Event Coverage Through the eyes of a Trunk Monkey: Drag week in a hot rod

I was a spectator at Norwalk. Day 2 seems like a LONG time ago.

 

This picture showed up on the internet today. I like it!

 

I downloaded another good picture of me and Jeff working on the hot rod at Drag Week:

 

Some photos from the Australian magazine:

Day 2



Day 3



Day 4



Day 5
​

 

Hemi32, Nice! I haven't seen those pictures, thanks for posting them. I was pretty tuckered by the last day, trying to rest in the staging lanes.

 

The distorted view of the event through the eyes of the Trunk Monkey continues:

Wednesday's 5:00am alarm went off much too early, and the weeks lack of sleep was taking its toll. I knew if I was struggling with it, Mr. 8 hours wasn't going to be doing well either. I figured I'd get up and get dressed right away, and make my way to the Hotel lobby area, and see if any breakfast was out. Told Joel to get up, and get moving. "No problem, we're on Drag Week, I can do this!" So I left, and walked down to the area where breakfast is normally served, but was told that wasn't served until 6:00am. We won't be waiting for that... I figured sleeping beauty was going to need his morning coffee, so I grabbed a cup, filled it, and made my way back to our room. When I entered the room, Joel was in the bathroom, and apparently he was taking Tuba lessons. Didn't know where he had that stashed in the car, but I didn't want to listen to more of that. I grabbed my bag, and told Joel coffee was on the table, and I'd meet him outside. I also grabbed a hotel towel, so I could wipe the Coupe down, from the rain the night before. I'd like to apologize to the cleaning crew at our Hotel. That towel wasn't coming clean, no matter how much bleach was used. I'm sure the damage Joel created in the bathroom was even worse...
With the Coupe wiped down, unlocked, and the tarp removed from the engine, we were ready to go. Out walks Joel with a smile on his face, 3 bags in one hand, and his must have pillow and coffee in the other. No Tuba? I told Joel I had to bring the towel back into the room, but I was afraid. It would have to be a quick open the door, and toss in the towel while holding my breath. luckily, I made it out unscathed.
It was a pretty easy drive to the track gate. Once we got into the gate, the train crossing guards started flashing. Could we have possibly made it? Maybe. Was Joel taking a chance that the Holley 94's wouldn't bog at the worst time? No. The train was moving slowly by, but once it passed, it wasn't a big deal, as the gates getting into the pits were not open yet, and a line had formed inside. Less than a minute passed, and the gates opened up. The train didn't hold us back at all. As we went through the gate, Joel was handed a tech card. "Fill this out, and bring it to the Tech shack." Great, just what we need, Joel wandering around trying to find the Tech shack... He can barely find the Tower at the tracks we go to some times. Joel wheeled the Coupe into the pit area, and tried to find a spot that wasn't flooded with water. We both got out, and did our thing. Empty the trunk, Air cleaners off, mufflers off, header extensions on, passenger seat out, spring rubbers out, and fuel check balls switched over. As I was dropping air pressure in the tires, Joel fired the HEMI up, and started revving it up? The header tube was aimed right at my head. i quickly backed off, and looked at Joel, and said "What are you doing?!" "Draining the carbs." "Could you warn me first?" I'm not deaf like him, and I'd like to keep it that way. "Sorry." Quickly changing the subject, he asks "Hey where did they say tech was?" "In the staging lanes." Joel grabbed his snowmobile suit, shoes, and helmet, and made his way to the staging lanes. I walked as usual. On my path to the lanes, Jim Forbes was switching tires on his Nova, and we said hello, a few words, and I kept moving. It was fun talking with Jeff Oppenheim, and Dan Nissen in the Lanes for a bit, when my phone rang. I looked to see who is calling "HEMI Joel". "What do you need now?" "Can you walk back to the pit, and get my GoPro?" "I told you, you were in charge of your GoPro's." "Can you just go get them?" i hung up the phone. More walking... It takes a little effort to find your pit spot after leaving it, as all you can see is stuff piled up all around, and small trailers filtered in every other pit spot. You have to find the pile of parts, tools, and other crap that looks