Glensgages

With very little racing over the Easter weekend, I thought I'd begin a 'different' type of thread-topic, having 3 parts:
#1: What is the quickest & fastest ET you've ever run, regardless of car?
#2: What is the quickest & fastest ET you've ever witnessed in-person, regardless of car, class, etc.?
#3: What is the most memorable thing (accident, explosion, "whatever") you've ever seen at a drag-strip?

HAPPY EASTER to all my Corvette drag-racing friends!!!

J Z06

#1: What is the quickest & fastest ET you've ever run, regardless of car?
11.55@119 with my old mustang.

#2: What is the quickest & fastest ET you've ever witnessed in-person, regardless of car, class, etc.? I forget what time it was, but it was a top fuel dragster in 1999. My heart almost came through my chest.

#3: What is the most memorable thing (accident, explosion, "whatever") you've ever seen at a drag-strip? Sadly, Keith Brownlee, who just learned he had cancer, blew up his engine in the last chance he had to race his car. it was difficult to take in.

Fuzzy Dice

Happy Easter to you!!!


[Modified by Fuzzy Dice, 9:53 PM 4/8/2004]

Mr Mojo

One cold November night I'm in the tower at E-Town, Dennis turns to me and says, "did that just flip?", I replied, "It's still flipping".
It was an old Datsun or Toyota that launched at 20,000 rpms, yanked the front wheels 30' high, then lost the lower rad hose causing the right rear tire to lose traction, car hooked right, but before he hit the wall, the car started to flip over about a million times, taking out all the timing lights from the 1/8th thru the 1/4 and showing an et of 12.20 at 125 mph sliding across the line on it's roof.

The crew proceeded to pick up the car, the engine flew out, glass was everywhere, radiator fell out, only one side window wasn't broken, other than that the car was completely demolished. Only had a 4 point bar and the driver walked away. He was from Puerto Rico and speaking so fast we couldn't understand him!! But at least he was OK.

A close second would be the first time I met Mackey and Panuzzo. It was the final Corvette Challenge of 1999, the finals found our two hero's competeing against each other.
As we all know Panuzzo is famous for throwing an ice bag onto the intake, well when they called John and John to teh lanes, JP went over to remove the ice bag, as he's doing this, Big Mac screams to him, what are ou doing to my car? JP replies,"Your car?" "Where's mine?" Mac points to another red C4 and says, "Over there!" JP scrambled to his car pissed because he iced down Mackey's car instead of his.
Mackey went on to win the event and got the prized clock that JP has been trying to steal from him ever since.

Here is a memorable event from E-Town, Mackey and Panuzzo in Panuzzo's car goofing off.
http://temp.corvetteforum.net/c4/mrm...keypanuzzo.wmv

Mackey VS Panuzzo in the finals at one of the GM Hi Tech days
http://temp.corvetteforum.net/c4/mrm...yvspanuzzo.wmv

dmarks1961

I run a Top Dragster (Not Top Fuel) in IHRA. Car has been 6.47 in qtr and 4.26 in eighth. Quarter mile mph is 207. Runs 632 Big Chief with a glide and 2 stages nitrous. Best I've seen is TOp fuel run of 4.48--Bernstein at Chicago 2003. Watched Force burn up a couple of cars.

REDGAR

I've not race long so my Vette has been my driven quickest 11.25 and fastest 122.

I have been to two NHRA national events at E-town Top fuel has been the quickest and fastest I have seen though can't remember specific numbers

Most memorable thing at the track is hard for me to say cause I rarely remember anything specifically. All the thoughts mix up in my head, but this is another topic. Maybe it was when I was at Super Chevy sitting about 100 feet past the finish line and I see a very quick car start to spin and head toward me. Had he spun through the opening in the wall for the emergency vehicle, only a chain link fence stood between us. He clipped the wall of the opening and then I could breathe again. Driver was OK too.

Fuzzy Dice

This story reminds me of a wreck I saw last year...it was SLP day in Orlando...a guy from Miami in a yellow Z06 stages in front of me for the first round of elims...I saw this guy in his last time shot and he almost crossed the center line...he got out of it just in time...now I'm right behind him in the same lane when he takes off so I've got a great view...he's all over his lane but never lifts...

As he crosses the finish line he goes sharp left, across the left lane and into the wall...the car bounces up in the air like 10 feet, crashes down and heads to the right wall...it hits this wall and disintigrates...he gets out of the car waving his arms that he is OK...I find out later he was also hollering.. Hola! Hola!...

