Here we go again. August 4th was the date of the Willowbank Queensland Nostalgias. We, the crew chief and I, headed out from home for the 10 hour drive to Willowbank but this time I relented and split it into a 2 day trip. Whilst the idea had merit we probably won't do it again as it felt like it took forever to get there. After a good night's sleep at the track it was time to go racing. Unfortunately the Nostalgia racing scene is struggling over here so numbers in most brackets were down a lot. We had 4 in the HAMBster bracket . Me, John, Jeff and Gerard from Sydney. He and his family had to tack about 3 hours onto the trip so it was very good of them to make the 15 hour run. Steve's Chev powered HAMBster wasn't ready due to the wrong bearings being sent over from the U.S. and Benny's slant 6 powered beast not available to race. We started out with qualifying runs. John and I were up first with me running a sedate 15.216 to John's 15.270. Jeff and Gerard ran in the 13's. My car was doing the eighth mile at about normal rate but wouldn't pull after that. I changed the plugs and the next run was a 14.776 which was better but still not great and the next 14.760. It was after this run I noticed the fuel pressure was low. Due to running mostly eighth mile events, I hadn't had to worry about this. It was basically running out of fuel in the second half of the run.I usually run at Willowbank in the 13's but I decided not to fiddle with it as it was running shithouse but was running consistently shithouse. Weird logic I know but it makes dialing in easier. The first shootout run was against Gerard with Gerard taking the win. His 13.103 on a 12.88 against my 14.880 on a 14.72. Jeff took the win over John with John breaking out. The second run was against John with me taking the win. I ran 14.761 on a 14.72 and John took off in the wrong gear and ran a 15.822 on his 14.60 dial. Jeff beat Gerard with Gerard breaking out. Third run had me up against Jeff. Jeff redlit so I pedalled a 15.020. The final was between me and Gerard. I stayed with my 14.72 dial and Gerard dialed 12.85. The lights came down and I was away. Well, that was the idea. The track had gone cold due to a previous racer taking out the timing blocks. I hadn't suffered traction problems all day until now. Wheelspun for the first few feet and with Gerard's good reaction, he was all over me at the end. I ran 14.866 and Gerard ran 12.963 for a deserved win. That gave me the runner up trophy but all up it was a good day's racing but came at a cost for Gerard with him blowing a head gasket. My problem was I hadn't replaced the restrictor in the return fuel line that gives me fuel pressure to the float bowls. A quick fix at home. Braze up the steel fitting in the fuel line and a 1/16th hole drilled through. Once again no videos yet but the computer guru is calling in tomorrow to fix the problem so you will have to be patient.
Great report as usual. Man that crowd is disappointing. They get more people there at a Wednesday night test and tune. I feel a bit guilty for not getting out there. Why do you think the nostalgia events are dying in the arse? Are the sydney ones any better?
When I started racing at Willowbank Nostalgias the event was promoted by Crusin' magazine and it was a 2 day event. This became a weekend party for a lot of racers. Catching up, spreading bullshit and as was my case, overnight time to do repairs. Then it became a one day event so for those that travel a bit of distance to get there it didn't have the same attraction. Added to that, Crusin' mag stepped away, (or were pushed) and so the Australia wide promotion wasn't there. I've mentioned to mates that I raced at the Nostalgias and they tell me they didn't even know that it was on. I've also noticed that the numbers in the Hotrod bracket have diminished, possibly due to owners not wanting to break things. As I tell anyone that hums and hars about taking their street car to the drags, "just drive it like a spirited run from the traffic lights". Regarding the low numbers in the 'stands. The younger ones aren't interested in a growley V8 or high spinning 6 Banger, they want the burps and farts of Rotaries and Turbo stuff. Sydney is just as bad and looks like disappearing up it's own backside as well. During the trophy speeches everyone was pleading with racers to come and race or the event will not happen. Maybe someone will pitch in and tell us what it's like elsewhere but I think I already know the answer.
Was good to catch up again mate. So good to see "Gertie" going so well. I wish I could say the same for my old girl. But a carb blow out and good as new again. See you in Sydney at the Fuel Altered meet.
The Jalopy Journal
