1st Race of the Year

[pontiacgp]

We had a good day yesterday in our first race of the year in a new division, we qualified 4th and finished 2nd....the car finished with a few mechanical issues and the body only had a few battle scars so that makes my life alot easier.. 😀

 

[suffrn6]

Congrats on the good finish with a new car in a new division. Always nice to place well and not tear the car up in the process. That way there isn't a lot of bodywork to be done before the next race. I can see a stock car being about the same as owning an old Harley. Drive it on the weekend and work on it all week to drive it again the next weekend.

Chris

 

[pontiacgp]

Thanks, the yellow rookie stripe on the back bumper cover didn't even get rubbed off..mechanically all we have to do is figure out why the brakes faded and the hydraulic clutch developed a leak. For the body just spay bomb to touch up where the car got rubbed. It gives us more time to have a few beer and wings at the shop..

 

[billyjack]

Congratulations on a great opener!
Getting a new and completely different car sorted well enough to finish up front first time out is a hell of an accomplishment.
Going from a stock frame car to a ground-up race car chassis is a huge step, but it sounds like you have a good grasp on the setup.

Best wishes for a good season and keep it 'tween the fences!

Bill

 

[pontiacgp]

Thanks Bill, the owner of the car drove it a few years ago but it was never a contender as far as I know. The current driver drove a street stock at this track 6 years ago but the track had gone thru some changes. He had tested the car at the track but as you know that is alot different when other cars are on the track trying to take your spot. He was doing alight for his first race in the car until a caution came out, then he got his old rhythm back and he was turning good consistent laps, he actually pulling on the first place car the last few laps. The fist place car was the division champion last year so he was a great gauge to see how our car was doing in the later laps, that is as long as the first place car wasn't just pacing himself to the finish. By the lap times he wasn't taking a cruise so it looks like it could be a good year. I was concerned with this track cause you have 15 cars out there all with about 550 hp on a 1/4 mile oval so it doesn't give much room for error.

How is your year going?

 

[kornball426]

How much does it cost to build an engine for something like that, and how reliable are they will you get a whole season out of a build? And are they pretty run of the mill as far as the engines go, or do they get really exotic like SB2 and SB2.2 stuff? What's allowed done to the engine, are you allowed to run small 327 journals, or Honda size rod journals? Do they have to be stock 350 chevy bore and stroke or can you do a big bore short stroke like 400 pistons with a 327 crank, etc? I'm just curious. If you don't feel like explaining you could just link a PDF of the rule book. :lol:

I'm still wanting to build a dirt street stock... I think I'm going to buy a used car and just build my own motor... See how it goes then build my own chassis if I like it. I think it's cheaper to buy someone else's car who quit, or moved up to a modified/sportsman/late model. At least judging by what I see on racing junk as far as cars go.

 

[pontiacgp]

the engine in our car has about $15,000 in it. It's a Leitch built engine and it has a little over 550 hp and can rev up to 9000. It's the heads and valve train that costs $$$$ so it can rev that high without bending and breaking stuff. I can explain to the rules for their engines but I would just be repeating what's already in print. I also gave you a link to the engine builder. For dirt racing Bill is on the forum and he's got alot of experience on the dirt and I'm sure he wouldn't mind answering any questions you have. With the economy there are plenty of deals out there so you might want to have a look before you start building anything. Whatever you do good luck, have fun and let us know how it's working out. And if you have anymore questions about the car I work on let me know

http://www.lucasoilsportsmancup.com/ima ... engine.pdf

http://www.leitchperformanceengines.com ... eitch.html

 

[billyjack]

How is your year going?

Actually, we haven't even fired it up yet. The one local track we raced weekly for 16 years has been sold to DIRT Motorsports and it isn't the same anymore. Track prep is lacking, and purses are way behind costs. Another track in our area is running Sprints on a "specials" basis, about 5 shows/ season. It's close to home and payout is respectable, so we'll probably run regularly there. It's a big half mile with pretty high speeds. Last October we ran the season-ending show. I remember finishing 13th, with an lap speeds of 128 mph average. The winner turned a 142 mph best lap, so we were off the pace somewhat. It got real cold that night and the track was holding moisture all night, which caught us off guard in tire selection. Our years of running for points are behind us now. We're too old and too tired to keep up the pace and business responsibilities are more time-consuming than ever, so we've become "gentlemen racers", running every now and then when we feel like it. Even though it's impossible to stay competitive when you're not running a couple times a week, it has actually become fun once again. And it's a helluva lot easier on equipment than the years we ran 50-60 shows a year.

Bill

 

[pontiacgp]

Bill, I understand you completely. Although we are racing for points it's only a 15 race season so for me it's a vacation. We travel to different tracks for each race unlike the years before where we raced at least one nite a weekend all summer long. We opted out of that SS division when new owners came in and are slanting towards their buddies with built motors. We don't have a $8,000 budget for an engine and we wouldn't be competitive with the 602 crate we have so our SS is parked. They'll end up with the same 3 or 4 running at the front each week. We do have access to a late model and we may drop the 602 into that for a couple of invitationals. With the weight rule advantage running a 602 in a LM we may have a chance finishing in the top 5.