Texas Killer Whale

 

The Texas Killer Whale is nearing completion, and should be ready to compete in Nostalgia Super Stock by mid-year. The Killer Whale is a 4-link 1960 Plymouth 2-door wagon powered by a 588ci Diamondback Engines motor. Chassis, assembly and paint was performed by Texas Thunder Performance.

 

Checkerboard/Whale Graphics being applied by Mark Artis at Texas Thunder Performance

 

Dave 'Old Hippie' Schultz will run this car in the NMCA Points Championship races, and Big Red Ram at other NSS races.

 

Texas Flag Paint blowing off to expose the Stars & Bars it was painted over

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The following is a recap of the event from my perspective. Please feel free to post yours.

Neither my or my son’s 65 Coronets were ready in time for the Bradenton race, so we came in a pick up and enclosed trailer with the backup car — and I was the driver.

We left for the 1100 mile trip on Wednesday before noon, and spent the night between Tallahassee and Lake City at around midnight. Back on the road at 8AM Thursday morning — arriving at the track at about 1PM to drop the trailer. Stuck around for a couple of beers — and then off to the hotel at about 8PM.

Up early, made a cereal run for Doug Duell and at the track at about 10AM. Teched the car in and after I sat in the car for the first time — I found that the seat belts were too small and the seat too high. I was able to buy a set of belts from Barry Camp — and had to slide down the seat anf have a "Gansta Lean" for the weekend — until I can cut down the seat mount a couple of inches.

There were 10 NSS racers. Doug Duell (Drag’n Wag’n), Doug Poskevich (66 blue-green Fairlaine), Barry Camp (Pig – 66 Chevy), the High Voltage 63 Plymouth, Steve Wilson’s 65 Chevelle, a tan 64 Chevy, a blue-green 66 Chevy, DW Hopkins and his Thunderbolt, a maroon Thunderbolt, and my Vitamin C 63 Plymouth. Unexpectedly missing was Skip Koester, Kurt Neighbor, and the three Dark Horse cars.

This was the first time I’d even sat in the backup car. I was told by the person I bought it from to launch it at 4500 and shift at 6800. In my first TT pass I did that and had a 10.89 on my 11-second index. I decided to short shift it at 6500 and I got a time ticket saying 10.81. Puzzled, I decided I’d soft launch at 2000 and shift at 6000. That got me my best 60′ (so much for the launching at 4500) and the time slip said 10.7! TT was done for the day.

Doug Duell had a new motor in the wagon — and was trying different sets of carbs. One set would give a monster wheelstand and 9.4s and the other set would bog on the launch — but give faster time slips. He went back to the monster wheelstand set.

Saturday we got up at 6AM and was at the track at 7:30. There was no way to legally put weight in the car — so I decided I’d have to lift. I launched at 2000, shifted at 6000 and lifted at about 1200′. I got a 10.83 slip (air was better). DW had problems with his car in the first round and found he either has a wiped cam — or bad lifters.

For the second qualifying pass a black 69 Dart GTS showed, pulled off the open trailer and ran a 11.000 on his 11.0 index. He’d obviously be the top qualifier. I took a bunch out of my throttle cable, launched at 2000, shifted at 6000, lifted at 1200 and got a 10.89.

Really starting to get annoyed, I took a bunch more out of the throttle cable — making it far from WOT. For the final qualifying I was determined I’d not breakout! I launched at 2000, shifted at 6000, and lifted at 1100′. I would have guessed a 11.4 slip — but it said 10.91!

That made me the worst of the 11 in qualifying — giving me Doug Duell for Round One.

Sunday morning up early and at the track at 7:30. It looked like rain and I was hoping to get the first round out of the way — as I knew all odds were against me, so I might as well get on the road early. It was too late to try to jack with timing — so I would just have to tree Doug and lift earlier (I was already deep staging). Doug and I agreed we’d pull out immediately when called — to be the first pair, trying to beat the rain. I was starting to feel good as there was a good head wind that would slow me down enough and hopefully Doug too much. We get in the staging lanes — and the clocks screwed up. By the time they got it fixed — it started raining. We put the cars in the trailers and waited for announcements. at noon they said they’d announce something at 3:30. At 2:30 they announced that we were done for the day — but they’d carry over on Monday.

Back to town to try to find a room, then back to get Doug and Mr. Aruba for dinner — and for them to get supplies from Wally World.

