Anyone like racing?
- Thread starter JimT
- Start date
jackieschmidt
Gold $$ Contributor
Well heck, if we are talking racing I will post the picture of me At the ShrImp and Petroleum Festival in Morgan City Louisiana in 1977.
It looks like quite a few of us older guys were crazy in our youth.
It looks like quite a few of us older guys were crazy in our youth.
jackieschmidt
Gold $$ Contributor
Wow. I never did any Drag Boat Racing. I ran APBA 5 lap competition.
I ran three different classes with the same hull, (I went through three hulls in my career,)
In the picture, I was as running Ski Racing Runnabout. Limited to 399 cubic inches, carburetors, and legal racing gas. Aside from that, you could do what ever you could afford.
The way we built a 399 Big Block was to take a 427, bore it .060 over, send the crank shaft to Lunati to have it welded and destroaked to around 3 7/16 inches. I used 1/4 inch long Carrillo Rods. The roller Cams usually were around .284 degrees at .050 lift, and .780 oft. We revved that destroaked Rat Motor to 7800+ on the straight always. Compression was around 13.5 to 1 on the Air Flow Research Heads.
I ran the same 11 1/2 x 15 Stellings Prop in all three classes. I just changed the gears as power went up. In Super Stock, where we ran what as basically a bone stock L-88 Chevy, I ran around 10 % overdrive in the Cassel V Drive, in Ski Racing Runnabout, 15%, and in K boat, which as just about unlimited, I ran 23% overdrive. I ran a Crower fuel injected 496 on straight methanol in K Boat.
the Hull was a Biesmeyer, arguably the finest Circle Hull ever build.
I am a little embarrassed I can’t figure out which Hull you have. I would guess a Sanger, but probably not.
While I did not race 1/4 mile drags, I knew everybody that did. Back in the ‘70’s, the popular hulls were all runner bottoms, Hondo, Brendella, Cole, and Sanger being the most popular.
People would ask just how dangerous this was. I personally saw four friends die during my 10 year tenure. As crazy as I was, I feel fortunate to come out in one piece.
Tell me all about yours. It’s been a long time ago in a Galaxy far away when I did that. I don’t mind saying, I was pretty good at it.
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Downhill
Gold $$ Contributor
DAMN!!!!
Jayplace
Gold $$ Contributor
The Circle boat and Dragboat are somewhat different animals. I agree, the Biesmeyer is still probably the top Circle boat out there. I was never comfortable with the Circle boat racing, there is just too much water movement for me. They are fun to watch, but they take more balls than I have. Dragboats run on smooth water and if anything starts to feel unnatural, I can back out. I came from street racing and liked boats so it was a natural progression. It's much quicker than any car that had. My hull is a Cole TR-4 runner bottom which I feel is probably one of the most desirable hulls for a dragboat. I'm running a 540 BBC with a 14-71 blower using e85. I say it's a BBC, but there is not a single GM part in the motor. Like you, I'm geared to turn 7,500rpm. I play with it now mostly on the local river or lakes. It's pretty healthy for a lake boat, but I was involved with some pretty serious racers. One of them is a Pro driver and drives a Top Fuel boat that runs in the 260's in only 800 feet. Most of the other racing classes now run 1,000 feet though. The fuel boats are fun to watch, but way out of my interest level of driving or maintaining. I started playing with these V-Drives in 1970.
D Coots
Silver $$ Contributor
I'm putting on a 348-409 Race September 30/October 1 in Iowa. See below. $4,000 prize money and have 23 cars signed up so far. Bring your 348-409 and have some fun at the end of the season. Any questions my # is below.
www.348-409.com
2023 Iowa Tri-State Raceway September 30-October 1. WALLYS ON SUNDAY | Events Archive
6 WALLYS ON SUNDAY/6 CLASSES. Earlville, Iowa. Track is west of the Mississippi about 25 miles from Dubuque, Iowa on Highway 20. One of 3 all concrete tracks in the US. Reid, the owner, has leased the track to the 3 Fangman Brothers who have worked there for 6 years and Reid will still be doing...
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wildcatter
Silver $$ Contributor
If it takes longer than seconds to figure who is faster, I loose interest. Besides ever since I was little, going in circles just makes me dizzy.
