NitrOlympX postponed. 30th April:
Displayed on the web site of Hockenheimring today are the following words: Einem eratztermin wird gesucht (A replacement date is sought). So Hockenheim is looking to find a new date for the NitrOlympX 2020. The web site of the track and the event, previously scheduled for 28th-30th August, states:
The Federal Government's decision published on 15th April states that no major events may be held in Germany until at least August 31, 2020. The respective federal states are responsible for the design of such a regulation. As soon as we have the ordinance of the state of Baden-Württemberg with all information and details, we will be able to get an exact picture of which events planned at the Hockenheimring are affected and must be canceled or rescheduled. This is a complex process that requires a high level of coordination with everyone involved. We will continue to go full throttle in order to be able to offer you as many racing events as possible in 2020 within a responsible framework. The health of every individual has top priority!
Stay tuned for further developments.
Rip Rap Racers Club announces Powernationals. 30th April:
Many thanks to Honorary Eurodragster.com member Spencer Tramm for confirming the on-line RRRC Powernationals will take place on Sunday 3rd May from 6pm:
Entry is now open and limited to 96, those that made round 3 are seeded into round 2 (starting at 7pm) however you must still list your name to show you want to be involved. Those that made the last 32 have been reserved spots but racers must post in the thread to enter, from today (Thursday) onwards any unreserved spots will be free for anyone to take. For full information go to Rip Rap Racers Club Facebook page, or our points page to see the current standings.
Spy picture. 30th April:
The latest spy picture to arrive at the offices of Eurodragster.com came without any caption but was located to the FB page of a multi championship winning team.
If you know more, or if you would like to send your own spy picture, then drop us a line at
editor@eurodragster.com.
BDRHoF US representatives active in the media. 30th April:
Many thanks to Eurodragster.com sponsor Geoff Stilwell supporting Nitro Revival for drawing our attention to a detailed and well researched article about the background to Bob Muravez’s racing life. Bob, an international ambassador of the British Drag Racing Hall of Fame, famously raced under the alias of Floyd Lippencotte Jr in the 1960s when he was a feared competitor in Top Gas Dragster. John P Glionna, writing for the SB Nation web site, documents Bob’s childhood and the difficult relationship with his father which led to Bob to adopt his nom-de-guerre, and what happened when this was uncovered. It is not an easy read emotionally, but it is an outstanding story.
On a different note but sometimes tinged with sadness is a series of presentations by BDRHoF 2017 Lucas Oil Global Achievement Award recipient Steve Gibbs filmed by daughter Cindy and posted on the Nitro Revival Group Facebook page. Steve is a great raconteur as those who met him at the BDRHoF Galas will remember. These videos are like a one-man bench race, coming as they do from someone with huge experience of running the sport in the NHRA.
European Top Fuel Challenge results located. 30th April:
Thanks to long time fan Chris Hobson for locating this table of pre FIA era points standings for Top Fuel (click for larger, legible version). They come from the European Top Fuel Challenge 1991 and 1995 which was promoted by Santa Pod owner Keith Bartlett. Chris says ‘These are not my calculations but from an older page that I can no longer find on-line’.
In the table, you can see the Scandinavian dominance of the category during this period, and the legendary names who competed in the.
A look through our own records confirmed that the page in question is Eurodrag.com which was live until 2009 and listed personal bests and pictures of European racers and was run by computer programmer and racing fan Erwin Raets. The site disappeared when Erwin passed the database to the successor site the European Drag Racing Database at www.drdb.eu, which happily is still fully active and a superb source of information. But we shouldn’t forget Erwin’s role in establishing such a database in the early days of the internet over 20 years ago.
Billy wins, Callum leads. 28th April:
Congratulations to Billy Everitt on winning the Sports Nationals, the latest round in the RRRC6 online racing series held on Sunday night. Billy was up against a field of 96 racers and defeated Santa Pod Raceway announcer Colin Theobald in the final, having previously defeated Robbie Grabham in his semi-final and Colin having defeated Craig Wright in his semi-final. Billy's car was a Plymouth Superbird, pictured to the left.
We are pleased to be able to host the championship points in association with OCS Paint. You can access the points by clicking here or going to the points link in the main menu. Callum Swinchatt remains as points leader over Joe Kellett, followed by Will Clark and Craig Wright.
For those wishing to compete at the following Sunday’s event there will be an entry thread Wednesday lunchtime. If you’re up for it, make sure you have the latest version installed and go to Rip Rap Racers Club Facebook page.
Markus Ek 2008 Veidec gallery. 28th April:
Many thanks to Markus Ek for kindly giving permission for us to post 140 of his photos taken at the 2008 Veidec Festival held at Mantorp Park in Sweden. This was a memorable event in many ways, Markus coming on board to help out Eurodragster.com and being part of the team working into the small hours to get the coverage completed.
The whole event was an absolute blast with a huge field and many track records set in the process. For more explanations, see our feature which as ever is supported by Lucas Oil Products. Our gallery of Markus's photos is here or via our Features, Interviews and Tributes page. (Pictured is Jan Gunnarson's Badillac Pro Modified which made its race debut at this event.
Swift snippets. 28th April:Kieran has posted another in his series of drag racing compilation videos to Youtube. Ford's model 100E has had a surge of popularity over the last couple of years with the formation of the Modified 100E group, and his latest shows many examples of the breed. Kieran says "LS Swapped & turbocharged 4-cylinder motors... this compilation dedicated to Ford's little 100e has it all! These are just some of the examples I've filmed over the last 8 years with all different levels of performance".You can see Kieran’s video at his Youtube channel.
Retired Editor and Race Reporter has asked us to wish former junior drag racer and friend Thaliah Gibb a very Happy Birthday for tomorrow (29th April). Have a lovely day Thaliah.
As we're sure was the case for many race fans, Easter was a very frustrating weekend for West Ten Motorsport. For starters, there was the cancellation of the Festival of Power, the season opener for our class - the European Funny Car Series. And the weather was also a little frustrating in that it was amazing! We all know that this is often not the case for this particular weekend. Who can remember snow and snowmen on the start-line a few years back?
Despite these unprecedented times, West Ten is not sitting still and doing our best to keep things moving on all fronts. Both Kevin and Shelley's cars are ready to run hard when the racing does get underway and Kevin is continuing with routine maintenance on the team machinery as much as he can during this lockdown period.
And it's not just in the workshop that progress has been made. We're also delighted to announce the release of our new West Ten Motorsport website - www.westtenmotorsport.com. This visually striking site brings you all the latest news from the West Ten camp, as well as driver profiles, video clips from the 2019 season and a brief history of the Funny Car. You can also get in touch with the team here and download our latest partner brochure to find out more about becoming a partner with Europe's only two-car Funny Car team.
Why not take a look and let us know what you think? We'd love to hear your feedback.
We'll do our best to keep you posted on any further developments with the team as they happen but until we can get back to the track, stay safe and we can't wait to go racing as soon as is safe to do so.
Robinson Race Cars on tour – part 3. 25th April:
Many thanks to our good friend Bob Roberts for part 3 in this series documenting the story of some of Eurodragster.com sponsor Robinson Race Cars' overseas racing trips.
This time on the team’s visit to Mantorp Park in Sweden for the 2007 Veidec Festival, Andy was top qualifier of 22 cars, setting a new track record in the process – thereby winning Tog a 50 Krona note. A close final saw Andy become runner-up to Micke Gullqvist.
Bob’s account tells the team’s behind the scenes story of the event with a gallery of 23 photos. You can read Part 3 of Robinson Race Cars on tour here or via our Features, Interviews and Tributes page.
Swift snippets. 25th April:The Mad Welshman has updated his Flickr gallery with two large albums of 425 pictures covering a variety of events from 2008 at Santa Pod Raceway and Shakespeare County Raceway. You can check out Mad’s shots at flickr.com.