Monday the weather is great — but the pits were swamps. We line up and I figured Doug would figure I’d break out. I was able to get a better tree by .030 — and I went like Hell and then hit the brakes at the 1100′ (Doug was a second and half faster). Doug saw my front dive too soon and he lifted in time. He did a 9.52 and I did a 11.19.

I’m on the trailer and heading north and west. The GTS had a bye, as did Barry as he was lined up against DW who couldn’t make the call. The other winners were the green Chevy, Poskevich, and I don’t know who the 6th car was (but it wasn’t Wilson or High Voltage). The green Chevy took out Doug, and Poskevich took out Camp. The three remaining cars were the GTS, the Green Chevy and the 66 Fairlaine. I don’t know who had the Bye — but the finals had the GTS on the trailer and Poskevich winning in a double breakout over the Chevy.

I drove all night, got to the shop at 3AM, and then to my lake house at 5:30AM. No sleep as I can’t sleep in daylight.

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There has been a lot of talk about states cracking down on racers traveling to events, and there’s a lot of confusion between fact and fiction. This was a discussion in the pits this last weekend in Bradenton — where for instance we discussed:

North Carolina has a law that no combination over 65′ is allowed to travel through the state. Last year Kurt Neighbor called the state was told to not even travel through the state. There were complaints that the law was hanging out at Zmax as the events ended — having a field day writing up very costly tickets to race rigs. Doug Duell tells me that Bruton Smith yelled and screamed loud enough and to the right people, to where this year they changed the law so you can be up to 90′ if you are traveling to a racing event. However, there is some question about if you are required to have a CDL.

In PA, the law was hanging out by the Maple Grove track and writing up tickets for not having a CDL if your trailer had more than two axles, or sponsor lettering, and if you fessed up that you were going to race where there was a cash prize to the winners.

Other states have combinations of the above plus are focusing on motorhomes with airbrakes, certain weights, etc…

Different states have different requirements for who stops at the scales. No longer cant you assume you can by pass the scales if you are a motor home or Non-commercial, as some states have length or weight limitations regardless of your Commercial/private status.

Some states make it necessary to have a CDL for a motor home — but the driver’s home state won’t issue a CDL without a tractor-trailer road test, which many can’t obtain the vehicle for the road test. The excuse that your state doesn’t issue or require doesn’t appear to make a difference to the unsympathetic cop writing the ticket.

Going to the Internet and trying to read the actual laws often causes more confusion than answers — as it appears that different statues for the same state conflict.

Often, you can call the state and get three different answers from three different people.

This is too costly to just blow off by telling others that you never had a problem or hadn’t heard of problems — and thinking “Private – Not Commercial” lettering is a free pass. The better way is to get the facts so you can get legal.

I’ve put together a forum with threads by state — which I’m hoping I can get racers with the facts will help out with. If you were stopped and found a violation that you weren’t previously aware of — please post the details in the thread for the state. If you called a state for clarification on if you are legal — please post their answer, and please ask for their name and post it too. Some may wish to print the thread when they travel through a state and are stopped.

The forum is located at http://nostalgiadragracers.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=transporting and I’d sure think it would help racers if there was a place where racers from various forums could give other racers a heads up — so they can avoid travel problems.

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Click Here to view.

Cafe Press sells these exact same calendars on their site for $20 — but you can still get them from my shop for $17.99. Check them out if you haven’t already — they’re top shelf.

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If you will be in the Tampa area this weekend, consider coming down to the Bradenton Motorsports Park to either race or watch. Nostalgia classes include:

• Nostalgia Pro Stock

• Nostalgia Super Stock

• Nostalgia Muscle Car

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The Chi-Town Hustler – 69 Charger

There is a MoparWiki having the history of the Chi-Town Hustler – 69 Charger. The MoparWiki is the equivalent of a WikiPedia for Mopars, where anyone with useful information can collaborate with building the ultimate Mopar Information-base.

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Forum for Gassers: http://nostalgiadragracers.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=gassers

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Forums for Nostalgia Muscle Car: http://nostalgiadragracers.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=nmc

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Nostalgia Super Stock Forum: http://nostalgiadragracers.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=nss

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Nostalgia Pro Stock Forum at: http://nostalgiadragracers.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=prostock

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Nostalgia Dragster Forum at: http://nostalgiadragracers.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=dragster

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Visit the Nostalgia Funny Car Forum at: http://nostalgiadragracers.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=funnycar

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