
We came back later that year and ran consistent 6.50's to win the AHRA World Finals. The next few years were a lot of fun; Brad was a good friend and a great guy to work for, and we won a lot of races. We went virtually un-defeated on the match race circuit for 2 years, and also finished runner up in Spokane in 1984. In '85, we decided to go for the AHRA national championship; at that time they had national event tracks in Carlsbad, Tulsa, Tucson, Palmdale, and Kansas in addition to scattered divisional races. We started out by towing to Carlsbad, but had a disastrous weekend and did not qualify. We enlisted the talents of George Sitko when we towed to Palmdale, California for the Coors Nationals. Just wanting to sort things out, we methodically massaged the fuel system each run, resulting in a number 3 qualifying position. As luck would have it, we had to race Alan Johnson first round, but we managed to squeak by. In the semi's, we would just barely get by Rick Santos, and in the final we met up with Bill Barney. This was a real tight one, as our car was set up to leave really soft because of the slippery track, but we caught him by only inches and won the event. We went on to win points races in Spokane and Prince George, then wrapped up the championship by defeating Paula Gage at the Spokane World Finals.
We couldn't foresee what was coming next; Brad Ennis had health problems in 1986 and passed away in the spring. I believe that he fulfilled one of his dreams, however, and no one can ever take that away from him. I went on to other things, but the opportunities given to me by George Sitko and Brad Ennis started it all.
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Reminiscing Speedway
It was a dream come true for western Canadian hot rodders when the Speedway Park drag strip opened at Edmonton, Alberta. For more than a decade, these Canadian hot rodders staged drag races on blocked-off sections of highways or borrowed airport runways, always waiting and hoping for the day when a genuine drag strip would be built in Alberta’s capital city.
However, as entries grew in number and the speeds increased, the makeshift facilities became inadequate. then, in 1963, the first drag racing accident in Alberta broke an enviable safety record and threatened to stop the sport at Edmonton. a clutch explosion on the starting line in an A / Altered competition coupe sent shrapnel flying into the crowd, and a young high school girl lost an eye as a result.
Highway drags stopped immediately, and drag meets dropped to one big meet per year which was staged on a runway at the Namao RCAF station just north of the city. but in 1966 not a single meet was held at Edmonton, and a half million people in the immediate area went over a year without seeing a single race.
No one was more disappointed than the racers, who then had to travel 200 miles south to Calgary where a regular strip had been operating for a couple of years. The strip at Saskatoon, Saskatchewan was 350 miles away, and the next strip was at Deer Park, Washington, sixteen miles north of Spokane and 650 miles from Edmonton.
Then on May 21, 1967 the Speedway Park strip opened and a new era began. an opening day crowd of 10,000 enthusiastic spectators saw 140 entries turn out for the action. Included were three dragsters which had all previously cranked over 200 mph. all fuel-burning Chryslers, they were Gordon Jenner’s and Nick Kozak’s Royal Canadian from Calgary, one of Canada’s fastest; the beautiful Eagle III from Spokane, driven by Frank Rupert; and Jerry Norton’s super-sleek Seattle-based dragster.
On hand to cut the ribbon officially opening the new strip was Gordon E. Taylor, Alberta’s Minister of Highways. Taylor is an old friend of hot rodders in the province, having helped to gain public support for drag racing over the years. Also present was NHRA Division Six director from Tumwater, Washington, Terrell Poage, who had journeyed nearly a thousand miles for the occasion. In speaking of the strip, Poage termed it “one of the finest strips in Canada and the northwest United States.” he went on to say, “I am now looking for more and more cooperation between Canadian and American drag racers. Our only problem seems to be one of communication and some technical difficulties, but these can be ironed out. Within a year’s time I see a tremendous boost in the sport, and I am looking forward to a big Canadian-American meet.”
The strip itself is the first part of a 1 1/2 million dollar expansion program of Speedway Park Motor Sports Centre, and is the northernmost drag strip in the world. Already built was a quarter-mile paved oval which has been a popular site for stock, midget and super-modified racing for twelve years, and a well-known track in the Canadian American Modified Racing Association loop. Future plans call for a one-mile oval and a two-mile sports car circuit which will use the drag strip as the straightaway. When finished, Speedway Park, actually located within the city limits, will be the most complete racing center in Canada.