familiar. The easiest thing to look for for me, is the exhaust from the Coupe. It has a distinct look. I find the GoPro, do a 180, and walk back to the staging lanes. "Here you go Joel." handing him the case. "You'll have to set it up, I don't know anything about them." I think I mumbled something about Joel's wife being a Saint... "Hmmm?" he says. "Nothing. I'll take care of it." About this time the track went hot, and cars started going down. I went as fast as I could to get the GoPro set up, and in the car. The first 2 lanes had moved fairly quickly, and the third lane the Coupe was in, started to move now. I wasn't about to leave with GoPro case, and bring it back to our pit spot, so I gave Joel a fist bump, told him good luck, and made my way to the starting line. The Coupe made the corner from the staging lanes, under the famous bridge at INDY. At the bridge, you are about 12-15 pairs of cars back from the starting line. Maybe 3 or 4 more pairs of cars go down track, when all of a sudden it goes silent. i look down track, and a newer Mustang is pulled over to the wall, and rumored to have broken a rear end. This might take a while. Joel stays in the Coupe, and waits it out. i walk over to the passenger door, and open it so he can get some air moving through the car. While we were talking, and joking around, someone from Hot Rod magazine walks up, and asks me if he can take Joel's picture? "He's not Blake Shelton's Stunt Double after a bad accident, you know." The guy starts laughing. Not wanting to pass up an opportunity to get his picture taken, Joel smiles for the camera. The photographer walks away, and I start giving Joel grief about it. "I wish I had my comb right now. The Paparazzi always comes around when I look my worst." I reassured him he always looked that bad. The tracks flat bed was loading up the Mustang, and another familiar face arrived. This time it was Calvin Seith. he was also taking pictures. We met Calvin at Drag Week 2018. Great guy, and fun to talk with, and he absolutely loves the HEMI Coupe. With the Mustang removed from the track, cars were able to makes runs again. As Joel made his way to the burnout box, I found my place at the gaurdrail. I think I turned the GoPro on? Well to late now... Joel staged the Coupe, and brought the HEMI up on the 2 step, and when he dumped the clutch, the car bogged, but was moving forward. The scoreboards lit up with a 10.61 @ 129 mph. Slowed down again. Would that be good enough, or would we have to struggle to get another pass in? i started walking back to my pit area. As i walked by the concession area, i glanced to see what they had for breakfast. Not much. Everyone gets giddy about being at INDY, because of it's history, but not me. Wish we were at Norwalk yet. Love that place. I got back to the pit just before Joel, as the pits and return road combo at Indy are on opposite sides. It's a goofy mess if you ask me. Joel parks the Coupe next to our stuff, and climbs out. "Are you going to take that, or make another pass?" "We are in survival mode. No sense in trying to catch Mark, and we are safe over 3rd place by over a second. I'm going to turn in the slip, and hit the road." Just what I wanted to hear. Time to get to work, and do my thing.
By the time I almost had everything switched back to street trim, Joel had made his way back. I was proud of him that he didn't get lost this time. He got right to doing his job, and we were ready to hit the road. "Well, Saddle up Partner!" Joel fired up the HEMI, and we were one our way out the gates of Indy. With the transmission leak fixed on Day one, and the water leak fixed on Day 2, which turned out to be a minor fix, we were feeling hopeful, and excited to hit the road early once again. "There is a Casey's gas station just down the road from here" Joel said. We took a right out of the gate, and as I looked over the route sheet, I hear the normal CLANK of the trans going into 2nd gear, CLANK of 3rd gear, and the DEAD silence. The HEMI quit running...

 

It wasn't a tuba. It was a trombone.

 

We appreciate you sharing this with us, even when it isn't the most flattering for you!

 

Remember, it is thru the eyes of the Trunk Monkey. I understand that his reality and the reality that the rest of us in the sane world see are two different things. Either that or he is doing a good job of roasting me!

 

Too much information

 

Nothing like playing a duet with yourself what ever it was
and here we are hanging....

