I know this is probably gonna get deleted. I'm not really trying to push the VW thing down anybody's throat, it's more of just a Bonneville story. I have met alot of HAMBers at shows and online that might be interested in how the project came along. Have pity on my VW lovin ass, and keep this thread alive. The guys and gals here appreciate the story way more than the VW crowd ever could. Here's my story. Made it to Bonnville...barely After busting my ass til 4 or 5 am for about two weeks straight, it was getting down to the wire. I was begging for parts from sponsors and friends. I try to focus on the necessary stuff first. It doesn't matter if it looks good if it doesn't run right? So I focus on tires, seat, wiring, motor, fire extinguisher, etc. If I had time I would work on body work and cosmetics, lights, dynamat, etc Now the meet was suppose to start on Wednesday and go thru Saturday, but rain over the weekend threatened to end the whole meet. They watched the salt, it absorbed alot of water and started to dry out. The official word was the meet would start a day late on Thursday and go til Sunday. Sweet!, an extra day to get more stuff done. All day I would run around and get parts and supplies and all night I would install the parts I had aquired. Time was running out Thursday comes, still not ready. I figure I can leave later and do the meet Friday thru Sunday. Well, still not ready, so I figure it's more important to get it done and leave on Friday morning. By Thurday night at 4am, I realize it aint gonna happen. I don't have the front windows in or any of the side Lexan. The tranny cover/firewall piece isn't made, I don't have a air/fuel ratio guage and no boost guage. Without guages, no way to tune the engine properly and possibly hurt the motor. The 009 dist. wasn't locked out. Oh, and the problem of not having any money to get up there is another HUGE problem. I had a guy that was gonna buy a short block a week before I was suppose to leave. Money shouldn't be an issue. Well, he flaked out and left me scrambling to sell anything I could find to get some money for gas. Forget the race fees, it wasn't gonna happen. That's OK. I'm just gonna take the bus up there and cruise around the salt for two day and take awsome pics and video. Last minute, a buddy agrees to buy my trailer and paypals me enough money to cover gas and a little extra. I test drive the bus around the neighborhood and load it up. I don't leave til 2pm on Friday and don't get up to Wendover til about 10:30pm. I eat and look for other VW guys at the Peppermill and eventually head or the the bend-in-the-road to sleep in my SUV. I dont get to sleep til 2am, and get woke up at 6am with participants speeding by on the access road. I can't go back to sleep now, I might miss something. I get to the front of the line and ask for a two day pass, and the worker tells me they decided to end the event on Saturday!!! No Sunday, because there is not enough volunteers/workers to run the event. People have jobs to get back to by Monday morning. What a disappointment, I guess I get one day to absorbe the salt. So, I park the truck/trailer past the pits and unload the bus. I get my cameras and take off to start my event coverage. As I'm driving I notice a bus following me, I recognize the bus from last years pics. I pulled over and introduced myself. His name was Craig and had his wife with him. He asked me if I was racing and needed to go to tech. I told him it wasn't ready and I was just there to spectate. He said "just take it over there and see what they say" at least get some advice for next year. So we head back to tech and I ask the tech guys to critique the bus and what else I need to run. Well, after a little discussion, they allowed the bus to get past tech. I had a cage, fire extinguisher, 4 point harness, helmet, long pants/shirt, and registration and insurance. I just happened to bring all the stuff, just in case something stupid happened and I was able to run. Well, it all fell together, and I was about to go racing, or at leastast cruising. You got to remember, I just got this running a couple days before this, still didn't have the guages I wanted, no shocks, no firewall. So I wasn't gonna push it on a vehicle that hadn't been over 35mph yet. Not the way I wanted to do it, but who cares, I got the opportunity to run on the salt!!!! It really didn't matter how fast I was gonna go. Run #1 - Just a shakedown. I was nervous as hell. The salt is still a little moist, and it is loose on top. It's solid like concrete under the top layer, but the top is loose. So, I get her started, wait, and get the go ahead. I start off kinda slow and just accelarate gradually because it's easy to spin your tires if you hit it too hard. The piece of shit sandrail shifter wont engage properly and gives me grief. I run out through the .2 then the .5 and then the 1 mile mark and then coast to the end and make the return back to the timing shack.I was given the slip and said 68mph through the mile mark. It actually felt pretty solid and straight, but knowing you are on a loose surface makes you ass grap the seat as you go faster. As I get the timing shack, the tach starts jumping around and the bus craps out. I try to restart and nothing. Craig comes to rescue me and two me back to the pits. We diagnose the MSD box or timing retard box is not working, so we reroute the wiring, put a bosch blue coil in, change out the plugs and she starts back up. We are on our way back to the start line. Run #2 - I pull to the line, all of a sudden it starts running like it's on 3 cyls. I pull off the start and pull the valve cover. A pushrod had worked it's way out of the rocker adjuster cup. I figure I can fix it there if I had just a couple tools. So Craig and Justin bust out their limited tools and I make it work. Time is getting short. There is only an hour or so to run. I start it up and still alot of valve clatter. I figure the cam is going flat. It's the second time I've ran the valves and they keep getting loose. It's running, but not perfect. But your lust for speed overwrites your commen sense and I pull it up to the line again. I take off a little harder, grind some grears, and accelerate harder. I can definitely feel it's going much faster, but since we unhooked the MSD, I didn't have the tach working to tell how high it was reving. The