The opening drags themselves were staged by the Capital City Hot Rod Association, a group of hot rodders organized in 1959 to seriously promote drag racing. For CCHRA Tech Inspector Mike Jones, it was his busiest day ever. Time trials and eliminations provided the crowd with nine hours of racing. Only one interruption occurred all day, when a sudden squall brought clouds of dust and then drenched the track with rain, emptying the grandstands in minutes, blowing over the Chrondek Christmas Tree and breaking most of the bulbs. However, nobody went home, and in less than half an hour the rain stopped, the sun came out, the strip dried up and the stands filled to capacity with an overflow crowd lining the fence three-deep for the whole quarter mile. New bulbs were rushed in, the lights were fixed and racing continued.
A responsive crowd cheered the winners in stick, hot rod, competition, and dragster classes, but the highlight of the day was the top fuel Eliminator bash between The Royal Canadian and Eagle III. In an ear-shattering blast never heard before in Edmonton, the two earth-shaking rails smoked down the asphalt filling the air with noise, tire smoke and exhaust fumes. The Eagles red-lighted to Jenner-Kozak for top honors at 188.28 mph on 8.27 seconds.
Then a local car-the Chrysler-powered dragster of the Regals Car club-driving by Phil Broderick brought the crowd to their feet for Top Gas Eliminator. In taking crowd to their feet for Top Gas Eliminator. In taking the win, the Regals defied an old drag racing superstition that says green paint is bad luck - the Regals’ dragster, which has never run consistently in the past couple of years, has always been painted green. But for this event a new metalflake green spray job sparkled on a new chassis, and the car went better than ever!
On the other hand, the alky-burning, 427-inch Chevy II funny car owned by Ron Hodgson and Harvey Mills was plagued with trouble. Since its appearance in the March 1967 issue of Rodder & Super/Stock, the car has changed from canary yellow to metalflake green. Although it got in a few wild runs, it suffered from clutch linkage difficulties, among other problems.
Geoff Goodwin, long-time President of the CCHRA and a dragster pilot since 1961, summed it up when he said, “Naturally we had a few opening-day problems, but I was real pleased with the result. Drag racing here is going to boom - there’s not doubt about it. This town had plenty of machinery even when there was no place to race. But, this is just the beginning.” and that it “was".
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The Fast and The Furious
Well, I’ve finally seen it and now can add my .02c worth on a review of this latest race action movie. Catchy name for a movie, reasonably unknown actors, but thats O.K. as the stars are the cars. Import haven, never saw so many Honda’s and such gathered to this extent. And, I thought they looked pretty cool. NOS (pronounced as a word) was very evident in the majority of the cars as was huge rear wings, Autometer tach’s, gauges and the like. The graphic’s on these cars were well thought out and had a lot of flair, maybe to the point of being tacky, but that’s cool. 10 second cars? not likely.
The story line was about an undercover cop working in a local Speed Shop on a case involving some Import racers that were hi-jacking semi truck loads of stereo and video equipment. The undercover guy was able to utilize his involvement at the Speed shop to gain some of the confidance of these Street racers, being somewhat of a racer himself, the story evolves into the cop falling for the kingpin’s sister and well you will have to see the movie for the rest of it.
This movie sure reminded me of some earlier days Street racing, crowds of young people, hot cars, hot girls and the competition seemed endless. Now we shouldn’t glorify Street racing but it sure was like a flashback for me, only the cars changed and the crowd got a little bigger. Looked pretty cool.
I thought the action in this movie was excellant, maybe a little far fetched but hey, it’s a movie. The one scene I actually had to laugh at though was when the Charger was racing the cop’s import and the Charger yanked the wheels on the street while doing a huge smoke show. Bad enough that the Charger had a blown injected Hemi in it, the sound effects were that of a tired 440 at best and was barely holding it’s own during this race.
Over all, I enjoyed this movie and took it for what it was, a movie. There was reasonable acting, good storyline, great action and a good ending. Not bad, considering I went into the movie convinced it would be a joke at best, hell, I’d even recommend it. Action is apparent, See for yourself.
And now for a fresh outlook.......
I can honestly tell you that I went to this movie expecting it to be absolutely unbearable, well I thought wrong The Fast And The Furious is actually a movie that I would recommend. After watching last year’s piece of tripe, Gone In Sixty Seconds I was put off by movies where the plot revolves around a bunch of young Hollywood “hipsters” driving fast foreign cars.