Kieran has posted another in his series of drag racing compilation videos to Youtube. This time it is the turn of the Ford Cortina, with clips are filmed by Kieran from the past eight years at Santa Pod Raceway in the UK and Hal Far Raceway in Malta. Kieran says ‘The video includes runs from full-blown drag cars to modified street cars’. First up is the legendary John Woolfe Racing/Ampar Cortina of Steve Green. You can see Kieran’s video at his Youtube channel.
The latest video in Santa Pod Raceway’s#RacingThroughTime series is the 1989 World Finals. Liv Berstad failed to qualify but later ran the fastest time outside of North America, a 5.37/260. There was plenty of nitro action in Top Fuel, Funny Car, Top Alcohol, Pro Stock (the Nordic series at SPR for the very first time) and Pro Mod, so catch the action here.
A big Happy Birthday to our good friend and former supplier of our webcast streaming service Doyousee.me, Maikel Gloudemans, whose birthday it is today. Have a great day Maikel.
Feature: 1997 FIA European Finals. 23rd April:
In a new series of features presented in association with Lucas Oil Products, we look back on results of some of the races that took place prior to Eurodragster.com carrying live reports. The first race we are presenting comprehensive results for is the 1997 FIA European Finals. We are grateful to Andy Marrs of TSI Timers for sending us data, retired News Editor and Race Reporter Tog for supplying over 30 photos of the event, and to Santa Pod Raceway (then in the guise of Power Race Comminications) for allowing us to carry a scan of many pages of the event programme.
A few weeks earlier to this event, Kent Persson had become the first Top Fuel racer in Europe to record a four second time at the Hockenheim NitrOlympX. But it was Rico Anthes who took the second ever FIA TF Championship with a semi-final finish. In Top Alcohol (dragsters and funny cars combined but ,running heads-up). Peter Beck became champion by a margin of three points but the headlines were taken by Jarmo Roivas’ ET record and Leif Andreasson’s five second pass, the first by a methanol-fulled FC in Europe. In Pro Stock, Tomi Laine took the no.1 qualifier, the event, the record and the championship. The bike classes were yet to run as a FIM Championship series, however Brian Johnson won Top Fuel Bike.
If you would like a particular event covered that is not already in our event coverage, we have data going back to mid-1995. If you’ve official data before this, we would also be very pleased to hear from you. Please send your suggestions to news@eurodragster.com and keep the news coming.
Swift snippets. 23rd April:
Advance birthday greetings to honorary Eurodragster.com member Colin Roaf who celebrates his special day tomorrow (Friday). Have a great day Colin and see you at the track before too long.
Joe wins RRRC Supernationals. 21st April:
Congratulations to Joe Kellett for winning the RRRC Supernationals held on Sunday night. Joe achieved his win in a field of 96 racers by defeating Will Clark in the final and Jack Gooding in the semi final. In turn, Will had defeated series organiser Spencer Tramm in his semi-final. Joe’s car was a first generation AMC Javelin, pictured to the left.
Callum Swinchatt remains as points leader over Joe Kellett, followed by Will Clark and Craig Wright.
For those wishing to compete at the following Sunday’s event there will be an entry thread Wednesday lunchtime. If you’re up for it, make sure you have the latest version installed and go to Rip Rap Racers Club Facebook page.
We are pleased to be able to host the championship points in association with OCS Paint. You can access the points by clicking here or going to the points link in the main menu.
Expat review – Lex Joon Racing. 21st April:
Top Fuel Dragster racer Lex Joon started his racing career in the Netherlands in 1993 with a Top Methanol Funny Car, moved to the Kings of the Sport in 2004 and won the FIA championship in the following year. He raced in Europe until 2011 and then made the momentous decision to move permanently to the US and obtain citizenship. Planning the move took some time and it was not until October 2013 that he, wife Gerda and Cha Cha, the family ‘dogster’ shipped their possessions and Lex’s Top Fuel Dragster so they could settle again in Indianapolis.
Having found employment, Lex and Gerda rented a small race shop opposite Don Schumacher’s headquarters in Indianapolis. The car needed a new front half to be NHRA legal and the team’s parts inventory was built up. Then in 2018 Lex ran three races so he could re-licence, and so runs at the Texas Motorplex and Lucas Oil Raceway in Indianapolis helped in that process. The team then went to St. Louis (Gateway Motorsports Park) and Charlotte zMax Dragway. He didn’t qualify, but the team got used to tuning and running a TF car.
In 2019, Lex and the team had an expanded programme of eleven races which enabled Lex to finish 18th in the points and pick up an important round win against Leah Pritchett of Don Schumacher Racing at Bristol. By this stage Lex had signed sponsor deals enabling the expanded tour schedule. The initial deals were with Strutmasters.com (suspension parts manufacturer) and JLM Lubricants.
In December, Strutmasters.com extended the sponsorship to enable Lex to run multiple races during the 2020 NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series. Lex commented “With a total of four Top Fuel dragsters running under the Strutmasters banner we can expect a race within a race when it comes to bragging rights for the best performing car in 2020”.
In 2020, Lex and Gerda have added more sponsors to their increasing roster. In January, they announced CP-Carillo, manufacturer of pistons, rods and piston rings. Lex says “With the support of CP-Carrillo, along with our other amazing sponsors, we know that we will be a stronger contender for the upcoming NHRA season”.
The team has also been joined as supporters by Gates Poly Chain® belt, and Better Diesel™ FBC as its newest associate partners for the season. Lex Joon Racing will be adding Better Diesel™ FBC fuel borne catalyst treatment to the diesel tanks of their new Kenworth race hauler.
The latest additions to the sponsor roster for LJR are Red Line Synthetic Oil and Best of Texas Barbecue Sauce. Lex commented on Red Line Synthetic Oil: “It is critical we utilize superior oils and lubricants that can endure the extreme temperatures we see regularly as our cars produce 11,000 horsepower. Red Line products give us the confidence that our drivers will be able to perform at their full potential”.
Best of Texas Barbecue Sauce is owned by Funny Car racer John Hale. Lex says: “John’s enthusiasm for drag racing, his understanding of the sport, and his Best of Texas Barbecue Sauce are a perfectly balanced addition to our line-up of top notch sponsors”.
With such an array of sponsors, we look forward to seeing Lex in events in the East and Mid-West in the shortened NHRA season and will keep readers updated with his racing activities. It’s well worth visiting his web site at www.lexjoonracing.com which is full of images and is a model for attracting sponsor and fan interest.
Williams Bros reveal. 21st April:
Last night saw the reveal of the latest Williams Bros Racing creation live on Facebook. The superb candy apple red '55 Chevy, which was worked on as a part time project by dad Keith Williams with Eurodragster.com sponsor (through OCS Paint) Nic and brother Dan with their team, was shown on the William Bros Racing page and can be seen driving out of the garage.
Santa Pod Raceway commentator Colin Theobald presented the reveal to viewers with interviews with Nic, Dan and the car’s driver Keith Williams. The car has a 302ci small block Chevy engine with a FST carburettor and a dynoed power output of 540hp, designed to run in the 10-11s range. Thanks go to Jon Webster for the roll cage and Neil Melliard for the hand brushed lettering.
Tony Morris Carburetors launches. 21st April:Tony Morris has long been known in the UK and Europe as a drag racer and racing carburetor specialist. Now, after years of working for and alongside the best carburetor suppliers in the USA, he has decided it's time to branch out on his own.
The ex-pat Florida resident has been involved in motorsport since he was a toddler and has been actively drag racing for 41 years in the UK, Germany and the USA. Tony has gained immense knowledge and experience with leading companies like chassis builder Undercover Race Cars, noted carburetor supplier BLP, and by way of his thousands of hours logged in a variety of sportsman race cars.
Tony Morris Carburetors - TMC - can build and supply bespoke, fully adjustable, Holley style racing carburetors for all fuel types and for all classes of race car, offering the consistency and adjustability required of today's bracket racer. Upgrades, conversions, and refurbishment to your existing carburettor is offered as well, along with premium spare parts and components. Conversions are a cost effective alternative to brand new 'out of the box' carbs, and are calibrated to your vehicle's specific requirements rather than set up with a 'catch all' tune.