 

"Remember, it is thru the eyes of the Trunk Monkey. I understand that his reality and the reality that the rest of us in the sane world see are two different things. Either that or he is doing a good job of roasting me!" The Roasting.

 

The Trunk Monkey has been busy, but he managed to find time for another chapter:



"What just happened Joel?" "I'm not sure..." Thinking in the back of my mind, if it's electrical, such as a MSD, we might be screwed. "I think we are out of gas." Joel says. i quickly go through my routine of what I have to do with going from Race to Street trim, and I realize I didn't switch the ball valves on the fuel tanks. "Stay in the car Joel, I'll take care of it.!" i unbuckle my belts, and hop out of the Coupe. Remove the trunk lid, and reach into the packed trunk to get to the ball valves. I knew if Joel got out, he would start removing all the trunks bounty, and it would end up taking way longer than it should. Race valve closed, feel around for the street valve, and got it. Reinstall the trunk lid, and hop back it. "Try it now." Joel ran the fuel pump for a bit, then fired up the old HEMI. Whew... back on the road we went. It wasn't too far to the Casey's gas station, and Joel wheeled the Coupe next to a gas pump. Joel was in a hurry to use the bathroom, and get some coffee, so I took care of filling the tank, and adding the octane booster. As I'm finishing up, Tony pulls up in his 38 Dodge truck, and Mark Fisher pulls up in his class leading Ford. 3 Hot Rod class vehicles in one spot. Joel walks out of the gas station, and tells me, "The lady behind the counter really loves her job." I asked him what that meant, and he just said "You'll see." Umm OK. I grab a bottle of Mountain Dew, a Doughnut, and make my way to the counter. It's easy to see what Joel was talking about. This lady had the biggest perma scowl on her face, that she made Anne Ramsey look like a Super model. I pay for my stuff, and hurry out. I didn't want my hand stuffed into a blender...

When I got back to the gas pumps, Joel, Tony, and Mark were chatting, and discussing just why someone would try and run 8 carbs on a motor, and think it was a good idea? We took the opportunity to get a group shot of the 3. Withe picture time over, we squeeze back in the Coupe, and get ready to hit the road. Joel hands me his coffee. "What do you want me to do with this?" "Hold it. I can't drive, and hold my coffee." It's a 20oz cup of coffee, and Joel has it filled right to the brim. "If this spills on me, this cup is going out the window..." I'm not joking.

The route to our first check point has some decent 4 lane roads to take, and Joel and Tony take advantage of it, and put the hammer down. Mark, although he has a Gear Vendors in his truck, he hasn't been using it, and has traveled the routes around 55-60mph. We didn't see him much after the gas stop. Our firscheck point was a rest area. Not the coolest check point, but very convenient. This time Tricky Steve, and his wife Cheryl pulled up next to Tony, and Joel. Another Kodak moment. We chatted for a while, and answered questions from other travelers at the rest area, but quickly realized we needed to hit the road, and let other Drag Week cars use the space for their photos. i told Joel we will probably need gas again before the next check point. Tony said he was good to go, and would probably split off, as he informed up that his wife was waiting for him at the hotel near Byron. "Conjugal visit eh Tony?" he just laughed...

We got back on the road, and it was pretty cool having 3 Hot Rod Class cars running down the road, and we were eating up the miles quickly. 75mph was the norm. Not the most exciting thing to write about, but not having problems was a highlight after the last couple days. As we approached the time we would need more gas, I looked at my phone, and found a place just up the road. We cut off the highway, and Tricky Steve, and Cheryl followed us, and Tony split away for his bride. We pulled into the gas station. Tricky Steve on the right, and the Coupe on the left of the pump. "Hey Joel, there is an Arby's next door. We should eat. How about you get gas, and I'll run over and get us something?" "Sounds good, can you get me a Deluxe... " I didn't hear what he said, as I was already walking away. He's going to get what I get him... I run up the hill, cross over the parking lot, and reach the front door, and read the sign "Indoor dining area closed" F%#@, at least put a Moose out front to tell me it's closed... make my way back to the Coupe. "Closed Joel. Drive through only." "Well we will just go through the drive trough then." This should be interesting since Joel can't hear people talking clearly, let alone through a crappy speaker.