The Fast And The Furious has everything that Gone In Sixty Seconds didn’t, mainly a decent storyline. The story goes like this, a young, hip police officer ( Paul Walker) must go undercover to solve a case about a bunch of missing electronics equipment, but in the process he gets too personal with the suspects. The plot sounds a lot like the early 90’s hit Point Break but Point Break did not have the same chemistry between the two male leads that this movie did. Now I am not a fan of Paul Walker or Van Diesil to tell you the truth I think that they are both horrible actors but for some reason they both fit their roles and they interacted the way that you would think that these characters would interact with each other. The only thing that pissed me off about the characters were the female characters they were either bad actresses or just another prop. Most of the females were in skimpy outfits or being sprayed with water while they were in a white shirt. But that is what this movie is , an exploitation film so I had to accept the fact that that’s all it would ever be.
You have to go into this movie with an open mind because it is not the most realistic film that I have ever seen. Now I am not the car enthusiast that my father is but I don’t think that a Charger could do a whellie and a burn-out at the same time at the starting line and these characters had the items that one could use to rob armored trucks but these characters were stealing DVD players and another thing how come during the car chases there were never any other people on the road, I mean it takes place in L.A. for christ sakes.
In the end I had to watch the movie for what it was , an enjoyable,mindless,Hollywood,exploitation, summer blockbuster. It;s not a thought provoking movie by any means but it accomplished what it intended to be, a fun movie. So if you decide to see The Fast And The Furious here is some fit advice, leave all sense of reality at the door and just sit back and enjoy the ride.
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
Don Macgowan Quicktimes editor
Rating: 3.5 out of 5 Stars
Cameron Macgowan-(Don’s son)
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Tis The Season
Now the biggest issue, as usual, is sponsorship. NHRA looks like they have theirs in the bag, although the dollar figures are less than that of the Winston era. Does NHRA Powerade Drag Racing have a ring to it.........or not?
With Winston out the door, it looked like Scelzi and Angelle might be out in the cold. .....or not. Scelzi is to run floppers (Might we see a Pepsi counter sponsor?), Angelle Savoie?, no word yet, but you know it’ll happen.
Scotty Cannon moves to team Schumacher to share space with the fastest flopper on the planet.
The Bazemore/Force rivarly continues, although Baze now will have a blocker of his own. Love him or hate him, he’s there and you can’t ignore that. And you know Matco/Mac battles will continue.
Gary Densham blows the doors off many, and will return as another "old guy," Worsham coming on strong, setting up a future rivalry with Baze, wouldn't that be nice? If Gray takes the "blue" seat, do you forsee an upcoming war?
The Funny car’s are alive and doing very well, probobly why K&N is leaving a good kid in Top Fuel and trading in for two old guys in FC. (Hoffman/Dunn) They must know something!
The championship run for Dixon and Bernstein was great, the best chase for the top spot in all of racing this year. Romine and Herbert grenading engines all over the place is not great. Wasn't the 90% rule supposed to stop that? There's inherent danger, and there's stupidity. On the upside, the Snake/Larry Dixon will win a championship, soon, very soon.
The Pro Stock routinely set fastest field marks this season, but the well may be dry, or is it?
Pro Stock Trucks: RIP., Now Comp class? I don't want to get sued for saying more than that.
Pro Stock Bikes: Getting quicker all the time, Angelle’s new sponsor? Who knows, Maybe Coke “the real thing”!
TV: This is the best package yet, as long as your not a Canadian. Although there have been some rough spots. I hate powering up the TV on Sunday morning to find NFL, we all need a DSS system or get cable to get ESPN2.
However, Drag television came a long way in a big hurry. The Winternationals were awful. The Finals were superb, due to hard work. Cruz will be missed, (or not) he's the best color guy in a long time. If Dave Reif could stop pissing off Dick Lahaie, it'd all be gravy, and maybe just maybe did a little homework on the Sport he’s announcing. Who knows?
IHRA: Their Summit deal may be in danger, if rumors are true, but who knows? These guy’s love racing, their car and crowd counts were way up this year, and puting butts in the seats was evident, Watch out for these guy’s.
Look for more from them in the future, they do so love to compete, and NHRA is on the crosshairs!