The good news for the UK and European racer, is that Tony has negotiated a UK based agent in the form of Dave Gibbons at Rough Diamond Racing. Tony and Dave have been close friends and worked with each other for over forty years. Dave has a lengthy reputation in drag racing and other UK motorsport disciplines as well.
Once fully established, TMC will offer an identical service inthe UK (and European) racer as they would get if they were located in the United States. Dave will assemble, convert and refurbish carburetors to Tony's exact specifications, and supply support and parts to keep them running the way they should, offering a more convenient Tony Morris Carburetorservice without the added cost, duties, shipping, and delay in timescale involved on orders direct from TMC in the USA.
Tony explained, "Dave has a reputation for meticulous preparation and attention to detail. I trust him to provide the same quality of work I would supply myself". Dave responded, "This collaboration makes perfect sense. Tony is at the top of the game when it comes to carbs, and there's a demand for his services in the UK and Europe. I have the capacity to carry out the work and supply that service 'remotely' with the technical experience coming directly from Tony". This means that customers can be assured that each quality carburetor will be assembled with the time and care as should be expected - not put together by an employee on minimum wage in a hurry to get on his lunch break!
Tony concluded, "The agreement for a UK base was made before the coronavirus crisis struck, which has clearly put a delay on the UK launch". However Tony and Dave appreciate that this might be a good time for racers to carry out maintenance, so have decided to offer a UK service (while shipping and courier services remain available) to carry out carb refresh and refurbishment with immediate effect. Conversions and upgrades will be available in the near future.
So if you're in the UK and you have a carburetor in need of a refresh, prices start at £215.00 including top quality US manufactured parts. Please contact Dave at TMC@roughdiamondracing.com who will be happy to oblige.
Swift snippets. 21st April:
If you can get a subscription or visit a newsagent during the lockdown, you need to buy the June/July edition of Custom Car magazine. Our good friend Keith Lee has an article on our now-retired Editor and Race Reporter Tog. In the article you can see pictures of Tog with his favourite cars, and find out about how Eurodragster.com started and how the advances in technology in the last 23 years have helped the web site expand.
In his latest update on Youtube, Kieran has posted a compilation of videos of the Taz Racing Fiat 126’s, some of drag racing’s shortest wheelbase creations that are likely to do a wheelstand by merely looking at them. Kieran’s other recent upload is dedicated to VW Golfs traversing the quarter mile with a variety of wheel driving configurations and power plants.
Aidan to Top Fuel. 18th April:
Thanks to Ant Hill Mob Dragracing Team's Aidan Heatley-Smith, former Top Alcohol Funny Car racer and son of Smax Smith, who has been in touch about his new ride:
After a long delay since the latest spy pic (Ed: posted on 3rd February in Swift snippets) we can finally unveil the news.
What do you do during a world wide pandemic? Buy a Top Fuel dragster!
Smax has purchased the ex Patrik Pers Top Fuel dragster from Sweden, after selling the Top Alcohol Funny Car to a guy in France. Our plan is to have Aidan license as soon as the tracks open again, and have a father vs son match race later in the year, but all plans are on hold right now due to the Covid-19!
We are currently getting the car race ready so we can go testing the second the track opens, and hope everyone is staying safe and healthy. Tune into our Facebook page for more updates!
Robinson Race Cars on tour – part 2. 18th April:
Many thanks to our good friend Bob Roberts for part 2 in this series documenting the story of some of Eurodragster.com sponsor Robinson Race Cars' overseas racing trips.
This time we focus on the team’s visit to Gardermoen for the 2006 Summer Nationals. There were 20 cars competing in Pro Modified and Andy qualified number one with a 6.266 in a field spread by 0.493 seconds. In the final, Andy was runner-up to Micke Gullqvist.
Bob’s account tells the team’s behind the scenes story of the event with a gallery of 39 photos. You can read Part 2 of Robinson Race Cars on tour here or via our Features, Interviews and Tributes page.
Twister’s Perfect new sponsor. 18th April:
Many thanks to Andy ‘Fadster’ Hadfield, sponsor of Eurodragster.com’s Perfect ET award in 2019 through Team Twister, for providing details of a new sponsor for his Supercharged Outlaws street-legal seven second altered:
Team Twister and Twister’s Sister are delighted to announce a new sponsor. What a boost for us during these sad and strange times.
Trackstuff Racing Fuels and Tyres and #renegaderacingfuels have very kindly agreed to sponsor both teams with all their products.
This is a massive deal for me personally. As a privateer, my racing budget has always been challenging and anytime I get the opportunity to get a great deal at discounted prices, I jump at it.
Thank you to Jeff Ludgate of Trackstuff for his support and faith in Team Twister.
Editor's note: We will have news on the Perfect ET award when the racing season gets under way, so stay tuned to Eurodragster.com for further details.
Swift snippets. 16th April:
Many thanks to honorary Eurodragster.com member Spencer Tramm for letting us know the Rip Rap Racers Club are racing again on Sunday with the RRRC Supernationals starting at 6pm. Spencer says "numbers are limited to 96, although we are filling up fast!" Spencer also thanks Eurodragster.com sponsor Peter Walters at Peter Walters Race Design for designing the club logo.
European coverage in the crowded U.S. drag racing media is always notable, and our former photo editor Roger Gorringe has supplied an article to Drag Racing Edge magazine describing European drag racing's reactions to the lockdown and its effects on racing activity. Eurodragster.com provided its viewpoint and you can read the article online here.
If you're wanting to join the community of drag racers acknowledging the fantastic work being done by key workers in these uncertain times, posting a picture of your car or bike at Drag Racers Saying Thank You is a way of making your gratitude known. You can also post a link to a charity which is helping those in need; two such charities are the amazing Tom's Walk For the NHS and the Imperial Health Charity.
The FHRA announced that all races until end of June 2020 are cancelled. This means that the 2020 Nitro Nationals, planned to take place on 25th-28th June, and which is not a part of the FIA and FIM-E drag racing championships, has also been cancelled.
The fate of the rest of the racing season will be reviewed on 17th June 2020 by the FHRA management team, and there will be separate announcement about further decisions after 17th June.
The FHRA have also produced the first two episodes of a series about the sport in Finland which goes under the title FHRA Power & Speed. Episode 1 looks at Stock/Super Stock and focuses on the Grönman Motorsport Factory Stock Mustang. Episode 2 looks at Pro Street and in particular Ossi Oikarinen's ’37 Chevrolet from the 7.60 indexed class. Although both programmes are in Finnish, they are well produced and we are hopeful of English subtitles being included in the future.
Robinson Race Cars on tour. 14th April:
Many thanks to our good friend Bob Roberts who has supplied photos and the story of Eurodragster.com sponsor Robinson Race Cars and their trip to Hockenheim for the 2005 NitrOlympX. In that year the competition in the Pro Modified division, as with Top Fuel Dragster, Top Methanol Funny Car and Super Modified, was on a Cannonball basis. The Sunday racing was completely rained off, however promoter Rico Anthes persuaded the Pro Mods to come out and do some burnouts and launches to entertain the fans that had come in the hope of some action. Andy and the team finished first in the event, running a 6.429/223.8mph in the process.
Bob’s account tells the behind the scenes story of the team’s weekend with a generous gallery of 40 photos. You can read Part 1 of Robinson Race Cars on tour in association with Lucas Oil Products here or via our Features, Interviews and Tributes page.
Swift snippets. 14th April:
Congratulations to Craig Wright for winning over a field of 95 other virtual drivers at the Rip Rap Racers Club Springnationals for the prize of a Bruce t-shirt courtesy of SPR announcer Colin Theobald. In the semi final, Craig (his roadster pictured) won against current points leader Callum Swinchatt. In the final Craig beat Joe Holland-Villa, who had in turn defeated Darrell Bennett in the other semi-final. Thanks are due to organiser and honorary Eurodragster.com member Spencer Tramm who says that there will be another event next Sunday. Potential entrants should head towards the RRRC Facebook page.