Now the p.s. to the story....turns out he owns a speed shop in Miami, he was drinking beer all day, went through the traps at 140+ mph sideways, the Z06 had heads and cam and a 300 shot, he was running the ET Streets with 5 lbs. in them and....are you ready for this....are you sitting down ?.....

it was a customers car.... :shocked:

Glensgages

My old Z28 went 12.774 @ 109 best;
I very briefly owned a rear-engine dragster that caused 'problems' in my marriage.
In an effort to get it 'on-track' before I sold it, I dropped a 10:1 hydraulic-cammed 406, originally intended for the Z28, between the frame-rails.
With a mis-matched converter, rear-gear, etc, it ran 9.37/139 on it's only 1/4-mile run (5.90s/112 consistently in the 1/8-mile).

I think the quickest ETs I saw were at Maple Grove in '02, either Dixon or Schumacher, low 4-fifties @ 325+. Only saw an afternoon session at National Trail last year (poor track, muggy conditions), and missed the '03 Keystones entirely.

In mid-summer of '90, Austin Coil had a tune-up in Force's then Oldsmobile that was quick & fast, but prone to grenade when Force lifted. He'd blown-up/exploded bodies at Sonoma, Seattle, Brainerd, & Indy in the weeks before the Keystones.
On Saturday's noon-time run, Force surprisingly made a good run without incident, but in the final session that day, in the shut-down.....
ka-f*%@ing-BOOM!!!!!
Force got the cars stopped, and the Safety Safari extinguished the fire, and the top-end interview began as Force took-off his helmet & head-sock, with the interviewer saying, "After this morning's run, it looked like you guys had it figured-out...",
at which time Force screamed " We ain't figgered-out SHIAT!!!!! ", not knowing he was on the big-screen Jumbo-Tron TV.....

Also remember seeing the 1st side-by-side 4-second runs (Amato over Muldowney on a hole-shot, Maple Grove '89), the 1st 4-second run outside the State of Texas (Gary Ormsby at Columbus), Muldowney go past me, while sitting at half-track, at a 45*-angle during a power-wheelstand, and Ron Dudley burn the "St. Moritz" Funny Car to the ground at Columbus '88.

Dudley's car had no holes in the side-windows, and he almost died of his injuries, because they couldn't 'spray' him thru the windows after the body wouldn't open.
A Safety Safari member, who volunteered at my home-track, put the hose under his arm-pit, lifted the body high-enough to crawl under, then 'sat' IN the car with Dudley, taking-turns 'spraying' each other until the body could be ripped apart.
Dudley survived, but never drove again, and my buddy/track-worker wore long-sleeves for several years after the incident.
The next week, NHRA mandated 5"-diameter (minimum) holes in all F/C side-windows, and they were named "Dudley-holes".

Eric Fischer

#1: What is the quickest & fastest ET you've ever run, regardless of car?

My Mustang for quickest 11.22 @ 119.5. My brother's Mustang for fastest 11.33 @ 122

#2: What is the quickest & fastest ET you've ever witnessed in-person, regardless of car, class, etc.?

Top fuel dragster.

#3: What is the most memorable thing (accident, explosion, "whatever") you've ever seen at a drag-strip?

A devasting fire -- A guy named Tommy running a Real Street Mustang (8 second car), did a severe wheel stand at e-town. The car stood up on the rear bumper, spun around 180 degrees and then flipped over so that the car was now upside down. The car skidded to halt after about 50 ft. It looked like everything was going to be OK until the car burst into flames and I mean VIOLENT flames. It seemed like it took forever for the track personel to respond and meanwhile the fire is burner stronger and stronger with no signs of movement from Tommy. It was horrifying to realize that this guy might be burning to death and there was nothing you could do to help. The crowd was in shock. Then all of a sudden we see what appears to be a driver on the other side of the retaining wheel. Miraculously, Tommy had busted out the window on the far side and climbed through the opening to safety. Thank god, because if he didn't get on his own we would have lost him.

Turns out that the car didn't have a fuel cell and somehow the fuel just kept pouring out of the stock tank and feeding the fire. The car burned for a good 15 minutes. Eventually the track personnel used a front loader to pick the car up and dump it on the grass on the other side of the retaining wall where it continued to burn.

It was a horrific experience one I hope to never see again...

Steve85

Only been to two tracks in my short time

Best ET is 11.96, fastest is 118MPH

No idea what the fastest I've seen, a few 9's at Mason Dixon during my first trip to a track.