The Future of Drag Racing? I think drag racing,will thrive in 2002, new sponsors, new teams, more competition, more everything! Bench racing requires a daily recommended amount of bitching, which is healthy in smaller doses. But we have to have faith that this sport is not only surviving, but thriving. Now, let’s kick some A#$.
Most notable quote this year had to be when Baze simply said, hey, we're going for the record. Sure, he missed it, but he said it, something that hasn’t been heard in a while. Last year, we saw a string of TF 4.66 passes, and we yawned. This year, we saw a second half of the season dominated by 4.50's, and that's a good thing. A very good thing!
The seasons over and I cannot wait for the start of a new season, Soon the Winter’s will crank up. It's already time for our great sport to kick out the jams, ‘slam down the bodies, light the candles, hit the loud pedal and bring on the cack!, Especially bring on the cack
Cackle,-cackle,Cacklefesting is not ‘til March so until then, let the bench racing begin!!!!..and the rumors recind....
- Don Macgowan
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His & Hers Judges
Meet Rick, he wants to retire!
But……… just can’t! He’s just toooo good at restoringcars for his clients. Good news travels fast and espe-cially by word of mouth! Rick says it’s time to restorea car for himself. He found his first ride in Red Deer Alberta at an estate sale.
Turned out to be a 69 Judge being auctioned off. Hestill can’t figure out why he bid on a major beat-uprust bucket. He actually won the bid only to find outshortly after all the bidding had been completed thathe was bidding against the original owner and theoriginal dealership the car came from.
Rick drove his beater from Red Deer to Calgary, amere 100 miles or so with no muffler and four wornout bias-ply tires. Just try and put a set of good bias-ply tires on your muscle car today and see how wellthey handle compared to today’s high tech tires. Theonly good parts were the seats, as they still felt good.You never know what you’ll find in an old car, espe-cially under the rear seats! During the clean out, Rickand Connie found a die cast model of the Judge anda real spoiler that actually fit on the trunk. The seatsturned out to be original and in very good shape, notears and no cigarette burns. Once scrubbed theseats came up to prime condition.
Acosmetic fix of orange spray paint to cover theprimer on the wheel arches along with a good powerpolish presented a respectable roadworthy driver forthe time being. Rick drove the car for a year and thatfall the engine spun a bearing.
They found the original build sheet when the car wastotally gutted for a complete restoration.The car had all the original sheet metal, so no patchpanels were needed. This GTO got a Carousel Redpaint job in PPG Base/clear. Eventually the originalowner and Rick met through a neighbor, and Ricktook the car over to let him drive it one Sunday. Ricktells me, ”just a few days before Xmas the originalowner came to my shop and presented me with theoriginal Protecto Plate. I couldn’t have asked for abetter Xmas present!”
“Thanks Lowell, you’ll always have first chance topurchase the car if I ever decide to sell it.”
Since it was an automatic (special order), Rick knewhis wife would enjoy it (Hers). Connie actually playedindifferent to the car until Rick put the registration inher name and now she has a completely differentattitude towards “HER” GTO! Maybe she’ll sleep in it! Connie now knows the GTO appeal is very simple, Pontiac gave us one of the very first muscle cars wayback in 1964 and even to this day folks have neverlost interest in the “head turning” GTO. Now lets takea look at Rick’s (His) 1970 Judge.
Here’s how Rick tells it. I got a call from a fellow inEdmonton telling me he knew where a 70 - 4 speedJudge was and did I want it? Of course I said yes butthe next thing I hear is he bought it and it had a sun-roof. Well I suspected he would never get the rooffixed so about two years later he calls me again.This time I towed the car home and it still had a sunroof!
The car had been in a body shop where new quarterpanels had been installed. Front fenders and hoodwere in hi primer. Great I thought but since I do restowork for a livelihood I decided to strip the car.Guess what? I had to replace the driver’s door andpassenger fender, cut the quarters off and this time re-weld them on straight.The floors and trunk were ok.Anut and bolt resto has since taken place and now -two years later it’s a turn key sporting a 455 out of a70 Grand Prix. Eventually it will be back to original. Ihave located a 70 WS block with correct number 12heads and have the original tranny. The car didn’tcome with possi but I’ll correct that because I justdon’t have any traction with that bored and blueprint-ed, ported and rollerized 455!