 

Biggest Yellow top batteries I've ever seen.

 

You guessed it before you deleted it. We have a winner, ding ding ding!

 

Dang it took a bit but I read though all four pages and may have to let my wife read it so she can see what I was sitting here laughing about.

 

Heres a few more pics

 

Each day of drag week when you decide you are done making passes you find the room in the tower or elsewhere that is designated to turning your time slip. The drag week ladies are up there busy processing everything, and when you turn in your slip you also have to show them pictures of your car at the required checkpoints from the previous drive. Then they give you the route sheet for the next drive to tomorrow’s track, which you are required to follow.

 

Rocket brand racing fuels has been a faithful sponsor of drag week since the very first year. They had their tent set up (seen behind the coupe) and were selling racing fuel. Each day after racing, I would check the fuel level in the race tank with a dipstick and determine how much it needed to top it off. Then I would walk over to Rocket, borrow their jug, and buy just enough fuel to top off the tank. That way it was ready to race the next morning.

 

"Indoor dining area closed" F%#@, at least put a Moose out front to tell me it's closed..." Excellent! this made me laugh out loud!

 

Well known lady. I posted her story in the Hot Rod truck thread she and her pickup are the real deal.

 

Hey what size tyres here in the day 5 pic..? Im sorry if you already said, i missed it,

 

hi, those are the same I have always run, M/T ET Street, LT 30 x 13.5-15, Bias-Ply

 

Great story! I’m glad you are copying it over from the Mopar site. Thanks!

 

Good timing, the trunk monkey has another installment of the story ready :