Memorable- The little kids running the Jr Dragsters- those things are way . It's like watching 1/8 scale Top Fuelers

bobby-rollbar

#1:[/B] What is the quickest & fastest ET you've ever run, regardless of car?
the quickest i went with a street car was 9.17-148 with my olds,headed 598 big block in a 84 gran prix

#2:[/B] What is the quickest & fastest ET you've ever witnessed in-person, regardless of car, class, etc.?
dont really like to watch anything thats not a street type car so i dont know that one i guess the quick 8 cars running in the 7,s
#3:[/B] What is the most memorable thing (accident, explosion, "whatever") you've ever seen at a drag-strip?
dont know if theres enough space for this but back in the 70,s i use to run a big blk 67 chevelle at 3800lbs [an 11.50 car],and one day we were running a 2500lb stripped big blk 67 fairlane [at west hampton raceway]it was always so close at the end but he would always just get by[we ran 22 times ,and the chevelle had drum brakes ],so the guy who owned the chevelle said"redlight on him no bodies looking at the line there all standing at the end" so i did and he couldnt catch me ,so i guess we decided to run a 1/2 mile instead of 1/4 so when he finally lifted ,i couldnt stop in time went through the first pile of sand they had there and hit the second one,that stopped the car was able to backup and slide down hill and drive back,[car was stuck at @2500rpms from all the rocks that went in]when i got back to pits we took carb off took out the rocks,straightened the front bumper,and was able to run again, needless to say engine had to come out the next week for a cleanup bob

Arisa

Bawahahahahahahahahahaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa aaaaaa.................That sounds like something I would do !

onefast99

At frank hawleys d/r school 9.59@146mph
NHRA's at etown Force in the high 4's
Being a witness to JP's icing down the competition, that had to be a once in a lifetime event...

mackeyred96

My # 1 & 2 are just 2 many to list in my time at the track BUT
my # 3 most memorable thing At the track maybe wasn't or didn't happen at the track but is race related.
'71 Spring Nationals in Dallas I saw Bill "THE KID" Stepp drive his rental car into the pool at the Holiday Inn, or the Summer National at the Berserko Lounge with The Grump's crew (I can even get into that story), Me flipping my trailer, or getting lost in Baltimore, having to stay in a hotel room in Indy out in back of a all night tee shirt stand(the music never ended and the bed was shot), braking my rear on the line at the points meet in Canada and they didn't have a wrecker to move it, so the car sat for 3 hours by the burnout box till I could get it with my trailer. I could just keep going but I don't want to put anyone to sleep

Glensgages

Geez, I started this almost 3 months ago, and never contributed.....

Never was really concerned with going fast; I concentrated on winning if I could.
My Z28 went a best-of 12.78 @ 108;
in the brief time I owned an S&W rear-engine dragster, the same pump-gas, hydraulic-cammed 355" SBC went 9.43 @ 139 (?).

I think I saw Tony Schumacher run 4-forties at the Grove; know I saw Brandon Bernstein go 4.50 @ close to 330.

Memorable things?


Gary Ormsby run the 1st 'four' outside the State of Texas.....

Leave Pittsburgh @ 8PM, drive straight to Atlanta Dragway, arriving at 7AM, fall asleep in the bleachers, sun-burn lips, nose, and ears.....

While working as Staging Lane Director at Fairmont Dragway, watching two Pro Mods make full-power burn-outs into the fog, then decide maybe they shouldn't make that run after-all.....

Watching Ron Dudley burn the "St. Moritz" funny car to the ground at National Trail Raceway, having the chopper land at half-track.....

'Working' with a young couple, in their first season of racing, on RTs, strategies, etc., and having them BOTH win (he in Street, her in TROPHY) the same day.....

Seeing Amato beat Muldowney, on a holeshot, in the first NHRA side-by-side 4-second runs in eliminations.....

Having my dad, whom I worked for, 'ream' me out on Memorial Day Monday, for taking-off Saturday & Sunday to go racing, then showing him a 'Winners Check' from Saturday night at Fairmont Dragway, and a pile of cash (Quaker City Dragway paid in greeen-backs) for winning THERE on Sunday.....

Kenny Bernstein, running me over, in the pits at Columbus, while on his bicycle, taking hot-dogs & Pepsi to his crew between rounds.....

Some dude in an early Camaro rip the complete housing out of his car on launch, get out of the car and violently 'throw' his helmet into the car, as the rear-end, complete with slicks, lazily rolls past his car, going down-track.....

Hundreds of gorgeous women, at Sanair International Raceway near Montreal, during the '89 Le Grand Nationale, walking around the track, in next-to-nothing bikinis and 5" heels.....

Representing a track 100 miles from home, and beating the Track Champion of the track just 10 miles from my home, during the 5th Round of the Division One E.T. Finals.....

"Losing-track" of a goof-ball, burn-out body-man who'd gone to his 1st race, ever, at Columbus for the Springnationals with my 'group', only to 'find' him repairing the body of Cruz Pedregon's funny car.....

Racing Friday night in Pennsylvania, Saturday night in West Virginia, and Sunday afternoon in Ohio, and not winning a single round!!!!!

mackeyred96

I've got some great 8mm movies of just that (gorgeous women)from my trips to Sanair, I'll get them converted someday.

Glensgages

... and I'll provide you with an address to send those movies to.....