Drag racing historian Nick Pettitt has been uploading to Youtube more off-air recordings of now-historic drag racing events. His most recent batch comprises twelve events from 1994 to 1998 covering the European Top Fuel Association (1994-5) and FIA Championship (1996-8) at venues across Europe.
Swedes in Florida. 11th April:
Photojournalist and PR for the EDRS Lena Perés has been in touch with an account of her eventful trip to Florida with Swedish racing colleagues to see the foreshortened Gatornationals, one of the key NHRA races for attracting racers and fans from Europe:
In these troublesome times, we need to try to look for and appreciate some of the positive things, and here is a report from the other side of the Atlantic before everything started going on a lock-down.
It wasn't what we had planned for and it turned into an odd and remarkable experience. We, Helene Rapp, Eva-Karin Brinell, Anette Heleander and Lena Perés travelled to Gainesville, Florida, for attending and working at the third NHRA drag race of the season, the Amalie Motor Oil Gatornationals. Everyone was fired up for this race, teams as well as track crews together with a big audience from around the world. Though with only a few hours notice, the event was called for a postponement on Thursday, the first day of sportsman racing.
Everything was set for a fantastic race weekend with all the professional and sportsman teams on site when the news of the postponement was made public on Thursday morning. Many visitors from Europe were present and the people in our group were set up to work at the event.
"We got the message when we were on the way to the track on Thursday morning", says Annette Heleander who would have worked with the NHRA Safety Safari all weekend, "it felt like the wind got knocked out of us. We were of course very charged up for this weekend and had planned this trip for a long time".
On the Wednesday, all trailers were in place and the teams all set and ready to race, but on arriving Thursday morning, most professional category drivers had left the pits. Some teams remained and were noticeably dissatisfied with the situation. They would have liked to run event race in front of empty bleachers since they were already on site. Racers are a problem-solving species though and pretty soon many had found alternate activities such as going off on an air boat excursion or making for a family weekend with other pleasantries.
Good enough, we ran into a well-known Swede and two-time NHRA TAFC champion Jonnie Lindberg (pictured below) who had flown into Gainesville for the day to build a seat for nitro Funny Car ace Tim Wilkerson.
"A great job", said Jonnie, "too bad I don't have time to stay and hang out, I have far too much to do in the shop and have to travel home already tonight".
That’s a nice situation to be in, having the talent and the network in the racing business and we're happy for Jonnie in his success in his US venture.
Other well-known racers for Swedes are Bo Butner and his partner Randi Lyn Shipp (pictured below) who were also on site. Randi of course competing in Stock Eliminator and Pro Stock driver Bo who did a season in Europe a couple of years ago and did like it very much. We hope to see them both back in Europe in the future.
Though the postponement of parts of the event, there was racing on Thursday and Friday with the sportsman classes running in front of empty bleachers. We met up with Stig "StigO" Olsson (pictured below) from Sweden who's competing in a number of NHRA races with his front-engined dragster in Competition Eliminator. Unfortunately, Stig went out in the first elimination round against Randy Daniels at this event.
"So far, things haven't been going well at all," Stig says, "three events and not a single solid run so far. We have lost the settings window and have no good ideas as how to get back in there. Now we're packing up and are looking for flights back home to Sweden, which can be tricky as most departures to Europe are cancelled".
Stig and Bente made it home OK and can now plan for a season here in Sweden which we hope will not be too limited in its scope.
On the weekend before Gainesville, there was the now famous and inaugural Drag Illustrated World Doorslammer Nationals, a huge big dollar shoot-out race for Pro Stock and Pro Mod cars. It was contested at Orlando Speed World Dragway just a few miles east of Orlando. It made for very good racing and in retrospect it really made up big time for the disappointment of the loss of this years Gatornationals.
The idea of running a race like this was the brainchild of Drag Illustrated founder and editor Wes Buck together with Richard Freeman of Elite Motorsports and Orlando Speed World Dragway owner Ozzy Moya. After some fine tuning of the logistics and planning there was a great number of the world's quickest and fastest NHRA doorslammers in attendance. All of 18 Pro Stock and 33 Pro Modified teams were in place to shoot it out for $75,000 and $50,000, respectively. The track conditions were outstanding, resulting in the fastest NHRA-legal Pro Modified field in history. Justin Bond ran the quickest Pro Mod time ever with 5.623 seconds in qualifying. It made for a 16-car ladder with ETs between 5.623 for #1 Bond and 5.739(!) for Steve Matusek in the #16 spot.
With that event under our belts, our travel group got to experience a positive and historical drag race. Though in all this trip of course did not turn out as planned, we all got back home safe and sound. But we expect to come back sooner than later. Now, be safe out there! See you on a track somewhere soon!
Paul Castle. 11th April:
We were very sorry to hear of the death of former UK Supertwin racer Paul Castle. Born in Henley on Thames, Paul was a member of the Infantry Junior Leaders Battalion of the Grenadier Guards, and in later life lived in Eindhoven, Netherlands where he was an engine builder.
Paul was a supporter of drag racing and Eurodragster.com, setting up a web site and photo gallery in the early days of the internet and sending reports to us of his exploits. He took his Supertwin Fuel bike Grandpa’s Toy to various events in Holland, and even following the end of his racing career, could be seen firing it up at Drachten to make some noise for the fans.
Swift snippets. 11th April:
Belated congratulations to Santa Pod Raceway announcer Darryl Bradford and Kelly Juanita Bradford on their wedding to which took place just before the lockdown. Darryl’s announcing colleague Colin Theobald took the role of toastmaster - with aid of an inflatable mic. Best wishes to Darryl and Kelly for a long and happy marriage.
Santa Pod Raceway is running a series of video premieres on Youtube over the holiday weekend. The 2010 FIA Main Event premiered on Friday and the 2010 FIA Euro Finals will be divided between Saturday and Sunday. Each episode is over 50 minutes long and we have already seen pictures of TV sets outdoors with barbecues in an attempt to recreate the SPR strip atmosphere.
For those who fancy a leisurely read over the Easter weekend, we can recommend two series of articles posted to Facebook. Our good friends Nick Davies and Rob Loaring of Havoc AA/FA Fuel Altered Racing have posted a series entitled ‘Havoc – the History’.
Top Fuel Bike racer, constructor and engineer Phil Baimbridge has posted to the PBR Top Fuel Bike Facebook page a series of posts about the rationale and process associated with building the triple “The Rocket”, which Al Smith races.
Following our first race and subsequent news item we had a lot of interest from people who had downloaded the game and wanted to know if they could get in on the action so we decided to suspend our usual race setup and hold a big bracket race, our usual 16 suspects hoped we might get an additional 16 to race against, however it was clear that only an hour after Eurodragster.com’s news item we had 64 people entered. We decided to limit the field to 64 and then started taking names for alternates in case people didn’t show, and currently have 78 names down. Apologies to those that didn’t make it in this time but we are happy to announce it is our intention to hold the RRRC Springnationals on Sunday at 7pm, you can register your interest by going to our Facebook page and adding your Doorslammers 2 game username to our entry thread.
As for our first race, the RRRC Winternationals, we started with 64 people including drivers, riders, marshals, press and fans. The last two standing were ET Bike racer Jordan Kenway and Wild Bunch champion Callum Swinchatt (picture attached). A 0.038 reaction and two hundredths off the dial in 10.38 beat Jordan’s 0.083 light and six thousandths breakout. Thanks to all those that entered, showed interest and were watching the results being uploaded. A special mention must go to Colin Theobald who sponsored the race providing a Bruce t-shirt to the winner.
Santa Pod apparel. 10th April:
You may be missing the track action but you can still look the part in the comfort of your own home.
Santa Pod Raceway’s online Merchandise Shop is open as normal so head on over to www.SantaPodShop.com to get the lastest 2020 Championship range. All orders will be despatched on a weekly basis (no facility for collection) so this may take a little longer than usual but is well worth the wait!
Looking for a faster service for an Easter gift? Then why not send a loved one a Santa Pod eGift Card, that way they can spend it on what they love either on our Merchandise Shop or the Ticket Shop when Santa Pod can safely open again to the public. Gift cards do not have a expiration date so this is a perfect gift!