With food in our stomach's it was time to hit the road, and get to the last stop, and then head to the hotel. The route took us on some country roads. I'm sure when the route is planned, the roads are decent, and zero road construction at the time, BUT this is Drag Week, and there is ALWAYS road construction at some point during the week. Not too long after stopping for gas, we hit a spot that was being resealed, and the construction crews were applying new sealer down, and then I'm sure fresh rocks. We got the sealer. Miles of it... There are a few on Drag Week that have cars extremely detailed, and we just knew it was going to cause more than one to cringe when they had to drive though it. You can NOT deviate from the route. Stuff like this is what really makes your car a "STREET" car. Using it along everyone else, in their boring mundane daily driver. Luckily for Joel the Coupe hasn't been washed since 1952. This wasn't going to affect anything. At last, we saw the end of the construction, and Joel put the hammer down.
When we pulled into the last check point, we knew it was going to be the coolest one of the event. An old gas station along Route 66. It hadn't been used in many years, but the town preserved it, and it's a very cool local attraction. It made for some very cool pictures. We wanted to just hit the road right away, but the locals asked if we wanted to see more, and Joel couldn't pass that up. Inside was like walking back into time. Tons of stuff from when the place was still running in the 50-60's. A wall cabinet caught Joel's eyes, and it has silhouettes of 20-30's era cars on it. One a Duesenburg. We snapped a few pictures of it, and said goodbye to the locals. Once we crawled back into the Coupe, Joel tells me "Great, now I'm going to spend the rest of my life looking for one of the cabinets." I hope he fulfills that dream.
We made our way to the Casey's gas station just down the road from the checkpoint. They only had 87 Octane... "We have enough to keep going." Joel said, so we headed on down the road. We had about 85 miles until the hotel, and the thought of getting a decent meal, and early to bed sounded like a good plan. We found a gas station about 20 miles down the road, and pulled in. Wondering just how much gas we had, and trying to figure out how much we would need to the hotel, and going to the track the next day, I decided to use the gas gauge aka a wood stick. After removing the stick from the tank, I was shocked. The gas hardly even registered on the stick. We had pulled into the station almost on fumes! We thought it was best to only put in half a tank. Joel went in to use the restroom, but I was good. Sure was nice having this day go smooth, after the first 2 days... "Saddle up partner!" Joel says as he walks out of the store.
Not long after hitting the route, I get a message from Clark Lamb. he and his Dad were broke down, and could we give them some help? Sure can. We knew they couldn't be too far from us, as we saw them last at the old gas station. Clark sent me the location, and it was perfect, as they were at the next exit, just one mile away. When we pulled in, Clark had already found his problem. A broken rocker arm. Bill, his Dad was already on the phone with Harlan Sharpe, and having some over nighted to their hotel. Joel used this time to take a nap in the parking lot. "What now Clark?" he was able to remove the push rod, and then used some zip ties to block off the oil hole in the rocker shafts.he quickly installed the valve covers, and then I asked if he could cut the fuel to that cylinder? "Yup!" and he reaches into the engine bay, removes the connector to the injector, and says "Reason # 4583 fuel injection is better than a carb." LOL. Joel and his 8 carbed HEMI never got that memo... Clark fired up the worlds heaviest small block, and it didn't sound too bad. "We'll make it to the hotel." We wished them good luck, and made our way back to the route.
Once we got near our hotel, Joel wanted to hit the parts store, and get the stuff we needed for a hotel parking lot oil change. I didn't like the last drain pan, and since we were not keeping the pan, I figured it would be best to get the cheapest option available. a plastic oil jug, and a funnel. The Coupe sits high enough? Lets try it. After getting what we needed, we drove the last few miles to our hotel. There were already a bunch of Drag Week cars in the parking lot, including Clark's Barracuda. At least they made it here. Tony and his wife were hanging out as well. Joel parked in the far corner of the lot. Far enough away that hopefully no one would notice us changing oil. he got out, and said he was going in to get us checked in. Right... he just wanted to have me do most of the work. When I got out, I tossed the oil jug under the HEMI, and quickly realized it sat lower than I thought. We didn't have a jack other than the bottle jack, and that wasn't going to lift the car enough to get the jug under the HEMI? Joel had bought a new coil at the parts store, and some black paint, so I figured I'd get that painted right away, so when Joel comes back out, he can install it. Where is Joel???? at least 20 minutes have gone by. Is he busy explaining who he is, or should i say isn't? Tony asks if i want a beer? Duh. Yeah I'll take a beer. As the paint on the coil is drying, i figure I can at least swap out the oil filter. Sure enough, the gasket once again sticks to the oil cooler. As I'm installing the new filter, Joel finally walks out, and asks me if I need to use the room anytime soon? "No, why/" Then it hits me, where he's been the last 20 minutes. More Tuba lessons... "Ah jeeze, did you at least turn on the fan?" I ask. "There wasn't one." joel says with a smirk. Great, I'm going to die when I enter the room.
"Joel, we have a problem. The oil jug is too tall for under the car." "Ask around, and see if anyone else has a pan." We asked a few people, and no one had one, so I thought well I might know where I can find a oil pan, but now it could cost me my life. i run up to the room, and hold my breath before going in, grab the waste basket, and rush out the door. As soon as the clicks behind me, I let out a big exhale. Whew made it... i was able to use the bottle jack, and lift the Coupe just enough to wedge the waste basket under the HEMI. I removed the plug, and held it close to the oil pan. For those wonder how much oil can a Hotel wastebasket hold? No where near as much as the oil pan on the HEMI. About 6 quarts, and a big mess. i took the waste basket, and dumped it into the oil jug. It took a couple times to completely empty the oil pan. I actually didn't make to much of a mess. Less than the one in INDY, and nothing will top the spill in 2015.
With the oil changed, it took me a couple cans of brake clean, to get that waste basket clean enough to put back in the room. maybe the oil smell would cover the damage Joel did earlier? By this time, we were getting hungry, and Tony and his wife asked if we wanted to go with them? Sure! We hopped into heathers Jeep, and located a place we could actually sit down and eat. Most places in Illinois were carry out only. it was a decent meal, but better company. Tony, and Heather are very nice people. We had a lot of laughs that night. Some at Joel's expense.

 

Patiently waiting on the next episodes

 

Me too!

 

Any updates coming? I understand your trunk monkey has other responsibilities but his fans are waiting for the next chapter

 

Hey, thanks for sharing its great to follow along!

 

Great story, and I was there to see it.

Tony