This Judge has show quality paint in Cardinal RedPPG B/Clear with a black interior, which is mostly orig-inal. Of course, new headliner, front seat covers andcarpet were installed. Well, be sure and look for thisrare husband & wife Judge team Rick & ConnieJohnston to show up at your next show & Shine….
- Moe and Rick
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“Futurista”
Much like the golden days of Drag Racing, car showsand far out customs were at their finest during the60’s.Custom car builders such as Ed Roth, GeorgeBarris, Gene Winfield and Daryl Starbird were buildingshow cars that have not been equaled.
In 1965 Darryl Starbird designed and hand built one ofthe wildest creations during this time period. Starbird’s“Futurista” utilized 3 wheels and featured an all metalhand built delta shaped body. As was with a few otherradical custom cars at the time, a custom fabricatedLucite double bubble top was used to give the car a very futuristic look.Acentrally located hydraulically operated stick con-trolled the front steering wheel, and a lever controlledthe throttle. AVolkswagen suspension, motor andtransmission were used to complete the Futurista. Togive the car a little oomph, the VW motor was soupedup to give the Futurista enough power to achievespeeds of over 100 mph.
Imported red velvet was used through out the interior,and the seats/ head rests were hand built. Anythingthat was not painted was chromed to give the ultimatein appearance. The single headlight was concealedbehind an automatically controlled door. Many of thecustom cars were reproduced in small scale, and theFuturista was no exception. The Monogram modelcompany choose to do the car in 1/24 scale, and pro-duced a very nice copy of the Futurista.
For those of you who remember the models of the60’s; Revell was producing very nice models, but theywere usually a difficult build for young modelers. AMT also did some nice models; although easier to assem-ble than Revell models they still needed painting. Foryoung modelers Monogram was the preferred modelsto build. Monogram models were molded in differentcolors (e.g., yellow body parts, black engine parts, andred trim parts) so a Monogram model could be assem-bled without having to be painted, and would lookquite respectable. Monogram models were alsodesigned to be a little simpler than the other manufacturers. While having less parts Monogramwas able to incorporate moving parts, and produce avery accurate replica of the model they reproduced. Monogram models went together very nicely as longas you followed the instructions step by step. Not onlywere they enjoyable to build, the quality of the plasticand moldings were so nice that when assembled theunpainted model looked very respectable. Monogramonly made the model available for a year or two, andnever reissued the Fururista.
Thanks to E-bay, Monogram models, both unbuilt andbuilt restorables can be found. Monogram box artshowed the car in a candy gold color, and molded themodel with yellow body parts, red interior parts andblack engine parts. However this Futurista wasrestored to replicate the actual car in pearl white withcandy red trim. The red velvet interior was replicatedwith red flocking, and all the chrome was done as thereal car had. Darryl Starbird’s wife was kind enough toprovide the correct colors and details so the smallscale car replicated the big scale car.Should you happen to be traveling down in Oklahoma,a trip to the Darryl Starbird National Rod &Custom CarHall of fame in Afton Oklahoma is a must.I really took a trip down memory lane when I restoredthis one of a kind custom show car. It was a model Ihad as a young lad, and was a model that was a musthave for me.When I did my original , it was assembledin the kit colors, but with this one I wanted to replicatethe real car.I hope that you have enjoyed this trip down memorylane as much as I have.
-
Vern
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keeping the drive alive.
From his runner-up appearance at the 1972 Nationals until hislast national event victory in 1994 in Columbus, Gordie Boninwas one of drag racing's more successful Funny Car drivers,compiling a 9-3 record in final-round appearances at majorraces. For a spell in the 1970s, he consistently recorded thefastest Funny Car clockings, earning him the nickname "240Gordie."Bonin was born in Prince Albert, SK and grew up inRed Deer, AB.,often attended drag racesin Edmonton andCalgary, Alta. His first street car was a '56 Chevy, which wasreplaced in 1967 by a '67 Pontiac with a 327-cidChevy, then a'68 Chevelle Super Sport that ran 13-flat right out of the box.In 1969, Bonin campaigned an AMC Hurst/Scrambler, a factory-backed entry that ran out of the Rambler SaskatoonLtd. dealership in Canada.