Just received the latest Santa Pod merchandise but cant go outsite to show it off? Then take a photo of yourself or someone you know in Santa Pod apparel (old or new) and post it on Santa Pod Raceway’s Facebook page. The photo with the most likes will be picked at the end of the month and they will receive a £10 eGift Card.
The range includes jackets, hoodies, fleeces, polo shirts, t-shirts and caps.
Swift Snippets. 10th April:
We have two birthdays today (10th April). Nitro Junkie Lizz McCarthy-Charman is hopefully taking time off, albeit not at the race track. Lizz tells us the traditional birthday muffins are on hold until racing starts again, but we join her in wishing Santa Pod commentator and very part-time racer Colin Theobald a very happy if rather more relaxed and quiet birthday than originally planned. Have a great day Lizz and Colin.
Drag racing historian Nick Pettitt has been working like a Trojan to upload more material for us all to enjoy. Latest uploads to Nick's Youtube channel comprise the 1991 and 1995 NitrOlympX, racing from Zandvoort in 1992, the 1994 Main Event (pictured) and 1994 World Finals from Santa Pod Raceway, a 1994 event from Dieppe in France and the 1995 Sko Uno drag festival from Mantorp Park.
There’s plenty for VW Beetle racing fans too, as Kieran has posted a VW Beetle compilation on his Mk1 Kieran Youtube channel. There is also a new compilation of Beetles on Simon Letkey’s VeeDubracing channel.
Easter story: It’s all about the dye. 10th April:
We are indebted to author and former executive with VP Racing Fuels Jim ‘JK’ Kelly who has supplied an exclusive extract from his entertaining autobiographical book Fuelin’ Around:
Dealing with customers, especially the rare one who felt he might have bought bad fuel was always interesting. I have mentioned before though, I always found humor was a good way to deflect tension and get people breathing again. One time this racer said he had some green C12 that didn’t make it through tech. We were closing up for the day and his sample was way on the other side of the track. I asked him if he would bring it by in the morning and we’d run a few tests on it.
That night, in addition to picking up more beer and munchies at a local grocery store, I picked up one of those little boxes of food dyes. The next morning I put some water in a new white plastic jug cap and dropped a bit of green food dye in to make it resemble green C12. Eventually the customer came by and I invited him into the nose of the trailer where I had set up my hydrometer kit, dielectric meter and a few other gizmos to make things look like we knew what we were doing. Actually, we did know how to check fuel in the field and would, once we had some fun with this guy.
With everything going on I managed to pour his sample into another new white jug cap and then pulled a switch. As an aside, jug caps used to be white plastic until someone at VP realized ultraviolet rays could get to the fuel and damage it so eventually even through that small lid opening and made the change to black. White jugs are the easiest to see through to check fuel levels but just like you can see through it so can the ultraviolet rays. Left out in the sunlight, the lead or other chemicals in race fuels can be knocked out of suspension by the rays and render the gas useless. I picked up the green water I had made and smelled it for a few seconds as if I was checking a ne wine. As the customer and my truck driver watched intently I then took a big swig of it. His face might not have changed expression and neither did mine but the driver turned away and went back to work so his laughter wouldn’t give it all away. I swished it around and down it went. “Yep, that’s C12.” I offered him a sip and he looked at me like I was crazy. Then I showed him the food dye, offered him a donut, and went about testing the sample he had brought me. It was off. We determined that one of his crew guys had used the same fuel jug to get pump gas for their generator and once good clean race fuel was pumped into the jug the good fuel became tainted with gasoline residue. Case closed. By the way, food dye can be fun for the whole family, just ask my kids. They grew up on my Saturday morning breakfasts of green French toast, blue scrambled eggs, red milk, and so on.
Working at VP wasn’t all fun and games though, there were annual calendar posters to produce and back then I was responsible for most of them. Typically, professionals know how to pose and pose and pose but one of the two best posters I did were a hit thanks to some props. For the 2010 calendar I filled a graduated cylinder with water and some green food dye and then the model held it up and gazed at it. Some thought it was a bit phallic while others saw it for what it was, just a really hot bikini-clad VP technician giving the fuel sample a visual examination.
Fuel companies use dyes to identify their products and this often helps at fuel check. Hmmm. I wonder if anyone’s ever played with dyes to get around technical scrutiny. Read more in Fuelin’ Around.
Angus MacPhail. 8th April:
We were very sorry to hear of the death of motorcycle engineer and drag racer Angus MacPhail. Angus or ‘Ag’ formed the McCoy Dynamics team in the 1970s with Mick Hand and Keith Parnell. Together the team set world records at Elvington and produced some of the most innovative machines ever seen in the drag bike ranks.
Keith Lee wrote in the citation for the McCoy Dynamics team’s induction into the British Drag Racing Hall of Fame: he was someone who is definitely able to think laterally. After a spell riding a miniature Ariel two-stroke, he built his version of a three wheeler, which featured the Triumph engine and gearbox positioned between the rider and passenger. He next built a novel Ford powered three wheeler, which featured the rider prone, in front of the engine. When three wheelers were banned from competition - due in no small part to the performance of Ag, he remodelled the bike as a two wheeler, with wide slick, to mutterings that it would never work. It did!
The McCoy machine was effectively a test bed for the unforgettable Jade Warrior, boasting a monocoque chassis, one-off 2 litre supercharged motor, torque converter transmission - and a very effective exhaust-driven ground effects system. Helped by Mick, this most unusual machine eventually broke into the seven second zone in 1985, running on straight methanol, which was a brilliant achievement.
In his eighties but still an ‘out of the box’ thinker, Angus made his own notable contribution to the Storm drag project - especially with the fairing design.
Team member Mick Hand wrote on Facebook in tribute:
With great sadness, I must inform you that Angus MacPhail passed away last night as a result of diabetes and coronavirus. Our sincere condolences go to his wife, Carol, his family and friends.
Angus, I am sure, will be remembered by many people for many things. For me, growing up around 1970s drag racing, Angus was the softly spoken boffin with the Scottish name but the London accent. The mad professor who didn't know what day it was, who would turn up at a race meeting at 4pm on the Sunday, hoping to get some runs in with "just a bit of nut and bolt work to do".
I remember the McCoy 3-wheeler (that got banned for being too fast). Jade Warrior, of course, possibly his zenith in motorsport, and one that now appears on any number of websites under the tagline "Look at this crazy Brit!", or something similar.
I remember him introducing exhaust-driven ground effect into drag racing, conceived with his brother Nick, and tried first on my father's bike, where it proceeded to pebble dash any unfortunate marshals standing behind with grit from the track surface.
But, most of all, I will remember listening intently to Angus rambling about the comparative strengths and attributes of various materials, for which he had an infectious and unending enthusiasm.
We will miss you, Angus. Like your bikes, you were one of a kind.
The picture is of the ‘Wild Thing’ three wheeler which was built to break the three wheel Land Speed Record – originally named McPhail's Nail. Angus made many of the engine internal parts and made virtually all of the gearbox. Details and pic courtesy Jon Spoard.
Update from Santa Pod Raceway. 7th April:
Trakbak Racing and Santa Pod Raceway CEO, Keith Bartlett, has issued the following statement:
Although many of you may have seen this statement on the Santa Pod web site I feel we also need to reach out to as many racers and fans as possible and have therefore also posted it below.
As a result of the Covid-19 virus and its impact upon the whole of the UK, outside events and sporting activities, it is with deep, deep regret that we are having to suspend all events at Santa Pod now until the end of May.
Motorsports UK (formerly MSA) alongside the FIA has already cancelled our FIA permit to hold the first round for the FIA European Drag Racing Championship on May the 22nd-25th but of course, we will be monitoring government regulations closely to see if they remain in force or if the lifting of restrictions comes into force before then. If event restrictions were to be lifted (which is most unlikely as we sit today) we would look to put on as big an event as we possibly can on the Main Event weekend (with Nitro cars) plus any other events sooner if at all possible!
