Rand Man
07-07-2007, 02:03 PM
We had a ball at the SDRA race at Tulsa last night, Friday 7-06-07. Seven rails showed up to race. That's a record for this style of racing. I proud to say that Speed Merchants went home with the win. Every one of the rails there last night was a fine piece of machinery; well built and well driven. After the smoke had cleared, a flathead, three old Holly 94's, a manual stick, a clutch, and one hell of a driver got the win light in the final.
We weren't feeling that great in qualifying. Brad Green (Recycler) had his turn in the seat last night. It takes a couple runs to get in the grove. First run, not enough rpm, and she bogged. Second run, she started out of the hole OK, then lit and shook the tires. Fourteens. That's the same thing that happened to me last week. I have to admit. It's kind of funny to see it bounce side-to-side.
After that, we took some good advice from the Ramrods and Crooked Six teams and adjusted the tire pressure. What a difference. We lined up against Crooked Six in the first round of eliminations. It was a good race. Shawn has been getting faster on every run. Brad had a great launch and came out ahead witha hole-shot. Shawn caught up but when Brad recovered from a missed shift, The old Flatty pulled ahead for the win. I think it we ran a 13.34 to Shawn's 13.59.
Second round. Speed Merchants lined up against the Red Baron. That big Jimmy six sounds badass mean. They were neck and neck all the way. It must have been a hole shot and the awesome reaction time of .037 that got the win light for the Ozark Mountain Special. Man I must have jumped a foot off the ground (a lot for me) when I saw the light in Brad's lane flash 12.99 at 106.41. I think that was high speed for the night. It would of been the quickest reaction time but Joe Hamby had just put down an unheard-of .0007 perfect light. Congrats Joe.
We met the Hornets in the final. Bob was accused of napping at the tree, but I won't say a bad word about him. Brad really stepped up his driving game. Another perfect launch. Great reaction time. Bangin the shifts on time. We went 12.97, our quickest time so far. Speed was off at 105. We both agree it's laying down on the top end. 106 mph is fast for these things but it just gives you this sense that it wants to do more. Bob was actually quicker. I think in the 12.70's. Brad broke the 1320 beam first. That's drag racing.
The SDRA is here to stay. We're glad to be part of it. I think everybody had a lot of fun. For us, it was the best race since the HAMB Drags almost three years ago. I hope all the teams post their results. I've got to go re-size some photos and learn how to wipe this grin off my face.
We weren't feeling that great in qualifying. Brad Green (Recycler) had his turn in the seat last night. It takes a couple runs to get in the grove. First run, not enough rpm, and she bogged. Second run, she started out of the hole OK, then lit and shook the tires. Fourteens. That's the same thing that happened to me last week. I have to admit. It's kind of funny to see it bounce side-to-side.
After that, we took some good advice from the Ramrods and Crooked Six teams and adjusted the tire pressure. What a difference. We lined up against Crooked Six in the first round of eliminations. It was a good race. Shawn has been getting faster on every run. Brad had a great launch and came out ahead witha hole-shot. Shawn caught up but when Brad recovered from a missed shift, The old Flatty pulled ahead for the win. I think it we ran a 13.34 to Shawn's 13.59.
Second round. Speed Merchants lined up against the Red Baron. That big Jimmy six sounds badass mean. They were neck and neck all the way. It must have been a hole shot and the awesome reaction time of .037 that got the win light for the Ozark Mountain Special. Man I must have jumped a foot off the ground (a lot for me) when I saw the light in Brad's lane flash 12.99 at 106.41. I think that was high speed for the night. It would of been the quickest reaction time but Joe Hamby had just put down an unheard-of .0007 perfect light. Congrats Joe.
We met the Hornets in the final. Bob was accused of napping at the tree, but I won't say a bad word about him. Brad really stepped up his driving game. Another perfect launch. Great reaction time. Bangin the shifts on time. We went 12.97, our quickest time so far. Speed was off at 105. We both agree it's laying down on the top end. 106 mph is fast for these things but it just gives you this sense that it wants to do more. Bob was actually quicker. I think in the 12.70's. Brad broke the 1320 beam first. That's drag racing.
The SDRA is here to stay. We're glad to be part of it. I think everybody had a lot of fun. For us, it was the best race since the HAMB Drags almost three years ago. I hope all the teams post their results. I've got to go re-size some photos and learn how to wipe this grin off my face.