After moving back to Red Deer in 1970, Bonin began racing in Jr. Fuel. Said Bonin, "I hooked up with Ted Sinclair, whoseC/MP'55 Chevy I had driven before. He had a Jr. Fuel drag-ster with a small-block Chevy on 100 percent nitro and a two-speed transmission. It ran in the low sevens at 190 mph."In 1972, Bonin was chosen to drive Ron Hodgson's Pacemaker-backed Vega Funny Car.Said Bonin, "I got my license at LionsDrag Strip in Long Beach, Calif., and I went 205 mph on mythird run."
At the 1972 U.S. Nationals, Bonin qualified third with a 6.52and reached the final, where he lost to Ed McCulloch. "Thatrace was a big encouragement for me," said Bonin, "and itprompted me to become a full-time professional racer by driving Roland Leong's Revell-sponsored Hawaiian in 1973."
Bonin later regrouped with Hodgson, and in 1975, theyobtained the tuning services of Jerry Verheul. Said Bonin, "He had workedwith Jerry Ruth and had helped Frank Hallwin the 1973 championship with his Green Elephant car.We also got the Bubble-Up sponsorship in 1975, andthat helped out a lot."
Bonin won his first national event title at the 1977Gatornationals, running low e.t. (6.19) and topspeed (238.72) of the meet in theprocess. He later began to record240-mph clockings on a regular basis to inspire the "240Gordie" moniker.Said Bonin, "Don Prudhomme actually wasthe first over 240, but somehow '240 Prudhomme' didn'tsound right, so the name stuck with me." Ironically, Bonindefeated Prudhomme at the 1977 World Finals, and in 1979,he won the Gatornationals, U.S. Nationals, and World Finalsto finish third in the standings. "Winning Indy that year wasthe highlight of my career," said Bonin. "It was the 25thanniversary of the U.S. Nationals, we became the third Funny Car in the fives, and we set a new national speed record of 245.90 mph."
After winning the 1981 Gatornationals, Bonin found himself without a ride when Hodgson decided to get out of racing. He worked as a salesman for Hodgson 's Old Fort BrewingCo. in Prince George, B.C., then served as NHRA's directorof marketing and marketing services from 1983 to 1989.
In 1989, when Gary Ormsby could no longer drive because ofhis battle with cancer, Lee Beard selected Bonin to drive atthat year's Seattle national event, where he reached the semi-finals. In 1993, he drove Leong's Hawaiian Vacation-backedFunny Car to a Springnationals win over Gordon Mineo in thefinal. Bonin was then hired in 1994 as driver of the Candies &Hughes Smokin' Joe's Funny Car, which he drove to victories at the 1994 Mid-South Nationals and Springnationals.
When the Smokin' Joe's team later stopped racing, Boninagain was without a ride, but after joining Prolong SuperLubricants in 1999, he was chosen as a marketing tool toexpand the exposure of the company's products in Europe.
"[Former NHRAVice President] Carl Olson helped set up thatdeal," said Bonin. "He hooked me up with RuneFjeld, a Top Fuel car owner and tuner fromNorway. He assured me that Rune wasthe Austin Coil of Europe and that itwould be a good, safe ride.
" Bonin won three of the five eventsin the FIAEuropean Drag RacingTop Fuel series that year, scoringvictories in the Santa Pod openerinEngland; Alastaro, Finland; andGardemoen Racewayin Norway.
"I was flown to Monaco to accept myaward," said Bonin, "and it was a big crystalcup which is now housed at Olson's residence."
Bonin currently resides in Deer Park. Said Bonin, "I'm livingwith a wonderful lady named Diane, and I've had achance to stop and smell the roses. When I moved up here from San Diego, Calif.,I took the final trip on my motorcycle on Highway 395.
It was probably the best ride I've ever enjoyed, and I was taking in the scenery so much that I almost ran out of gas onseveral occasions, including one time where I had to share agas tank with a Cessna plane in Wagon Tire, Ore.
"Racing in the 1970s was absolutely the best of times, something I never wanted to end," he added. "We didn't havethe million-dollar sponsorships that everybody wished for backthen, but it wasn't any easier to race [with a lot of money]because there were a lot more competitive cars.
It was also a lot of fun living on the road with the guys. Thesedays, you don't see a bunch of drivers going into a restaurantand pulling five tables together, unless John Forcehappens tobe there."