All of the staff at Trakbak Racing and Santa Pod Raceway are devastated to cancel ONE event, let alone numerous consecutive events as far as May 31st.
On a more personal note, most people both racers and fans alike, know that I am a total Drag Racing junkie and the sport of Drag Racing is my life. It’s also my hobby, my passion and my sole business. Santa Pod today is a very successful business and one that I have built up to where it is today and of which I am very proud of. We employ many full time and seasonal staff all of whom I have had to lay off for a period of at least 6-8 weeks – that hurts me on a personal level greatly.
In the 24 years that I have owned Santa Pod, we have never cancelled any major event, or even medium sized event – yes, we may have had to postpone a couple of events to another date due extreme weather, but that is the exception not the norm.
I need not go into the huge losses that Santa Pod is incurring month on month currently. I also very much appreciate that all our racers, suppliers, spectators and fans are also going through exactly the same suffering – yes, we are in it together, but I know the that the drag racing fraternity is one big family and that in times of crisis always ‘steps up to the plate’. I hope that we count on all your support in these very difficult weeks and possibly months – and will see you all, racers and spectators alike returning to Santa Pod Raceway in force once we open our doors to the wonderful world of Drag Racing.
Santa Pod will come through this and will be fully operational at some date in the future and I sincerely hope that will be in the near future! Our drag racing family can then be back together where we all belong – at the race track!
For sure, some of our planned future improvements and development will now be delayed since those funds will be eaten up in surviving this crisis.
On a more positive and possibly interesting note, I am toying with the idea of some winter events in the period of 2020/2021. How does ‘Fuel & Fire’ sound? Or the ‘Winter Nationals’? All I will say right now is think about keeping ‘New Year’s Day’ free!
The Dark Side of the SPRC lyrics competition. 7th April:
Further to our announcement on 1st April, Santa Pod Racers Club Secretary Ian Marshall has confirmed the third judge for the lyric competition, none other than Nick Mason, all round petrol head and of course drummer with Pink Floyd. Nick who will be helping judge the best versions of the chosen songs. Nick joins fellow judges Ian Hart (pictured with Empire) and Joe Kellett.
A reminder of the competition rules: we have chosen four songs and what we would like you to do is come up with a set of lyrics, but in a Drag Race style, cars, bikes, engines, fuels, races and who knows what can be used, but please keep it for a family audience, so no sweary stuff.
The songs are as follows:
Cars Drive Eminem Lose Yourself (radio edit - there is a swear word in the original) Snow Patrol Chasing Cars Queen Bohemian Rhapsody
When you have the lyrics please email them to ir.marshall@btconnect.com by 14th April 2020, we will then compile a short list with the judges and post the list here on Eurodragster.com the final versions, for whom you will get the opportunity to vote for what you consider the best for each title.
Swift snippets. 7th April:
In our regular update of online video and photography there is no let-up in material being posted. Drag racing historian Nick Pettitt has placed links of his uploads to his Youtube channel at his excellent web site timetraveldvds.blogspot.com. Material is ordered by decade including uploads of the first eleven Time Travel DVDs. Recent uploads include the BBC report on Santa Pod in 1970 (which includes a great interview with Mike Collins), and footage from the 1977 September Internationals, 1992 NitrOlympX, 1993 Austrian action, 1994 Thunderball, 1994 and 1995 Summer Nationals, and the 1995 Cannonball (plus the NHRA Today footage of the first two CHRRs). These are all off-air recordings in excellent quality.
Kieran has posted three compilation videos in the last week on diesel drag racing, European FWD and Ford Fiesta. Kieran’s Youtube channel can be found here.
That’s why I’ve decided after talking to my secret weapon, I am going to put in £3,000 to the championship in memory of Tim Mugridge, £2,000 to the winner and £1,000 to the runner up we think is the right split. There will need to be at least three championship rounds to give everyone a fair chance. It’s a fantastic class and tough, man these guys and girls are good. I raced here about twenty years ago with a road going 105e, that’s where we started, and now I am the third British five second Pro Mod.
Watch this Ford Pop burnout in the rain to see how much fun you can have in a Pro ET car!
Pro ET and Super Pro ET Challenge is on. 6th April:
Race organiser and unfired photojournalist from Germany Markus Münch has been in touch about the Drag Race Union 2020 Pro ET and Super Pro ET Challenge (In English below):
Die Nennung für die 2020er Challenge ist seit dem 1.4.2020 geschlossen.
Pro ET Challenge 2020, 30 Teilnehmer und Teilnehmerinnen aus 5 Nationen (BRD, Österreich, Italien, Frankreich, England) haben genannt und wollen den Titel erringen.
Supro ET Challenge 2020, 23 hochkarätige Teams aus 6 Nationen (BRD, Österreich, England, Frankreich, Italien und der Schweiz) sind am Start.
Wir sind bereit, die Saison kann beginnen…. Wir sind der Aktuellen Lage (Covid 19) gewahr und es gibt aktuell bestimmt wichtigere Dinge als Dragracing. Wir sind ersteinmal auf Standby. Bleibt bitte gesund, alles Gute für eure Arbeitsplätze... auf dass wir uns bald wieder gesund im Fahrerlager treffen können.
Wenn klar ist, ob es 2020 einen Rennkalender gibt und wie dieser aussieht, werden wir schauen was mit den Challenges in diesem Jahr geschieht.
English:
The entry for the 2020 DRU Challenges is closed.
In Pro ET we have 30 entries from 5 countries (Germany, Austria, Italy, England and France). In Super Pro ET there are 23 entries from 6 countries (Switzerland, England, Germany, France, Austria and Italy).
We are set with strong fields and we are excited to run thouse 2020 challenges. We are also aware oft he current Covid 19 situation. There are more important things right now than Dragracing. So we are on a hold, we are on standby. Please stay save, we wish you the best of luck for your Jobs and hope to be with you on the racetracks again soon.
As and when it is clear if and what races are on in 2020, we will decide then what to do with the Challenges. Stay tuned.
Of course it was going to be pink! 6th April:
If you saw the spy picture on 15th February, the mystery can now be marked ‘solved’ as Jayne Kay has revealed her new machine, a turbocharged funny bike which will initially be competing in the ET Bike class:
Since we won’t be making our first official appearance next weekend we wanted to show you all the new look for the bike. It was painted in-house by my Dad! After a few hours spent on YouTube he mixed the perfect candy pink. Thanks to Steve Taylor at GB Refinishers for supplying the paint. We wanted a design similar to the original Pink Lady funny car with those Hot Wheels style flames, and I think we achieved the perfect look! The pink has a slight gold pearl that comes out in the sun, you’ll be able to see in person when we get out. We’re really chuffed with the look.
The bike is all ready to go, and we wouldn’t have got there without the help of a few people so shoutout to: Dave Branch for the engine machining, Dave Dunlop for the Turbo builds and Phil Crossley for machining parts. Another thanks to Jake Mechaell, Nick Shaggy Daniels, Kev Charman and Steve French for the advice and answered silly questions over the last few years!
We will be sharing some more pictures and updates on our Facebook page, so give us a follow if you’re not already!
Isky inducted into SEMA Hall of Fame. 3rd April:
Carl Winn of SEMA writes: When he was a young man racing his own cars, Ed Iskenderian — or as he was later nicknamed, “Camfather”—had trouble buying racing-grind camshafts. He didn’t like to wait for them. So, he said to himself, “I can make those….” And that was the start of Iskenderian Racing Cams, popularly known as “Isky Cams,” one of the largest specialty cam grinders in America. Here’s the Camfather talking about when he first fell in love with hot rodding.
Isky Cams developed the first high-density, chilled-iron lifters for Top Fuel dragsters, and was also responsible for the first anti-cam-walk kit for Chevy V8s and the first offset cam keys and bushings for adjusting cam timing. Iskenderian was part of the small group that created SEMA, and was its first president. One of the first official events they backed was the International Dragster Challenge organised by Sydney Allard in the UK during the same year of 1963. He also pioneered corporate sponsorship in motor sport in the 1950s.