previous 68mph run the motor was turning at 3200rpm, it was definitely going higher this time. My ass was puckering as it sped down the salt. Very cool and scary as hell. It felt like it could spin out at any moment. I get back to the timing shack and he gets me the slip....94mph!!! Super cool. Still only at maybe 3/4 throttle. Maybe 4200 to 4500 rpm (guess). Get back to the starting line and talk it over with the boys. They insist I have to go faster that 100mph, and I agree. I let her cool down for a few minutes. The course is going to close in about 45 mins. Run #3 - I start it up and the valve are really making alot of noise. It's not as responsive as before. The cam is wearing away I figure. So, I'm gonna have to split the motor anyway, so lets machine the cam all the way down. I get going pretty hard, but it won't rev as high as before, but it's still pushing the bus well. As I get past the .5 it feels OK and then about half way to the mile mark it just lays down. It's loses power like a motor that is overheating or running out of fuel. I just coast to the end and turn back and it runs OK on the return road but the valves are geting louder. The time slip only gives me an 86mph. No suprise and no 100mph for me. I got beat buy 3 differnt 36hp competitors !!!! Loser. It wasn't just the motor, it's also the pilot. I need to man up, and get this thing to where it feels stable at speed. Overall it was a great day. I got to run at the legenday Bonneville Speedway. I got three more runs than I thought I would get that day. I was surreal to be going down the salt. I will definiely be back. Better prepared, better looking, and higher speed. The first goal has always been the 130 mark. If we get that then to the 150 club and a run on the long course. Some day.... Just a side note. You too and run at Bonneville. On the 130 short course, you dont need to run 130 mph. You run your car as fast as it will go. You dont need a cage, flush windows, race motor, etc. You can take your car up there and run it too. You do need to have a coule things like a fire extinguisher, helmet, insurance/registration and a couple more things. It's very basic and ment to get people introduced to land speed racing. Look at the USFRA webiste and look at the rules for the 130mph club. It's a very short list. There was 7 VWs running at this meet, There should be many more. Make a plan to at least attend next year, but even better plan to run your VW. It's such a blast and so historical. Just do it. I have many pics at http://volksarama.smugmug.com/Land-Speed-Racing/World-of-Speed-2009/9705111_PgUTe#656001708_Fpz2F I have videos at http://www.youtube.com/user/Volksarama Please feel free share the pics and videos with all the forum boards you contribute to. Thanks, Derek
I wouldn't say off topic at all, since when is going as fast as you can at Bonneville off topic? those pictures of the VW out on the salt could have been taken decades ago. very cool. I've always respected anyone who runs out there. If you want to see something good, watch the national Geographic Science of Speed week. I think it's the one where Barry Bryant died. Been some debate on whether to have a lifeflight helicopter on standby, not a bad idea, Anyone with the balls to go that fast out there deserves every chance they can get to live after a wreck. The program was really really good.
"Just a side note. You too and run at Bonneville. On the 130 short course, you dont need to run 130 mph. You run your car as fast as it will go. You dont need a cage, flush windows, race motor, etc. You can take your car up there and run it too. You do need to have a coule things like a fire extinguisher, helmet, insurance/registration and a couple more things. It's very basic and ment to get people introduced to land speed racing." Now if thats not an impressive way to get others involved, I don't know what is! Try doing that in NASCAR, .... Makes me want to run my Saturn for kicks.
Sounds like a good time! For a lot of long hours. Hope some day, I will have the chance to run down the course.
Thanks for sharing your B'ville story. What a great time you must have had. And for those that think that your thread is improper, well in the words of the Old Philosopher, "Go ye into the woods and propagate thyself!"
I really appreciate you guys keeping the thread alive. I was an awsome experience and I really enjoy sharing it. Replacement parts have already been sent out by one of my sponsors and I assemble the motors myself, so the damage shouldn't be much more than a gasket kit, silicone, and my time. I have to try it have it rebuilt and running in 10 days for the Las Vegas VW Bug O Rama.
I Was out there for speed week in Aug. It was an incredible experiece and reccomend the trip once in your life if you are a true die hard car guy, I went with a great group of guys and would go again in a heartbeat. very cool VW.
Sounds like a damn good hot rod story to me. Good job and glad you got to give it a try and have fun. I dig those photos too, nice shots. Good luck getting back for next year!
Nice job, Derek. Sounds like you soaked up the spirit of the place and now you're doing the only right thing - passing it on... Good luck to you on your future runs! Scotty
Damn, and with an Honest-To-God Barndoor Bus, too... COOL !!!! Hey Derek, I still wear that Las Vegas VW Club T-shirt you gave me at the Hampton Inn the night before the Bug-O-Rama, the one with the 1/2 stocker motor, and the other 1/2 an IDA motor. By the way, this is Dave from (used to be) VW Trends and Hot VWs... Good story, buddy, I am going to make it a point to go next year with a guy in my town that runs A/FS, he ran a 337 on a 348 record this year.....
Hey Derek I am proud of you to have made it from an old timer VW fanatic keep up the good work. I have the 32 done as you can see from the picture to your left. You will have plenty more time to get the bus all dialed in. See Ya Frenchy Doctor Detail
Don`t forget, World Finals are coming up, and the BNI will let you run Time Only....Get some windows in that thing and get back to the Shop.....
Great to hear from you Dave and Frenchy. I can't wait to see the deuce in person. We'll see you in Vegas in a few days. Nice to see some of my old VW peeps. Some day I'll get some old American tin to chop up. See ya, D
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