Bonin occasionally makes laps with Ray Salter and ChuckPenney's Top Fuel car, but he hasn't competed full time on theNHRAcircuit since 1994. "I don't like to use the word 'retired,'"said Bonin. "And by that I mean if the right deal ever camealong, I'd jump at it in a heartbeat. I have never driven morethan 300 mph, but I'd sure like a shot at it."
My first real serious racecar was a brand new 1968Chevelle 396 that my father co-signed for me. ThankYou, Dad! I won my first drag racing trophy, a two-foot plastic one, with that car. It had 1004 mileson it when I won that trophy. (My dad still hasthose first trophies) I also lost my virginity inthat very car! I raced at Calgary, Edmonton,Saskatoon, Mission, & Seattle for about 5years in every thing from my Chevelle to a friend’s AFuel dragster.
Early in 1972 I had just married and wasworking as a loan officer for BeneficialFinance. It was around midnight whenI received a call from Gordon Jenner.In his gruff voice he said. "I’ve beendown here in California with a newfunny car for a month. I have alreadyused three drums of fuel and this guy can’tdrive this car. He’s scared to death of it. Howwould you like to drive a funny car?
" Hmmm. Funny car? Opportunity knocking. I said"Yeah, I could do that." And he replies "Good! Call me inthe morning." Click! Oh yeah, like I’ll be able to sleep now!So I get hold of Jenner the next day and he supplies airfare from Calgary, with a return trip. Gotta have thatreturn trip! I fly to Los Angeles on Wednesday in my suitand tie carrying my briefcase. Jenner shows up dressed in T-shirt & jeans with a half-ton Chevy pickup & pull alongtrailer. We pile in the truck and it is off to Lion’s for theWednesday night show. In the pits I climb into the seatand check out the controls. This is cool but the seat is about three sizes too big forme. We start the car with me in the seat. Now this isbeginning to get cooler! You have to remember that this isbefore everyone on the team wore gas masks.
NHRA rules require two half-track passes and a full passto up grade my license from an AFuel car to a Funny Carlicense. "Two half-track passes and a full pass, that’s allyou gotta do other than the burnouts." Jenner says. Burnouts! This was getting cooler by the minute.
I borrow a fire suit from Murray Dyma (the guy thatowned the car but was afraid to floor it) that would fitthe Pillsbury doughboy. We start the car for our firstpass and the body comes down. I move toward theburnout box and hit it. Smoke in the cockpit,
I proceed to do a half-track burnout. How cool is that!They didn't tell me I didn't have to burnout to half-track. I back her up and Jenner's already got this shiteating grin going on. Move forward, stage, hit it! The car leaves clean, I reach for the shifter and I’mabout a foot short! Can’t reach the handle. Afterreturning to the pits, we borrow a torch and heat theshift handle to try and bend it so I can reach the thing.On the second pass I can just barely reach the shifter,so I step off the throttle, grab high gear, and hit itagain. We decide I need a pillow behind me so I canreach everything just right; no pillow, but a borrowedfire suit jacket from a friend in the pits suffices.
The final pass I run a 7.02 at 202mph. Steve Evans,who was running Lion’s at the time, comes up andsays "You guys should go to Seattle next weekend. I’ll call Bill Doner." I get a promise that Evans will signmy license application when I get one, and off we go.
Evans gave Jenner a phone number to contact Donerin Seattle. We packed up our stuff and headed to themotel. It's past midnight, but WHO can sleep??
In the morning, we head for Mike Libey's shop to workon the car. Jenner says to me, "You get to do the bottom end because if there is a fire it's your ass outthere." He went to call Bill Doner. As we tear down themotor Jenner comes back in and says "We're going toSeattle." Okay, How cool is that!I asked Gordon ifwe got the big guarantee money, he says no, butDoner gave us "four in free!"
On the way to Seattle I'm in the middle of bench seatsandwiched between two guys each way over 200lbs;
NOTvery cool. As we're going over the Grapevine, Iask to stop so I can get in the bed of the pickup andstretch out WITH my fire suit on; it was April you know.We run Seattle that weekend and I was runner up.How cool is that!I thought "This is easy." And the rest is history.
Join Gordie Bonin at Quicktimes Chrome Illusions
Car Show April 7th & 8th in Red Deerat Westerner Park, Fri 6-10pmSaturday 10-10.....Be There!!!!Thanks Gordie, for the great memories.
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