Isky was memorably a special guest at the 2016 British Drag Racing Hall of Fame gala where he received a special trophy for his achievements and took part in the Beech Underwriting Bench Racing Session to the delight of all present.
Swift snippets. 3rd April:Santa Pod Raceway will be running a livestream of Pro Mod racing from the 2009 Main Event and Euro Finals starting at 5pm tonight. To see these videos, tune into their Facebook page or Youtube channel.
Also posting to Youtube is Kieranwho has created a European FWD Drag Racing Compilation. Kieran says "The European FWD Drag Racing scene continues to grow year after year with the cars getting quicker and quicker. I've been lucky enough to witness the last 3 times the European FWD record was reset and I've also seen some mega FWD cars that travel to Santa Pod from mainland Europe as well as on my travels to Malta".
Drag racing historian Nick Pettitt has uploaded to Youtube videos of the 1992 Main Event and Cannonball, with camera work by Ken Robbins, together with SPR marshal Tim Mudd's footage of the track in 1969.
Not strictly European, but nevertheless highly recommended is The Dork-O-Motive Podcast available on many podcast providers. Presented by NHRA announcer Brian Lohnes, this covers many legendary and crazy stories from the sport, including Captain Jack McClure's rocket-powered go-kart, Broadway Freddy DaName's Funny Car and mob career, the insane speed parts company Turbonique, and the last front engined Top Fueler to win an NHRA Wally.
During the current situation keeping the spirits of our racers, crew members and spectators, is key. Whilst there are some fantastic videos from Santa Pod and the great looking Doorslammer game featured on these very pages, we at the SPRC have been considering a further set of brain teasers.
The first is song lyrics. When we are all allowed back to the track, there is going to be one hell of a party atmosphere, when that will be we don’t know yet but hopefully soon, and as is the norm there will be bands playing at various venues around the track.
Let’s cut to the chase, we have chosen four songs and what we would like you to do is come up with a set of lyrics, but in a Drag Race style, cars, bikes, engines, fuels, races and who knows what can be used, but please keep it for a family audience, so no sweary stuff.
The songs are as follows:
Cars Drive Eminem Lose Yourself (radio edit - there is a swear word in the original) Snow Patrol Chasing Cars Queen Bohemian Rhapsody
Both Ian Hart (Empire) and Joe Kellett (Electric Screams, pictured above) have both put some ideas forward to give you just a taster, please bear in mind they had two days to come up with these, in their words they are okay, but I’m impressed at such short notice, their lyrics are below.
We will have three judges to adjudicate the winners, and there may well be more than one winner, the judges are Ian Hart (Empire), Nitro FM and one other who we are waiting on confirmation.
So see what you can come up with, as there are quite a few existing bands in the drag racing community and several budding bands that we know of, but you don’t need to be in a band or in any way connected to have a go. We are also looking into the possibility that one or more of the new songs are played by bands at the track, more news on that later.
When you have the lyrics please email them to ir.marshall@btconnect.com by the 14th April 2020, we will then compile a short list with the judges and post the list here on Eurodragster.com the final versions, for whom you will get the opportunity to vote for what you consider the best for each title.
Joe Kellett: The Cars - Drive
Who’s gonna enter first
Into full stage?
Who’s gonna make a move
Before it’s to late?
You must hold on
Knowing, the race is on
Who’s got the winning light
Today?
Who’s got the need for speed?
We’ll soon see...
The stands are on their feet!
It’s showtime...
Who’s gonna get the win?
It’s so tense...
The crowd is going wild!
It’s a PB...
You must hold on
Knowing, the race is on
Who’s got the winning light
Today?
As we close out the day
It’s come to this...
So Who’s got the goods to give For the finale?
You must hold on Knowing, the race is on
Who’s got the winning light
Today?
Oh, you must hold on
Knowing, the race is on
So who’s got the winning light
Today?
Ian Hart’s two sample sets of lyrics are :-
Snow Patrol Chasing Cars
We race it all
Everything
Side by side
We don’t need
Lots of laps
To prove who won
If I race here
If I drag race here
Would you race with me and just forget the world
Bring your car
Or your bike
To the strip
Take the lights
A quarter mile
You’ll get the bug
Would you race here
Would you drag race here
I’ll come race with you we’ll just forget the world
Forget about stress
Just enjoy happiness
Racing at Santa Pod there’s no time to be glum
Let’s waste time
Racing cars
Along the strip
You’ll make great friends
And have great times
I promise you
Would you race here
Would you drag race here
I’ll come race with you we’ll just forget the world
Forget about stress
Just enjoy happiness
Racing at Santa Pod there’s no time to be glum
All of the world
In all its variety
Is there with one aim in mind, to enjoy themselves
Doesn’t matter what car
What truck or what bike you race
Just know that the rules are that the quickest wins
Would you race here
Would you drag race here
I’ll come race with you we’ll just forget the world
Queen - Bohemian Rhapsody - Santa Podian Rhapsody:
Shall I build a flat head Ford?
Or maybe an SBC?
Built with some trick parts
To provide max velocity
Nothing comes cheap
The bills make you weep you’ll see
Now I’m a poor boy, But I need no sympathy
Because its really quick, really low
Very loud, never slow
Aiming for the win light, Nothing else can matter to me, To me.
Mama – just built a car
With lots of shiny things
H forged rods and beefed up springs
Mama – I had piles of cash
But now I’ve gone and thrown it all away.
Mama – Ooooh
I’m hugely overdrawn
If I don’t make some cash before tomorrow
Get a loan, get a loan, Because racing’s all that matters
Too late, I’ve spent it all
Its beans on toast for tea
No more decent meals for me
Hello everybody at Santa Pod
Gotta make it to the line and take the lights
Mama – ooooh
I don’t want to die
The scrutineers are checking each bolt and weld
I see a little topolino and a van
And a Pop and a rail and of course there’s a Camaro
Great big hemi Blower’s
Children powered by mowers, see
Do the burn out (do the burn out)
Do the burn out (do the burn out)
Do the burn out then we go
Magnifico-o-o-o-o
I’ve got a trans brake This should be easy
He’s got a trans brake but he lacks ability
This should be fun, bet he stalls on the line!
Here I come, creeping in, very very slow
Get in to STAGE and watch the tree lights glow (Into stage)
Get in and watch the tree lights glow (Into stage)
Get in and watch the tree lights glow (Into stage)
Watch the tree lights glow (Into stage)
Watch the tree lights glow (Into stage)
Am-ber Am-ber Am-ber Green
Oh mama mia mama mia mama mia this thing goes
I’ve scared myself there’s a massive lot of horsepower here, in here, in here
So you think its just straight lines and holding the wheel
So you think this whole drag racing thing lacks appeal
Oh baby, can’t explain this thing sanely
Just gotta get out, just gotta get out on the strip
Racing’s all that matters
Anyone can see
Racing’s all that matters
Racing’s all that matters to me
Any time the rain goes
No Fox given. 1st April:
2019 UK Sportsman ET Champion Daniel Holloway has written in about his new Fox body Mustang which he has acquired in order to be at the quicker end of the class:
Before I ended up buying the Fox body, I never had a particular want or desire to own one; I knew they existed of course and I knew they were a cracking platform for a drag car.
Having been involved in drag racing all my life, thanks to ex-Super Pro racer Dave Ward and my Dad Adrian who crewed for him, it was only a matter of time that once I passed my driving test I built up some funds to find a car of my own. September 2016, 21 years old, I'd just finished my apprenticeship and also became employed with what was then the Force India F1 Team (Aston Martin F1 from next year!) and I felt I was in a position to start drag racing myself. I was scrolling through eBay looking at cars I couldn't afford, and this Fox body mustang was for sale, well within budget, running and driving and already came with a Procharger on it.
So I went and had a look at it over in Wisbech, previous owner Kris is a great chap, very honest with what he felt it needed. Before he bought it he'd drive past it every day on the way to work where it was sat under a willow tree degrading by the day. He managed to pry it from the previous reluctant owner, who had bought the Procharger kit for it but hadn't fitted it yet. Kris then set about having any rust professionally repaired, of which there was little of, and repainted the complete underside and engine bay before putting back in the motor, gearbox etc.