Straight line from a to be in under 10 seconds is how I like find who is the fastest. Don't matter if it's on asphalt, concrete, or water, soft or hard.
The only circle jerkers that interest me are on dirt, sprints and outlaws. Just what I grew up doing.
Straight line from a to be in under 10 seconds is how I like find who is the fastest. Don't matter if it's on asphalt, concrete, or water, soft or hard.
The only circle jerkers that interest me are on dirt, sprints and outlaws. Just what I grew up doing.
dusterdave173
Silver $$ Contributor
I pissed away so much money on race cars, it isn‘t funny. Started with drag cars, 70 SS454 Chevelle, then a 68 Bigblock Corvette. This was before nitrus or supercharging was the thing. Naturally aspirated on race gas. This progressed to road racing in the SCCA GT-1 class with tube framed C4 Corvettes. The engines were from Pro-Motor Engineering in Chicago, small blocks with dry sumps, roller cams , and custom carbs. The chassis were five link rears with coil overs on all four corners and a 40 gal. fuel cell.
A set of tires lasted a weekend and u consumed a 55 gal. drum of racing gas as well.
We had fun traveling around the country and even made the Run-Offs at Road Atlanta.
In retrospect, if I had to do it over, I would have taken my money and purchased an old, antique airplane and restored it. At least when I was finished, I would have something of value to show for all my efforts.
Racing is always chasing technology, which means if u are not constantly spending money to keep pace, ur car becomes outdated quickly. That outdated car is worth Pennie’s on the dollar should u decide to sell it.
just some thoughts from an old racer.
Bob
A set of tires lasted a weekend and u consumed a 55 gal. drum of racing gas as well.
We had fun traveling around the country and even made the Run-Offs at Road Atlanta.
In retrospect, if I had to do it over, I would have taken my money and purchased an old, antique airplane and restored it. At least when I was finished, I would have something of value to show for all my efforts.
Racing is always chasing technology, which means if u are not constantly spending money to keep pace, ur car becomes outdated quickly. That outdated car is worth Pennie’s on the dollar should u decide to sell it.
just some thoughts from an old racer.
Bob
D Coots
Silver $$ Contributor
Ackman
Gold $$ Contributor
Back years ago, 60's, we'd go to the drags and loved boat races, and the dirt track races at Ascot Park. One friend had a super stock Dodge he raced. The guy I rode and built bikes with raced TT on a Triumph. We did a lot of street hotrodding and stupid things on them in the late 60's. Those were thee days. Still have that bike. My only times on a strip were back when there was one in Salt Lake City (now long gone). Just to see what the Duramax would do.
Very built engine, money pit, went pretty good, 10.97, back in 2012. Today just a daily driver and hunting truck with a very occasional street go. There's no strip around here anymore and I'm just too old for that stuff anyway. The bike as it was back then, the truck as it is now.
Very built engine, money pit, went pretty good, 10.97, back in 2012. Today just a daily driver and hunting truck with a very occasional street go. There's no strip around here anymore and I'm just too old for that stuff anyway. The bike as it was back then, the truck as it is now.
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jackieschmidt
Gold $$ Contributor
I remember the Cole runner bottoms well. They came out in the mid ‘70’s, along with the Brendella. Before that, Hondo pretty much was the go to hull for drag boats. They tried to produce a good Cicle hull. They were a fast hull, but didn’t turn worth a darn, or at least, not like a Biesmyer.
I do believe the runner bottom Flat Bottom was Hondo’s concept.
If I am not mistaken, both Cole and Brendel worked for Honda at one time.
My ‘67 Malibu has a 540 in it, based on a Dart Big M block. It’s just a nice big street engine, set up to burn unleaded premium. Malle Forged pistons, set at 10 to 1 with the Air Flow Research 290 CNC heads. Crank is a Scat 4340 4 1/4 stroke, Calles Rods.The induction is the Holley Multiport Fuel Injection. The cam is a Hyd Roller, .234/.244 at .050, .675 lift. Sounds mild, but she revs hard to 6400. Tons of torque, over 700 pound feet at just 3800 Rpm. Headers are 2 1/8 Lemmons.
Good street engine. But as you noted, while it looks like a Big Block Chevy, there isn’t a GM part in it.
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