It had a rebuilt stock 302ci engine along with Edelbrock Performer heads and 1.7 roller rockers, Edelbrock intake, bigger throttle body, bigger injectors, bigger Walbro In-Tank pump, equal length shorties, custom Magnaflow exhaust with axle dumps and...oh yeah...the Paxton Novi 2000 Procharger. It was running a completely stock C6 transmission with an off the shelf TCI street converter and a completely standard factory 8.8” rear. The car ran and drove, but had absolutely no engine management beyond the stock computer and an FMU to control what was a big increase in air from the Procharger, so was forever hunting at idle trying to keep rpm constant and massively overfuelling. It would also have been a quick way to blow the motor up with no control over the timing. Kris admitted to being out of his depth with the EFI and had lost motivation with the car. So I figured I'd be the one to get the project finished, onto the road and of course the drag strip as per my plan, so a deal was done and I collected the car a few weeks later.
Happy days I thought, it needs a small amount doing to it over winter and I'll be out next year (2017). Yeaaaa...no. As me and my Dad began going over the car and looking up online of various parts I'd need to ensure the car ran safely and reliably, it soon became apparent that it needed a lot of work and money thrown at it before it saw a drag strip. I wasn't going to be racing it the next year as planned. A few months went by, throughout which I had been in constant contact with Steve Hulett at Drag Radial Performance in Florida who lets say knows a thing or two, especially about these stock Ford computers my Fox body was running. In a nutshell he gave me a list of parts that I'd need if I was going to be running the car in an optimal state.
My Fox had 30lb injectors, I needed 60lb. The FMU? Put it in the bin. If I'm keeping the stock computer and harness, purchase a reputable piggyback of some description to plug into the stock ecu, buy a blow through MAF (Mass Air Flow) instead of the old draw through, and a blow off valve. Oh and you'll need to add an intercooler too ‘cause that Novi 2000 procharger is going to be producing a chunk of hot air and you don't want to be pumping it straight into the intake. Once you've done all that I can write you a base tune to get you up and running before taking it to the dyno. Blimey I thought! This was quite the step up to what I had in mind before I purchased the car.
I was in two minds for a while on whether to take Steve's advice or not, after all I didn't really know him, but he was recommended by a friend in the community so in the end I bit the bullet and set about buying all the parts he had recommended. I look back on this decision as I type this and think what a good choice I made. He talked me through step by step, all via email using descriptions and diagrams, in his freetime, to the point where when I wrote his base tune to the piggyback the car fired up on the key first time. There was no idle hunting, it wasn't overfuelling anymore, and the sound the blow off valve made was gnarly!
But of course all of these changes I had to make took time and more crucially funds to do, which ended up adding another year onto the build. This was mainly because I was doing some part time work on the side of my full time job involving Jaguar F-Type GT4 cars in British GT which meant my weekends where I'd be free to do all this work on the Fox was suddenly taken up. I did however manage to find time to get the factory 8.8 rear over to Hauser where it had fitted an Eaton Truetrac LSD, Ford Racing 3.73 gears and Moser 31 spline shafts along with the tubes welded to the main housing. A pretty billet Ford Racing diff cover and a lick of black paint completed the look.
Going back to Kris, who I bought the Mustang from, he also owned a wicked little black Chevy S10 SS pickup truck, you may know it. My Dad took a liking to the truck when we collected the Mustang but wasn't in a position to offer to buy it, should it be for sale. So roughly about a year on from getting the Fox I phoned Kris, asked if he still had the truck and whether he'd be interested in parting with it. Reluctantly he said he would but that it would cost me, so he named his price to which I said yes I'll have it! So with the Fox needing the work it did, and two events in 2018 not clashing with my British GT work, I entered Sportsman ET at both the Summer Nationals and National Finals with the truck.
It turns out all the years of crewing with Dave Ward in Pro ET and Super Pro ET had taught me something about the art of bracket racing, where I'd lose to eventual winner Ricky Hale in the semi finals at my first meeting in the summer, and go on to win the National Finals against a red-lighting Andy Dibley in the final (sorry Dibs!). My mind was made clear from that point, I'd continue adding the needed parts to the Fox, but I needed to enter the full season in 2019 with the truck. This meant sidelining my part time work, but it was something I was willing to do. The rest as they say is history!
September 2019, it'd just ticked over owning the Mustang for three years and it went to John Sleath for a dyno tune. It wasn't all smooth sailing, an unknown wiring fault meant all this time of ownership there was actually no TPS signal to the ECU, but fortunately John was able to sort it out. A few days went by and I hadn't heard anything, so assumed it was either going ok, it was sidelined and he'd had enough or worse! But low and behold a video comes through WhatsApp of the Fox doing a dyno pull, and what a great feeling that was for me and my Dad! It meant everything we'd added to the car over the last few years was working how it should have been. It sounded mega! John ended up having to turn it right down as it was making more boost than anticipated; those who know are aware of what these stock 5.0 blocks can be like! It's losing a wad of power through the big C6 box, but seeing as it's built for bracket racing it's irrelevant. It's still over 500hp which is enough for the engine and to be at the quick end of Sportsman ET; my initial goal when I first bought the car.
Lastly it was time to do something about the bodywork. It was 50 different shades of blue and had silver stripes. I'm the kind of person where sometimes less is more so I wanted to ditch the stripes and just go with a nice colour on its own so the car was at least presentable. It was the 2nd March 2020, Easter was just over a month away and I needed someone to paint the car in that time frame. Whilst nowhere near the closest to me, I made a phone call to Rich Walters and I just about managed to persuade him to agree to painting it, despite his busy schedule, but it needed to be delivered as soon as.
I was set on Kona Blue for a long time, which is a darker modern Mustang colour, but I became wary of it being a bit too dark. So in the end I went with a known stunner of a colour, Ford Sonic Blue Pearl, and I'm so glad I changed at the last minute as it came out awesome. Rich also turned the car around in less than two weeks from when I dropped it off to when I picked it up which is some good going. It was a bit disappointing but not unexpected when the Festival of Power was called off given the graft to get the car done in time!
Of course, it's now April 2020, three and a half years on from first getting the Fox and it's finally ready to race but it can't go anywhere due to a certain virus. Do want to say a big thank you to my Dad however, without whom it'd be another 3 years before the car was finished! Stay safe everyone and hope to see you all again at the Pod sooner rather than later!
Swift snippets. 1st April:
We have a special birthday greeting today to Steve Gibbs, organiser of Nitro Revival and former Board Member and Vice President – Competitions of the NHRA who reaches 80 today. Have a great day Steve.
Summit discounts. 1st April:
Remco Scheelings of Drag Racing Europe Blog writes: Summit Racing Equipment are one of the most loyal and dedicated supporters of European drag racing. The American company offer discount for all EDRS and FIA racers and their fans.
Summit Racing Equipment started their involvement in European drag racing with the support of multiple FIA European champion Jimmy Ålund. The next step was the contingency partnership with EDRS, followed by the series sponsorship of the Summit Racing EDRS Series. The world’s largest mail order automotive performance equipment company are also the title sponsor of the Summit Racing Equipment Internationals at Tierp Arena.
Summit Racing Equipment offer discount* for all EDRS and FIA racers and their fans.
The promo code is: EDRS
Offer: $ 25 off $ 250 or $ 50 off $ 500 – code will activate either tier
Valid until April 30th, 2020
* some exclusion apply, see website for details
Link to the discount: here.
The latest spy picture to arrive at the offices of Eurodragster.com came without any caption but was located to the FB page of a multi championship winning team.
Tony Morris has long been known in the UK and Europe as a drag racer and racing carburetor specialist. Now, after years of working for and alongside the best carburetor suppliers in the USA, he has decided it's time to branch out on his own.
Santa Pod Raceway’s online Merchandise Shop is open as normal so head on over to 
Honorary Eurodragster.com member Spencer Trammhas been in touch about a new event and Facebook group for Rip Rap Racers Club:
